2021 State Conference
PRESENTERS
Kevin Chance
Kevin Chance serves as Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of Alabama where he coordinates the Gloria Narramore Moody Piano Area. As soloist and collaborator, Kevin has performed throughout the United States and abroad, and recent orchestral appearances have included Bernstein’s Age of Anxiety, Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy, and Saint-Saëns’s Le Carnaval des animaux. Performing regularly as a chamber musician, Kevin has been a member of the Semplice Duo with flutist Cristina Ballatori for the past 20 years, and their performances have included world premiers at the National Flute Association Conference as well as recitals in Wisconsin, Texas, Colorado, Virginia, Alabama, New York, and Europe.
Kevin has recently received a number of accolades for his teaching. Most recently, he was named a 2020-2022 Leadership Board Faculty Fellow for the University of Alabama College of Arts and Sciences, which recognizing excellence in teaching and research. In 2019, he was inducted into the inaugural class of the Steinway and Sons Music Teacher Hall of Fame in New York City and was named 2019 Music Educator of the Year by the Arts Council of Tuscaloosa. Additionally, he was named the 2015-2017 Teacher of the Year by the Alabama Music Teachers Association. Kevin maintains an award-winning studio of college and pre-college students, and his students have garnered awards at the state, regional, and national levels. In demand as a clinician and adjudicator, he frequently presents at the MTNA National Conference as well as state and local music teacher organizations throughout the country. In January 2021, Kevin served as the headliner clinician for the University of Georgia Piano Symposium, and each summer, he serves on the faculty of the New Orleans Piano Institute each summer.
Kevin holds degrees from the Eastman School of Music, Louisiana State University, and Birmingham-Southern College, and his former teachers include Barry Snyder, Constance Knox Carroll, Anne Koscielny, Ann Schein, William DeVan, and Betty Sue Shepherd. Kevin currently serves as President of the American Matthay Association for Piano and recently finished his term as Vice President of MTNA.
Mario Ajero
Dr. Mario Ajero, NCTM is Professor of Piano at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, TX where he teaches applied piano lessons, group piano classes, and piano pedagogy and serves as the keyboard area coordinator. He grew up in Cherry Hill, NJ and holds Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Music from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA and earned his Ph.D. in Music Education with a concentration in piano pedagogy from the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Ajero has served as Coordinator of Class Piano for Temple University’s Music Prep Division and served as Lecturer in Piano for Temple University’s Boyer College of Music and Dance. Internationally recognized as an authority in incorporating technology in piano pedagogy and music education, he is frequently sought as a presenter for conferences around the world. Recent engagements include presentations for The Peabody Institute at Johns Hopkins University, The Royal Conservatory, and The Frances Clark Center. In addition to presenting at every major piano pedagogy conference in the United States, Dr. Ajero has been invited to perform and present in Canada, Australia, Brazil, Germany, and China.
SheryL Iott
Sheryl Iott is an active solo and collaborative performer, speaker, teacher, and adjudicator. She is a member of the College of Examiners for the Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto, for which she also works as a facilitator for their online pedagogy courses and as a Subject Matter Expert in piano and piano pedagogy. She recently spent a semester on a Fulbright Scholarship, teaching piano pedagogy and coaching collaborative piano/chamber music at the University of Brasilia. While there she performed with numerous UnB faculty, featuring music of myriad South American composers. She has also performed in Italy and throughout the U.K. as well as in many cities in the U.S. She has studied with Ralph and Albertine Votapek, Ian Hobson, and Joseph Evans, with additional coachings from Lydia Artimiw, Ward Davenny, and Richard Sim.
Dr. Iott is on the faculty of Interlochen Arts Camp, and has served on the faculties of Grand Rapids Community College, Hope College, Michigan State University, and Calvin College. Various appointments have included teaching piano, piano pedagogy, keyboard skills, music appreciation, and duties as staff accompanist.
Frequently published in music education and piano pedagogy books and magazines, Dr. Iott’s current research is focusing on music cognition and cognition-enhanced practice strategies. Her book, Thinking and Playing Music: Intentional Strategies for Optimal Practice and Performance has been published recently by Rowman & Littlefield. She has conducted workshops on effective practice strategies at Interlochen as well as for several state conferences, various local teacher groups and in “un” master classes. She also has a youtube channel on which she demonstrates many examples from the book as well as excerpts from lessons and master classes or in response to questions posed by viewers (search for “Sheryl Iott Thinking and Playing”).