2023 Award Recipients

MTNA Achievement Award
Melvin Stecher, NCTM and Norman Horowitz, NCTM

The MTNA Achievement Award is MTNA’s highest honor, only bestowed upon individuals and entities that have made significant and lasting contributions to the music teaching profession.

Acknowledged as one of the leading duo-pianists of their generation, Melvin Stecher and Norman Horowitz are equally renowned as composers and music educators. The internationally acclaimed duo has been responsible for creating a major revival of interest in the two-piano concert. They have performed with overwhelming success both in recital and as soloists with orchestras, evoking lavish praise from critics and audiences throughout the United States, Canada, Central and South America, Europe, Israel, Japan and Australia. For almost five decades they afforded audiences the world over an unforgettable musical experience.

Walter Piston wrote and dedicated his Concerto for Two Pianos especially for Stecher and Horowitz, who premiered the work at the Dartmouth Congregation of the Arts in 1964. The unanimous enthusiasm for the concerto prompted Piston to produce a second version of the work for Two Pianos Soli, which Stecher and Horowitz have performed in more than 500 recitals in the United States and Europe.

Melvin Stecher and Norman Horowitz became Stecher and Horowitz in 1951. In 1953, they were the first duo-piano attraction to be engaged at Radio City Music Hall, where they played a record 84 performances. For the following five consecutive years, they toured the United States and Canada playing 50 solo recitals plus 60 concerts as guest artists with the Roger Wagner Chorale. They also toured Central and South America under State Department sponsorship and toured throughout Europe.

Noted performers and music educators, Stecher and Horowitz founded The Stecher and Horowitz School of the Arts in 1960. In 1975, the school in Cedarhurst, New York, became a non-profit educational institution for students of all ages and educational backgrounds. It has been highly regarded as a center for the encouragement of creative potential through its innovative learning programs. In addition to having served as educational consultants to the publishing firm of G. Schirmer, the duo-pianists have written and edited the Stecher and Horowitz Piano Library, a comprehensive teaching series. Stecher and Horowitz are equally regarded for their unique piano clinics, a series of workshops for piano teachers which they have given throughout North America, Japan, and Australia.

Stecher and Horowitz are as passionate about their fourth career: The Stecher and Horowitz Foundation’s New York International Piano Competition and its professional programs for young artists, including The Young Artists Series. Long-time members and supporters of MTNA, Melvin and Norman established the MTNA–Stecher and Horowitz Two Piano Competition in 2018, and in 2022, the first MTNA Stecher and Horowitz Power of Innovation Award was presented.

MTNA Teacher of the Year
Janice Larson Razaq, NCTM

The MTNA Teacher of the Year Award recognizes a teacher who has made a significant difference in the lives of students, has contributed to the advancement of music in their community and is an outstanding example of a professional music educator. The recipient of the 2023 MTNA Teacher of the Year Award is Victoria Fischer Faw, NCTM.

Janice Larson Razaq, is a dedicated teacher/performing artist and a member of the Illinois State MTA and MTNA for more than 50 years. She is director of keyboard studies at William Rainey Harper College in Palatine, Illinois, and has taught at Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois.

Janice received a DMA degree in piano performance from Texas Tech University, studying with William Westney; an MM degree from the University of Illinois, studying with Stanley Fletcher; and a BM degree with distinction from the Eastman School of Music, studying with Cécile Genhart. Early studies were with her mother, with Ruth Rogers and with Frank Mannheimer in Duluth, Minnesota.

She is past president of Illinois State MTA, past president of the American Matthay Association for Piano and past director of MTNA’s East Central Division.

As a young pianist, Janice received second place in the Women’s Association of the Minneapolis Symphony Orchestra Competition. A Fulbright grant recipient, she studied with Hilda Dederich at the Royal Academy of Music in London for three years and received the Licentiate Diploma in Piano Performance. Her London debut recital at Wigmore Hall received excellent reviews. She was an award winner in the Canals International Competition in Barcelona.

