UGA Piano Symposium


2026 UGA Piano Symposium

Combining Tradition and Innovation: Piano Teaching Today
January 31, 2026 

FREE admission. Space is limited; registrations are highly encouraged.

Symposium Headliner: Robert McDonald (The Juilliard School, Curtis Institute)

Featured Presenter in Pedagogy: Omar Roy (University of South Carolina)

Sessions will include teaching demonstrations with Prof. Robert McDonald featuring pre-college and college students and different musical genres as well as a Q&A with Prof. McDonald. Featured presenter in pedagogy, Dr. Omar Roy will lecture about the use of AI in piano teaching and about pedagogical principles in repertoire selection. Christopher Wright, Steinway & Sons New York Spirio Engagement Coordinator, will demonstrate UGA’s new Steinway Spirio piano.
 
Robert McDonald will give a piano recital the evening before the Symposium, on Friday, January 30, at 7:30pm at the UGA Performing Arts Center, Ramsey Concert Hall. Free admission, no tickets required.
 
Professor McDonald's college masterclass at the Symposium will be available live via Spiriocast to select institutions and individuals who are part of the Spirio network and have a Spirio piano available. Please contact Liza Stepanova with questions about the Spiriocast.
 
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS (*subject to change)

All Saturday Symposium sessions take place in Edge Recital Hall. The Symposium will take place between 9:30am-5:30pm.

9:30-10:00 Registration & Refreshments

10:00-10:30

 

 

Welcome (UGA piano faculty)

Session 1: “Big Solutions for Small Hands”

Presented by TONIC, MTNA collegiate chapter at UGA

10:35-11:20

 

Session 2: “Repertoire Roadmaps: Taking the Guesswork out of Repertoire Assignment”

Omar Roy, Featured Presenter in Pedagogy

11:30-12:30

 

 

Session 3: Teaching staples of the piano repertoire at the pre-college level. Works by Beethoven and Chopin. Masterclass.

Robert McDonald, Symposium Headliner
Ken Hu (age 12) and Kaiden Lee (age 15), piano
12:30-1:45 LUNCH

1:45-2:30

 

Session 4: “Unlocking Efficiency: Leveraging AI in the Piano Studio” 

Omar Roy

2:40-3:10

 

Session 5: Demonstration of Steinway Spirio Piano

Christopher Wright, Steinway Spirio Engagement Coordinator, Steinway New York

3:15-4:45

 

 

 

Session 6: Teaching late Romantic repertoire at the college level. Works by Bach-Busoni, Liszt, and Medtner. Masterclass.

Robert McDonald
Timothy Berry, Min-Chen Lee, Haoying Wu, piano

 
4:45 Session 7: Q+A with Prof. McDonald. Conclusion.
DESCRIPTION OF SESSIONS

Session 2: “Repertoire Roadmaps: Taking the Guesswork out of Repertoire Assignment”
Omar Roy, featured presenter

Assigning repertoire is one of the most influential decisions piano teachers make, yet many report that their choices are  guided by habit, urgency, or “gut feeling” rather than a clear, sequenced plan. This session introduces Repertoire Roadmaps—a practical approach designed to bring clarity, coherence, and intentionality to repertoire selection for students at all levels.

Session 4: “Unlocking Efficiency: Leveraging AI in the Piano Studio” 
Omar Roy

This session explores how artificial intelligence enhances piano studio management and teaching, particularly through tools like  ChatGPT. Practical applications of AI include streamlining tasks such as scheduling, communication, and content creation while fostering critical thinking through creative exercises. The session highlights AI's potential role in the future and provides actionable strategies for implementing AI in both administrative and educational settings, as well as discusses the ethics and environmental impacts of AI use. 

Steinway Spirio Demonstration
Christopher Wright, Steinway & Sons New York Spirio Engagement Coordinator

The University of Georgia Hugh Hodgson School of Music is the first school in Georgia to acquire a Steinway Spirio piano, described by Steinway as "the world’s finest high resolution player piano capable of live performance capture and playback. A revolutionary blend of artistry, craftsmanship, and technology, Spirio | r provides powerful new tools of expression and new ways to access, share and experience performance — enriching connection and intimacy." Christopher Wright will demonstrate the pianos capability for recording and playback.

