Steinway Artist Michael Boyd is active as a soloist, collaborative artist, lecturer, and teacher. He studied at the North Carolina School of the Arts and the Banff Centre S. Master’s, Doctoral degrees and Performer’s Certificate are from the Eastman School of Music. 

As a concerto soloist, Dr. Boyd has performed with the Rochester Philharmonic, the Milwaukee Symphony,  and the Eastman Chamber Orchestra. Solo recitals have taken him across the country to California, New York, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio. In Europe, Dr. Boyd has performed recitals in Austria, Belgium, Greece and Spain and China. 

Dr. Boyd is a Distinguished Professor of Piano at the University of Toledo in Ohio. He was also a visiting professor at the Eastman School of Music.  A solo recording entitled The Art of the Piano Transcription is available on all major streaming platforms. He has been inducted into the Steinway and Sons Teacher Hall of Fame.

Cathal Breslin has been praised worldwide with critical acclaim such as “superb intensity and passion” and “energized and energizing.” Born in Derry, N. Ireland, he has performed solo recitals in major concert halls throughout the world, including Carnegie Hall, Wigmore Hall and the Beijing National Center for the Performing Arts.

Recent concerto performances have included with the RTE National Symphony Orchestra, BBC Ulster Orchestra, Greensboro Symphony, Memphis Symphony, Turin Philharmonic and the Arizona MusicFest Orchestra.

He has performed extensively in duos with flutist Sir James Galway, soprano Measha Brueggergosman, violinists Augustin Dumay, Anne Akiko Meyers and Dmitry Sitkovetsky, cellists Jan Vogler, Raphael Wallfisch and Jeffrey Zeigler, and pianists Awadagin Pratt and Barry Douglas. 

In addition to his performing career, Cathal and his wife, flutist Dr. Sabrina Hu, are the Festival Directors of Walled City Music, a major arts organization in N. Ireland which has regenerated classical music with its innovative programming since 2008.

Cathal moved to the U.S. as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Michigan, where he received a DMA Degree. He is currently an Associate Professor of Piano at Arizona State University, a Yamaha Artist and the President of the Arizona Chapter of the American Liszt Society.

Richard Fountain is Dean of the School of Creative Arts and Professor of Piano at Wayland Baptist University in Plainview, TX, and serves as Principal Keyboard for Lincoln’s Symphony Orchestra and the Lubbock Symphony Orchestra. Fountain is one of very few pianists to perform the cycle of Franz Liszt’s monumental transcriptions of Beethoven’s nine symphonies. He is also devoted to the poetic and religious music of Liszt as well as American repertoire from all eras.

Fountain serves on the U.S. State Department’s Fulbright Specialist Roster, was inducted into the Steinway & Sons Teacher Hall of Fame in 2021, and was named the 2024 MTNA Fellow for the state of Texas. Fountain holds degrees from Taylor University (BM), the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (MM, DMA), and Wayland Baptist University (MBA).

Recognized for both his sensitivity and panache, pianist and Chicago native Matthew Gianforte enjoys an active career as a soloist, duo pianist, chamber musician, and teacher, having performed across the United States and abroad at a variety of festivals, conferences, and concert series. He currently serves as Professor of Music and Coordinator of Piano Studies at Murray State University (KY), and, since 2004, has taught at the Indiana University Summer Piano Academy. A graduate of Catholic University and Indiana University, Dr. Gianforte’s primary teachers were Marilyn Neeley and Karen Shaw, both noted performers of the music of Franz Liszt. Dr. Gianforte is a Life Member of the American Liszt Society and has performed in numerous ALS-affiliated festivals for many years.

Dr. Jeongwon Ham has won top prizes at numerous piano competitions, including the Bartók/Kabalevsky International Competition, the Epinal International Competition, the Paul Hindemith Competition, the Artur Schnabel Competition, and the Simone Belsky Competition. The New York Concert Review referred to her recital in Merkin Hall as “an admirable piano recital.” The German newspaper Frankfurter Rundschau wrote, “Jeongwon Ham possessed astonishing and effortless technique. She plays not only with incredible warmth but also with great power.”​

​Ham has served at many international and national piano competitions, including the Bartók/Kabalevsky/Prokofiev International Piano Competition, Classical American International Piano Competition, Asian International Piano Academy and Festival, and the Music Teachers National Association piano competitions. Ham’s former and current students often distinguish themselves as winners at numerous competitions and hold teaching positions in the US, Korea, Canada, and Taiwan.

Pianist Jay Hershberger has played throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and China.  Important appearances include the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the Library of Congress, and Benaroya Hall in Seattle.  He has also been frequent guest artist at the Great Romantics Music Festival in Canada.  In years past he performed in Europe, including the Amalfi Coast Music Festival in southern Italy and the South Bohemia Music Festival in the Czech Republic.  He is currently Professor of Piano at Concordia College in Moorhead, MN, and was previously Visiting Assistant Professor of Piano at Arizona State University.  His undergraduate students have won competitions and have been accepted into prestigious graduate schools in piano performance and pedagogy, many with teaching assistantships.  An active adjudicator, Hershberger has judged for the Los Angeles International Liszt Competition, the Phoenix Young Artist Competition, the San Angelo Symphony Sorantin Awards, the Lee Biennial Competition, the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Young Artist Competition, and the Music Teachers National Association.   He is vice president of the American Liszt Society. His first compact disc recording, featuring works by Franz Liszt was released in the Fall of 2006 and was featured on Michael Barone’s New Releases radio program on Minnesota Public Radio.

