Piano
Teresa Yu
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Teresa Yu, Founder & Director of Amabile School of Music, enjoys her career as a musician, an educator, and a mother of two beautiful children. She and her family live in Orinda. Ms. Yu started playing the piano since she was 5 years old and never stopped. She had gone through rigorous musical training and program in Taiwan, Japan and throughout the US where she has won several competitions including first prize at the New England Piano Teachers Association, the San Francisco Young Pianists Competition, and the Berkeley Piano Club Competition, and the first prize in Mu Phi Epsilon Competition. Ms. Yu has performed the Bach Double Piano Concerto in Jordan Hall at the New England Conservatory of Music and Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1 at the Colorado College Summer Music Festival. As the winner of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Concerto Competition, she performed Saint-saëns Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Conservatory Orchestra. She was invited to perform the Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 with Symphony of the Redwoods and the Liszt Piano concerto No.1 with Redwood Symphony. She performed in many masterclasses that were conducted by world-famous artists such as Mstislav Rostropovich, Leon Fleisher, Richard Goode, Stephan Hough, Murray Perahia and more. She was invited to perform at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. as a part of the Conservatory Project. She also participated in Music@Menlo International Music Festival as a chamber music institute coach and the judge of Chopin Competition in San Francisco. Between 2010 to 2012, Ms. Yu toured Europe and America with her piano trio, The Aleron Trio, and gave numerous outstanding performances to people from all over the world. Previous teaching experiences including Notre Dome de Victoires, West Portal Lutheran, Old Mill School, and the Nueva School. Ms. Yu has earned her Master’s Degree in Piano Performance and the prestigious Artist Certificate in Chamber Music at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where she studied with Professor Paul Hersh.
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Ethan Lin
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Dr. Ethan Lin earned his Master of Music degree in Percussion Studies from New York University and Professional Studies Diploma degree from San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where he studied with the prestigious principal percussion of the San Francisco Symphony, Jack Van Geem. In 2015, Dr. Lin earned his doctoral degree in Percussion Performance from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he studied with Ricardo Flores and William Moersch. Specializing in marimba playing, his doctoral thesis is on the unique six-mallet marimba techniques in selected works.
Dr. Lin’s concerto experiences include Alfred Reed’s Concertino for Marimba and Ming-Shong Li’s Chinese Drum Concerto with the school orchestras in Taiwan (2005 and 2007). As a soloist, he has performed numerous recitals and has been active in orchestra and ensemble performances. Recently, he was invited to perform Steve Reich's marimba ensemble work, Six Marimbas, with the San Francisco Symphony members for celebrating the composer's 80th birthday at Davies Symphony Hall. Dr. Lin had participated in various music festivals, such as Nancy Zeltsman Marimba Festival (2010 & 2015), Keiko Abe Marimba Academy (2013), and SoundSCAPE (2014). In 2007, he won the first prize in the percussion category of Taiwan Music Competition. In addition to performing, Dr. Lin enjoys teaching as well. Having plenty of experience coaching percussion ensemble and teaching private lessons, Dr. Lin recently teaches percussion lessons and group class in the bay area. His teaching philosophy is to make music enjoyable to students at all times! His wish for his students is to not only gain musical knowledge but also to feel the joy and peace which music brings to them. |
Isabelle Wilson
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Ms. Isabelle Wilson is originally from Switzerland, where she obtained her Certificate of Piano in the Conservatory of Geneva with awards. Ms. Wilson also earned her Bachelor of Arts in Spanish language and History of Cinema. Ms. Wilson earned her Master of Music in Piano Performance with awards in distinguished achievement, under the direction of Dr. Victoria Neve and Dr. Roger Woodward. To further her study, she graduated with a second Master of Arts in Education in 2013. Isabelle speaks French, Spanish, and English.
