Wilsonville

Auksuole Jackunaite is a piano teacher and music educator based in Portland, Oregon. She holds a Masters Degree in Music Educology from Lithuania, and has over 20 years experience teaching piano in her native Lithuania and the US.

She is a long-time coach for the International creative problem-solving program Odyssey of the Mind and creator of imaginative teaching resources for young piano students. Always interested in innovative teaching she recently established her successful online piano studio, reaching students globally. Auksuole is fluent in three languages, and mom of two bilingual children, who often join her in recitals playing violin, fiddle, and cello.

Portland

Svetlana Lazarev: Sharing her love of creating music is her passion. She has been teaching piano in Portland, Oregon since 2005. Instructing in three different languages, she enjoys tailoring individual lessons to meet the needs and goals of her students. Her musical education began at the Dzerginsk Specialized School of Music in Belarus, where she first fell in love with the piano at the age of eight. After moving to the United States, she spent time learning under the guidance of Mary Kogen, playing in a local performance group and teaching in her private piano studio as well as at Forte Music School. She is an active member of the National Music Teachers Association and Oregon Music Teachers Association. Additionally, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Science in Environmental Engineering. When she’s not teaching or playing piano, you can find her exploring the outdoors with her family, experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen or ice skating at the local rink.

Ashland

Tatsiana Asheichyk is a virtuosic pianist, organist, accompanist, and experienced teacher with Russian musical roots. She has performed throughout the United States and Europe. Ms. Asheichyk has been playing the piano since she was five years old. Prior to coming to the United States, she completed two years of study at the Belorussian State Academy of Music under the direction of Dr. Igor Olovnikov. She has had the privilege of being coached by such renowned teachers as John Perry and Paul Polley. Ms. Ascheichyk was graduated from the School of Music in Minsk, Belarus, from the Brest State College of Music in Belarus, and from Southern Oregon University (with the summa cum laude distinction from all three institutions). In June 2016 Ms. Asheichyk earned her master's degree in keyboard performance under the direction of Dr. Alexander Tutunov (piano) and Dr. Margaret Evans (organ).

Ms. Asheichyk has been first prize winner among pianists and has been the scholarship recipient of the statewide Oregon Friends of Music Scholarship Competition 2012. During her college career, she received the Evans Music Performance Scholarship, the International Cultural Service Program Scholarship, the SOU Diversity Scholarship, the Schneider Outstanding Music Student Award, Farrold Stephens Scholarship, State Merit Lottery Scholarship, Margaret Fuller Endowed Scholarship, American Association of University Women Medford Branch Scholarship, AAUW Ashland Branch Scholarship, as well as the Soroptimist International Scholarship of Ashland. Ms. Asheichyk was chosen as a prizewinner of the American Protégé 2013 International Romantic Music Competition.

Ms. Asheichyk has performed at iconic venues such as the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s Green Show, the Craterian Theatre, Belarusian State Philharmonic Hall, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and New York City’s Carnegie Hall.

Ms. Asheichyk’s peers have consistently recognized her accomplishments: “Tatsiana never fails to bring her best to every performance.” “She thrives on success and is determined to become the best pianist that she can be.” Dr. Alexander Tutunov has stated, "Undoubtedly, she is among the very top.”

Ms. Asheichyk was the accompanist for the SOU Concert Choir and Symphonic Band in 2010-2011. The conductor of the SOU Symphonic Band, Dr. Cynthia Hutton, said, “Tatsiana is an exceptional ... musician and accompanist, who is talented, hard working, serious, ready to collaborate.” Ms. Asheichyk has proven herself as an accomplished rehearsal and performance accompanist in the operatic world. She accompanied the 2011 Rogue Valley Opera in La Traviata and in the 2012 Ashland Chamber Music Workshop.

Ms. Asheichyk currently teaches piano at her Tatsiana’s Piano Studio in Ashland and Medford, OR. She is also the principal accompanist for Siskiyou Violins and is also the staff accompanist for Grace Lutheran Church in Ashland, OR.

Ms. Asheichyk plans on pursuing a doctorate in music in the very near future.

Portland

Born and raised in Oregon, the pianist Sandra Hyslop has woven a strong fabric from the fibers of her multi-faceted immersion in music. In many corners of the professional music world she has distinguished herself through her academic studies and professional experiences. As an acclaimed performer, writer, editor, and teacher, she has reached music-loving listeners and readers far and wide. As a studio and classroom teacher and coach, she has inspired fellow performers and students with her probing instruction and musical insights.

Since she first discovered the joy of working with singers and playing their vocal repertoire as a young pianist, Ms. Hyslop has coached and concertized with singers and other instrumentalists throughout the United States and abroad. Her assured stage demeanor and performances have received warm approval from audiences and critics in Los Angeles, Saint Louis, Minneapolis, Portland, and other large cities, as well as enthusiastic music lovers in smaller towns, such as Bloomington (Indiana), Stockbridge (Massachusetts), Calhoun (Georgia), Santa Barbara (California), Minot (North Dakota), and Rosario, Orcas Island (Washington).

