Faculty
Carrie Walsh Erdely
Carrie Walsh Erdely has been teaching violin and viola for over 15 years. She has her Bachelor and Master degrees in performance from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, as well as attending Carnegie Mellon University as an undergrad. Mrs. Erdely is the Head of the String Department at Pittsburgh Music Academy, and since 2010 she has proudly been a board member at PMA.In 2014, Carrie was named Director of the Chamber Music Intensive Camp. Since then, the camp has continued to thrive under her direction.
Carrie is also a performing violinist. She has played with and continues to play with the various symphonies and freelance in the Pittsburgh area, the Wheeling Symphony (WV), The Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh and Butler Symphony.
Carrie Walsh Erdely has been teaching violin and viola for over 15 years. She has her Bachelor and Master degrees in performance from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, as well as attending Carnegie Mellon University as an undergrad. Mrs. Erdely is the Head of the String Department at Pittsburgh Music Academy, and since 2010 she has proudly been a board member at PMA.In 2014, Carrie was named Director of the Chamber Music Intensive Camp. Since then, the camp has continued to thrive under her direction.
Carrie is also a performing violinist. She has played with and continues to play with the various symphonies and freelance in the Pittsburgh area, the Wheeling Symphony (WV), The Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh and Butler Symphony.
J.J. Johnson
J.J. Johnson is from Phoenix, Arizona where he received his Bachelor of Music Degree from Arizona State University. In 2005 he moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and worked towards his Master’s Degree at Carnegie Mellon University. While working on his degree J.J. won positions with the Pittsburgh Opera and Ballet Orchestras and Assistant Principal Viola of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra. In the Winter of 2010 he began performing at Radio City Music Hall in NYC with the world famous Radio City Rockettes and made his Broadway debut in 2013 in Rodger’s and Hammerstein’s Cinderella.
He has performed in a number of Broadway musicals, including, On The Town, Cats, Les Miserables, Fiddler on the Roof, An American in Paris, and Sunset Boulevard. He has also appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman, and was Principal Viola of the NBC Studio Orchestra for the NBC Live! performances of The Sound of Music with Carry Underwood, and Peter Pan with Christopher Walken. There have been a number of recoding projects he has participated in that include The Red Eye of Love, Tokio Confidetial, Telly Leung’s solo album Songs for You, and the independent short film The Ceiling Fan.
Along side his active freelance career Mr. Johnson also greatly enjoys teaching at the Montclair State University Preparatory School.
J.J. Johnson is from Phoenix, Arizona where he received his Bachelor of Music Degree from Arizona State University. In 2005 he moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and worked towards his Master’s Degree at Carnegie Mellon University. While working on his degree J.J. won positions with the Pittsburgh Opera and Ballet Orchestras and Assistant Principal Viola of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra. In the Winter of 2010 he began performing at Radio City Music Hall in NYC with the world famous Radio City Rockettes and made his Broadway debut in 2013 in Rodger’s and Hammerstein’s Cinderella.
He has performed in a number of Broadway musicals, including, On The Town, Cats, Les Miserables, Fiddler on the Roof, An American in Paris, and Sunset Boulevard. He has also appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman, and was Principal Viola of the NBC Studio Orchestra for the NBC Live! performances of The Sound of Music with Carry Underwood, and Peter Pan with Christopher Walken. There have been a number of recoding projects he has participated in that include The Red Eye of Love, Tokio Confidetial, Telly Leung’s solo album Songs for You, and the independent short film The Ceiling Fan.
Along side his active freelance career Mr. Johnson also greatly enjoys teaching at the Montclair State University Preparatory School.
