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Faculty Profile Eri Nakamura

Pianist and Collaborative Piano faculty member Eri Nakamura is driven by the power music has to inspire and to connect people with one another. She is also a pianist with the Neave Trio, which combines interdisciplinary art forms with their music to produce surprising and engaging concert experiences. I chose to teach at Longy because of its intimate, supportive, and diverse community, where we’re able to give students our undivided attention—helping them discover and explore the impact their music can have on society. There is also a focus on interdisciplinary artistry and collaboration, which allows us to widen the scope of classical music and welcome music and musicians from different backgrounds. I’ve seen the importance of this firsthand in my work with the Neave Trio, where we’re always looking for new ways to elevate our concerts. To me, music is about healing and transformation. People want to be connected to one another—and music can offer that connection without language, without words. Students deserve support and empathy, not competition. That’s part of what makes Longy a great place to grow as a person and a musician, as we help students realize their potential to change the world.

Highlights from Touch Divided: Piano Faculty Recital

>> Versatility in your career is key. Check out Longy’s crossover options in Historical Performance or Jazz & Contemporary Music departments.

Piano / Collaborative Piano

Working with a roster of active performers on the faculty, students develop their artistry as soloists and chamber musicians with private studio instruction at its core. A weekly piano seminar expands approaches to practicing, interpretation, and programming. Students focus on technique and performance practice but also how to create compelling and innovative programs that engage a variety of audiences. Students will also have the opportunity to work with partners like Horszowski Trio, Musicians from Marlboro, and the New Gallery Concert Series.

Your Faculty Degrees & Diplomas

Donald Berman‡, chair Rieko Aizawa‡ Wayman Chin‡ Libor Dudas Gila Goldstein‡ Renana Gutman‡ Hugh Hinton‡ Brian Moll‡ Eri Nakamura† Esther Ning Yau‡ Matt Savage† Noriko Yasuda* Andrius Zlabys Karen Zorn, President

Watch faculty and Dean Emeritus Wayman Chin perform Schumann

‡piano and collaborative piano faculty †collaborative piano faculty *no private studio Master of Music Degree Graduate Performance Diploma

Bachelor of Music* Undergraduate Diploma*

*Longy will accept an undergraduate class of students to begin in Fall 2023. We will suspend undergraduate applications beyond that date. Longy accepts undergraduate Piano applications, but the Collaborative Piano program is graduate only.

Did you know? Longy has purchased 27 new state-of-the-art Steinway and Yamaha pianos in the past three years.

Course Highlights

Counts and Recounts: Music and Politics

Curate a concert of music—to be performed on the eve of Election Day— that communicates a political message. Each week, the class will briefly cover a historical topic, delve into current issues in the classical music world, and analyze works for listening, study, and reflection.

Diverse and Eclectic Collaborative Skills

Step outside of classical accompanying and bolster your collaborative skills in musical theatre, pop, rhythm and blues, gospel, acapella and choir rep, dance studio classes, and other varied genres.

Jazz & Contemporary Music

Longy’s JCM program provides an open environment in which students experiment and create to find their artistic voice. Engaging in improvisation, composition, and performance practices, untethered to any one discipline or genre, students will build off the foundations of jazz and explore beyond—to modern contemporary, global folk traditions, bluegrass, Rock, Hip Hop, as well as other popular idioms— to define the music of the now and of the future. Students will also have the opportunity to work with partners like the New England Jazz Collaborative and our ensemble-in-residence Imagine Orchestra.

Course Highlights

Sound and Style: Rulebreakers

Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Jimi Hendrix, and J Dilla challenged the status quo. Take an in-depth look at how they changed the way their instruments were played, invented novel improvisational and compositional languages, and forever altered the course of modern music.

River of Blues: Flowing from the Margins to the Mainstream

From West Africa to the Mississippi Delta, the Blues has long been the foundation of Black musical culture. Follow the artists who developed this style and influenced American mainstream music forever.

Members of the Latinx Student Union perform “La Llorona” (Chavela Vargas)

Your Faculty

Eric Hofbauer, chair, guitar Naseem Alatrash, folk traditions ensemble Sara Bielanski, voice Leo Blanco, piano, composition, ensembles Dave Bryant*, ensembles Peter Cassino, piano, improvisation, ensembles Peter Evans, composition Ana Guigui, voice Charlie Kohlhase*, ensembles John Lockwood, upright/electric bass, ensembles Nando Michelin*, ensembles Randall Pingrey, trombone Noah Preminger, saxophone Matt Savage, piano Ben Schwendener, composition Neal Smith, drums Ilona Tipp, vocals Nikola Tomic ´, trumpet Sylvie Zakarian*, percussion *no private studio

Degrees & Diplomas

Graduate Performance Diploma Master of Music Degree Get to know our new artistic partner, the New England Jazz Collaborative

>> Consider adding a Graduate Performance

Diploma in JCM to your MM and take the music world by storm with your versatility.

Faculty Profile Matt Savage

Matt Savage is a jazz and classical pianist who has been performing professionally since childhood. He teaches in the Collaborative Piano and Jazz & Contemporary Music departments at Longy.

One thing I really enjoy about Longy’s teaching and learning community is how closely everything is intertwined. There’s a lot of conversation between different courses and departments, which can help students adapt to the changing and diverse music landscape of today. As both a classical and jazz pianist, I’ve seen how there are more and more opportunities to create an interplay between different aesthetics in today’s music scene. There’s something so special about Longy’s environment, especially how tight-knit our programs are. This academic setting allows students to build long-lasting musical relationships, and to find their artistic voices. Longy doesn’t just give students seeds of creative ideas, but also the roots—and the right kind of soil for growing.