Janice Larson Razaq performs on the “Live from Landmark” series on Minnesota Public Radio, on the Dame Myra Hess Concert Series from the Chicago Public Library, broadcast live on WFMT Radio, and on KOHM Radio in Lubbock, Texas. She has been a featured recitalist/lecturer with the Mannheimer Piano Festival at the University of Minnesota in Duluth, and her performances there have been rebroadcast on Minnesota Public Radio. Her performance of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the Elgin Symphony Orchestra was acclaimed by critics as “powerful and dazzling.” Janice makes frequent appearances as Artist-in-Residence with the Harper Symphony Orchestra and has played with the Lake Superior Chamber Orchestra. Solo appearances have been at colleges and universities in Illinois, Texas, Minnesota, Georgia, Arizona, Tennessee, Michigan and North Carolina. “Let’s Understand Tobias Matthay’s Relaxation Technique” was the title of her presentation for the Canadian Federation Music Teachers Association national conference in Halifax.

MTNA Distinguished Service Award
Beth Gigante Klingenstin, NCTM

Beth Gigante Klingenstein, NCTM, dedicated herself to her much-loved independent piano studio for the first 25 years of her career, during which time she published her first book, A Business Guide for the Music Teacher. Moving from Northern Virginia to North Dakota in 1994, she accepted a teaching position at Valley City State University, where she founded and directed the VCSU Community School of the Arts. In honor of her energy and determination in bringing the arts to underserved rural communities, she received the North Dakota Governor’s Award for the Arts in 2007. While at VCSU, Klingenstein created internationally successful online piano pedagogy courses and published her second book, The Independent Piano Teacher’s Studio Handbook. After teaching at VCSU for 20 years and eventually becoming department chair, Klingenstein became Executive Director of the North Dakota Council on the Arts, a position she held until her retirement.

Klingenstein has served Music Teachers National Association throughout her career, including serving as Secretary/Treasurer of the Board of Directors, as West Central Division Director, on the 2009 national conference planning committee, and on the AMT Editorial committee. She was the original author of AMT’s “It’s All of Your Business” column and became a Foundation Fellow in 2006. She is MTNA’s Business Resources coordinator.

Klingenstein served as president of Northern Virginia MTA, and the Valley City MTA and North Dakota MTA. She received two awards from NDMTA: Teacher of the Year in 1997 and Service to the Profession in 2016.

Klingenstein earned degrees in piano performance from Syracuse University (BM) and the University of Michigan (MM), and a PhD in educational leadership from the University of North Dakota.

Frances Clark Keyboard Pedagogy Award
A Seat at the Piano
Annie Jeng, founder

A Seat at the Piano was founded in the summer of 2020 in the midst of social and racial reckoning around the world. ASAP is a team of classically trained pianists with varying backgrounds and experiences, who strive to raise the voices of those who are less heard and to inspire more thoughtful, inclusive programming within the performing and pedagogical spheres.

A Seat at the Piano promotes and advocates for the inclusion, study, and performance of a more equitably representative body of piano works. By creating a resource for musicians, pedagogues, and curious music appreciators, ASAP aims to broaden their knowledge of composers and their works.

The organization is led by founder Annie Jeng and co-founders Evan Hines, Brendan Jacklin, Clare Longendyke, Susan Yang and Ashlee Young.

State Affiliate of the Year
South Carolina Music Teachers Association
Lannia Bronola-Dickert, president

The State Affiliate of the Year award recognizes the state MTA that makes the most significant contributions to the music teaching profession through participation in MTNA national programs and additional programs established with its state.

In 2021 the South Carolina Music Teachers Association worked through the process of going holding its auditions virtually. To encourage students to take part, the theory aspect of the auditions was waived. All winners’ video performances were placed on our website, thanks to the great work of our webmaster, Robin Zemp and State Auditions Chair, Sarah Moore. SCMTA started an initiative called “Shared Presentations,” where each local chapter invites and sponsors a presenter or features a program which was opened to all active members via Zoom. Another project was the video recording of conference presentations. A number of lectures are available online to active members. MTNA’s commitment and call to diversity, equity and inclusion was also reflected in SCMTA’s programming. At a state conference, University of South Carolina Collegiate Chapter presented “An International Journey in Piano Teaching: Unknown Literature Gems from Around the World.” These students delved into the music of lesser-known composers from China, U.S., Philippines, Nicaragua and Malaysia. SCMTA’s 62nd conference artists featured a chamber group of piano, violin, cello and clarinet called The Orion Ensemble.

