Bio: Hayward, Anna Haun was Associate Professor and Director of the Graduate Piano Pedagogy Program at Georgia State University. Dr. Hayward has also served on summer music festival faculties for the U. of Illinois, the Breckenridge Colorado Music Festival, and the Musique Session Internationale in Grenoble, France. Sponsored by Alfred Music, she has given piano pedagogy workshops in the US, England, Malaysia, and Australia, and has also performed throughout the US, Micronesia, England, Germany, France, and Austria. She was awarded the "Master Teacher Certificate" in Piano by MTNA (1995). She enjoys preparing students for a career in piano performance and/or piano pedagogy as well as teaching students wanting to pursue their passion for learning.

Email: annahayward1011@gmail.com

Phone: 828-225-3801

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Asheville

Offering Piano Lessons for: Advanced, College, Adults, Lessons in your home

Teaching Styles: Classical

Offering Other Music Lessons for: Theory

Address: Asheville

Bio: Mary Holmes is a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University (B. Music - Piano Performance) and The University of Michigan (M. Music). She attended Oakland University in Michigan (M. Music – Piano Performance) while raising her children.

She has taught piano at all levels for over 45 years. In addition, she taught in Detroit at Wayne State University for several years, and has performed extensively as a soloist and chamber musician. In addition to membership in AAPF, she is on the board of the Asheville Chamber Music Series.

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Asheville, Lessons in your home (teacher will travel)

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Elementary, Middle/High School, College, Adults

Teacher Specializations: Music History, Classical

Email: 312mesh@gmail.com

Phone: Home: (828) 505-7008 or Cellphone: (828) 707-6353

Address: Asheville

Bio: Jenna Jaffe graduated cum laude from the University of California at Santa Barbara with a Music Degree in Vocal Performance in 1992. She was also accepted into two Masters of Music programs at the renowned New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. Jenna has been teaching private piano, voice, and general music for over 28 years. She specializes in teaching beginning to advanced voice and beginning to intermediate piano students. She is currently accepting new students in her private studio in East Asheville. Jenna is also a passionate performer of dance, performance art, singing in most genres, as well as playing several different instruments. In addition, she is a certified teacher of ESL at Asheville Buncombe Community College and regularly studies languages in her spare time.

Email: jenna.jaffe@gmail.com

Phone: 828-273-2605

Website Addresses:

• https://www.consciouscreating.org/

• https://www.etsy.com/shop/ConsciousCreatingOrg

• https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCI8OXTyKdSFg6DcPK9DwNCA

• https://www.instagram.com/jenna_jaffe/

• https://www.facebook.com/consciouscreatingart

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Studio: All of Asheville and online lessons

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginner, Intermediate, Young Children, Elementary, Middle/High School, College, Adults

Teaching Styles: Classical, Popular, Jazz, Improvisation

Offering Other Music Lessons for: Theory, Composition, Voice, Percussion, Music History, Improvisation, Recorder, Composition Arrangements, Diction, Drama Coaching, Energy Healing with Voice

Other Music Related Services: Vocal and Piano Performance for any Events

Address: Asheville

Bio: Dr. Hwa-Jin Kim is a concert pianist, educator, author, and founder and artistic director of Sonare Music Academy. A graduate of Seoul National University, she earned her Doctor of Musical Arts from Manhattan School of Music, where she also served on the faculty. She taught for over 22 years at the University of North Carolina Asheville and is a two-time recipient of the Steinway & Sons Top Teacher Award. In 2026, Dr. Kim created The Beethoven 32, a week-long celebration of Beethoven’s complete piano sonatas. She is currently organizing Chopin Festival 2027, celebrating Chopin through performance, education, and community engagement.

