Teachers

“… talented teachers make students love the music…” — A. Artobolevskaya

Our piano teachers are willing to share their joy and appreciation of the great musical works with students.

Katrin Arefy

A graduate of the prestigious Gnessin School of Music in Moscow, Katrin has been passionately training music teachers in what is the creme de la creme of Russian methods and working one on one with parents and students for more than two decades. She serves as the artistic director and head teacher at Golden Key Piano School in Berkeley, est. 2003, and established its sister location in New York, Manhattan Piano Academy, in 2020.

Katrin is the author of A Thousand Stories for a Little Pianist and the series My First Piano Book. She has translated Anna Artobolevskaya’s First Meet with the Music and Heinrich Neuhaus’ The Art of Piano Playing from Russian to Farsi. She has lectured on the Russian method and specifically Artobolevskya’s method abroad and at various universities in the US including the University of Oregon and Ohio University School of Music. Most recently Katrin delivered a well-received presentation at the Music Teachers Association Of California Conference in San Diego.

Her very first students are now professional pianists having graduated from leading music universities in Austria and Armenia.

Katrin won the Influential Businesswoman Awards in 2020, and has been named Most Inspirational Woman in Music Education (Northern California) by Acquisition International. She also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts in Painting from Azad University in Tehran.

Nicole Chun

She was accepted to Juilliard pre-college where she studied piano with Jane Carlson. While studying with Carlson, she performed numerous times at Juilliard school, Carnegie Weill hall every year, and toured Italy with Carlson. She received a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from Oberlin Conservatory where she studied with Peter Takacs while earning Dean’s Award scholarship throughout the entire school years.

Since graduating from Oberlin, she has been focusing in teaching students, and has been fully enjoying her teaching experience and see the students improve. Nicole has more than ten years of teaching experience.

Nicole’s gentle approach, combined with her patience and years of experience makes her a desirable teacher, especially for younger students.

Christopher Richardson

Christopher Richardson has received top prizes in numerous national and international piano competitions, including First Prize at the 2021 LA International Liszt Competition Budapest Division as well as First Prize and Best Chopin Prize at the 2016 Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Competition. He most recently has won Second Prize at the 2022 Virginia Waring International Piano Competition Concerto Division and Third Prize at the 2022 Young Artist MTNA Competition. Throughout his career, he has performed in several notable venues across the United States, including the Liszt Museum in Budapest, the 2000-seat Music Tent in Aspen, Weill Hall Carnegie Hall, Finney Chapel, McCallum Theater, and Benaroya Hall. He has also performed with numerous orchestras, including the Minnesota Orchestra twice. Additionally, he has appeared on NPR’s “From the Top,” TV program PIE on KCTS 9, and King FM 98.1. In 2015, he presented at the TEDYouth@Redmond Conference in Washington, and in 2019 he released his debut album, titled Wizard of Oz.

Christopher is an active music educator, having served as faculty at the Golden Key Piano School in Berkeley since 2019. His students have received top marks on Royal Conservatory of Music examinations, and have performed in various concerts and fundraisers. They describe him as a very patient and encouraging teacher with great attention to technique and musicality.

Christopher graduated with honors at the University of California Berkeley, earning Bachelor’s degrees in Molecular/Cell Biology, Economics, and Music. During this time, he also served as the blog writer of the Steinway Society of the Bay Area, where he gave his thoughts on various aspects of classical music and performance. Christopher earned his Masters in Music at the University of Southern California Thornton School of Music under renowned pianist and conductor Jeffrey Kahane. His previous major teachers include Mack McCray, Duane Hulbert, Craig Sheppard, Frederick Weldy, William Wellborn, and Robert Schwartz. Christopher is currently attending the MBA program at Cornell University.

Christoher’s students have been progressing greatly in their piano playing and we are truly thrilled to have Christopher Richardson as part of our faculty here at Golden Key Piano School!

Susan

Susan T. Mashiyama, PhD, is a multi-instrumentalist and composer, and is an active music teacher in the Bay Area. She studied the piano from a young age with James Lynch in Long Beach, CA and in college at Yale University with Japanese pianist Aki Shimazu. Susan holds a PhD in biology from UC Berkeley and is interested in both the science and emotions behind music.

She completed a Montessori education training program for elementary school aged students and has a certificate in Music Leadership from the Unitarian Universalist (UU) Association for which coursework included exploring what music means to us in terms of spirituality and being human.

Susan also currently serves as the music director of the Live Oak UU Fellowship in Alameda.

Once more, we warmly welcome Susan to to the Golden Key Piano School.

Ketevan Dzneladze

Ketevan studied music theory and piano at the Zakaria Paliashvili Batumi State Musical Institution in Georgia. She went on to teach all skill levels at Kobuleti school in Georgia where she was nominated Teacher of the Year multiple times. Afetr moving to Cyprus she started teaching at Duet Art Academy where she had prepared numerous students for the Royal Academy Examination. Ketevan has experience performing in a trio as well as over 30 years teaching private piano lessons. She has been a valued teacher at Golden Key Piano School since 2013.

Stella

Stella is a passionate and considerate teacher and extraordinarily talented in piano education. She received her Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from Hanse University in South Korea. She studied piano under the guidance of Soeun Lee and Igaki Hideyuki, famous pianists in South Korea. She has given several concerts: disciple recitals, master classes, collaboration with orchestras, etc.