Ms. Wilson has been teaching and accompanying in the bay area for many years. She was a teacher assistant for two years as part of the after-school program Music Team at the Elementary School Woodrow Wilson in Daily City. She is a regular accompanist for George Washington High School and Presidio Middle School. Ms. Wilson is passionate about teaching. She likes to build along with the student a solid rhythmic foundation, based on the Swiss educator Jaques Dalcroze’s principles. Each musical concept is taught thoroughly, based on the child’s comprehension and readiness. Each aspect has to be understood entirely before going to the next level. This educational structure is based on European pedagogues, such as Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi. Isabelle also believes in regular ear-training and rhythm exercises, in order to strengthen each student's musicianship. Her ultimate goal is to share her passion for music, as well as helping her students to become independent thinkers. |
Jenny Chui
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Jenny Han Yan Chui received her Bachelor of Music at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, focusing on pedagogy under Dr. Brian Thompson. She graduated from the Victoria College Belfast for Girls in Northern Ireland in 2014. In her third year of college, she has been an exchange student in San Diego State University, along with the Mr. Lai Seung Hung & Mrs. Lai Chan Pui Ngong Student Exchange Scholarships.She studied piano under Miss Andrew Gillian in Northern Ireland, Dr. Toni James in the United States and Miss Wong Mei Ling in Hong Kong. She also studied the cello with Miss Jamie Jim.Being an enthusiastic collaborative pianist, she has been actively accompanied in masterclass and performed in orchestras. She is currently completing her graduate studies at San Francisco Conservatoire of Music under Timothy Bach.
As a piano teacher and collaborative pianist, Jenny has worked with students of all ages and levels, and she believes in cultivating students’ interest in Classical Music and providing guidance for students should they wish to participate in musical performances. Her goal is to develop student's musical abilities and explore the music journey in a pleasant learning environment. |
Maryna Resnick
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Maryna Resnick studied piano for eight years at the Tchaikovsky School of Music in her native city of Kremenchuk, Ukraine. From there she went on to receive a degree in choir conducting from the Dniepropetrovsk Culture College, and later her bachelor's degree in theater event production with a children's focus from the Kharkov Culture College. She has worked with children all her life and has always had a special rapport with them. In her native city she worked as a music teacher and event organizer at a kindergarten, a middle school, and at the cultural center. For the last ten years she has taught piano to children and adults here in the United States both privately and at a private piano school in Berkeley. Maryna believes that music brings not only beauty but also patience and focus to young people's lives.
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Sophia Chen
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Sophia Chen is originally from Taiwan, where she started piano at the age of 3. She earned her Master's Degree in French horn performance from San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and Bachelor degree in both Piano and French Horn from Vanderbilt University. As a freelance musician in the Bay area, Sophia also teaches many piano students. She is currently teaching at West Portal Lutheran school as their piano teacher and has many private students.
As a piano teacher, Sophia has worked with students from the age of 3 to 12. She believes in cultivating students’ interest in music and providing all necessary knowledge to advance in piano playing. She likes to make her students’ learning environment fun while exploring students’ full potential in classical music. |
Shaina Pan
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Born in Yangzhou, China, Shaina Pan immigrated to the United States at age 5 and began taking violin lessons at age 7. Soon after, she began playing in local youth orchestras as a way to make friends. From there, she developed a love for orchestral playing that has stayed with her to this day. Currently based in San Francisco, Shaina is completing her graduate studies at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music with Ian Swensen. She holds a Performer Diploma in Solo Performance, a Bachelor of Music in Violin Performance, and a Bachelor of Arts in English (summa cum laude) from Indiana University.
Shaina has served as concertmaster and assistant concertmaster of the SFCM orchestras, as well as principal violin of the Atlantic Music Festival Orchestra. She has been a member of the Lucerne Festival Academy and the Aspen Music Festival and School, and is the recipient of an Emerging Artist Fellowship from the Mendocino Music Festival, as well as fellowships from the Contemporary Performance Institute at Wellesley College and the Atlantic Music Festival. Passionate about playing music by living composers, Shaina has premiered dozens of new chamber works and has worked with artists such as Kate Soper, Augusta Read Thomas, Ken Ueno, Terry Riley, and the Kronos Quartet, among others. She has performed with the IU New Music Ensemble, the Atlantic Music Festival Contemporary Ensemble, and the San Francisco Contemporary Music Players. In 2018, Shaina performed in Mexico City with the IU New Music Ensemble as part of the grand opening of the IU Mexico Gateway at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Shaina teaches students of all ages and levels and is trained in Mimi Zweig's String Pedagogy Method. She taught group violin classes and private lessons at the IU Jacobs School of Music String Academy, as well as Fairview Elementary School in Bloomington, Indiana. Her teaching method is tailored to each student’s individual technical needs, but above all, it prioritizes physical freedom and a positive, non-judgmental environment. |
Carolyn Tillstrom
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Carolyn Tillstrom is a Bay area musician and teacher. Originally from the suburbs outside of Philadelphia, Carolyn grew up playing piano, guitar, trumpet and tuba. She moved out west to pursue a Master’s Degree under the tutelage of Jeffrey Anderson at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music where she serves as the brass department graduate assistant. She hold’s a Bachelor’s Degree in performance and has won first place in the Mid Atlantic Brass Band festival solo competition. Carolyn has performed and taught with numerous youth organizations such as: Philadelphia Sinfonia, Philadelphia Sinfonia Player’s, Philadelphia Youth orchestra, Philadelphia Young Artists Orchestra, Rowan Youth orchestra, Bravo Brass and various brass quintets. She has taught group lessons and Master classes to all brass at various schools in the bay area.
