Born in Columbus, Ohio, raised in Boone, North Carolina, and now located in New York City, Kasey Stokes is an emerging professional in piano instruction and performance. In 2021, she graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) with a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance, studying under the tutelage of Dr. Dror Biran. During her undergraduate studies, Kasey was selected to attend the Amalfi Coast Music Festival (2019) and Rebecca Penneys Piano Festival (2018). In addition to the performance competitions she placed in, Kasey participated in master classes led by renowned artists such as Logan Skelton, Inna Faliks, Marina Lomazov, Christopher Harding, and Michael Lewin, among others.

Kasey was also an active member of the CCM MTNA collegiate chapter, serving as Co-President for two years. She was an avid participant at annual MTNA, OMTA, and collegiate symposium conferences. Since graduating, she has continued to further her professional development and attend more conferences, workshops, and master classes given by leading pedagogues from around the world.

At the age of twelve, her teaching journey started with beginners, progressing to the early advanced level. Coming from generations of music educators, Kasey has witnessed a diverse range of music pedagogy approaches from a front-row seat. She believes the most important goal in becoming a musician is finding one’s own self-expression through music. To guide a well-rounded musician, both she and the student work together to build a strong background in ear-training and musicality, as well as exploring the student’s interests in playing different genres (pop, musical theater, jazz) as well as in composition and improvisation. Kasey’s approach to teaching is student-centered, as she learns and adapts to students’ characters, skills, abilities, and musical development in each lesson. In addition to teaching, Kasey currently works as the Mannes Sounds Festival Assistant at the New School, teaches piano privately, and produces social media content for various music organizations. Read more