Teaching

Along with being an active performer, Enrico Elisi is a dedicated teacher and has worked relentlessly to pass on his knowledge and craftsmanship to future generations of young pianists. He has taught at higher education institutions since 2004. In the summer of 2023, he assumed the Harold D. and Imogene Herndon Professorship of Music in Piano at Texas Christian University.

Education

Growing up in Italy, a country of rich musical traditions, he absorbed various experiences from different schools (broadly Italian, Russian, and German). Initially, he studied with Giuseppe Fricelli (1948-2023) in both the Conservatories of Bologna and Florence.

During his formative years, he also benefited from the international milieu and diverse environment of the medieval city of Imola, where he began attending the early masterclasses that officially became the start of the renowned International Piano Academy Incontri col Maestro of Imola – a unique institution presided by Vladimir Ashkenazy that built a broad international milieu in the Rocca Sforzesca, a symbolic fortress dating back to the second half of the 13th century.

It is through the auspices of that organization that he was fortunate to work with several diverse pedagogues and active concert pianists such as Lazar Berman (1930-2005), Alexander Lonquich (1960), Franco Scala (1938), Boris Petrushansky (1949) and directly experience very different schools from pupils of Goldenweiser, Neuhaus, Zecchi, and Badura-Skoda.

Later, he was also intensely exposed to the Arthur Schnabel school in the USA, having spent six years working with and becoming assistant to the American icon Leon Fleisher at the Peabody Conservatory. (See lineage on this website for more details.) 

Through the Academy, he also managed to follow the masterclasses of many great musicians (some of whom he also performed for), including Maurizio Pollini, Jörg Demus, Aldo Ciccolini, Joaquín Achúcarro, Sergio Fiorentino, Andrzej Jasiński, Glen Wilson, Emilia Fadini, Louis Lortie, Peter Lang, György Sándor, Jeffrey Swann, Eugen Indjic, and conductors Riccardo Chailly and Gustav Kuhn among others.

Higher Education Institutions: Canada, USA, Korea, China

Before moving to Texas, assuming the Harold D. and Imogene Herndon Professorship of Music in Piano at Texas Christian University, Enrico Elisi lived in Canada for seven years and taught as an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto. The University recognized him with the Faculty of Music Teaching Award for his excellence, commitment, and innovation in teaching.

Previously, he lived in the USA for twenty years and was an Associate Professor on the Eastman School faculty for five years (2011-2016). He also held an Assistant Professor position at Penn State University, where he taught for three years (2008-2011), was an Assistant Professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, for four years (2004-2008), and held visiting professorships in Korea (at Hanyang University, and Ewha Womans University) and China (Zhejiang Art School in Hangzhou).

UofT_Piano_Studio_2017
Students learning Italian gestures during a relaxing moment after a class

Auditions at Texas Christian University

For those interested in joining Professor Elisi’s studio at Texas Christian University (TCU), students may apply for the University as early as September 1 of the year preceding admission into a program (undergraduates) are generally due on the Early Action Deadline of November 1 to receive a nonbinding admission decision by January 1.

Audition requirements: undergraduates (BM), graduates (MM and DMA), and Artist Diploma (AD)

Of particular interest to young pianists is the Nordan Young Artist Award — an exclusive scholarship offered to talented first-year students majoring in music. Two winners are selected each year to receive a four-year, full-tuition award. Students not selected for the Nordan auditions are encouraged to audition for other music scholarships at TCU. The School of Music offers additional full scholarship opportunities besides the Nordan scholarship. For more details, visit the TCU Office of Financial Aid.