 

INFORMATION FOR ATTENDEES
REGISTRATION

Please visit this link for a FREE registration. Space is limited, and registrations by January 23, 2026 are highly encouraged. The registration form will be open until we reach hall capacity. If the registration form is no longer available, please email Dr. Liza Stepanova for an update about a waitlist.

PARKING AND LUNCH

PARKING
The Hugh Hodgson School of Music is located at 250 River Road, Athens, GA, 30602, and Edge Hall entrance is opposite the Performing Arts Center (third floor button in the elevator). Friday evening and all-day Saturday parking is free in Lot E11, closest to the School of Music. Please visit UGA Parking Services website to learn more and see other available lots: https://tps.uga.edu/parking/visitors/ 

DINING
Lunch will be available for purchase (self-pay at entrance) at the Joe Frank Harris Commons cafeteria, located a 5-minute walk from the School of Music. Note that there is a large outdoor staircase on the way. For those concerned about walking, Athens is also known for its award-winning restaurants, and most offer delivery: https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurants-g29209-Athens_Georgia.html

PRESENTER BIOGRAPHIES
Symposium Headliner: Robert McDonald

Pianist Robert McDonald has toured extensively as a soloist and chamber musician throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia, and South America. He has performed with major orchestras in the U.S. and was a recital partner with violinist Isaac Stern for many years. He has participated in the Marlboro, Casals, and Lucerne festivals, performed with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, and for broadcasts over BBC Television. He has also appeared with the Takács, Vermeer, Juilliard, Brentano, Borromeo, American, Shanghai, and St. Lawrence string quartets as well as with Musicians from Marlboro. McDonald’s prizes include the gold medal at the Busoni International Piano Competition, the top prize at the William Kapell International Competition, and the Deutsche Schallplatten Critics Award. His teachers include Theodore Rehl, Seymour Lipkin, Rudolf Serkin, Mieczyslaw Horszowski, Beveridge Webster, and Gary Graffman. He holds degrees from Lawrence University, the Curtis Institute of Music, Juilliard, and the Manhattan School of Music. McDonald has taught at the Curtis Institute, where he holds the Penelope P. Watkins Chair in piano studies, since 2007. During the summer, he is the artistic director of New Mexico’s Taos School of Music and Chamber Music Festival.

Featured Presenter in Pedagogy: Omar Roy

Omar Roy currently serves as Assistant Professor of Piano and Piano Pedagogy in the School of Music at the University of South Carolina. He teaches Piano, Piano Pedagogy, and also coordinates the Group Piano Program. A strong supporter of independent music teachers, Dr. Roy is in demand as a clinician. He frequently presents workshops and guest lectures to music teacher organizations and universities, and is a regular adjudicator for festivals and competitions. His involvement with music teachers organizations has led to leadership positions and presentations at the state and national level, including the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy. Dr. Roy is also part of the administrative team for The Art of Piano Pedagogy – a growing Facebook group that acts as a resource and forum of discussion that reaches nearly 23,000 teachers located throughout the world – and its companion site, Sustain. While Dr. Roy is dedicated to teaching at both the college and pre-college levels, he also remains a committed and passionate performer, presenting both traditional and lecture performances. Dr. Roy earned the Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Pedagogy at the University of Oklahoma where he studied Piano with Jeongwon Ham and Edward Gates, and Pedagogy with Jane Magrath and Barbara Fast. His research interests include practice efficiency, teaching strategies for students with special needs, sequenced repertoire assignment, and pedagogical applications of musical semiotics. Dr. Roy’s other teachers include Jerry Wong, Shirley Yoo, and Nathan Hess. Previous faculty appointments include the University of Alabama and Oklahoma City University.

ABOUT THE UGA PIANO AREA

The PIANO AREA of the UGA Hugh Hodgson School of Music features internationally recognized faculty, attracting talented young musicians from the United States and abroad. Piano students at the HHSOM enjoy opportunities for solo performances, annual concerto competitions, chamber ensembles, orchestras, bands, and choirs. Students gain valuable interactive performance and teaching experience by participating in educational and community outreach programs. 

