The Sherer International Piano and Strings Competition

Dr. Matthew Hill, piano

Matthew Hill, DMA, pianist and Goshen College professor of music, is chair of the music department and teaches piano, chamber music, music history, and as a result of the strong influence from his wife and daughter, also teaches a general education course in Opera and Musical Theatre. He has studied with such renowned musicians as Howard Karp and Claude Frank, whose respective pedagogical genealogies include Rosina Lhévinne and Arthur Schnabel. He has had a variety of teaching and performing experiences both nationally and internationally. Dr. Hill participated at the Schlern International Music Festival held in the Dolomites of northern Italy through invitation as a teacher, performer, and master class clinician. In China, he taught a series of master classes at the Sichuan Conservatory of Music, and presented a solo recital. Matthew received his doctorate in piano performance at University of Wisconsin-Madison. His students have gone on to further graduate study at many different graduate schools, including Kansas City Conservatory of Music, Cleveland Institute of Music, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, University of Oklahoma, Westminster Choir College, and the University of South Florida

Dr. Ioana Galu, violin

Ioana Galu,a native of Romania, has enjoyed a rich career as a performer, researcher and pedagogue in both Europe and the United States. Former Assistant Professor of Violin and chamber music at Gheorghe Dima Music Academy in Cluj, Romania, Galu has also been on the faculty at Heidelberg University, Bowling Green State University, The College of Wooster, and the University of South Dakota.  She has served on the faculty of the Eastern Music Festival (Greenboro, NC) between 2004 and 2022, and is now the artistic director of the Arioso Chamber Players.

A graduate of Gheorghe Dima Music Academy, Romania, Galu earned a second master’s degree in violin performance from Bowling Green State University, an Artist Diploma from University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music and a doctorate in Contemporary Music from Bowling Green State University. Galu has been awarded prizes in several national and international competitions, including Second Prize in the Mozart International Competition for Piano Trios (Romania), and First Prize and Special Prize of the SOROS Foundation at the George Enescu Violin National Competition (Romania). She also won the Second Prize in the Starling Violin Competition College Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati (CCM) and was the winner of the CCM Concerto Competition with Bernstein’s Serenade.Galu performed the world premiere of Marilyn Shrude’s violin concerto Libro D’Ore with the Central Ohio Symphony and the European premiere with the Sibiu State Philharmonic in Romania. She gave its US premiere and subsequently recorded the concerto for Albany Records. Galu also recorded “Music Under Political Unrest” -Works for Two Violins by Grażyna Bacewicz, Henryk Górecki, and Michał Spisak with Iuliana Cotirlea, violin.

Collaborative Pianist – Luke Norell

A native of Minnesota, pianist Luke Norell has concertized internationally as soloist and chamber musician. Recent engagements have included performing at the University of Indianapolis, Ohio University, the Music Archive of Sarasota, Florida, and the Ruthmere Fall Concert Series. He has appeared as soloist with the Maple City Chamber Orchestra and the Southwest Minnesota Orchestra and also performed at Edvard Grieg’s historic home at Troldhaugen. As vice president and founding board member of the newly formed Edvard Grieg Society of the Great Lakes, Luke took part in hosting its inaugural “SalzBergen” conference at Goshen College, giving performances with bass-baritone Njål Sparbo, and his wife Mary Rose as the Norell Piano Duo. Dr. Norell serves as the Piano Program Director for the Goshen College Community School of the Arts and as collaborative pianist for the Goshen College music department. He studied with André Watts at Indiana University, completing his D.M. and M.M. degrees, and received his B.M. degree from the University of Northwestern (St. Paul).