Since graduation, she has been focusing on teaching students to play the piano. Stella has over 10 years of experience teaching piano. She has worked with students of all ages and levels and loves incorporating fun games and activities into lessons. She also holds a piano adventure certificate. Before she came to the bay area in 2022, she operated her music academy for six years (2015-2021). Her piano class was recognized for her students winning in the major-regional music competitions in South Korea.

Jin

Jin studied music in South Korea as well as in the United State. She received a bachelor’s degree in piano performance from the Korean Baptist theological University. In the US, she studied with Ellen wassermann at Cal state University, East Bay and received her Master degree in piano performance in 2000. During the graduate school, she awarded a music scholarship from Music teachers association of California. After earning MM in music, She entered graduate program in 2001 at Golden Gate Theological Seminary to be trained a piano accompaniment in contemporary worship music. Since then, she has been serving community organizations as a piano accompanist. With the education background in piano, she has been continuously dedicated to private piano teaching for young students in the Bay Area for more than 15 years. It is her true joy to teach and help them find their talents and develop musical skills. We are happy to ad Jin to our great teacher’s team starting April 2022.

Morgan Chan

Morgan Chan is a California native accomplished pianist, composer, and music producer. Morgan began his musical career with piano lessons at the age of five, and pursued piano performance throughout his early years in education. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Music at UC Berkeley, studying piano performance with Dr. Betty Woo. As a teacher Morgan is very familiar with The Royal Conservatory of Music examination system. Morgan’s patience, meticulousness and serious personality makes him a great addition to our school’s team of accomplished teachers.

Morgan began teaching private piano lessons in early 2020, and has since developed a passion for sharing his love for music, making piano lessons a fun and memorable experience for students. We are pleased to welcome Morgan on board starting April 2022.

Jeff

Jeff strives to help each individual cultivate a meaningful relationship with the piano that’s personal, enriching, and lasts for life. Drawing from 25 years of piano experience, Jeff helps his students gain a broad set of musical skills to tackle a diverse range of musical styles, while tailoring lessons to their unique goals and aspirations.

Jeff studied at the New England Conservatory’s pre-college program in Boston, MA. He continued his musical studies at Princeton University, where he performed Beethoven’s Piano Concerto no. 1 with the Princeton University Orchestra and earned an AB in economics with a minor in piano performance.

Most recently, he was awarded 1st Prize and “Best Baroque” performance at the 2024 Boston International Piano Competition for Amateur Pianists, performing works by Rachmaninoff, Handel, Ravel, Kapustin, and Prokofiev (see youtube: @lostinfugue). He has performed in hundreds of concerts and is a frequent soloist, chamber musician, and accompanist around the Bay Area.

Outside of teaching and performing, Jeff works full-time as a data scientist for a video recording software product called Loom and lives with his partner and fellow pianist (Ryan) + Australian Cattle Dog (Coda) in Berkeley. We are excited to have Jeff join the Golden Key Piano School’s teaching staff!

Tara Fiser

With over 11 years of dedicated teaching experience, Tara is committed to nurturing a joyful, supportive, and creative environment where her students can explore the art of piano playing. Her approach emphasizes fostering musical expression, building confidence, and cultivating a lifelong love for music.

Originally from Serbia, she holds a degree in Piano Performance and a Master’s in Chamber Music. Her strong foundation in music theory, combined with diverse performance experiences including theater productions, recitals, accompaniment, band performances, and chamber music allowing her to bring a dynamic and well-rounded perspective to her teaching.

Beyond music, she is passionate about animal welfare and human rights, values that influence, her compassionate and inclusive teaching style. Friendly, approachable, and genuinely invested in her students’ growth, she aims to make a positive, lasting impact through music education. We officially welcome her to the Golden Key Piano School’s teaching staff!

Janice

Janice is a pianist and teacher based in Oakland, California. She started learning music at the age of 10 and continued her education at California State University Northridge (CSUN). At CSUN, Janice studied Piano Performance under the guidance of Dimitry Rachmanov and Jason Stoll. Over the course of her music career, Janice has performed in large and small ensembles including but not limited to orchestras, jazz bands, and chamber groups.

Janice began her teaching career in 2021 and has experience working with students of all ages. She is passionate about educating students with an enjoyable and structured curriculum to guide them along the path of their musical journey. We are happy to introduce Janice as part of the Golden Key Piano School teacher’s team starting summer of 2025.

Dr. Hyunkyung Woo

We are thrilled to have Hyunkyung as part of our amazing teachers at Golden Key Piano School starting fall of 2025.

Dr. Hyunkyung Woo is a dedicated piano educator and accomplished performer with extensive teaching and performance experience in both the United States and South Korea. She earned her Doctor of Musical Arts and Master’s degrees in Piano Performance from The University of Texas at Austin under the mentorship of Professor Anton Nel, following her Bachelor of Music degree from Sookmyung Women’s University in Seoul.

Dr. Woo has given numerous solo and chamber recitals internationally and was awarded second prize in the Sydney Wright Competition in Piano Accompaniment. As a teacher, she has guided students of all ages and levels, helping many achieve success in competitions and gain admission to prestigious music programs. Known for her supportive and disciplined approach, she inspires students to grow not only as pianists but also as confident musicians.