Email: hwajinkimdma@gmail.com

Website(s): sonaremusicacademy.com, YouTube channel

Teacher Specializations: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Classical, Music History, Theory, Pedagogy, Virtual, Young Children

Performance Styles: Classical

Address: Asheville

Bio: Principal keyboardist at Greenville Symphony orchestra

Email: lisakiser11@gmail.com

Phone: 864-908-4428

Web Site: Kiserpiano.com

Offering Piano Lessons for: Intermediate, Advanced

Teaching Styles: Classical

Address: Greenville, SC

Bio: Dr. Leonidas Lagrimas, NCTM serves as Associate Professor of Piano and Piano Pedagogy at Western Carolina University. His duties include coordinating the Class Piano program and teaching Applied Piano.  He has presented his research at numerous local, state, and national conferences.

Dr. Lagrimas’ performance experience includes multiple collaborative piano appearances at Carnegie Hall, and guest artist recitals at numerous universities throughout the East Coast.  He is active as a musical theatre accompanist/keyboardist as well as a choral/church accompanist.  He holds National Certification (NCTM) in piano from MTNA, and a Ph.D. in Music Education and Piano Pedagogy from Florida State University.  

Email: a.lagrimas@gmail.com

Phone: 850-443-2940

Web Site: www.wcu.edu/faculty/llagrimas.aspx

Styles: Classical, Religious

Specializations: Music History, Pedagogy, Theory, Virtual

Address: Sylva

Bio: I am a concert pianist & violinist and conservatory trained teacher for over 40 years, 15 of which included online lessons. I was educated by professors at the Eastman School of Music, Juilliard & Northwestern University. Visit my website and YouTube channels. I currently perform in local orchestras, churches & special events.  

Email: QuinnMusic@StephanieQuinn.com

Phone: 828-222-3324

For lessons, contact Ms. Quinn through her website.

Website Addresses:

Stephanie Quinn Website

Student Progress Videos

Masterclass / Tutorial Videos

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Globally. YouTube tutorials also available.

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Young Children, Elementary, Middle/High School, College, Adults

Teaching Styles: Traditional and Suzuki

Offering Other Music Lessons for: Ear-training, Solfege, Theory, Composition, Singing. 

Other Music Related Services: Skilled accompanist and chamber musician.

Address: P.O. Box 8932, Asheville, NC 28804

Email Address: rreeves123@aol.com

Address: Asheville

Bio: After completing a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from the University of North Texas and a master’s degree in piano performance from Texas Christian University, Cynthia received a bachelor of science in nursing.  In Texas, she performed chamber music and with orchestra.  Cynthia was a contestant in two of the Cliburn International Piano Competitions for Outstanding Amateurs and was a semifinalist in the Rocky Mountain Amateur Piano Competition. She also studied and performed in Spain. 

Since moving to North Carolina in 2006, she has given house concerts and performances in retirement homes, country clubs and restaurants.  She also has done benefits for the Hendersonville and Asheville Symphonies.

Cynthia recently joined Sue Baker, flutest, to form the Baker Riley Duo. They perform classical and jazz and are available for private parties and local venues.

Performance Styles: Classical, Jazz

Email: cynthiarileypianist@gmail.com

Website: https://www.youtube.com/@cynthiariley4033

Phone: 828-447-8886

Address: Lake Lure

Bio: Teaches at Piano Lab in Mills River. I have graduates from a music school in Minsk Belarus. During my college years in the US I have taken lessons from Dr. Hwa-Jin Kim at UNCA. I have taught piano for 18 years, beginner through advanced levels.

Email: elena1apc@yahoo.com

Phone: (863) 398-1988

Teaching Locations: Piano Lab, Mills River, NC

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginners through Advanced

Teaching Styles: Classical

Address: Mills River

Bio: Susie Shaw teaches piano to ages 4 and up in the West Asheville area. She holds the Master of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Music degrees in piano performance from the University of Georgia. She is organist at Grace Baptist Church.

Email: srwshaw@gmail.com

Phone: 828-337-2094

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Asheville

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Young Children, Elementary, Middle/High School, Adults

Teaching Styles: Classical

Address: Asheville

Bio: Composer & pianist Nathan Shirley has received over half a dozen national and international awards for his solo, chamber and orchestral compositions since age 21. He is heavily self-taught, but as a teenager was mentored in composition by Olga Harris, the last student of Khachaturian. Mr. Shirley's music has been performed in over a dozen countries around the world. He lives in Western North Carolina with his wife and children.

