2025 Piano Pedagogy Summer Institute

Steinway & Sons Princeton is excited to sponsor a piano pedagogy program that will benefit piano teachers at all levels of experience and education. The lecturers in this Institute include award winning teachers, University professors and highly respected independent piano teachers who have years of experience and a wealth of information to share. Our veteran teachers as well as those just beginning their journey into teaching will find the topics interesting and stimulating. We also welcome college students who are interested in pursuing a career in teaching piano.

EARLY BIRD discount NOW -> Sign up two-day program to get total of $50 off by June 15!

Bring a friend/student discount -> Sign up for you and your friend/student to receive a total of $30 off discount NOW!

• To receive the discount code information please contact: YXlhbmcgfCBzdGVpbndheSAhIGNvbQ==

• Tuesday, July 15, 2025

9:00-9:30 Welcome – Ingrid Clarfield

9:15-10:15 Ingrid Clarfield

10:15-10:30 BREAK

10:30-11:30 Marvin Blickenstaff

11:30-12:00 Open Forum Q & A

12:00-1:00 LUNCH

1:00-2:15 Chiu-Ling Lin (Moderator), Patricia Blanchard, Ena Barton

2:15-2:30 BREAK

2:30-3:30 Nancy Modell

3:30-3:45 BREAK

3:45-4:45 Phyllis Lehrer

4:45- 5:30 Open Forum Q& A

• Wednesday, July 16, 2025

9:00-9:30 Welcome – Chiu-Ling Lin

9:15-10:15 Chiu-Ling Lin

10:15-10:30 BREAK

10:30- 11:30 Ena Barton

11:30-12:00 Open Forum Q& A

12:00-1:00 LUNCH

1:00-2:30 Ingrid Clarfield

2:30-2:45 BREAK

2:45-4:00 Todd Simmons (Moderator), Rosemary Boone, Chiu-Tze Lin

4:00-4:30 Open Forum Q& A

Ingrid Clarfield

Professor of Piano Emerita at Westminster Choir College of Rider University is a is a nationally recognized performer, teacher, lecturer and author. She has presented workshops, lecture-recitals, and master classes in over 175 cities in 40 states across North America, including State and National MTNA Conferences, NCKP, and other prestigious conferences and festivals. Professor Clarfield has written 29 books and is the subject of a documentary entitled: Take a Bow: the Ingrid Clarfield Story.

In 2006, Professor Clarfield was named MTNA Foundation Fellow and in 2009 was the 1st recipient of the NJMTA Teacher of the Year award. In 2012, she was awarded the prestigious MTNA Teacher of the Year and in 2015 she received the NCKP Lifetime Achievement Award. She received the first Jacobs Music Steinway Al C. Rinaldi Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017. In 2018, the Music Educators Association of NJ awarded her their Lifetime Achievement Award. Professor Clarfield was inducted into the first Steinway and Sons Teachers Hall of Fame in 2019. In 2024 she was the recipient of the MTNA Distinguished Service Award.

Clarfield maintains a private studio where her pre-college students have won hundreds of awards in state, national, and international competitions resulting in performances in such venues as Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Weill Recital Hall, Kennedy Center, Merkin Concert Hall, and Steinway Hall. Most significant to Professor Clarfield is her students’ involvement in community outreach concerts raising money for charities benefitting children and performing for nursing homes and other adult facilities.

Phyllis Lehrer

Phyllis Alpert Lehrer is known internationally as a teacher, performer, clinician, author, and adjudicator. She has given master classes, workshops and enjoyed an active concert career as a soloist and collaborative artist in the United States, Canada, Central and South America, Asia, and Europe. Ms. Lehrer is Professor Emerita of Piano at Westminster Choir College and continues to serve on the faculty of Westminster Conservatory. Her collaboration of over thirty-five years with duo piano partner, Ena Bronstein Barton, includes two CD’s featuring duets of Mozart, Schubert, and Debussy, and two-piano works of Laurie Altman, Mozart, Schumann, and Rachmaninoff. Recent publications include five volumes of the great piano repertoire, Classics for the Developing Pianist, co-edited with Ingrid Clarfield, along with accompanying study guides. She co-edited 10 volumes of piano repertoire and an album of Debussy works with Paul Sheftel. An additional five volumes, entitled Personal Trainer and devoted to keyboard theory, sight playing, technique, and repertoire with midi accompaniments, are also co-authored with Paul Sheftel. Ms. Lehrer received a BA with music concentration from the University of Rochester and Eastman School of Music and an MS in piano from the Juilliard School of Music. Honors include becoming a MTNA Foundation Fellow in 2007, NJMTA Teacher of the Year for 2012-2013, the Westminster Merit Award from the Westminster Alumni Association in 2019, and the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy/Frances Clark Center Lifetime Achievement Award for outstanding dedication to the field of music and piano teaching in July 2021.

