“My goal as a teacher is to help each student develop a unique and meaningful relationship with music. I believe that it is only through direct and honest engagement with this art form, that music can make a profound impact in one's life. My students engage in a variety of activities that not only nurture fundamental musical skills, but consistently present challenges for exploration and experimentation.”
About
Education
D.M.A. Stony Brook University
M.M. Stony Brook University
B.M. Oberlin Conservatory of Music
Affiliations
HMTA, UH Manoa, UH West O'ahu, Leeward Community College, Hawaii Symphony Orchestra
Biography
Katy Luo, pianist, originally from the San Francisco Bay area, now lives in Honolulu where she is a lecturer in music at both the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa and the University of Hawai‘i at West O‘ahu. For the last 20 years, Katy has taught and performed extensively throughout the US, mostly in New York City, where she resided for 14 years.
Katy’s performing experience ranges from the works of the classical masters performed on period instruments to the works of Cage, Ligeti, Schnittke, and other contemporary composers. Known for her innovative programming, Katy has presented programs such as the horn trios of Brahms and Ligeti at the Staller Center for the Arts, and a collection of dance suites by Bach, Albeniz, Schoenberg, and Cage at the Bloomingdale School of Music. Past concerts have also included: “Tradition Begins, Tradition Ends,” which showcased the music of Bach and Stockhausen; “Recompositions,” a re-appraisal of pre-existing musical styles in the works of Henze, Berg, and Dwarka; and “Remaking the Past,” which explored modern masters in the role of arrangers and included works by Stravinsky, Bach, Mozart, Arvo Pärt, and Dominico. Past collaborations have included projects with the New York City Ballet, Boys Choir of Harlem, and Guerrilla Composers Forum, a composers collective based in SF Bay Area. Since moving to Hawaii Katy has regularly performed with the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra, and most recently was featured in the 2017-18 Left Coast Chamber Ensemble's concert season.
Katy is an alumna of the Young Musicians Program, a community outreach music program at the University of California at Berkeley. Her passion for and commitment to community organization led to her involvement formerly at the Boys Choir of Harlem and at the Bloomingdale School of Music, where she was both Resident Teaching Artist and the Director of A4TY (Album for the Young): Student New Music Project, a program she founded to provide children the opportunity to compose original compositions for fellow young musicians and to premiere works written by living composers. This program was a recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Grant.
Katy holds a bachelor of music from Oberlin Conservatory of Music and master of music and doctor of musical arts degrees from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Katy’s principal teachers have included Jacqueline Chew, Monique Duphil, Haewon Song, and Gilbert Kalish.
Website
https://manoa.hawaii.edu/music/about-us/faculty/katy-luo/
https://www.hmta.org/news/memberfeature-katy-luo
https://www.katyluo.com
Media
Contact
This directory is service provided to teaching members of the Hawaii Music Teachers Association and to the Hawaii community. While HMTA will do its best to connect Hawaii piano students with local piano teachers, the responsibility for fulfillment and content of piano lessons, as well as safety, rests solely with the individual teachers. If you are a piano teacher in Hawaii and would like to be listed in this directory, please consider becoming a member.