Carolyn’s students usually range from age 4 to adult, and she encourages the skills of learning music to be adapted for all of children’s activities and for them to grow with an ability to use music to expand creativity. |
Christy Kim
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California-born flutist & pianist, Christy Kim, enjoys an active career as an educator, orchestral and chamber musician. Christy has over 15 years of training and background in piano. She has been trained as a pianist through the Music Teacher’s Association of California and completed the Certificate of Merit program. In 2008, she performed Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto in G Minor with the Thousand Oaks Philharmonic. She currently teaches piano and flute at the West Portal Lutheran School and Henderson Academy of Music. Her principal teacher is Ornela Ervin.
Between 2016-2018, she was a member of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, becoming the Flute Fellow in 2017-2018. She has performed with the Chicago Symphony and the St. Louis Symphony, joining them on their International Tour in 2017. She has performed alongside Yo-Yo Ma, and under conductors Esa-Pekka Salonen, Riccardo Muti, David Robertson, Han-na Chang, Christoph Eschenbach, and Leonard Slatkin. Her chamber music appearances include performing in the Kennedy Center’s Conservatory Project. Christy has spent summers at the Aspen Music Festival, Music Academy of the West, and National Repertory Orchestra. Future engagements for the 2018-2019 season include performing with the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Christy holds a Master’s Degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and received her Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Southern California. Christy’s principal flute teachers are Mark Sparks, Tim Day, Jim Walker, and Susan Greenber. Christy believes that freedom of expression is the ultimate goal of any musician. Students learn the mechanics of the instrument and fundamental building blocks of musicianship: scales, tonal exercises, and technical etudes in addition to theory, orchestral excerpts, and solo repertoire. In addition, she draws awareness to the physical demands of playing an instrument to help prevent injuries and ensure longevity in our musical journeys. Her ultimate goal is to instill a sense of curiosity and encourage a lifelong love for music. |
Maclean Pachkowski
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Cellist Maclean Pachkowski started playing the cello at the young age of 3, under the teaching of John Kadz at the Mount Royal Conservatory in Calgary Alberta Canada. Entering the Academy program for gifted young musicians, Mr. Pachkowski’s career as a cellist started with local recitals and performances in festivals. He also has passed the Grade 8 piano exam of RCM. Recently he has been awarded the top prize in the Canadian Music Competition for strings, performed as a soloist at numerous events including: The Feast of Sound and Song and Kiwanis stars of the festival. Mr. Pachkowski has been a provincial winner at the Alberta music festival and has been a guest CD recording artist with Kings Choir as well as playing on the soundtrack for the award winning documentary film “The Drop box.”