Email: music@nathanshirley.com

Phone: 828.659.8737

Website: www.NathanShirley.com

Offering Other Music Lessons for: Composition

Address: Marion

Bio: Keyboardist/composer Richard Shulman creates music as a positive influence for himself, audiences and society. -- Richard has recorded 28 of his own albums and collaborated on dozens more. Trained in the classical and jazz fields, he has developed a heartfelt language in these genres while focussing much of his output on music for meditation, healing and inspiration. Shulman has performed at the Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, the UN, and numerous venues in North America and Europe. Shulman has composed for jazz groups, chamber ensembles, choir, and symphony orchestra and creates Musical Soul Portrait recordings for individuals, couples and groups.  

Read the full bio at https://richheartmusic.com/about/richard-shulman

Email: richheartmusic@frontier.com

Phone: 828-658-9604

Website: https://richheartmusic.com

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Weaverville

Offering Piano Lessons for: Intermediate, Advanced, College, Adults

Teaching Styles: Classical, Jazz

Offering Other Music Lessons for: Theory, Composition

Other Music Related Services: Musical Soul Portraits, Jazz performances, composing, arranging, recording

Address: Asheville

Bio: I'm a retired amateur who studied piano for many years in school. I haven't kept up my skills as much as I would have liked over the years, but recently started playing more seriously again. I enjoy many types of music -- classical, jazz, old standards, show tunes, and more.

Phone: 202-256-0225

Email: masmithcae@gmail.com

Address: Asheville

Bio: Wayne Smith, DMA is a retired solo pianist, accompanist, teacher and church organist, having moved to Asheville in 2016 from a long musical career in Kansas City, MO.  With the AAPF, Dr. Smith is a board member and a frequently heard pianist on Benefit Concerts and Performance Group gatherings.  He is active as a substitute organist/pianist for many churches in Asheville and surrounding towns.

Email: owaynesmith@att.net

Phone: 816-522-5317

Performers’ Occasions: Classical Solo Pianist, Church Musician

Address: Swannanoa

Bio: Eunice Wonderly Stackhouse holds piano performance degrees from the University of Kansas (D.M.A.) and Indiana University (M.M.) and a B.M.E. degree from Grace College (IN). She was elected to lifetime membership in Pi Kappa Lambda Music Honor Society by the Indiana University chapter. Her career began in Indianapolis as an independent piano instructor, where for 13 years she taught 30-45 students. Prior to her move to NC, she taught at several colleges in adjunct or FT sabbatical replacement position;: including the University of Indianapolis, Tabor & Bethel Colleges (KS), Grove City College (PA), and Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She has been active in various music organizations and served for several years as a state officer for NCMTA. She has performed extensively in solo and chamber recital settings, including solo recitals recorded and broadcast by WQED Pittsburgh and Radio Kansas. Her article on Louise Talma’s Soundshots was published by Clavier in November 2002, and she edited the first publication of Talma’s Three Bagatelles in 2003 for Hildegard Publishing Co. As Professor of Music at Montreat College, she taught all of the Piano, Music Theory, and Keyboard Pedagogy courses there from 1996-2019. She now continues to teach piano privately in Black Mountain, to adjudicate piano competitions and festivals, and to perform in various settings.

