INSTRUCTORS

Mariko Yuen (Principal)

violin/viola/piano/theory/ensemble

Mariko is a career musician and instructor with a desire to broaden students knowledge and develop their love of music. She was born and raised in Japan. She started studying the violin at the age of 5 with Hiroko Nakama. When she was 11, she won an award at the Miyanichi Music Competition in Kyushu. She studied Violin Performance under professor Shouji Masukado of Oita Prefectual College of Arts and Culture. Mariko is a violin instructor/performer with a Bachelors of Art Degree in Violin performance from Yamagata University and minor in piano. She also holds an elementary/middle/high school teaching certificate. She learned under Professor Yoshiharu Kono of Tokyo Geijutsu University, Shouji Masukado, Shinichi Nagano, Hideo Matsumura. Mariko participated in the seminar for the Northern Kyushu International Music Festival . She also participated in the Miyazaki International Music Festival when Issac Stern was conducting the festival. During college, she studied Childrens Educational Psychology under Manabu Matsuzaki where she did research on the effect of teaching music to children with learning disabilities(ADD, ADHD).

From 2005 , she started teaching in Hawaii at Maryknoll School and CK Violins. After that, she opened her own studio, Virtuoso Violin Hawaii in Honolulu and Kaneohe.



Student Accomplishments







Sayaka Kanamori

flute/piano/theory

Sayaka Kanamori was born and raised in Osaka, Japan. She graduated from the Osaka Junior College of Music and the University of Hawaii at Manoa with a BA in Music with a focus on the flute. At the age of 3 she started to play the piano. Later, at the age of 13 she started to play the flute with the brass band club from middle school, all throughout high school and later into her early years of college. After graduated from Osaka Junior College of music in Japan, she belonged to Amagasaki Municipal Wind Orchestra, which won the top Gold Medal from an All Japan Band Competition triumphing. She has undertaken many flute lessons from many flutists who include Fumiko Ando and Seiya Ueno. She has also taken up master classes under professional flutists who include Sir James Galway, Kazunori Seo, and Dr. Mary Karen Clardy. What’s more she had studied chamber music with Dr. I-bei Lin and Dr. Jonathan Korth and received lessons from fellow professionals including Igrance Jang, Susan McGinn and Clair Starz who are members of the Hawaii Symphony. Her talent in teaching the flute is intertwined in her deep interest for anatomy and physiology of the human body. She is able to observe her students’ movements and postures to help fine tune her teaching methods based on the specific person she helps. Also, she took Alexander Technique class and has studied from many books.

Sayaka volunteers at hospitals and senior citizen homes by giving flute recitals. She has made appearances and performed at local radio stations. She also performs at special events, wedding, and restaurants.

Sayaka is currently teaching private flute lessons to aspiring flutists. She is also a part of both the University of Hawaii at Manoa Symphony Orchestra and Oahu Civic Orchestra as first chair.

Sayaka won HPTA(Hawaii Piano Teachers Association) in 2010. She served as a judge for Morning Music Scholarship Competition in 2017.



Student Accomplishments







Mai Kawahara

violin/theory/ensemble

Mai K. Gochenouer started violin at the age of 4. After graduating from Mikunigaoka high school in Osaka, Japan, Mai transferred to Hawaii to study music abroad. Mai enrolled in the music program at the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 2008 and studied under Ignace Jang, concert master of the Hawaii Symphony. During her time at UH Manoa, Mai performed in many different ensembles such as piano trios, string quartets, chamber ensembles and became the concert mistress of the University of Hawaii Symphony. After graduating from UH Manoa with a B.M. in Violin Performance, Mai went on to found the string orchestra group “Ensemble Soundpost” in Nara, Japan, which was featured in numerous music festivals and events throughout Japan. Currently, Mai is a music instructor at Virtuoso Violin Hawaii and continues to perform violin on Oahu and Japan.







Tomoko Colaianni

violin/theory

From the age of 5, Tomoko Colaianni studied under the renowned violinist Eito Tanaka, who was a professor at Tokyo Art University in Japan. At the age of 8, she became a scholarship student of the Nara  String  Academy, led by Ms.Yoshiko Koyama. She performed at various events and concerts organized by JASTA (Japan String Teachers Association). While studying under Ms.Yoshiko Koyama, she also received guidance from Jun Ishii, who was the Western Japan Director of the Japan Music Association. After her musical journey through Japan, Italy, the United States (New York), and South Korea, she now resides in Hawaii.
She obtained her yoga instructor certification and, in addition to her musical pursuits, she works as a posture correction advisor to promote the health of musicians. She is also affiliated with the Japanese modeling agency, Office Toki, under the name Sayuri Okano, and has appeared in various magazines and commercials. For more information, you can visit her profile on the Office Toki website: https://www.office-toki.co.jp/models/173/
Since 2018, she has been serving as an auditor for the Japan Public Interest Incorporated Foundation for the Promotion of International Arts and Music, where her younger brother, Toru Asou, serves as the chairman. For further details, you can visit the foundation's website: https://www.imusic-apf.org/foundation/







Aisha Hindley

piano/theory

Born in Hawaii and raised in Japan, Aisha Hindley received piano education in Japan from the age of five and studied under Rie Fujimoto, a top graduate of the Osaka College of Music. Aisha was awarded the 4th place in the Vocal and Piano Solo competition for high school students' in Hyogo, second place in Student piano competition in Hyogo, and first place in the Yamaha junior piano competition.
At the age of 19, she moved to Honolulu to pursue a Bachelor of Music at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa, specializing in piano performance under Dr. Jonathan Korth. Aisha has expanded her musical career beyond solo performance, branching out into more collaborative musical efforts. As a vocal accompanist, she has performed a wide-ranging repertoire that includes German Kunstlieder, religious music, Broadway musicals and more, ultimately collaborating with a wide variety of composers and instrumentalists throughout her studies.
Recently, her focus has been on preparing a recital that will be held in February 2024. Aisha is currently a piano instructor at Virtuoso Violin Hawaii.



Accomplishments








Ryan Iwanaga

cello/theory/ensemble

In progress...








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