Student Masterclasses
May 21, 2026
Michael Lipnicki Fine Pianos
6033 Centre St. SW Calgary
CLINICIANS: Jani Parsons and Zhenni Li
CLINICIANS
Pianist, chamber musician, and pedagogue Jani studied in Canada with Wendy Guimont, Allen Reiser, and Lorraine Ambrose at the Vancouver Academy of Music before completing her studies at the University of Michigan under Arthur Greene and John Ellis. She holds an ARCT in Piano Performance from the Royal Conservatory of Music.
Jani serves as artist faculty of the IPPA Conero International Piano Festival in Recanati, Italy, and has taught at the Fresh Inc. Summer Festival, Interlochen Summer Arts Camp, and the Piracicaba International Piano Festival in Brazil. Her two-volume book series Technique Through Repertoire (2022), co-authored with Dr. Christopher Madden, was published by Piano Publications Press and presented at major conferences including MTNA and NCKP.
As an active chamber musician, Jani is a founding member and served as executive/artistic director of Latitude 49 for ten years (2013-2023), a mixed chamber ensemble recently in residence at Princeton University. She has collaborated with the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble, members of Bang on a Can All-Stars, Eighth Blackbird, and musicians from the Chicago and Detroit Symphony Orchestras. She has appeared in nine professional recordings on labels including New Amsterdam, Tzadik, and Çedille Records.
Pianist Zhenni Li-Cohen is Associate Professor of Piano at the University of Alberta. She holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from The Juilliard School, an Artist Diploma from the Yale School of Music, and a Doctor of Music degree from McGill University.
Internationally recognized as the winner of the 2017 New York Concert Artists Worldwide Debut Audition, the 2016 Astral Artists National Auditions, and the Grieg International Competition in Norway, her performances have been broadcast on CBC Radio, WFMT Chicago, WQXR New York, Norwegian National Radio (NRK), and other public radio stations across North America.
She is Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Opus 71 Concerts, a multimedia concert series near New York’s Lincoln Center. An active soloist and chamber musician, she has appeared with orchestras including the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra and Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, and has collaborated with members of the Aeolus, Borromeo, Jasper, Hugo Wolf, and New Orford Quartets. She has performed at major chamber music festivals including Music@Menlo, Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute, Kneisel Hall, Fontainebleau Festival, and the Maui Chamber Music Festival.
Questions? Contact Michelle Gao, Workshop Convener