DIVISION III
RANDALL HODGKINSON
“The finest performance I have ever heard of this very difficult piece. It was as if he was reading my mind…” Aaron Copland on hearing pianist Randall Hodgkinson performing his Piano Fantasy in Jordan Hall, Boston. While a student at the New England Conservatory Hodgkinson became grand prizewinner of the International American Music Competition sponsored by Carnegie Hall and the Rockefeller Foundation. He has performed with orchestras in Atlanta, Philadelphia, Buffalo, Boston, Cleveland and abroad in Italy and Iceland, and also numerous recital programs spanning the repertoire from J.S. Bach to Donald Martino. A frequent guest of the Boston Symphony Chamber Players, he also performs the four-hand and two-piano repertoire with his wife, Leslie Amper. Festival appearances include Ravinia, Bargemusic, Chestnut Hill Concerts in Madison Connecticut, Seattle Chamber Music Festival, and Chamber Music Northwest (Portland, OR). Solo recordings on the Ongaku, New World, and Albany labels have garnered much critical acclaim. Mr. Hodgkinson is on the faculties of the New England Conservatory of Music and Wellesley College and is a certified Feldenkrais Practitioner™.
SIVAN ETEDGEE
A dedicated educator, pianist Sivan Etedgee teaches students of all ages at his home studio in Newton, MA. He is the immediate-past president of the New England Piano Teachers’ Association (2021-23), and was awarded Steinway & Sons “Top Teacher” award in both 2021 and 2023. He has served on the faculty of the University of New Hampshire, Berwick Academy, and the Newton Music Academy. Sivan has adjudicated competitions and festivals including the A. Ramon Rivera Competition, the MMTA State Competition, the Steinway Society Competition, and the Milton Young Musicians Festival.
As a performer, Sivan appears frequently in the Boston area as a soloist and chamber musician. He enjoys connecting with his audiences through multimedia lecture recitals which engage and entertain, sharing music both familiar and unfamiliar. During the pandemic, Sivan developed innovative virtual concerts, some of which were produced for Public Access Television. In both his roles as teacher and performer, Sivan is committed to making classical music enjoyable for everyone.
Sivan was educated at the University of New Hampshire, Boston University, and the University of Hartford, where his teachers included notable pianists Anthony di Bonaventura and Luiz de Moura Castro.
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DIVISION II
SONYA OVRUTSKY FENSOME
SONYA OVRUTSKY FENSOME is a classical pianist, composer, and educator. She is a professor at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA, and the director of M. Steinert and Sons Piano Academy in Boston.
Her performances are known for their fresh, imaginative, and passionate interpretation. Her extraordinary artistry brings new life to a wide array of piano repertoire – from Baroque to the 21st Century. Her album “Dreams in Black and White” is streaming on numerous platforms including Apple Music and Spotify, and her YouTube channel “From My Piano Room” is gaining recognition around the world.
Ms. Ovrutsky Fensome has performed in major venues in the United States, Europe, Russia, and South Africa – including Weill Carnegie Concert Hall and Lincoln Center in NY, Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, Aspen Music Festival, Palace de Beaux Arts in Brussels and Lucerne Music Festival. She performed as a soloist with the Aspen Festival Orchestra, Reno Philharmonic, and Neuchatel Festival Orchestra in Switzerland. She has performed in recitals with world renowned violinist Sarah Chang, and collaborates with her brother, violinist Mikhail Ovrutsky. Earlier in her career she worked as a collaborative pianist in the master classes and private lessons of professors Zakhar Bron, Dorothy DeLay, Mauricio Fuks, Itzhak Perlman, Vadim Repin, and Pinchas Zukerman. Her numerous competition awards include the Aspen Music Festival Competition and Concert Artist Competition in New York. Her duo CD with Mikhail Ovrutsky “Turning Points” recorded for Berlin Classics® has earned outstanding reviews and was selected as “CD of the Week” by RBB Kulturradio.
Born in Moscow, Russia, into a family of classical musicians, Ms. Ovrutsky Fensome gave her first performance at age 5. At age 15, she gained world recognition upon winning the International Piano Competition in Senigalia, Italy. She was invited to study at the Juilliard School of Music as a full scholarship recipient, where she earned her Bachelors and Masters Degrees in piano performance, studying with legendary professors Herbert Stessin for piano and Felix Galimir for chamber music.
Ms. Ovrutsky Fensome resides in Boston area with her husband and son.
ALEKSANDR POLYAKOV
Aleksandr Polyakov, Ukranian-American pianist and conductor, is rapidly establishing an international reputation for his remarkable virtuosity, command of sonority and communicative powers. The winner of more than 20 international competitions, his notable prizes include 3rd prize at the 9th International Liszt Competition (Netherlands), 2nd prize at the 6th International Liszt Competition (Germany), 1st prize at the Steinway Society Competition in Boston, 3rd prize at the 7th International Competition in memory of V. Horowitz in Kyiv, and 5th prize at the World Piano Competition in
Cincinnati. His numerous concerto performances include the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic under Jaap van Zweden, the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine under Volodymyr Sirenko and Allin Vlasenko, and the Weimar Staatskapelle under Stefan Solyom. In the United States he gave 9 performances of the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Boston Ballet Orchestra under Mischa Santora, and has multiple performances with the Brockton and Newton Symphonies with James Orent.