Venturing out into the Musical world as principal cellist of the Calgary Youth Orchestra, he has toured Germany, Austria, and Spain. Studying abroad, Maclean graduated from the EAMA music academy in Paris, where he studied alongside faculty from Julliard school of music and the Paris Conservatory. He currently studies at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under the instruction of Jennifer Culp. Praised for his sound and colorful interpretations, Mr. Pachkowski has attracted many with his playing. In his time off Maclean enjoys mountaineering with his dog, fly-fishing, and playing Hockey. |
Kai Lin
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Mr. Kai Lin served as adjunct professor and a piano accompanist for Department of Music at Elizabeth City State University, North Carolina, an adjunct teacher at Norfolk Academy, the Director of Music at the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Norfolk, Virginia, a piano teacher at St. Patrick Catholic School, piano accompanist and organist for Bellissima. A Women Choral in Tidewater area, Virginia. Mr. Lin studied in the Doctor of Musical Arts Program at the College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati, Ohio. He earned his Master of Music from the Ohio University School of Music in Athens, Ohio. He is a former lecturer in the Composition and Conducting Department and a piano accompanist in the Vocal Department of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music after he graduated. Kai Lin won the Excellent Education Prize for teaching in Shanghai Conservatory of Music. He received the Graduate Scholarship and Graduate Assistantships Awards from both Ohio University School of Music with national honors, and College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati. Mr. Kai Lin made his organ and piano début in Cincinnati, Ohio, 1996. The program includes J.S. Bach's Fugue in G Minor; L.V. Beethoven's Piano Sonata, Op. 31, No. 1; F. Chopin's Etude No. 12 “Revolutionary”; F. Liszt's Liebestraum No. 3 in A Flat Major; C. Franck's Prelude, Fugue and Variation, Op. 18; L. Vierne's Carillon de Westminster; C. M. Widor's Organ Symphony No. 5, Op. 42. Kai Lin's composition and performance repertoire is extensive. His music compositions and recordings are published in USA and China. Kai's piano compositions have been very warmly received at numerous piano recitals. |
Breanna Miller
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Mezzo Soprano & Pianist Breanna Miller is a current Graduate student at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music under the tutelage of world renowned Mezzo Soprano Susanne Mentzer. From Halifax, Nova Scotia, Breanna completed her Undergraduate studies at Dalhousie University, under the instruction of pedagogue Lucy Hayes-Davis, in 2014. Upon completion of her undergraduate degree, she operated a voice, piano, and musical theatre program at Maritime Dance Academy for several years. All participating students placed within the top 2-12% of the Royal Conservatory of Music Examinations, and many had placed in the Kiwanis Music Festival.
Additionally, she was the music director and co-director of “Seussical the Musical”. Breanna has a passion for educating children and teenagers of all ages and believes in the importance of communicating emotion, and understanding music theory for all musicians. She believes community is a vital part of making music and has a passion for chamber and contemporary music. She is also a scholarship recipient of Nova Scotia Talent Trust (‘17, ‘18) and the Portia White Award (‘18). Breanna’s most recent performance includes Irene in Handel’s Tamerlano with the San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Baroque Ensemble, under the direction of Corey Jamason. She previously performed the roles of La Principessa (Suor Angelica), Prince Charmant (Cendrillon), Marcellina (Le Nozze di Figaro), Nutrice (L’incoronazione di Poppea), and Second Witch (Dido and Aeneas). She has also been the alto soloist for Mahler’s Third Symphony and Handel’s Messiah. |
Brennan Stokes
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Brennan Stokes is currently earning his Master’s Degree in Music Composition at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in the studio of David Garner. He graduated with a B.M. in Piano Performance from Pacific Union College in 2013, where he studied piano with Dr. Lynn Wheeler, voice with Bruce Rasmussen, and composition with Asher Raboy.
Brennan is excited to spread his passion for music with those who wish to explore their artistic potential and believes that everyone is capable, and should find some way, of expressing themselves creatively. |
Vivien Kong
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Pianist and oboist Vivien Kong received her Master’s Degree from the San Francisco
Conservatory of Music, and her Bachelor’s Degree from the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music with the Ihnatowycz Emerging Artist Award. Originally from Toronto, Canada, Vivien has over twenty years of piano performance experience and nine years of orchestral experience playing the oboe. She teaches one-on-one lessons and group classes to children and adults from beginner to advanced level. She also teaches RCM and ABRSM examination materials. She speaks fluent Mandarin and English, and can teach in both languages. Vivien has a strong passion for teaching. She believes music helps children be more intuned with their thoughts and emotions, as well as broadening their minds, giving them a creative outlet to be themselves. Vivien deeply values each individual's unique learning style, and always develops a personalized way of teaching that best suits their strengths and weaknesses. It is her priority to make each student feel special, valued and encouraged. Vivien is driven to inspire her students to explore and appreciate the beauty of music, and to help them create their own. |
Sungmin Lee
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Sungmin Lee is a classical guitarist from South Korea who is currently based in San Francisco, California. He started piano training when he was four years old and his passion for music grew at a young age of 12, when he grew interest in finger style guitar. Sungmin then discovered his love for classical music, sparking his interest in studying classical guitar.
