The Adjudicators
Curtis Pavey
Dr. Curtis Pavey is a pianist, harpsichordist, and educator based in Columbia, Missouri where he currently serves as Assistant Professor of Piano Pedagogy and Performance at the University of Missouri. Pavey has performed as a soloist in the Oklahoma Mozart Festival, the Edward Auer Summer Piano Workshop (EASPW), the Great Lakes Chamber Festival, Montreal’s Kin Experience, and the Madison Performing Arts Foundation. Recently, he gave the world premiere performance of composer Grace Choi’s Voyage, a work for solo piano. He has a special interest in the music of Maurice Ravel and is currently working to learn his complete piano music. In 2020, he received a Teacher Enrichment Grant from the Music Teachers National Association that supported private piano lessons on Ravel’s piano music with Canadian pianist and Ravel specialist, André Laplante. In 2016, Pavey won the EASPW Chamber Music Competition and performed Schumann’s Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44 with guest artists. The following year, he won the EASPW Solo Piano Competition. Pavey received his Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance from the University of Cincinnati, where he studied with Professor James Tocco and Dr. Michael Unger. Prior to his studies in Cincinnati, he studied piano and harpsichord at Indiana University where he worked with Professors Edward Auer, Elisabeth Wright, and Evelyne Brancart.
Helena Hyesoo Kim
Dr. Helena Hyesoo Kim, a Korean-Canadian pianist recognized for her sensitive and noble playing, has performed at various venues across the Netherlands, France, Russia, Spain, Korea, Canada, and the United States, including prestigious venues like Carnegie Hall and Severance Hall. Kim received her musical training from Yewon Art School and the Saint-Petersburg Pre-Conservatory. She then pursued further education at the University of British Columbia (BSc & BMus), McGill University (MMus), and the University of Cincinnati (DMA). Kim advocates for the works of underrepresented composers, with a particular focus on female composers such as Caroline KyungA Ahn, Alexina Louie, Sofia Gubaidulina, and Galina Ustvolskaya. Her DMA research revealed unique unifying elements in Galina Ustvolskaya's piano sonatas, works that were marginalized because of repression by the Soviet government. Kim actively collaborates with various musicians including Su-Mi Cho (soprano), Jens Lindemann (trumpet), Curtis Pavey (piano duo), Christopher Pell (clarinetist), Chris Blaha (tuba), and Todd Gaffke (saxophone). She has also served as a collaborative pianist at the College-Conservatory of Music, Northern Kentucky University, and at the University of Akron where she held the position of Coordinator of Collaborative Piano. As an educator, Kim has taught diverse groups of piano students in both private and group settings. She has presented at state and national conferences and produced an online teaching video for the Frances Clark Center’s Inspiring Artistry series. In Spring 2024, she will be teaching at St. Charles Community College in St. Louis, MO, and at the University of Missouri.
Dr. Huiyun Liang
Huiyun Liang, DMA, NCTM, is an innovative piano pedagogue, pianist, and chamber musician. Formerly involved in the production of several well-known TV programs and concerts in Beijing, China, Huiyun moved to the United States to pursue her dream in classical music. Her unique experience in classical music, television, and technology has shaped her into who she is today: an avid artist in music and education. As an active pianist, Liang has given solo and chamber recitals in the U.S., Europe, as well as in her hometown, Wuhan, China. She performed at the Vianden Festival in Luxembourg, the Lowman Concert Series and Sundays with Steinway at Rice Music House in South Carolina, the Beethoven Celebration Concert Series for the World Piano Teachers Associations and the Ariel Concert Series in Missouri. In 2020, Liang was the guest artist of the Piano Power Camp at Webster University. Other recent engagements have included collaborations with members of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra and a recording project with Professor Matthew Hoormann at Lindenwood University comprised of modern trombone literature never recorded before. The album was published in 2019 with Push Record. Featured as “Emerging Piano Pedagogue” in 2015 by Hong Kong Commercial Daily, Dr. Liang has presented a wide range of pedagogical topics nationally and internationally, such as the Music Teachers National Association National Conference, the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy, and the Piracicaba International Piano Festival. Leveraging the latest technologies proven in sports, she pioneered a research study that incorporated portable video modeling technology into piano teaching, and further developed effective strategies of using video modeling and motor imagery to enhance piano technique. She has given workshops nationwide at conferences, universities, and teachers’ associations. Her article “Teaching with New Tech Tools: An Evaluation of Integrating Video Modeling into Piano Lessons for Mid-to- Late Elementary Learners” was published in the 2021 MTNA e-Journal. Dr. Liang currently serves as the Lecturer in Piano at Washington University in St. Louis, where she teaches class piano, applied music lessons, chamber music, and accompanies student recitals. She also serves as the chair of Legacy Fund at Saint Louis Music Teachers Association to organize piano festivals by inviting world-class pianists to St. Louis to give master classes and concerts. The Fund she leads has received the national grant award from the MTNA Foundation. Besides, she enjoys teaching students of all ages at her home studio in St. Charles, MO. Dr. Liang was on the piano faculty at the Lindenwood University from 2018 to 2021. She received the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Pedagogy from the University of South Carolina and a master’s degree in Music Education from the University of Missouri. Her principal piano teachers include Dr. Janice Wenger and Dr. Joseph Rackers, with additional opportunities to study piano with Dr. Marina Lomazov and chamber music with Prof. Phillip Bush.