Profile Type: Suzuki Program Faculty
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Fang-Yi Chu
Taiwanese pianist Fang-Yi Chu performs as a soloist and a collaborator. She has performed in distinguished venues including Carnegie Hall, Jordan Hall, and National Concert Hall in Taiwan. She also appeared at international music festivals such as American Institute of Musical Studies (AIMS) in Austria and Musiktheater Bavaria. Fang-Yi pursued her advanced studies with Victor…
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Pierre Ferreyra-Mansilla
Pierre was the grand prize winner of the 2011 Philadelphia Classical Guitar Society competition and the Peter Gross grant for performance. Highlights of his recent performances include performances with the New Amsterdam Singers and the Dessoff choirs, the Aspen Opera Company and Festival orchestras, as well as the Philadelphia, New England, Oneonta, and Wall classical…
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Weini Tekeste
Weini Tekeste is a Suzuki violin and viola teacher in New York City who has taught students of all ages for the past twenty years. In her studio, Weini accompanies her students on the piano during lessons and recitals, and is a strong believer in introducing note-reading as early as possible. She grew up listening…
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Benjamin Bregman
Benjamin Bregman will join the BKCM faculty in Fall 2025 as a Suzuki Violin teacher and String Ensemble instructor. Benjamin has studied violin and viola since the age of four, first with Dorothy Roffman at the Thurnauer School of Music and later with Patinka Kopec at the Manhattan School of Music. He attended festivals including…
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Emile Blondel
Name: Emile BlondelFrom: Charlottesville, VAI started teaching music in… 2007I started teaching at the Conservatory in… 2011Who’s your inspiration, musical or otherwise? BachFew people know that I… also play the drumsEducation: North Carolina School of the Arts – BMNorth Carolina School of the Arts – MMEcole Alfred Cortot in Paris, 2001-2004I play and teach: PianoMy…
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Marji Shemanski
Originally from southeast Michigan, Marji Shemanski started playing the piano at the age of 5, studying with her father – a band teacher and electric bassist. After expressing interest in her grandmother’s old violin, Marji began Suzuki lessons when she was 10. After graduating from Spring Arbor University with a B.A. in Violin performance, Marji…
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Angelique Montes
Haitian American cellist, Angelique Montes (she/her) made her solo debut in 2010 with the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra as their concerto competition winner. She has also been a soloist with the Miami University Symphony Orchestra and Oberlin Arts & Science Orchestra. Her numerous performances have brought her to major concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, the…
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Emma Kato
Born in New York City, Emma Kato is a Japanese-American cellist and instructor known for her range of repertoire, performance styles, and devotion to education. As a soloist, her most recent engagement included the World Premiere of Devonte Hynes’ Origin Cello Concerto with the Brooklyn Chamber Orchestra conducted by Philip Nuzzo. Passionate about chamber and…
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Abby McGill
Abby began playing Suzuki violin at the age of three, studying with her mom, Nancy Fennessy. She studied with Sandy Reuning in high school and attended Manhattan School of Music for Violin Performance, where she realized she was better suited for Arts Administration! She transferred to The Hartt School at University of Hartford to study…