Sungmin has received several prizes and wide recognitions in competitions during his guitar career—highlights include the Great Lakes Guitar Festival, Eastman Guitar Concerto Competition, Lone Star Guitar Festival and SF Bay Classical Guitar Competition. He has also performed in several reputable master classes with Jorge Caballero, Carlos Barbosa Lima, Manuel Barrueco, and Matthew McAllister. A graduate of the Eastman School of Music, Sungmin received his Bachelor of Music in Guitar Performance in addition to the Performer’s Certificate. By May 2020, he will receive his Master of Music degree at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. At SFCM, his primary teacher is Judicaël Perroy and prior teachers include Nicholas Goluses, Thomas Viloteau, and Leighann Narum. |
Gaga Won
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Gaga Won was born in South Korea. Started piano at age 8, she moved to violin as her primary instrument at age 10. As a violinist, Gaga has a warm, full sound and fearless playing that unleashes the expressive qualities of music. Moving to the United States when she was 12, she studied violin with Jose Delgado in Michigan and with Carla Trynchuk at Andrews University. She was the Full Emerson Scholarship Recipient in 2010 and 2011 at the Interlochen Arts Summer Festival and was also a finalist in the concerto competition at the Interlochen festival. She was the assistant principal in the World Youth Symphony Orchestra. She attended Interlochen with a Merit Scholarship from 2010-2012 and was Concertmistress in IAA (Interlochen Arts Academy Orchestra) under conductor Jung Ho Park. She studied undergrad in San Francisco Conservatory of Music with Wei He, receiving the Sergei Barsukov Scholarship for violin in 2015.
Most recently, she studied with Hyo Kang at Yale School of Music (class of 2018), where she also served as a Teaching Artist. She did master classes with Bill Vander Sloot, Time for Three, Paul Kantor, Catalyst Quartet, and Annie Chalex Boyle. Gaga also loves to play in Art Exhibitions, she performed at the third Annual high school visual Art touring exhibition and Harry Ahn’s Painting Exhibition. Internationally, she performed at the Castle in Courmayeur, Italy in 2015; recently performed with her previous teacher, Wei He at LiShui Theater in China. |
Dan Chang
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Dan Chang started playing cello at the age of 9, under the teaching of Rebecca Sjogren at a local music studio. He played piano a few years prior to the cello. Dan has a hidden talent that he was born with called, perfect pitch. His first performance was playing in a school talent show when he was in Grade 4. In 2006, Dan began studying with Alexander Badalov, whom he studied with for over 8 years. His career continued to grow as he played in group recitals, festivals and high school orchestra.
When Dan was in college, he studied cello at Sonoma State and UC Santa Cruz. His teachers included, Judiyaba, Saeunn Thorsteindottir and Vanessa Ruotolo. Dan played in orchestras, chamber music groups and opera productions. In 2016 at UCSC, Dan auditioned for the concerto competition with Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations on a Main Theme. Dan graduated from UC Santa Cruz in 2017 with a B.M. in Music Performance in cello and with a cum laude honors. Dan continues his music career today by performing in multiple orchestras including Oakland Civic Orchestra, Berkeley Community Chorus & Orchestra, Solano Symphony Orchestra. Dan is also a freelance musician which he performs in theater productions, chamber music groups, private events and weddings. When Dan is not performing music, he likes to spend time cooking, riding his bike, hanging out with family. |
Tiffany Pan
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A Bay Area native, Tiffany Pan began taking private piano lessons in San Francisco at the age of
7 and gradually progressed through the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music exams through grade 8. She then completed her Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences at the University of California, Davis and obtained her Master of Science in Immunology from King’s College London. After building a career as a scientist, she is currently determined to develop her piano training by pursuing the DipABRSM certificate in piano performance. Along with developing her own piano knowledge, she is passionate about teaching beginners and other hobbyists in a supportive learning environment. From recitals to exam performances, she believes playing the piano offers a healthy balance of structure and creativity that benefits all ages. On her time off, Tiffany enjoys horseback riding, playing tennis, and walking her dog. |