Caroline Hong, Professor of Piano and head of Keyboard Area at The Ohio State University, received her training from Peabody, Juilliard, and Indiana University (DM). She is president and principal founder of the Ohio Chapter, and on the Board of Directors, both for the American Liszt Society. Previously a jury member for the LA International Piano Competition in 2018, she has also juried for the Bartok-Kabalevsky, Aarhus, Pianale, Denison, and Princeton International Piano Competitions. She has served as faculty member for Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, Longwood University, Vianden and Amalfi festivals, and Jacobs School Piano Academy. She has studied with Liszt luminaries Fernando Laires, Karen Shaw, James Tocco, and Jerome Lowenthal. She is the artistic director of the Franz Liszt (U.S.) International Piano Festival and Competition.

Pianist Sasha Kasman Laude’s playing has been described by the Palm Beach Arts Paper as “powerful and vivid” and having “such an abundance of intelligence that it can only be described as relentless” (Ludwig van Toronto). Kasman Laude is a finalist of the 2025 American Pianists Awards and top prizewinner of the 2022 Honens International Competition. This season, she appears as a soloist with the Indianapolis and Brevard Symphony Orchestras, Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, and Dover and Fry Street string quartets. Her pianistic lineage comes from Franz Liszt through all three of her teachers – Yakov Kasman (University of Alabama at Birmingham), Robert McDonald (Juilliard), and Logan Skelton (University of Michigan). Dr. Kasman Laude is Assistant Professor of Piano at Utah State University in Logan, Utah.

Gergely Kovács has performed and given masterclasses across Europe, in Indonesia, Israel, Singapore, China, and the United States. He has captivated audiences multiple times at New York’s Carnegie Hall, once performing Liszt’s Concerto No. 1 with the St. Luke’s Orchestra in Stern Auditorium. He appeared at such prestigious venues as the Liszt Academy Grand Hall in Budapest, the Shanghai Concert Hall, and the SOTA Concert Hall in Singapore. His achievements include the Gundel Art Prize, the Junior Prima Prize and the Cziffra Talent Prize. Kovács began working with Ádám György as a mentee on a full scholarship at György’s Castle Academy and is now a professor and head of operations of the organization. He released his first solo album under Hungaroton Records. Kovács is a doctoral candidate at the Ferenc Liszt University of Music in Budapest, Hungary and holds a master’s degree in piano performance from the same school, his mentors including Gyöngyi Keveházi, Gábor Eckhardt, György Nádor, Balázs Réti, Attila Némethy and Kálmán Dráfi.

Dr. José López is Professor and Coordinator of the Piano Studies Program at Florida International University in Miami;  President of the South Florida Chapter of the American Liszt Society and Secretary of the London-based Alkan Society.  Dr. López has recorded for Canadian, American, and UK record labels.  His Toccata Classics discography includes the complete piano works of Italian composer Riccardo Malipiero; French composer Alkan and an ongoing series dedicated to forgotten Cuban/Spanish composers.  He is also involved in rescuing and publishing music written in Cuba during the 19^th century. Dr. López received his Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral degrees from the University of Miami School of Music, where he studied with Rosalina Guerrero Sackstein, a former pupil of Rafael de Silva and Claudio Arrau.

A native of Seoul, Korea, pianist Meeyoun Park has performed throughout the United States and abroad as a soloist, duo pianist, and collaborator. Her musical versatility has led to partnerships with the Korean National Opera Company, the Indiana University Opera Theater, the Carmel-Klavier International Competition, and with many of the world’s renowned performers. Dr. Park is currently Professor of Music at Murray State University (KY), and serves on the faculty of the Indiana University Summer Piano Academy. She is a graduate of Yonsei University and Indiana University, where she worked with Karen Shaw, a champion of the music of Franz Liszt. Dr. Park is a Life Member of the American Liszt Society and has performed in a number of ALS festivals.

Transylvanian born, Dr. ILonka Rus, is celebrated internationally as a versatile soloist and collaborative pianist, enchanting audiences across the United States, Europe, South America, and Mexico. Her illustrious career includes captivating chamber and solo performances at renowned venues such as Carnegie Hall in New York and Atheneum Hall in Bucharest, Romania. A dedicated educator, ILonka’s influence extends globally through recitals, clinics and master classes conducted in Europe and Latin America.  Notably, ILonka is a member of the American Liszt Society and received second prize and Dr. Ernö Daniel Memorial Prize at the Los Angeles Liszt Competition in 1990, further solidifying her standing in the piano community. Currently, she serves as Professor and Director of Keyboard Studies at Sam Houston State University and is President of the World Piano Teachers Association – Texas Chapter. Her dedication to piano education is recognized with awards such as the Kawai Medallion Educator Award and the TMTA Award for Outstanding Collegiate Teaching Achievement received in 2024.