Maria Setiawan-Gore
Admissions Director, Piano

It was during her studies at San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where she received her degrees in Piano Performance, that Maria Setiawan-Gore realized teaching was her true calling. Even after 18 years of teaching piano, children haven’t ceased to amaze her.  They are like curious, enthusiastic little sponges, ready to absorb the skills and knowledge taught to them. She feels incomparable joy when a 3-year-old masters her first little tune, or when a student beams with pride after winning a competition. These moments serve as constant reminders for her decision to dedicate her life to teaching children many years ago.

In her teachings, she strongly believes in finding the right balance for each student. She realizes while most method books are a wonderful platform to start with, it’s not “one size fits all.” She often incorporates works outside the chosen method books that help address her students weaknesses and highlight their strengths. She has become deft at making challenging music materials accessible through her work with a wide range of students of varying ages, abilities and cultural backgrounds.

Since she herself participated in public performances at a very early age, she understands the importance of incorporating recitals to ensure the students’ learning success. In order to provide performance opportunities for her students, Ms. Setiawan-Gore provides quarterly recitals and created an annual forum in 1999 now known as NCSM Annual Awards Recital. The forum had 78 students in its first year of conception, and it has now grown close to 400 participants yearly.

Maria made her first national television appearance in Indonesia when she was 7 years old. But even then, she was not a novice in public performances.  Along with sister Myrna Setiawan, Ms. Setiawan-Gore was selected to be a part of the highly-coveted young artist program called Junior Original Concerts (JOC) through the Yamaha Music Foundation, which recognized excellence in performance and music composition.

Ms. Setiawan-Gore wrote her first composition at the age of 6 and performed it throughout Indonesia. In 1984 and 1985, she performed her compositions in Japan. She also won several competitions in Southern California area including the Young Artist Peninsula Music and Southwestern Youth competitions when she was studying under Dr. Louise Lepley at RD Colburn School in Los Angeles.

She attributes her love for teaching to her former teachers, including Mrs. Aylisia Yusuf, Dr. Louise Lepley, and the late Nathan Schwartz with whom she studied at San Francisco Conservatory of Music.