Presenters

Dr. Olivia Boatman is Assistant Professor of Flute at Mississippi State University, holding a K–12 Mississippi Instrumental Educator License. She actively supports local high school music programs and performs with the Mississippi Wind Symphony, Starkville Symphony Orchestra, and Mississippi Baptist Symphony Orchestra. She serves on the Flute Clubs Committee for the National Flute Association. Her previous roles include teaching positions at Hinds Community College, Kansas Wesleyan University, Belhaven University, and Grambling State University. Dr. Boatman has presented at national and regional events such as the NFA Convention, Florida Flute Association, Wisconsin Flute Festival, and Music by Women Festival. She earned a Doctor of Music from Florida State University, a Master of Music from Arkansas State, and a Bachelor of Music Education from MSU, along with certificates in Music Education, Leadership, and College Teaching.

Cheryl Coker, Emerita Associate Professor of Music was on the faculty of Millsaps College in Jackson, MS, from 1984 until her retirement in August 2022, teaching voice, Vocal Pedagogy, Vocal Literature, Opera History, and Women in Music.  Prior to joining the faculty at Millsaps she taught private voice and piano in addition to serving in churches directing Children’s Choirs, continuing the latter for over thirty years.  Degrees in Music Education (1969) and a Master of Music in Vocal Performance (1982) from the University of Southern Mississippi were augmented with a DMA in Vocal Performance from the University of Minnesota (2001).  She has served as Mississippi Chapter President (1993-1995), Mississippi Governor (2007-2012), and  Registrar/Secretary for Southern Region NATS (2006-2020), while presenting and performing in National, Southern Regional, and State NATS Conferences.  She was Collegiate Vocal Area Chair for Mississippi Music Teachers Association (1989-1992 and 2005-2007), giving presentations for state and national conferences.   

Pianist Joy Parker Graves obtained a B.S. in Music Education from Maranatha Baptist University, a M.M. in Piano Pedagogy and Performance from Westminster Choir College, and a D.M.A. in Piano Performance from The University of Southern Mississippi under the instruction of former president of MMTNA Dr. Ellen Elder. Her dissertation, “Teaching Students Who Have Been Identified with Autism in the Private Piano Teaching Studio: An Application of General Music Resources and Interviews with Specialists in the Field,” involved teaching piano to students with autism.  Her teaching background includes both classroom and private teaching. She has taught class piano at USM, general music and keyboard, as well as private piano lessons. Currently, she teaches private piano lessons at the Taylor School of Mississippi College as well as in her in-home piano studio, which is comprised mostly of students with autism. She is becoming known as a piano teacher in the Jackson area who is gifted at teaching students with autism. Joy Graves has studied with internationally renowned teacher and pianist Ingrid Clarfield. She has also studied pedagogy/keyboard literature under Paul Sheftel, and Phyllis Lehrer and observed lessons given by Marvin Blickenstaff at the New School of Music in Kingston, NJ. 

Pianist Dr. Bill Harned was born and raised in Starkville across the street from his grandfather’s dairy farm, who served as a state legislator for 24 years. He completed his B.A. at MSU with Dr. Sebba, his M.M. at LSU with Michael Gurt, and his D.A. at the University of Northern Colorado. His dissertation analyzed recently exposed compositions of the Haitian Méringue. More importantly, it provided performance practice for the Haitian quintolet rhythm, which only exists with its inventor from a document from 1882, and discovered how it preserves cross-rhythms to keep duple and tresillo-based triple meters independent between the hands. The traditional cinquillo rhythm cannot support this because it synchronizes to the duple meter. In 2023 Claude Dauphin, co-founder of the SRDMH archive and top Haitian musicologist, asked him to present his findings in Montreal at the symposium “Valorisation des Répertoires Musicaux Classiques Afro-Diasporiques.” These new digital editions from the SRDMH archive (www.srdmh.com) of Haitian music expose compositions going back to 1890 that were unknown outside Haiti. He also presented his findings at the 2023 MTNA National Conference and the 2021, 2022 and 2023 World Piano Conference online editions. Beforehand he presented “An Assessment of Technical Exercises for Piano Majors” in Serbia for the 2017 World Piano Conference.

Dr. Marcos Machado has forged a vibrant international career that bridges performance, pedagogy, and authorship. Praised by the Strad for his “incredibly fluid” technique and by Fanfare for his “musicianship and technical prowess,” Machado brings to his work a rare blend of expressive clarity, technical mastery, and scholarly insight. He is the only South American to hold both “Performance” and “Teaching” diplomas from the L’Institut International de Contrebasse de Paris, where he studied under the legendary François Rabbath. Machado completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Michael Cameron and earned his earlier degrees under Milton Masciadri at the University of Georgia. An advocate for expanding the double bass repertoire, Machado has inspired composers to create new works for the instrument, and has also presented important South American premieres. His discography includes the critically acclaimed albums Metamorfora and Fantasy, recorded with pianist Ney Fialkow for Blue Griffin Recording. Machado is the author of Tao of Bass, a comprehensive four-volume exploration of double bass technique. He serves as Professor of Music at USM, where he directs the Southern Miss Bass Symposium and Bass by the Sea.