Calendar

TCU Academic Calendar 2023-24

Semester Event Date
Fall Semester 2023 First Classes Meet Monday, August 21, 2023
Fall Semester 2023 Labor Day Holiday Monday, September 4, 2023
Fall Semester 2023 Fall Break Classes Recess: Wednesday, October 4, 2023 (10:00pm)
Classes Resume: Monday, October 9, 2023 (8:00am)
Fall Semester 2023 Thanksgiving Classes Recess: Friday, November 17, 2023 (10:00pm)
Classes Resume: Monday, November 27, 2023 (8:00am)
Fall Semester 2023 Last Day of Class Friday, December 8, 2023
Spring Semester 2024 First Classes Meet Monday, January 15, 2024
Spring Semester 2024 Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday Monday, January 16, 2024
Spring Semester 2024 Spring Refresh Classes Recess: Friday, March 8, 2024 (10:00pm)
Classes Resume: Monday, March 18, 2024 (8:00am)
Spring Semester 2024 Good Friday Holiday Classes Recess: Thursday, March 28, 2024 (10:00pm)
Classes Resume: Monday, April 1, 2024 (8:00am)
Spring Semester 2024 Last Day of Class Wednesday, May 1, 2024
Spring Semester 2024 Study Days Thursday-Friday, May 2-3, 2024
Spring Semester 2024 Final Examinations Monday-Friday, May 6-10, 2024

Former Students

Some of Dr. Elisi’s current and former students are already established and held (or still hold) teaching posts in the USA (at UMKC Conservatory, Ithaca College, University of Mary Washington, the State University of New York Geneseo, Alfred University, the University of Incarnate Word, Las Vegas Piano Music School, etc.); in China (at Guangzhou University, the Central Conservatory of Music Piano Academy at Gulangyu, Xiamen); and in Korea (at Deokwon Art High School, Baekseok Arts University, Shilla University, Kyungnam Arts High school, Se-Jong Arts High school, Incheon Arts High school, and Kyewon Arts Middle school).

Other former students have been professionally managed (Astral Artists), are prizewinners in competitions (Cleveland International, Paderewski, Washington, Louisiana, San Antonio, New Orleans International, and many others); performed with orchestras (including the Cleveland Symphony, Rochester Philharmonic, and Dallas Chamber Symphony); gave debut recitals from New York to Caracas, Paris, and Seoul; garnered fellowships and scholarships at summer programs; and have been accepted in Artist Diploma (Rice University among others), MM, and DMA programs in prestigious institutions in the US and abroad.

The photo was taken during a master class in Cincinnati

About Teaching Younger Pianists

While Enrico Elisi focuses mainly on advanced students at the university level, each year, he also works with a few selected younger pianists (pre-college age), concentrating in particular on training them in the fundamentals of piano technique.

Technique

He believes that building one’s piano technique and a “pianistic gesture” for shaping musical ideas must never be separated from the resulting sound emission (tone quality). He strives to constantly seek an appropriate connection between inner musical thought and outer result by means of training the ear to be highly critical. The focal point of his teaching has always been to give voice to a musical idea that is personal, logical, and expressive.

A few points he prefers to insist upon are (1) deepening one’s ability to listen to oneself, (2) the development of a cantabile sound quality, (3) the legato, (4) and a wide range of possible approaches to finger strokes.

Exercises

Enrico Elisi also experiments with specific exercises extrapolated from any difficulty a student encounters in passage work from the standard literature. He makes up exercises to address and resolve issues during the lessons.

Beginning with scales, which must be played at every lesson, listened to with scrupulous attention, and repeated until the execution has legato, speed, uniformity of sound, and cantabile tone quality.

Repertoire

Another fundamental aspect of Elisi’s method is the complexity of selecting an appropriate student repertoire. This is crucial because a carefully selected repertoire guides a young musician toward acquiring taste and skills. At first, Enrico tries to get to know a student well. Then, he proceeds to assign works that break through the comfort zone. In this case, he ensures that no piece is excessively traumatic in terms of difficulties because the key is to keep the interest, passion, and motivation to work at a high level. By using a student’s repertoire list, Enrico Elisi also addresses gaps. The process of selection of a new repertoire, in short, is monitored throughout.