Local Association of the Year
Main Line (Pennsylvania) Music Teachers Association
Jennifer Campbell, president

The MTNA Local Association of the Year award is presented to the local MTA that makes the most significant contributions to the music teaching profession through participation in MTNA national programs and additional programs established within its state and local area.

Serving approximately 80 members, Main Line Music Teachers Association offers a vibrant community atmosphere that challenges its teachers to cultivate their own skills, talents, and teaching resources, while bringing the same spirit of excellence and diversity to local students with the goal of bringing music and meaning to the local community.

In addition to maintaining a website, a handbook, and an active teacher’s blog, MLMTA provides monthly programs in hybrid format, where members can choose to attend virtually or in-person. Meeting recordings are made available on the website along with other member resources. In addition to featured meeting presenters, the “Five Minutes For An Idea” segment allows selected members to share their diverse musical insights.

MLMTA partners with West Chester University annually for fall joint master class and holds a winter Super Saturday Event that includes private coaching sessions, a Play-a-thon and the announcement of the Constance W. Murray Scholarship winner. Monthly Prime Time Players events provide a relaxed atmosphere for members to perform and discuss teaching issues and repertoire. Diversity of repertoire and instrumental combinations include Shostakovich cello sonatas, jazz arrangements for two pianos, and new compositions by MLMTA teachers.

Raleigh (North Carolina) Music Teachers Association
Renee McKee, president

The COVID-19 pandemic tested the Raleigh Piano Teachers Association in ways they had never experienced before. In 2022, Meredith College, the traditional home for RPTA’s meetings and other activities, was unavailable to host the association’s Young Artist Auditions, so approximately 15 members offered to have students come to their studios in small groups throughout the day. The majority of students were able to play live for a judge, while provisions were still in place to allow for video submissions from students who preferred that option.

In addition to monthly meetings, every two years, RPTA holds a Pedagogy Clinic featuring a pedagogue of national repute. Another biannual event is the Ensemble Festival that attracts hundreds to see students performing in various ensemble configurations, and musicales are offered multiple times per year.

RPTA’s most prestigious award for students is decided through its annual Scholarship Competition, with sponsorship from local businesses and a piano dealership in the area funds an annual Teacher Merit Award of $500. RPTA awards two grants each year: one for $1000 to a teacher pursuing a continuing education project; and the second for $1500 for an RPTA member to attend the MTNA conference.

MTNA Collegiate Chapters of the Year
University of South Carolina Collegiate Chapter
Fanarelia Guerrero, president
Scott Price, NCTM, Chapter advisor

The MTNA Collegiate Chapter of the Year Award is given to the MTNA collegiate chapter that demonstrates excellence in its chapter activities.

The University of South Carolina Collegiate Chapter of MTNA is heavily involved in creating and supporting research. In residence at an R1 University, their activity supports the mission of the University and chapter members sponsor an annual “Student Research Day” for new professionals to showcase their research, and prepare for lightning talks, research poster, and workshop presentations at State and National Conferences. .

MTNA’s initiative to be diverse in its scope of presentations, projects and other initiatives was reflected in the activities, lectures and research topics that members of the UofSC Collegiate Chapter have put together these past two years. Members have been active in exploring under-represented composers and repertoire including piano works of varying levels from the United States, Nicaragua, the Philippines, South Korea, China and Malaysia..

In addition, to regular research, chapter members were indispensable in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic by facilitating online instruction through the UofSC Center for Piano Studies, and Group Piano Program.

Utah State University Collegiate Chapter
Audry Ricks, president
Kevin Olson and Cahill Smith, advisors

The Utah State University piano program has a vibrant MTNA collegiate chapter, consisting of nearly 30 piano majors and minors. It has been recognized as the Utah Music Teacher Association Collegiate Chapter of the Year three of the past four years (2019, 2020, 2022), due to its active engagement in UMTA conferences and other events. The chapter integrates UMTA events and other activities through the USU Youth Conservatory, a lab school where more than 150 pre-college pianists receive lessons and group classes, taught by the college students.