Amaury Morales
Regarded as “an authority in the classical music world,” pianist Amaury Morales has performed widely in several countries of Europe, Asia, and America. He has been awarded 1st place in the Silverman Competition, 2nd place in the American Protégé International Competition, 2nd Place in the Manuel Rueda piano Competition. He received his Bachelor’s Degree at the Boston Conservatory and Master’s at Carnegie Mellon University. He teaches at Carnegie Mellon University’s Preparatory division and at the Pittsburgh Music Academy, where is the Head of the Piano Department. You can find more
information about Amaury at www.amaurymorales.com
Regarded as “an authority in the classical music world,” pianist Amaury Morales has performed widely in several countries of Europe, Asia, and America. He has been awarded 1st place in the Silverman Competition, 2nd place in the American Protégé International Competition, 2nd Place in the Manuel Rueda piano Competition. He received his Bachelor’s Degree at the Boston Conservatory and Master’s at Carnegie Mellon University. He teaches at Carnegie Mellon University’s Preparatory division and at the Pittsburgh Music Academy, where is the Head of the Piano Department. You can find more
information about Amaury at www.amaurymorales.com
Master Class Instructors
Rachel Stegeman
Rachel Stegeman is on the Adjunct Violin Faculty at Duquesne University, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, since 2002. At Duquesne she teaches Applied Violin and Orchestral Literature and Repertoire Class, as well as Violin Boot Camp during the summers. Many of her students have performing careers in professional orchestras and are teaching at Universities themselves. She was trained in Washington D.C. at Catholic University and teachers include William Steck, Luis Haza, Leslye Gartrell, Ramona Coppage, Sidney Harth, and Robert Lipsett. She is Concertmaster of the Wheeling Symphony and Youngstown Symphony, Associate Concertmaster of the Pittsburgh Opera Orchestra and Pittsburgh Ballet Orchestra, has performed as a guest Concertmaster for the West Virginia Symphony and Johnstown Symphony, and performs as a guest section violinist at Pittsburgh Symphony. Before moving to the East Coast, she was Associate Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Opera Pacific, Los Angeles Opera as well as other orchestras in the area. She was also a member of the Pacific Symphony and a recording studio violinist in hundreds of major motion pictures, records, television shows, commercials and live award shows.
Rachel Stegeman is on the Adjunct Violin Faculty at Duquesne University, located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, since 2002. At Duquesne she teaches Applied Violin and Orchestral Literature and Repertoire Class, as well as Violin Boot Camp during the summers. Many of her students have performing careers in professional orchestras and are teaching at Universities themselves. She was trained in Washington D.C. at Catholic University and teachers include William Steck, Luis Haza, Leslye Gartrell, Ramona Coppage, Sidney Harth, and Robert Lipsett. She is Concertmaster of the Wheeling Symphony and Youngstown Symphony, Associate Concertmaster of the Pittsburgh Opera Orchestra and Pittsburgh Ballet Orchestra, has performed as a guest Concertmaster for the West Virginia Symphony and Johnstown Symphony, and performs as a guest section violinist at Pittsburgh Symphony. Before moving to the East Coast, she was Associate Concertmaster of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Opera Pacific, Los Angeles Opera as well as other orchestras in the area. She was also a member of the Pacific Symphony and a recording studio violinist in hundreds of major motion pictures, records, television shows, commercials and live award shows.
Anoush Tchakarian
Anoush Tcharkarian started playing the piano at the age of four, and at the age of five she was accepted in the first of its kind class for gifted children at the Music School “Lubomir Pipkov” in Sofia, Bulgaria. In 1997, Anoush graduated with excellence in Piano Performance and Piano Pedagogy from the class of Vera Mitcheva. Shortly thereafter she successfully obtained her Bachelor Degree in Piano Performance at the National Music Conservatory “Pancho Vladigerov” in Sofia, where she worked with Professor Marina Kapatsinskaya, Professor Dimitar Kozev, and Professor Iliana Batembergska. During these years, Anoush participated in several national and international festivals in Bulgaria, England, and Finland as a soloist, as well as with different chamber music ensembles. She also participated in numerous national and international master classes coached by outstanding pianists such as Professor Boris Bloch, Professor Marco Tezza, and Professor Bruce Voght. Anoush is a laureate from various national competitions with Second Prize from the 1997 National Competition for German and Austrian Music, and the Special Prize of His Excellency the German Ambassador in Bulgaria for best performance of Schubert’s Piano Variations in F major D. 156.