The HHSOM is the first all-Steinway school in Georgia and has two piano technicians on staff—Scott Higgins (Lead Piano Technician) and Tony Graves. In the summer 2025, UGA also became the first Georgia school to add a Steinway Spirio piano.

Grace Huang is Lecturer in Piano and Piano Pedagogy and Class Piano Coordinator at the Hugh Hodgson School of Music. Praised for her “lovely and vivacious” playing (Fort Worth Star-Telegram), she has performed throughout the U.S. and abroad. Dr. Huang has taught on several pre-college and college faculties, including the Cleveland Institute of Music and Millikin University. In demand as a teacher, her students have received honors and acceptances to music programs across the country. She is an active adjudicator and presenter at local, state and national levels, and recently initiated the “Play On, Athens!” public piano project.

Emely Phelps joined the UGA faculty this fall, having previously served as Associate Professor of Instruction at Ohio University. Dr. Phelps holds degrees from Juilliard, NEC, and Stony Brook University, was a founding member of Trio Cleonice, and has been on the faculty of the Yellow Barn Young Artists Program and the T-Town, Icicle Creek, and Anchorage Chamber Music Festivals. She appears on the albums Unbounded and Discovering her Voice, both featuring duos by female composers, and looks forward this season to performances at MahlerFest, University of Colorado Boulder, Pacific Lutheran University, and the world premiere of a new commission from Tyson Gholston Davis.

Greg Satterthwaite is Assistant Professor of Jazz Piano and African American Studies at the University of Georgia. Prior to joining the faculty at UGA he was an Assistant Professor of Music at Southeastern University in Lakeland, FL. He has a DMA from the University of North Texas in Jazz Piano Performance, a Master of Arts in Commercial Music from Florida Atlantic University, and a Bachelor of Music from the University of Miami. Dr. Satterthwaite has performed at festivals including the Swan City Piano Festival, Denton Arts and Jazz Festival, and SunFest. He has recently recorded and performed with artists including jazz bassist, Rodney Whitaker and
drummer, Terreon Gully.

Before joining the UGA faculty, Liza Stepanova taught at Smith College and The Juilliard School. She holds a DMA from Juilliard and has also studied in Berlin, Germany. In 2025-2026, she performs and teaches at Brevard, Bowdoin, and the UNCSA Summer Piano Intensive, as a guest artist at CU Boulder, James Madison, and Vanderbilt universities, and continues to tour with the Lysander Piano Trio including at Rockefeller Concerts in New York City and Music at Kohl Mansion in San Francisco. Stepanova’s second solo CD "E Pluribus Unum" (2020) earned her the distinction of "New Artist of the Month" from Musical America Worldwide and has been praised in International Piano, Piano Magazine, BBC Music Magazine, and Gramophone. Her students have been successful at international festivals, in prestigious graduate programs, and in competitions, including a third prize at MTNA national finals in 2025.

James Weidman has had a decades-long international career as a jazz pianist/keyboardist based in New York City. His diverse affiliations include Abbey Lincoln, Cassandra Wilson, Steve Coleman and Five Elements and the Grammy Nominated Joe Lovano Us Five. His latest recording on Inner Circle Music “Spiritual Impressions” featuring Ruth Naomi Floyd was selected by Cadence Magazine as one of the top ten albums of 2018. James graduated from Youngstown State University with a BM in Piano and Music Education. He joined the UGA faculty in 2021. He previously taught at William Paterson University and SUNY Purchase.

Alan Woo joined the UGA piano faculty in 2022, having previously taught at Elizabeth City State University and the Peabody Institute. Woo is a graduate of The Juilliard School and Peabody Conservatory, where he completed degrees in piano performance under Robert McDonald and Yong Hi Moon. He made his Lincoln Center debut with the Juilliard Orchestra under Yannick Nézet-Séguin and has since made concerto appearances with the Houston and Fort Worth Symphonies. Woo has performed solo recitals throughout the United States, Europe and Asia, and in series such as the Lake George Music Festival, Brooklyn Chamber Music Society and La Jolla Music Society’s SummerFest as chamber musician.