UVMC Welcomes New Faculty
Chenyu Wang
Piano
Dr. Chenyu Wang grew up in China and began her piano studies at age 5. Her primary teachers include Minjuan Fan and Shuo Huang (Shanghai Conservatory of Music), Barry Snyder (Eastman School of Music), Emile Naoumoff (Indiana University) and Paul Rutman (Hartt School, University of Hartford). She also performed at masterclasses for legendary pianists such as Robert McDonald, Julian Martin, Luiz Castro, Boris Slutsky, Rebecca Pennys, Autur Pizarro, Jose Ramon Mendez, Blanca Uribe, Thomas Schumacher, Roberta Rust, and many others. Dr. Wang has been awarded several prizes in national and international competitions, including The American Prize (2019-2022), IBLA Annual International Music Competition (2019), and Bartok-Kabalevsky-Prokofiev International Piano Competition (2019). She is also a member of Pi Kappa Lambda (U.S. music honor society). As an active pianist, Dr. Wang performed in China, Italy and the USA.
Rachel Clemente
Harp
Vermont based pedal and traditional Scottish harpist, Rachel Clemente, has had a passion for music from the early age of five. She began her harp training as a student of the Suzuki method. In addition, she discovered her love of Scottish music through events and competitions held by the Scottish Harp Society of America and the Ohio Scottish Arts School. Her musical education then continued at renowned arts boarding high school, Interlochen Arts Academy.
In July of 2018, Rachel graduated from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in Glasgow with a bachelors degree in traditional Scottish music. Her accolades include winner of U.S National Scottish Harp Champion in 2016 and the winner of Princess Margaret of the Isles Clàrsach Competition (USA) in 2021.
Currently, Rachel is focusing on establishing herself in the New England folk scene as a soloist as well performing in her duo with bagpiper, Dan Houghton and she continues to enjoy working as a private harp instructor alongside beginning a journey into compositional work.
Lois Fein
Music Together
Lois Fein, singer/songwriter and early childhood educator, rejoins the Music Together team as instructor for Rhythm Kids and Family Classes. A graduate of Harvard, Lois studied music composition with Elliot Forbes, open-tuning guitar with David Wilcox, and songwriting with The Kingston Trio’s John Stewart. She loves making music and singing with her students as a PreK/Kindergarten teacher in Reading, Vermont and as a congregational song leader at Shir Shalom in Woodstock, Vermont. As an educator for more than twenty years and founder of The Full Moon EarthSONG Singalong, Lois has taught and performed at cafes, folk festivals, and many other venues. She will soon celebrate the anniversary of her album Step Into the Water (Demetri Sterling Records, 2006) and is working with children on a new album of original music called “Sound Play,” which melds piano compositions, percussion, and nature soundscapes with movement in an effort to make sound visible.