While the chapter has a long list of ongoing activities, among their newest projects are the Gina Bachauer “Music in Our Schools,” program which are contracted performances by chapter members and faculty at Utah K-12 Schools, educational concerts for around 3,000 students, age K-6 (and counting!) and “Piano and Strings Chamber Music,” which is the first curricular piano and strings collaboration at USU.

American Music Teacher Article of the Year
“Listening With Your Brain: An Aural-Cognitive Approach to Teaching Musical Understanding and Artistry,” by Chan Kiat Lim, NCTM and Siok Lian Tan, NCTM
October/November 2022 Issue

The American Music Teacher Article of the Year Award award is presented by Music Teachers National Association to the author(s) of an outstanding feature article written expressly for American Music Teacher.

Chan Kiat Lim has performed solo and chamber recitals in Canada, China, Germany, Greece, Italy, Jamaica, Malaysia, Romania and throughout the United States including solo performances at Music at Penn Alps Concert Series in Maryland and twice at Steinway Hall, New York City.

A pedagogue and clinician, he is an active presenter at international and national music conferences on performance and pedagogical topics. Chan Kiat co-authored with Susanna Garcia, an online multimedia curriculum eNovativePiano, which was the recipient of the 2021 MTNA-Frances Clark Keyboard Pedagogy Award.

Chan Kiat is an Endowed Professor of Piano at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette where teaches piano performance, keyboard literature, class piano, and the heads the Keyboard Studies Area. In 2015, he received the UL-Lafayette Distinguished Professor Award and the Louisiana Music Teachers Association (LMTA) Outstanding Teacher Award. In 2020, he was honored as a MTNA FOUNDATION Fellow. Chan Kiat is MTNA’s webinar coordinator and Louisiana MTA president.

Siok Lian Tan is associate professor of piano and coordinator of the piano area at Miami University. She holds a DMA degree in piano from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. She has appeared as a soloist with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Oxford Chamber Orchestra and Miami University Symphony Orchestra. Lian has presented solo and chamber music concerts throughout the world, including a solo recital at the St. Martin-in-the-Fields concert series.

Lian has presented at national and regional CMS Conferences, state and national MTNA conferences, the National Group Piano/Piano Pedagogy Forum and the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy. She has also written articles for the Piano Pedagogy Forum, American Music Teacher and Clavier Companion. Named the 2011 OhioMTA Teacher of the Year, Lian was also the recipient of the 2020 Miami University Crossan Hays Curry Distinguish Educator Award. She has served as the vice president of student activities on the OhioMTA executive committee.

MTNA e-Journal Article of the Year
“Reaching Out to the Youth: The Guia Prático, Álbuns Para Piano by Heitor Villa-Lobos,” by Verena Abufaiad
February 2022 Issue

The MTNA e-Journal of the Year Award is presented by Music Teachers National Association to the author of an outstanding feature article written exclusively for the MTNA e-Journal.

Verena Abufaiad maintains a thriving piano studio in Columbia, South Carolina, while serving as director of piano education at Freeway Music. She holds a DMA degree in piano pedagogy from the University of South Carolina, an MM degree in piano performance and an MM degree in piano pedagogy from the University of Missouri and a BM degree in piano performance from the Pará State University, in Brazil. Verena was chair of the 2023 MTNA Collegiate Chapters Symposium planning committee. She is a member of the MTNA Task Force on Young Professionals and a South Carolina MTA board member.

Stecher & Horowitz Power of Innovation Award
Joshua Wright

MTNA-Stecher & Horowitz Power of Innovation Award is provided through the generosity of its benefactors and namesakes, Melvin Stecher and Norman Horowitz, whose own life and work epitomized the power of innovation.