He usually recommends tackling Bach, Mozart, Haydn, Clementi, and Beethoven – so that, with patience, the student develops a complete range of piano skills. Bach’s rigorous instrumental polyphony is at the center of constant work on clarity and differentiation of the voices, which requires maximum attention to detail and precision, beginning from the most uncomplicated pieces; Mozart for cantabile and finger agility in passagework and in the ornaments; Beethoven for the complexity of his structures and to acquire more developed and varied piano skills; and on through the canon of piano repertoire, neglecting no area, but rather insisting that even the work on the composer the student finds most difficult is carried out successfully so that no aspect of piano technique and music is left unexplored. This comprehensive work aims to identify the repertoire most suited to each pianist, creating a precise, personal learning path.

How to Practice

One strong point in Elisi’s teaching is to help his students identify the problems affecting their performances and other recurring issues. After the result is more precise and the new aims more focused, he trains students to develop and insists upon various methods to overcome specific difficulties. Practicing is never dull! On the contrary, it embodies the joy of learning as it is learning itself. The time spent working out some difficulty is transformed into an exploration of possibilities and becomes an opportunity instead of a challenge. The act of practicing is an art; in the beginning, it must be taught and guided instead of being left up to the students.

Enrico Elisi guides students to tackle their playing hands together early in the practice sessions and insists that students learn to inflect their melodic playing. Inflection helps to clarify shapes, and it must be done immediately as students learn the notes of a new piece. As they learn the pitches, they learn what they mean so that the initial conceptualization of the music is assimilated with inflection. He also encourages students to practice thoughtfully, as evidenced by silent pauses while looking at the music, singing or humming, making notes on the page, or expressing verbal “ah-ha”s. Students learn that errors must be preempted by stopping in anticipation of mistakes. These issues must be addressed immediately as they appear so that the precise location and sources of each error are identified accurately, rehearsed, and corrected. Also, he teaches how to change the tempo while learning a new repertoire, so each tempo of individual performance trials is varied systematically; logically understandable changes in tempo take place between trials (e.g., slow things down to get tricky sections correct). Elisi also patiently explores target passages that must be repeated until the error is corrected and the passage is stabilized (as evidenced by the error’s absence in subsequent repetitions).

Life and Music

Rigorous training in music and piano, in Enrico Elisi’s ideology, is inextricably linked with how a young artist lives one’s life. Students are taught to prioritize their work; they are required to organize their studies well; they must participate in the activities of their fellow music students; they have to listen to concerts and recordings; and ultimately, they must take on a role in the teaching of younger pupils, gradually developing from students into teachers.

Quick Facts: Education

  • Peabody Institute of Music of the Johns Hopkins University (with Leon Fleisher)
  • International Piano Academy Incontri col Maestro, Imola, Italy (with Lazar Berman, Alexander Lonquich, Boris Petrushansky, Franco Scala)
  • L. Cherubini State Conservatory of Music, Florence, Italy (with Giuseppe Fricelli)
  • G. B. Martini State Conservatory of Music, Bologna, Italy (with Giuseppe Fricelli)

Quick Facts: Teaching Experience

  • Texas Christian University, USA (Associate Professor of Piano in the Harold D. and Imogen Herndon Professorship in Music)
  • Eastman School of Music, USA (Associate Professor of Piano)
  • The Pennsylvania State University, USA (Assistant Professor of Piano)
  • The University of Nevada, Las Vegas, USA (Assistant Professor of Piano)
  • China Academy of the Arts (Yi Shu Xue Xiao), China (Visiting Guest Professor of Piano)
  • Hanyang University, South Korea (Visting Assistant Professor)
  • Ewha Womans University, South Korea (Leading Visiting Scholar)
  • San Francisco Conservatory, USA (Substitute Collegiate Faculty)
During a master class at CCM Art of the Piano
During a master class at CCM, Art of the Piano