She was a soloist for the National Music Conservatory Orchestra in 2001 in Sofia, and soloist for the Duquesne Symphony Orchestra in Pittsburgh in 2004 as the winner of the Concerto Competition. In 2001, she performed at the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, Finland, featuring Mendelssohn’s Piano Sextet op. 110 and Hindemith’s Quartet for Clarinet, Violin, Cello, and Piano. In 2004, Anoush graduated the Mary Pappert School of Music at Duquesne University with a Master’s Degree in Piano Performance, and in 2006 she obtained an Artist Diploma in the piano class of Professor Kenneth Burky. She performed numerous solo recitals and participated in charity concerts with a vast and various piano and harpsichord repertoire. Moreover, Anoush has made various recordings for the Bulgarian National Radio, the Bulgarian National Television, and WQED Multimedia, Pittsburgh, and she is a member of the National Music Honor Society Pi Kappa Lambda. In February of 2006, Anoush won the Western Pennsylvania Steinway Society Piano Competition. In 2013, she won Award of Excellence for her performance of Ravel’s Ondine from Gaspard de la Nuit in the Global Music Awards Competition, La Jolla, California. Currently, Anoush is an adjunct professor of piano at the Mary Pappert School of Music, and she is a member of the piano faculty at City Music Center, and Kathy’s Music in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Anoush Tcharkarian started playing the piano at the age of four, and at the age of five she was accepted in the first of its kind class for gifted children at the Music School “Lubomir Pipkov” in Sofia, Bulgaria. In 1997, Anoush graduated with excellence in Piano Performance and Piano Pedagogy from the class of Vera Mitcheva. Shortly thereafter she successfully obtained her Bachelor Degree in Piano Performance at the National Music Conservatory “Pancho Vladigerov” in Sofia, where she worked with Professor Marina Kapatsinskaya, Professor Dimitar Kozev, and Professor Iliana Batembergska. During these years, Anoush participated in several national and international festivals in Bulgaria, England, and Finland as a soloist, as well as with different chamber music ensembles. She also participated in numerous national and international master classes coached by outstanding pianists such as Professor Boris Bloch, Professor Marco Tezza, and Professor Bruce Voght. Anoush is a laureate from various national competitions with Second Prize from the 1997 National Competition for German and Austrian Music, and the Special Prize of His Excellency the German Ambassador in Bulgaria for best performance of Schubert’s Piano Variations in F major D. 156.
She was a soloist for the National Music Conservatory Orchestra in 2001 in Sofia, and soloist for the Duquesne Symphony Orchestra in Pittsburgh in 2004 as the winner of the Concerto Competition. In 2001, she performed at the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, Finland, featuring Mendelssohn’s Piano Sextet op. 110 and Hindemith’s Quartet for Clarinet, Violin, Cello, and Piano. In 2004, Anoush graduated the Mary Pappert School of Music at Duquesne University with a Master’s Degree in Piano Performance, and in 2006 she obtained an Artist Diploma in the piano class of Professor Kenneth Burky. She performed numerous solo recitals and participated in charity concerts with a vast and various piano and harpsichord repertoire. Moreover, Anoush has made various recordings for the Bulgarian National Radio, the Bulgarian National Television, and WQED Multimedia, Pittsburgh, and she is a member of the National Music Honor Society Pi Kappa Lambda. In February of 2006, Anoush won the Western Pennsylvania Steinway Society Piano Competition. In 2013, she won Award of Excellence for her performance of Ravel’s Ondine from Gaspard de la Nuit in the Global Music Awards Competition, La Jolla, California. Currently, Anoush is an adjunct professor of piano at the Mary Pappert School of Music, and she is a member of the piano faculty at City Music Center, and Kathy’s Music in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
