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.
Maureen Conlon Gutiérrez
A native of Mexico, Miss Conlon has performed to much acclaim across the globe as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player. She has participated on half a dozen recordings as a classical artist, cross genre violinist, light rock improv and tango violinist. Miss Conlon has appeared on television and radio in several countries and is prize winner of many national and international competitions in both the United States and in Mexico.
She began her studies at an early age in her home town of San Miguel de Allende,Guanajuato Mexico. Miss Conlon subsequently pursued further studies at Rice University, Penn State University and Carnegie Mellon University studying with Kenneth Gold-smith, James Lyon, and Andres Cardenes respectively.
An ardent chamber musician, she co-founded the Trio Nova Mundi with whom she has performed across the Americas and appeared as soloist with various orchestras. In addition, she is member of the Argentine tango group AquiTango, and co-founder of string quartet Hot Metal Strings. As an orchestral player she was appointed concertmaster of the Erie Chamber Orchestra in 2014 and is member of the Pittsburgh Opera Orchestra and the Wheeling Symphony and has played with many orchestras such as the Pittsburgh Symphony, National Philharmonic, Sphinx Virtuosi, Akron Symphony, Virginia Symphony, and Sphinx Symphony.
A passionate educator, she served as Adjunct Professor of Violin/Viola at Grove City College from 2012-2017 and as Violin Professor at Duquesne University’s City Music Center during the 2014-15 school year. Her students have won awards, auditions, and competitions locally and have gone on to pursue music professionally. Miss Conlon is frequently invited to teach masterclasses at various music festivals, schools, and institutions both in the U.S. and abroad. She resides in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband and when not playing the violin enjoys eating good food, watching movies, and traveling
A native of Mexico, Miss Conlon has performed to much acclaim across the globe as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player. She has participated on half a dozen recordings as a classical artist, cross genre violinist, light rock improv and tango violinist. Miss Conlon has appeared on television and radio in several countries and is prize winner of many national and international competitions in both the United States and in Mexico.
She began her studies at an early age in her home town of San Miguel de Allende,Guanajuato Mexico. Miss Conlon subsequently pursued further studies at Rice University, Penn State University and Carnegie Mellon University studying with Kenneth Gold-smith, James Lyon, and Andres Cardenes respectively.
An ardent chamber musician, she co-founded the Trio Nova Mundi with whom she has performed across the Americas and appeared as soloist with various orchestras. In addition, she is member of the Argentine tango group AquiTango, and co-founder of string quartet Hot Metal Strings. As an orchestral player she was appointed concertmaster of the Erie Chamber Orchestra in 2014 and is member of the Pittsburgh Opera Orchestra and the Wheeling Symphony and has played with many orchestras such as the Pittsburgh Symphony, National Philharmonic, Sphinx Virtuosi, Akron Symphony, Virginia Symphony, and Sphinx Symphony.
A passionate educator, she served as Adjunct Professor of Violin/Viola at Grove City College from 2012-2017 and as Violin Professor at Duquesne University’s City Music Center during the 2014-15 school year. Her students have won awards, auditions, and competitions locally and have gone on to pursue music professionally. Miss Conlon is frequently invited to teach masterclasses at various music festivals, schools, and institutions both in the U.S. and abroad. She resides in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband and when not playing the violin enjoys eating good food, watching movies, and traveling
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.