Joshua Wright’s work in the field of online music teaching and performance has reached over 175,000 subscribers and nearly 20 million views. Josh has created numerous online video courses to help students of all ages and abilities improve their technique and musicality. With his wife, Lindsey Wright, and the AMAR Foundation, he authored an online beginner piano course for refugees in a camp located in northern Iraq, displaced from their homes due to war and terrorism. With the help of generous donors, over 200 digital pianos were delivered to these camps and two semesters of piano classes were taught to children wanting to learn music.

Josh earned a DMA degree from the University of Michigan and MM and BM degrees from the University of Utah. His principal teachers were. Logan Skelton and Susan Duehlmeier. He has also studied privately with concert pianist, Sergei Babayan. Josh served on the piano faculty at the University of Utah from 2016–2021.

Josh was a prizewinner at the 2015 National Chopin Competition, also winning the Mazurka prize. He won third prize and the audience prize at the 2014 Washington International Piano Competition, first prize at the 2013 Heida Hermanns International Piano Competition, first prize at the 2013 Rosamond P. Haeberle Piano Award competition, the gold medal at the 2010 Seattle International Piano Competition, and first prize at the 2010 American Protége International Competition of Romantic Music. He was the second-prize winner of the 2011 Music Teachers National Association National Competition. He was also a top prizewinner in the New York Piano Competition, the Louisiana International Piano Competition and the Julia Crane International Piano Competition.

MarySue Harris Studio Teacher Fellowship Award
Paul Cotton
Lauren Koszyk
Elizabeth Smith

MarySue Harris Studio Teacher Fellowship Award, a grant funded by the MarySue Harris Endowment Fund, is presented annually to three recently graduated independent studio music teachers who demonstrate commitment to the music teaching profession and outstanding studio development.

Paul Cotton is an established performer and instructor in saxophone, flute, and clarinet. Audiences have heard him play around the world in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Seoul Performing Arts Center, Redlands Bowl, Nixon Library, Carpenter Center and numerous university campuses.

Paul has won numerous competitions for both solo and chamber music. He was a featured soloist for the Redlands Music Festival and performed in Carnegie Hall after winning grand prize in the International American Protégé solo competition. The first-prize winner in the International Grand Prize Virtuoso Competition in Belgium, Paul also won “Woodwind of the Year” from his music school and a recipient of the Martin Figotin Scholarship.

Paul received a bachelor of music degree at California State University, Long Beach and a master of music degree in performance at Indiana University. His teachers include Otis Murphy, James Barrera, Jay Mason and Stephanie Getz. He teaches privately in Southern California.

Lauren Koszyk is an educator, collaborative pianist, and arts administrator in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. She currently owns and maintains the Lauren Koszyk Piano Studio and serves on the piano faculty at Tarrant County College Northwest. An opera pianist and coach, she has worked with Illinois Festival Opera, Midwest Institute of Opera, Music Onsite Inc., Musiktheater Bavaria and Opera Seme.

Lauren earned an MM degree in collaborative piano with a related field in early music from the University of North Texas, where she was awarded a teaching assistantship and graduate assistantship. She holds a BM in piano performance and BA in German from Illinois State University, both summa cum laude.

Lauren has presented at MTNA conferences at collegiate, state and national levels, She is treasurer for the Dallas MTA and previously served as archives chair. Lauren served as vice president and president of the Illinois State University Collegiate Chapter.

Elizabeth Smith is a diverse pianist with extensive experience in solo, collaborative and pedagogical settings. Elizabeth holds degrees from both University of Colorado Boulder and Southern Methodist University. She graduated cum laude in 2020 from SMU, studying with Catharine Lysinger.

While at SMU, Elizabeth received the Paul Van Katwijk Award, which is given to one outstanding undergraduate pianist each year. Elizabeth also holds a Master of Music in piano performance and pedagogy from the University of Colorado Boulder under Dr. Jennifer Hayghe. She has performed in both the United States and in Europe in various summer festivals and master classes.

Elizabeth is a doctoral student in piano performance under Jennifer Hayghe at CU Boulder, where she has a graduate teaching assistantship. Elizabeth also has a private studio of 30 students. She is also the president of the MTNA CU Boulder chapter and an intern with the Frances Clark Center.