PRESS RELEASE
1 September 2020
The Frances Clark Center Appoints New Board Members
The Frances Clark Center is pleased to announce the addition of three new members to its Board of Trustees: E.L. Lancaster, William Chapman Nyaho, and Chee-Hwa Tan.
E. L. Lancaster is a piano faculty member at California State University Northridge. He holds a Ph.D. from Northwestern University and established the masters and doctoral programs in piano pedagogy at the University of Oklahoma. Lancaster is a co-author of Alfred’s Premier Piano Course, Music for Little Mozarts, and Alfred’s Group Piano for Adults. In 2019, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy and the Outstanding Alumnus in Fine Arts Award from Murray State University.
Dr. William Chapman Nyaho currently serves on the piano faculty at Pacific Lutheran University as well as on the summer faculty of Interlochen Center for the Arts and has a private piano studio in Seattle, Washington. He is an active solo recitalist, duo pianist and chamber musician, giving recitals and concerts in Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean and in cities across the United States where he advocates music by composers of African descent. He has served on national committees for the College Music Society, Music Teachers’ National Association and the National Endowment for the Arts. He is an advocate for music of Africa and its diaspora with numerous publications and recordings.
Chee-Hwa Tan has served as the Head of Piano Pedagogy at the University of Denver Lamont School of Music, as well as on the piano pedagogy faculties at the Oberlin Conservatory and Southern Methodist University. Ms.Tan is the author of internationally acclaimed A Child’s Garden of Verses and other piano collections. Her music is published by Piano Safari; with selections included in the Repertoire and Study series of the Royal Conservatory of Music, Canada, and the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, London. Ms. Tan holds Masters’ degrees in Piano Performance and Piano Pedagogy from Southern Methodist University and a B.A. in Piano Performance and English from Oral Roberts University. A native of Malaysia, Ms. Tan resides in Colorado, with her husband Christopher and their four musician children.
“We are thrilled to welcome these three distinguished pianists and teachers to the Board of the Frances Clark Center. We look forward to the experience, expertise, and wisdom they bring, and to collaborating with them to serve our community of musicians,” said Leslie Owsley, Chair of the Board of Trustees.
“It is inspiring to have the opportunity to work with these outstanding professionals in our field. Their leadership and contributions will be invaluable as we continue to realize the mission of the Center. We are deeply grateful for their willingness to serve the Center in support of piano teaching, learning, and performing,” Dr. Jennifer Snow, CEO and Executive Director of the Frances Clark Center.
The Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy, a not-for-profit educational institution (501c3) located in Kingston, New Jersey, serves pianists and teachers through its divisions: The National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy, Piano Magazine, Teacher Education, and The New School for Music Study.
For more information, please contact info@francesclarkcenter.org.