Chiu-Ling Lin

Chiu-Ling Lin is an internationally renowned pianist, educator and former Artistic Ambassador for Peru, Argentina and Brazil. In October of 2019, she was inducted into the Steinway Teachers Hall of Fame, the first time such honors were given to teachers by the Steinway & Sons Piano Company.

Dr. Lin had more than 30 years of college teaching from Indiana Univ. at South Bend, Drake University where she is Prof. Emerita of Piano and currently teaches Graduate Piano Pedagogy at Rutgers Univ. Mason Gross of Musical Arts.

As an educator, she has prepared scores of students to professional careers in college positions, independent teachers, opera coaches and professional accompanists. She is also in great demand for workshop presentations for piano teachers as well as master classes locally, nationally and internationally. Her workshop topics encompasses a great variety of topic.

She is Bravura Philharmonic’s Chamber Music Director and chamber music coach for the Bravura Youth Orchestra which has led groups to top international awards. She contributed to Keyboard Companion Magazine and records for the FJH Company. She is past president of the New Jersey Music Teachers Association, the recipient of the 2014 Foundation Fellow, 2015 NJMTA Teacher of the Year, Service Award and currently serves NJMTA Board as Vice President of Student Activities.

Ena Barton

Born in Santiago, Chile, pianist Ena Bronstein Barton began her performing career in her native country. After graduating from Escuela Moderna de Música, and Universidad de Chile and winning a national piano competition she traveled to New York to study with Claudio Arrau and Rafael de Silva. Her New York debut at Town Hall was received with critical acclaim. Since then, Ms. Barton’s career had taken her across the United States, back to South America, to Europe, the Near and Far East, Australia and New Zealand.

Among her engagements abroad she has performed as soloist with orchestras in Jerusalem, Luxembourg, Rome, Santiago de Chile and Lima, Peru. In the Spring of 2003 she gave a recital and master class as part of the centennial celebration of Claudio Arrau’s birthday, held in New York City. Ms. Barton has received many honors throughout her career, including an invitation to attend the Casals Festival, a Martha Baird Rockefeller Grant that resulted in a solo recital at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, and the Distinguished Artists Piano Award by Artists International. Her chamber music performances have included appearances with violinist Jaime Laredo and the Guarneri Quartet.

Her piano partnership with pianist Phyllis Alpert Lehrer spans over 35 years. The Barton - Lehrer Duo has performed extensively throughout the United States. Among others, they performed at the Music Teachers 2010 National Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico and at the 2016 MTNA Conference, where they presented a program of piano duets in connection with their newly released CD titled “Drama and Dialogue”. Ena Barton has been a teacher all her life. She taught at California State University at Fresno for 13 years. She was artist-in-residence at Monterey Peninsula College in California and has conducted master classes at the University of Veracruz in Xalapa, Mexico, Santiago de Chile Curitiba, Brazil and Lima, Peru.

She was a member of the piano faculty of Westminster College of the Arts of Rider University from 1983 until 2018 and has been part of Westminster Conservatory since 1982, where she is on the faculty and where she served as Piano Department Head for over thirty years.

Marvin Blickerstaff

Marvin Blickenstaff is known among piano teachers throughout the country for his publications, lecturing, masterclasses, and performances. He received performance and academic honors at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music (B.M.) and Indiana University (M.M) and studied at the Frankfurt (Germany) Hochschule für Musik. He was named a Fellow of the Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto) and received the Music Teachers National Association's highest honor, the Achievement Award. In both Indiana and Pennsylvania he has been named Teacher of the Year. Blickenstaff lives in the greater Philadelphia area where he teaches in his home studio and at The New School for Music Study in Princeton.

Patricia Blanchard

Patricia Blanchard has been teaching piano and directing choirs for more than four decades, working with musicians of all ages and proficiency levels. She is a graduate of Appalachian Bible College in Beckley, West Virginia, where she studied piano pedagogy with Sarah Shook and choral directing with Samuel Hui. She has done additional studies in piano pedagogy with Ingrid Jacobson Clarfield and choral conducting with Heather Buchanan in summer programs at Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey. She has also completed 30 hours in elementary education at Augusta University in Augusta, Georgia.

In addition, Mrs. Blanchard is a certified Musikgarten instructor, teaching seasonal classes to children, ages four through six. Music Mind Games, Dalcroze Eurhythmics and her own musical games keep her students actively participating in the joy of music making at her studio in Park Hall, Maryland. She is an active member of MTNA, MSMTA, MTACC, MTASM, the Royal Conservatory Music Certificate Program, and Choristers Guild. She is also a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music. Mrs. Blanchard is a participant in the Musiclink Foundation, an organization which links promising children in need with qualified music teachers willing to teach them for free or reduced rates.