Abridged List of Students’ Achievements 

During Dr. Elisi’s first two years at the University of Toronto

Rudin Lengo, DMA

  • Competition: winner of the 2017 DMA Competition at the University of Toronto
  • Performance: DMA recital in Walter Hall, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Augustin Simoni in Concert – Guest Artist
  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto
  • Performance: PianoFest, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Thursdays at Noon – Walter Hall Recital, the University of Toronto (as a prizewinner of the DMA competition)
  • Performance: Music at St. Andrew’s – Noon Recital Series
  • Scholarship: John and Barbara Vivash Scholarship in Piano Performance
  • Scholarship: Simmonds Graduate Fellowship
  • Adjudication: London Kiwanis Festival
  • Adjudication: 3C Rotary Calgary Concerto Competition (alongside Andrew Dawes and Victor Sawa)

Coral Solomon, DMA

  • Performance: Solo piano and viola sonatas with Janice LaMarre at Grace United Church, Barrie
  • Performance: a two-piano recital at Beth Tikvah Synagogue, Toronto
  • Performance: a two-piano recital at Fairview Library Theatre, Toronto
  • Performance: soloist in Chopin Concerto No. 1 with CAST Philharmonic at Tyndale University College, Toronto
  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto

Nancy Li, MMus

  • Honors: Executive Leader, Music Graduate Students’ Association Canadian Union of Public Employees
  • Honors: Representative, University of Toronto’s Stewards Council Faculty of Music
  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Instrumentalis, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Second-Year Masters Recital, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Piano and Organ Collaborative Concert, Hope United Church, Toronto
  • Chamber Music Performance: Verity with the Women’s Musical Club of Toronto and the WMCT Foundation’s An Evening of Music, Toronto, Canada

Eugene Chan, BMus

  • Programs: admitted in the Master’s Degree at the Peabody Conservatory of the Johns Hopkins University

Soo Jin Chung, BMus

  • Programs: admitted in the Master’s Degree at Rice University on a full scholarship

Miguel Esteban, BMus

  • Grants: FMUA Individual Grant for Professional Development
  • Scholarship: Mary-Margaret Webb Piano Performance Award
  • Scholarship: Friends of the Library Scholarship
  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto
  • Performance: PianoFest, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Composition Concert at UofT (Geiger Torel)
  • Summer Program: selected to take part in AmiCaFest, Italy (two performances)

Stephen Shi, BMus

  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto

Artun Miskciyan, BMus

  • Performance: Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 with the UTSO, Hart House, Toronto (Sistema Toronto, Fundraising Concert)
  • Competition: AmiCaFest Concerto Competition, Italy (2nd Prize Winner)
  • Performance: Mozart Piano Concerto K.414 performance with Camerata Belliniana, Valle dei Margi, Italy
  • Summer Program: selected to take part in AmiCaFest, Italy
  • Performance: AmiCaFest, Chiesa di San Leonardo, Grammichele, Italy
  • Scholarship: Deila Moog and W. O. Forsyth Graduating Scholarships
  • Performance: piano four-hands with Aisa Sayama at the Showcase concert of Richview United Church
  • Performance: Armenian Prelacy of Canada – Gala Concert, Toronto
  • Celebrating Canada 150, St. Vartan Armenian Church of Mississauga
  • Performance: PianoFest, University of Toronto
  • Canada’s 150thAnniversary Concert, Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic Church, Toronto

Elaine Yang, BMus

  • Competition: First prize winner of the Asian International Youth Piano Contest, Zhuhai, China
  • Performance: solo recital in Shantou, China
  • Summer Program: selected to take part in AmiCaFest, Italy
  • Performance: AmiCaFest, Chiesa di San Leonardo, Grammichele, Italy
  • Performance: Tenuta San Michele, Santa Venerina, Italy
  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto
  • Performance: PianoFest, University of Toronto
  • Scholarship: Alice & Armen Matheson Entrance Scholarship
  • Summer Program: selected to take part in Todi Music Masters, Italy
  • Performance: solo repertoire at Vignola Palace, Todi, Italy
  • Performance with orchestra: Beethoven Concerto No. 3 with Napolinova Youth Orchestra at Vignola Palace, Todi, Italy