Polyakov has performed in major venues of the United States, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, Estonia, Italy, Bulgaria, Romania, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Russia and Brazil. He enjoys giving lecture-recitals, and appears often on television and radio broadcasts. “Technical difficulties seem to disappear under his hands” (Boston Musical Intelligencer), and “he has the tremendous virtuosity of
Martha Argerich” (Nordbayerischer Kuriernotes).
Polyakov has released two acclaimed compact discs, the Liszt Piano Concerto No. 1 with the Internationale Junge Orchesterakademie under the baton of Miguel Gomez-Martinez, and an all-Liszt solo disc including the B minor Sonata and other solo works and the Concerto No. 2 with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic under Jaap von Zweden.
An active chamber musician, he has appeared at festivals including Peter de Grote (Netherlands), Bayreuther Osterfesivals (Germany), Piano Festival in Schloss Schilingsfurst (Germany), Chamber Music Festival Polvdiv (Bulgaria) , Summit Music Festival (US), the major festivals of Ukraine, IKIF (US),and the Serie Virtuoses de Musica (Brazil).
Polyakov is also a dedicated and sought-after pedagogue. He serves on the piano faculty of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, and has taught at Music Fest Perugia and given master classes in the U.S., China and Europe. He often incorporates modern technologies in his teaching.
Aleksandr Polyakov was born in Kyiv, and studied piano performance and orchestral conducting at the Tchaikovsky National Music Academy of Ukraine, where his teachers were Boriys Arkhimovych and Tatiana Roschina (piano) and Allin Vlasenko (conducting). He also studied for six years with Michael Lewin at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, earning the Artist Diploma.
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DIVISION I
LYDIA REED GUERTIN
Lydia Reed-Guertin received her bachelor’s and master’s Degrees in Piano Performance from Boston University, where she studied with world renowned pianist and teacher, Anthony di Bonaventura. Imparted with lifelong artistic and technical direction, Lydia blended her passion for performing and teaching by serving on the faculties of Pine Manor College and the Concord Community Music School in New Hampshire and exclusively since 2001, maintaining a private studio in Lexington MA preparing students for recitals, auditions and competitions. Lydia has performed extensively in the area along with her sister, Elizabeth Reed, and as a duo-piano team they have recorded for the Alfred Label.
In addition to teaching and performing, Lydia is an Honorary Member and Past President of the New England Piano Teachers’ Association and Past Vice President of Membership in the Massachusetts Music Teachers Association. Under Lydia’s leadership, NEPTA flourished as a nonprofit professional organization, dedicated to the highest standards of music education, offering members and their students opportunities for growth, stimulation, and a community of friendship and support. Through Lydia’s initiative, the organization adopted the Susan B. Demb Teacher Enrichment Fund, available for members to further their professional development by enrolling in a continuing education course, workshop, seminar or conference in piano pedagogy. Lydia continues to lead NEPTA in different capacities as chair of this fund, and as an active participant in several committees.
LISA CLEVELAND
Dr. Lisa Cleveland is currently the Assistant Director of Education at Groton Hill Music in Groton, Massachusetts. Prior to joining the school in 2014, she served as the Chair of the Fine Arts Department at St. Anselm College, held teaching positions at UMass-Lowell and St. Paul’s School, and had maintained a private piano studio for over twenty years. Her students have received numerous awards for their performances and studies at the state and regional levels, and have pursued professional careers in music at the collegiate level.
When she was actively performing, Dr. Cleveland appeared as a soloist both nationally and internationally including tours in Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Canada, and the United States. She has given the American premiere of works by Marilyn Ziffrin, Lukas Foss, and Gary Daverne, and has been featured in artist series at Northwestern University, American University, and the Old North Church in Boston. Dr. Cleveland has also been a guest lecturer and presenter at music festivals and conferences, and has adjudicated local, state, regional, and national competitions throughout the United States.
Dr. Cleveland received a Bachelor of Music degree in Performance from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music, and also earned a Master of Music and Ph.D. in Music Theory from Northwestern University. She has been a member of the Music Teachers National Association and served as Chair of the MTNA Junior High School Competitions, and has also been a member of the New Hampshire Music Teachers Association where she has served as President, Treasurer, and Chair of the Granite State Auditions. Other memberships include the Massachusetts Music Teachers Association, College Music Society, Society for Music Theory, Society for American Music, New England Conference of Music Theorists, New England Piano Teachers Association, and Sigma Alpha Iota.