Rosemary Boone

Dr. Rosemary Boone received her undergraduate degree from Westminster Choir College in Music Education with a voice principal. She went on to teach in public schools in Connecticut K-12. She holds a Masters Degree in Music Education from the University of Hartford, Hartt School of Music. After leaving the public schools she started the Rosemary Boone School of Music LLC teaching piano and voice lessons privately. Rosemary has grown her studio to include three additional teachers. She has taught music at Norwalk and Gateway Community Colleges as well as presented seminars on teaching music at the University of Bridgeport. She has directed church choirs and was the Director of Childrens’ Music at Norfield Congregational Church in Weston, CT. She attained her Doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Bridgeport. Rosemary is the cochair of the Westminster Alumni Gathering which organizes the annual reunion for WCC.

Chiu-Tze Lin

Steinway Artist Chiu-Tze Lin is a pianist, conductor, and teacher who has an unyielding belief in her students. Ms. Lin was inducted into the Steinway Teachers Hall of Fame, on the first occasion that such honors were given to teachers by the Steinway company. She was also recognized by the Music Teachers National Association as a Foundation Fellow.

Ms. Lin’s students have received recognition both nationally and internationally. As “Rising Stars” in the 1st International Music Festival sponsored by China’s Ministry of Culture, their performances in the Peoples’ Congress Hall and Forbidden City Concert Hall have been broadcast on CCTV across China and around the world. Her students have received awards in the Kaufman International Piano Competition, Cooper International Piano Competition, and the New York International Piano Competition. Ms. Lin’s students have won top prizes in the New Jersey Music Teachers Young Musicians Competition. Her students have also won the MTNA Eastern Division Competitions and advanced to the National Finals. Ms. Lin’s students have appeared as soloists with numerous orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Shanghai Chamber Orchestra, Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra, Ambler Symphony, and the Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey.

Chiu-Tze Lin is the music director of the Bravura Philharmonic Orchestra and the Bravura Youth Orchestra (BYO). The BYO was lauded numerous times by US Senators Cory Booker and Andy Kim for engaging in international cultural exchanges through music. The BYO has performed in China, Japan, Russia, Taiwan, and European cities including Vienna, Salzburg, and Prague. Her commitment to education in the arts led to her selection for a top 100 Global Lifetime Achievement Award in 2023.

Nancy Modell

Nancy Modell, a graduate of Ithaca College School of Music in piano performance and music education, is a sought-after Suzuki Piano Teacher Trainer. Her home studio’s curriculum (Springfield, NJ) nurtures original musical composition while promoting the Taubman Approach to enhance her students’ learning experience. Her students are exposed to diverse genres and composers, expanding their musical horizons beyond the Suzuki repertoire, including composers from underrepresented backgrounds and music from their cultural heritage. Through these practices, the studio becomes a safe space for young musicians and their families to practice creativity, curiosity, compassion, and community-building in a musical setting—values that they can apply in their lives beyond the studio.

Nancy’s presentations include local, national, and international teacher forums, including The Taubman Festival, and most recently, NCKP 2023, the 2024 Suzuki Association of the Americas (SAA) International Conference, 4º Encuentro Nacional Suzuki México (Puebla), the 2025 SAA Leadership Summit, and 2º Festival Nacional Suzuki de Música POR AMOR A LA MÚSICA (Guadalajara) in May 2025. Nancy is a current SAA Board member. She is a Past President of the Music Educators Association of NJ, the Chair of its Composers’ Corner members’ group, and Chair of the Piano Teachers Forum of NJ Composer Showcase student event. Nancy is honored to return to share her ideas at PPSI 2025.

Todd Simmons

Todd Simmons has taught piano for 29 years and has a studio or 20 students in Lawrenceville, NJ. He is an avid performer, accompanist, choral director, and church musician, performing and collaborating on piano, harpsichord, and organ across the region.

Mr. Simmons's students have consistently won top honors in local, state, and regional competitions including NJMTA Young Musicians Competition, Music-Fest Rising Talents, American Protege International, Elite International, the Greater Princeton Steinway Society, the South Jersey Steinway Society, and many more. His students are featured regularly on the stages of Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall (NYC), Merkin Hall (NYC), The Kosciuszko Foundation Recital Hall (NYC), and The Kimmel Center (Philadelphia).

Mr. Simmons served as Assistant Director and piano instructor at the Westport School of Music in (CT) until 2012, and was the music Director at the Plainsboro Presbyterian Church (NJ) until 2022. From 1996-2019 Mr. Simmons was Co-Director and masterclass teacher at Westminster Choir College's High School Piano Camp. In addition to teaching piano, Mr. Simmons is an active accompanist, serving as accompanist for the Hopewell Valley School District Central High School since 2012. He has been an accompanist for the Princeton Girlchoir and Boychoir (NJ), the American Boychoir (NJ), and the Fairfield County Children's Choir (CT).

Mr. Simmons holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the Eastman School of Music and a Master's degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Southern Mississippi. He also earned a Master’s degree in Psychology from Meridian University in Petaluma, CA.

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