Joshua Su, BMus

  • Summer Program: selected to take part in Todi Music Masters, Italy
  • Performance: solo repertoire at Vignola Palace, Todi, Italy
  • Performance with orchestra: Chopin Concerto No. 2 with Napolinova Youth Orchestra at Vignola Palace, Todi, Italy
  • Grants: FMUA Individual Grant for Professional Development
  • Summer Program: selected to take part in AmiCaFest, Italy
  • Performance: AmiCaFest, Chiesa di San Leonardo, Grammichele, Italy
  • Performance: Tenuta San Michele, Santa Venerina, Italy
  • Performance: TILT Composers Collective Presents – Spring Concert
  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto
  • Performance: PianoFest, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Hazelton Place Retirement Residence
  • Scholarship: Alice & Armen Matheson Entrance Scholarship

Carina Shum, BMus

  • Associate Diploma (ARCT) – November 26, 2017 (Koerner Hall)
  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Musical Minds Community Outreach Recital (Hart House)

Shelley Shao, BMus

  • Competition: First Prize at the 2018 Canada International Music Competition organized by CGCTV (Canadian Global Chinese Television), MOMA (The Multicultural Organization of Music and Arts Education), LEGAC (Life Education and Growth Association of Canada)
  • Summer Program: selected to take part in Todi Music Masters, Italy
  • Performance: solo repertoire at Vignola Palace, Todi, Italy
  • Performance with orchestra: Mozart Concerto K. 414 with Napolinova Youth Orchestra at Vignola Palace, Todi, Italy
  • Summer Program: selected to take part in Amalfi Coast Music Festival, Italy
  • Performance: solo repertoire at the Church of San Domenico, Maiori, Italy
  • Performance: PianoFest, University of Toronto
  • Performance: Nordic Masters of the Romantic Era: Grieg & Sinding, University of Toronto
  • Performance: “Dream Bloom,” lecture-recital at Lucheng Cultural Centre’s Music Hall, Wenzhou, China
  • Performance: 2017 Canada International Music Competition Winner’s Gala Concert

Student Accomplishments 2011–2016 (Eastman School of Music)

