Dr. Elizabeth Chua

Malaysian pianist, Elizabeth Chua holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Collaborative Piano and Coaching from the University of Minnesota. She received her Master of Music in Piano Performance and Collaborative Piano from Middle Tennessee State University.

This season, Dr. Elizabeth is the 2019 Music Director of Nashville Opera’s Mary Ragland Emerging Artist Program, the 2018-2019 Resident Artist Pianist and Coach with Toledo Opera, and the 2018 Resident Artist Pianist with Pittsburgh Festival Opera. As an active performer and collaborator in the Twin Cities, Dr. Elizabeth has done productions with Garden of Song Opera and The Arbeit Opera Theater.

She has participated in various collaborative piano masterclasses including masterclass by Dr. Arlene Shrut, vocal coach of the Juilliard School and the Manhattan School of Music. Her recent achievements in solo piano playing include winning second place at the Beethoven Club of Memphis Young Artist Competition in Year 2013. In May 2014, she participated in the Dorothy Taubman Piano Seminar at Temple University and played in masterclasses with world renowned Daniel Epstein and Jonathan Feldman.

Elizabeth is a passionate teacher. She has taught students of age 3 to 60. She includes various teaching methodologies, tailoring her teachings to meet the needs of every individuals. She uses the Music Mind Games methodology, an excellent teaching approach to younger age group students. Her exposure to Alexander Technique is also incorporated into her teachings. It is a body awareness method to avoid tension buildups in piano and violin playing which prevents injury.

Fluent in English, Mandarin, Cantonese, and Malay, she is able communicate with students of different nationalities.