For her writing Ms. Hyslop has received awards and commissions. She has earned the prestigious Deems Taylor Award of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) for distinguished writing about music. She received an NEA grant to produce her original stage play Roland Hayes: The Tenor of His Time, and the Minneapolis-based ensemble VocalEssence commissioned and performed her stage work Roland Hayes, Force of Nature on several mid-West stages. Ms. Hyslop recently completed a full-length biography, soon to be published, of the great violinist and beloved teacher Josef Gingold. She holds in reverent memory her two principal teachers, the professors Leonard Hokanson (piano) and Dale Moore (voice), under whose guidance she earned a master's degree in piano performance from Indiana University, Bloomington.

Eugene

Alexis Gibbons is a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music and has been teaching piano in Eugene, Oregon for over 13 years. She received a Bachelor of Music in Music Performance from the University of Oregon (UO) in 2010. At the UO, she studied performance with Dr. Alexandre Dossin, accompaniment with Dr. David Riley and pedagogy with Dr. Claire Wachter. She also earned a Bachelor of Arts in Russian and Eastern European Studies.

As a member of Oregon Music Teachers Association, she has volunteered in many positions at both the district and state level. At the district level, she has served as a corresponding secretary, chaired district festivals, and continues to volunteer as the website chair. At the state level, she served as Publications Chair and editor of Music News. She is currently volunteering on the Conference Committee.

In 2021, Alexis completed the training and final panel to become an OMTA adjudicator. She now adjudicates for OMTA Syllabus exams and festivals.

Alexis is continually working on keeping her studio active and vibrant. Her students perform regularly and participate in OMTA events.

When not teaching, she spends time with her partner, Micah and daughter, Iris. She also enjoys trail running, mountain climbing, mountain biking, skiing, reading, cooking, and playing with her dog and cat.

Eugene

Lucy Clevenger was born in Kiev, Ukraine in 1961. Her musical education included 7 years of preparatory music school, followed by music college from 1977 to 1982, and then graduate studies at Kiev State Conservatory from 1983 to 1989. From then until 1992, when Lucy emigrated to the United States, she worked as a music editor at the Ukrainian State Radio Station.

In 1995 Lucy began teaching piano privately in San Diego and continued until 2005, when she moved to Eugene, Oregon.Lucy was not a part of a music teacher organization in California but maintained an active studio there.. In 2006 she became a member of OMTA, and since then her teaching skills and confidence as a teacher have increased substantially. Lucy gained valuable instruction from her colleagues, from masterclasses and numerous district presentations, the syllabus program, and State conferences.

Lucy achieved national certification in 2014, and in 2015 she became a syllabus adjudicator. Working as an adjudicator has enhanced my teaching perspective. Her current studio includes many very talented students who participate in various district and state events. They win competitions, receive scholarships, and successfully participate in the syllabus program. To keep up with them, she must practice Chopin etudes, Beethoven Sonatas, Rachmaninoff Preludes, Prokofieff Visions Fugitives, and many other works. With my teaching studio firmly established and thriving, Lucy would now like to dedicate a portion of her time to advancing my personal performance skills.

Happy Valley

Kristy Moore was born and raised in Brazil, where she lived until she was 15 years old. Under her parents’ direction, she started playing the piano at the age of 3 and began her formal training when she arrived in the United States. As the result of positive marks from competition judges, she decided to pursue a music degree at Portland State University, graduating in 1997 with a Bachelor of music degree in Piano Performance. While at Portland State she taught Applied Piano and served as the Chamber Choir accompanist under the direction of Dr. Bruce Browne. She has studied with Harold Gray, Mary Kogen, Carol Rich, and Jeff Payne, and has enjoyed mentorship under Dorothy Fahlman and Nellie Tholen.

In addition to her work as a solo pianist and accompanist, Kristy has directed numerous choral groups. Under her leadership, Westside Christian High School Choir garnered top awards at the state level. Kristy founded Voice for the Voiceless, a non profit youth choir which performed with the purpose of promoting awareness and prevention of child trafficking. Along with several performances in the Portland area, and travels took to Princeton, New Jersey, they were invited to perform at the Oregon State Capitol, where they presented their program of commissioned compositions. In total, the choir raised over $250,000 for this worthwhile cause.

Kristy currently maintains a private studio in Happy Valley, OR, and performs with the Adent and Moore Piano Duo. She also busies herself by accompanying the choirs at Clackamas and Nelson High school and serves as an Interim Worship Leader at Lynchwood Church of God.

Eugene

At the age of five, Kumiko Vanderbush began learning piano from her mother in Japan who is a piano teacher. She benefited from listening to her mother teach piano at home in her private studio. Kumiko went on to study piano in high school and college.

Kumiko graduated from Musashino Music High School and Musashino University with a Bachelors of Arts in Tokyo, Japan. She enjoyed spending her free time playing piano with vocalist, clarinet, trumpet, and percussion players. She also joined a hiking and backpacking club that explored the Japan alps.

After moving to Eugene, Oregon she and her husband raised three daughters. Kumiko received her Oregon Teaching Certificate, and taught them in elementary school. She has enjoyed being involved in her community, creating her own songs, skits and taiko songs to teach the Japanese language.

Kumiko is excited about starting her own piano studio.

In her free time, she takes pleasure in cooking, gardening, taking excise classes, reading, and watching ballet dance performances.