  • DMA student earned the Garth Newel Music Center Young Artists Summer Chamber Music Fellowship
  • DMA student was a soloist with Ossia New Music Ensemble
  • DMA student was a semi-finalist in the Wideman International Piano Competition
  • DMA student became an accompanist/piano instructor for Meritas Music Festival
  • DMA student won second prize at Bradshaw & Buono International Piano Competition, Collegiate/Professional
  • DMA student won first prize at the Chicago Musicians Club of Women Scholarship Competition
  • DMA student won the Union League Civic & Arts Foundation Classical Music Scholarship Competition
  • MM student won second prize at Louisiana International Competition
  • MM students won first and third prizes in the Dallas International Competition
  • MM student performed a concerto as a soloist in the Dallas City Performance Hall with the Dallas Chamber Symphony
  • MM students won first and second prizes at American Protégé Piano Competition and performed at Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall
  • Three MM students were awarded a full scholarship to the Cincinnati Conservatory (doctoral studies) respectively; a full tuition with a stipend at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a full tuition with a teaching assistantship at Southern Methodist University
  • MM student performed with Round Rock Symphony Orchestra in San Marcos, Texas
  • MM student won first prize at the 5th Texas State International Piano Festival Concerto Competition and performed a concerto at the Patti Strickel Harrison Theatre with the Round Rock Symphony
  • MM student performed in Washington and Louisiana, USA, as well as Toronto, Canada
  • MM student featured in a solo recital in the Rising Stars Series at the 5th Texas State International Piano Festival, San Marcos, TX
  • MM students were accepted into the doctoral program at Penn State University with full scholarships
  • MM student was selected for the prestigious, scholarship-financed Artist Diploma at the Glenn Gould School in Toronto, Canada
  • MM student won second prize at the New York State Chapter of MTNA
  • Five MM students performed at the Summit Piano Series Rochester, NY
  • MM student gave a solo Recital at the George Eastman’s House
  • MM student won first prize (in piano) at the 32ndAnnual Jessie Kneisel Lieder Competition (Eastman School of Music)
  • MM student presented theory research at the Yale Graduate Music Symposium (March 2012)
  • MM student presented theory research at the Music Theory Southeast Annual Conference in Atlanta (March 2012); received the Best Student Paper Award and, as a result, was on the Program Committee for the following year’s conference
  • MM student was chosen as a Marshal for the graduating Master’s students at Eastman’s May 2012 Commencement Ceremony
  • MM student won the second prize at the Bauru-Atlanta Competition, Atlanta, GA, US
  • MM student performed at the President’s House at the University of Rochester
  • MM student performed in Boston, MA, San Diego, CA, and Philadelphia, PA
  • MM student performed Bach Triple Concerto in Southern Carolina
  • MM student performed recitals in Caracas, Venezuela
  • Two MM students were accepted in the tuition-free inaugural Rebecca Penneys Piano Festival, Tampa, FL
  • MM student gave chamber and solo performances at Cornell University, Ithaca, Binghamton, Syracuse, and Buffalo, NY
  • BM student qualified for the Dean’s List
  • BM student was selected as a semi-finalist at Emilio del Rosario International Piano Competition (streamed live performance from Chicago)
  • BM student offered a piano recital at the Toronto University Network’s “Music for the Heart and Soul” series (DeGasperis Conservatory, Toronto)
  • BM student accompanied Eastman-University of Rochester Women’s Chorus in concerts at Lutheran Reformation Church, Pittsford First Presbyterian Church, “Choral Extravaganza”
  • BM student was a scholarship participant at the Orford Summer Festival 2013 (selected to perform in master classes of John Perry and James Parker, plus a performance in the Young Artists Recitals series at Lefebvre Hall at Centre D’arts Orford, Canada)
  • BM student was the summer Interim Music Director at Centennial-Japanese United Church and Oriole York Mills United Church (Toronto)
  • BM student was the Founder and President of the Eastman Chinese Cultural Association: Organized Chinese New Year, and Mid-Autumn Festival events for the entire school (Eastman, Rochester)
  • BM student performed a recital in Puerto Rico
  • BM student performed three non-degree recitals (including Mozart Concerto, K. 491, with an orchestra formed by Eastman students)
  • BM student was an instructor, a counselor and a translator (Chinese-English) for the New York Summer Music Festival, Oneonta, NY
  • BM student was selected for an internship at Liaoing TV Station, Shenyang, China
  • BM student performed in Vancouver, Canada
  • BM student was admitted in the MM program at Indiana University (top list with a generous package of $17,000), Peabody ($20,000) and Eastman ($9,000) but ended up selecting the Juilliard School.
  • BM was accepted in the MM program at New England Conservatory with a 30,000 US dollar scholarship

Student Accomplishments 2008–2011 (Pennsylvania State University)

  • DMA student performed a chamber music recital at the Cité internationale Universitaire and the Chopin Conservatoire, Paris, France
  • Two DMA students won first and second prizes in the Pennsylvania Music Teacher Association Competition
  • Two additional DMA students won first and second (alternate) prizes at the Pennsylvania Music Teacher Association Competition
  • Four DMA, one Ph. D, three MM, and one BM student were selected to take part in notable masterclasses by guests musicians at Penn State University
  • Several BM and DMA students were selected for an appearance at the Jury Honors performances
  • Two MM students performed for the School of Music Notable Public Events
  • Six BM students were selected for an appearance at the Jury Honors Performances
  • BM student was selected for the Jury Recognition Recital