About Our Piano Studio
Dr. Carol Ann Barry, NCTM
Dr. Carol Ann Barry is a Nationally Certified member of MTNA. Her piano training has included several degree programs as well as study abroad. Selected to serve as a Rotary International Fellow, she studied at the Goethe Institute in Munich, and the Hochschule für Musik und Darsteleende Kunst in Hamburg, Germany. Dr. Barry is interested in the pedagogical work of internationally renowned pedagogue Abby Whiteside. Her doctoral work included extensive studies in New York City with pianist Sophia Rosoff.
Dr. Barry is a frequent presenter at music conferences at the state and national levels. Her creative teaching style has enhanced her ability to work with children with diverse learning needs. Dr. Barry served on the organizational committee of the 2005 WPPC Conference in Anaheim, California, and has presented several papers for the organization, including the lecture, Outlining-A Crucial Practice Technique, at the 2009 national conference in Arizona. A lecture recital featuring the Preludes, Op. 64, by Cesar Cui, was presented at the College Music Society national conference in 2010.
Between 1995 and 2000, Dr. Barry served as the Director of Keyboard Studies at the Columbia Institute of Fine Arts (CIFA) in Falls Church, Virginia. During her tenure at Columbia, she developed and directed the Columbia Pedagogy Series, which served as an outreach to teachers and musicians throughout the Washington area. She was the founding director of the Columbia Concert Series at CIFA, which presented some of Washington’s finest artists and performance ensembles.
Orchestral appearances have included the McLean Symphony, Reston Community Orchestra, and the Columbia Orchestra in performances of Addinsell’s “Warsaw” Concerto, and the Carnival of the Animals, by Camille Saint-Saens,. She also performed Mozart’s Concerto in D Minor, K. 466 and Chopin’s F Minor Piano Concerto. Dr. Barry spends significant time teaching in her private piano studio, located in Cary, N.C.
A collaborative pianist, Dr. Barry currently serves as an accompanist for the widely diverse voice department at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In the fall of 2015 she performed a piano trio concert with local artists Samford Enseln and violinist Petia Radneva Mantalova. Solo performances have included an all-Beethoven program featuring the piano sonatas of Beethoven’s middle period.
Dr. Barry received a Baccalaureate degree from Old Dominion University, a Masters of Music in Piano from the University of Louisville School of Music and a Doctorate of Musical Arts from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
Professional Affiliations
Dr. Milton Fernandez, Associate Teacher
Originally from the Dominican Republic, Milton Fernandez Pena began his musical studies at an early age in his home country. He holds a BM in Paino Performance, summa cum laude, from the Conservatory of Music of Puetro Rico, an Master of Music (M.M.) and Performance Artist Certificate from Stephen F. Austin State University, an M.M. in Arts Administration, and a D.M.A. in Piano Performance from the University of Oregon. Dr. Fernandez keeps an active role performing on national and international stages and has served as a soloist with the Youth Symphony Orchestra of Santo Domingo, the Camerata Washington Heights, and the Camerata Mozart Caribe. In 2015, he was accepted as a member of the American Association of Musicians of Honor. In addition he is a member of the Music Teachers National Association, the North Carolina Music Teachers Association, and the Raleigh Piano Teachers Association. His teachers include Andrew Parr, Claire Wachter, and Dean Kramer, the last student of Vladimir Horowitz.
Dr. Fernandez has imparted piano lessons in private academies and university scenarios. Throughout the years, he has developed a healthy technique that allows him and his students to engage with the piano without injuries while creating a hybrid between the goals of each student and a full development of musicianship. Regarding his teaching philosophy, the student must leave the lesson with more confidence and security than when they came in. Dr. Fernandez is always eager and searching for new pedagogical approaches so that students can improve their musical abilities faster and find new ways to fall in love with music and their instrument.