Dan McElrath holds a Bachelors degree in Music Education from Furman University. He received his concert technical training at the C.F. Theodore Steinway Academy at the Steinway piano factory in Queens, N.Y., and the Yamaha Concert School in L.A. Dan has been a piano technician since 1983 and a Registered Piano Technician since 1996 where he served as the Pacific Northwest Regional Vice President (2010-2012) and a Tuning/Technical Examiner (2000-2010). He resides in Biloxi, MS. Dan serves as the Conductor and Artistic Director of the Mississippi Coast Chorale in his free time. He also continues to service pianos in Alaska and Maui and throughout the US.

  Pianist Julia Mortyakova maintains an international performing career. She is the recipient of the 2026 and 2022 Performing Arts Fellowships from the Mississippi Arts Commission, the 2023-2024 MUW Excellence in Creative Activity Award, and the 2023 Programming Award from the International Alliance for Women in Music.  She is a proud member of the Mississippi Artist Roster.  2025 performance schedule includes solo recitals, appearances with orchestras and lecture recital conference presentations in Colombia, Italy, Ireland as well as throughout the United States.   Dr. Mortyakova serves as Professor and Chair of the Department of Music at the Mississippi University for Women and Artistic Director of the International Annual Music by Women Festival.  Dr. Mortyakova’s teaching was recognized by the 2025 Kossen Faculty Excellence Award (MUW), the 2023-2024 MUW Excellence in Teaching in Creative Spaces Award, and the 2023 Steinway Top Piano Teacher Award.  The Mortyakova/Bogdan Piano Duo are prize winners of the 2017 Ellis Duo Piano Competition.   Professor Mortyakova is the author of Class Piano textbook method of individual and group piano study, in its second edition from Kendall Hunt publishing.   She has released multiple solo and piano duo albums featuring music by women composers and available on all major streaming services.  

Dr. Sanchez, NCTM, has been a faculty member at Jones College since 1995. She has received several teaching awards over her nearly 29 years of music and piano instruction, including the 2003 HEADWAE award, 2007 Humanities Teacher of the Year, and 2010 Faculty Excellence Award. She is a past president of the Mississippi MTA and the Hattiesburg Music Teachers League. Sanchez was a Southern Division winner in the MTNA Collegiate Artist Competition and served as an official accompanist for the Southern Division competitions for more than 30 years. She is music coordinator for FestivalSouth in Hattiesburg and an avid chamber music performer. Sanchez holds Bachelor of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees from The University of Southern Mississippi and she earned her Master of Music degree at Louisiana State University.

Additionally, Dr. Sanchez has performed numerous solo and chamber music recitals and has been a soloist with the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra in addition to Meridian Symphony and the USM Symphony Orchestra and Wind Ensemble. She currently serves as Chamber Music Coordinator for the Hattiesburg Concert Association and FestivalSouth in Hattiesburg and has been active in arts management with the Vicksburg Chamber Music Festival.

She is listed on the Touring Artist Roster of the Mississippi Arts Commission and performs frequently with the Impromptu Piano Trio. In addition, she is Principal Keyboard with the Meridian and Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestras. Sanchez has been a long-time Official Accompanist for Southern Division competitions for that organization.

Jung-Won Shin, has appeared as an active piano teacher and solo and collaborative pianist at recitals and concerts in the U.S. Korea, Canada, and Europe. Her presentations and performances were featured in international and regional conferences of the College Music Society, the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) TEMPO Virtual Conference, the New Music on the Bayou Festival in Monroe and Ruston, Louisiana, the Music in Action Conference in Los Angeles, the Lives of the Piano concert series at the Manhattan School of Music and the Beethoven Sonata Recital Series at the Yamaha Artist Services both in New York, Rising Stars Concerts at the Orford Summer Music Academy and Festival, the AIMS in Graz, Austria, and several recital and concert series in Korea. Her two collaborative CDs with soprano Amy Yeung and violinist Sue-Jean Park respectively have been released.  The recipient of the 2023 S. E. Kossman Outstanding Teacher Award at Delta State University, Shin served as Professor of Music and Coordinator of the Piano Preparatory Program the University. She is currently Assistant Professor of Piano at New Mexico State University, a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music, and Immediate Past President at the Mississippi Music Teachers Association.