Email: eunice.w.stackhouse@outlook.com

Phone: (828) 669-5479

Website:  https://ews-piano-studio.com/

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Black Mountain

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginning through Advanced

Specialties: Classical, Sacred, Piano Pedagogy, Theory

Address: Black Mountain

Bio: Laura Chu Stokes, a nationally certified teacher of music, has been a pianist and music educator for more than forty years. A graduate of Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in piano performance, Laura has taught hundreds of students in her private studio and as the director-instructor at Appalachian State University’s Community Music School (CMS). She is a contributing author to the Alfred Music blog https://www.alfred.com/blog/ and Coordinator of the Hayes School of Music Piano Competition for pre-college pianists each fall. As a performer, Laura has been a staff accompanist at ASU and collaborative artist with her husband, trumpeter James Stokes. She has performed numerous recitals, both solo and chamber, and been featured as a soloist with the Columbus and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestras. Laura also enjoys serving as an adjudicator at MTNA state competitions and performance festivals. Since 1989, Laura has conducted hands-on workshops for www.e-znotes.com, a full line of music learning tools developed by her mother, Lucy Chu. She has been invited by professional music teacher associations and music dealers/retailers nationally as a clinician and featured speaker.

Phone: 614-657-6685

Email: eznotespianostudio@gmail.com

Web Site: eznotespianostudio.com; e-znotes.com

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Boone NC

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Middle/High School, College, Adults

Offering Other Lessons for: Theory, Pedagogy, Mentoring

Offering Other Piano Services: Music Educational Learning Tools

Teaching Styles: Classical, Jazz, Popular

Performers’ Occasions: Recitals, Jazz Events

Address: Boone

Bio: Dr. Judy Sullivan is an active piano teacher and accompanist in the Asheville area. Joining the AAPF in the fall of 1994, Judy has served on the Board of Directors for five years, as President for three years and Member Activities Chair for two years. She served as membership co-chair for 15 years. Judy's education degrees are from James Madison University, the University of Virginia, and The College of William and Mary.

Email: jsullivanpiano@gmail.com

Phone: 828.298.8037

Studio/Store Location, Serving: Asheville, Weaverville, Black Mountain, Canton

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginner, Intermediate, Elementary, Middle/High School, College, Adults, Lessons in your home

Teaching Styles: Classical, Jazz, Popular, Religious

Offering Other Music Lessons for: Theory, Composition, Music History, Pedagogy

Address: Asheville

Bio: Dr. Teresa Sumpter is currently the Chair of the Department of Music and Coordinator of Keyboard Studies at Mars Hill University where she teaches applied piano, group piano, piano literature, piano pedagogy, and music history. She holds a Ph.D. in Music Education with an emphasis in Piano Pedagogy and a Master of Music degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Oklahoma. Her Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance is from Ball State University. She also holds a Masters in Business Administration degree from West Virginia University. Teresa has performed, adjudicated, and presented throughout the country. Recent performances include recitals on the Pianoforte Series in Asheville, NC, Carson-Newman University, Winthrop University, and Friends of Music Concert Series at Montreat College. She has been a frequent adjudicator for the North Carolina Music Teachers Association district and state piano contests since her arrival in the area in 2008.

Email: tsumpter@mhu.edu

Phone: 828-689-1308

Website: www.mhu.edu/music

Studio/Store Location, Serving: All of Western NC

Offering Piano Lessons for: Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, Young Children, Elementary, Middle/High School, College, Adults

Teaching Styles: Classical

Offering Other Music Lessons for: Theory

Address: Mars Hill University, Box 6693, Mars Hill, NC 28754

Bio: Christopher Tavernier made his orchestral debut with the Tar River Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of thirteen, where he performed Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1. In addition to being a solo performer, he is also a dedicated chamber musician. Christopher has won numerous competitions throughout the Appalachian region and Southeastern US, including the young artist division at the state MTNA competition in Florida. Christopher received a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Florida State University in 2023, studying with Dr. Read Gainsford, before going to New York to study for a year with Rieko Aizawa at Brooklyn Conservatory, the pianist of the widely acclaimed Horszowski Trio. He is currently pursuing a Master of Music in Piano Performance & Literature degree from the Eastman School of Music, studying with Dr. Douglas Humpherys. Outside of the practice room, Christopher enjoys being outdoors and playing chess.

Email: tavernier.pianoman@gmail.com

Phone: 828-707-3543

Website: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3atoGLS1O2acfz50_HqUcg

Performers’ Occasions: Accompaniment, Collaboration, Chamber Music, Classical, Orchestra, and Popular

Address: Hendersonville