MEET OUR TUTORS

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Ancuta Nite is a Romanian-British pianist and educator, born in Piatra Neamț, North East Romania. She has been based in Scotland since 2000, following the award of a Silvestri Scholarship which enabled her to continue her studies at Erskine Stewart’s Melville Schools in Edinburgh.

Ancuta later returned to Scotland to study at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, where she was awarded both a Stevenson Scholarship and an ABRSM International Scholarship. Ancuta also received very generous sponsorship for the duration of her studies, made possible by the kindness of many donors and the invaluable assistance of Helen Mitchell, the Director of Music at Mary Erskine School.

Under the guidance of distinguished pianists Fali Pavri and Aaron Shorr, she graduated in 2009 with First Class Honours in Piano Performance, followed by a Postgraduate Diploma and Master’s Degree. During her time at the Conservatoire, she won numerous prizes including the Mozart Concerto Competition, performing K271 “Jeunehomme,” and gave a memorable performance of Saint-Saëns’ Second Piano Concerto with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra as part of her final exam.

Her performance career has taken her across Europe and the UK, with appearances in prestigious venues such as Edinburgh’s Usher Hall, London’s Purcell Room at the Southbank Centre, and the New Auditorium at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. She has participated in masterclasses with renowned pianists including John Lill, Steven Osborne, Katia Veekmans, Roy Howat, Hyoong Jung Chang, Alexander Korsantia, and Pascal Rogé. 

Recent concerto engagements include Shostakovich’s Second Piano Concerto with Glasgow Sinfonia, Beethoven’s Third with the New Edinburgh Orchestra, and Addinsell’s Warsaw Concerto with Helensburgh Orchestral Society, alongside solo recitals in Italy and Germany.

In 2021, Ancuta released her debut solo CD Post tenebras lux (“Light after darkness”), featuring works by Chopin and Liszt.

She is a sought-after adjudicator, having judged piano competitions in Germany (Einbecker Klavierfrühling), Sweden (Twelfth Stockholm International Music Competition), China (Yi Yue Classic Piano Competition), Greece (Colibri International Piano Competition) and various UK festivals. She recently completed a year-long educational project in China, delivering 30 lessons for beginner pianists.

A passionate educator, Ancuta is the founder of the Nite Piano School in Glasgow’s City Centre and West End (www.nitepianoschool.co.uk). She teaches at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and serves as Piano Coordinator at the University of St Andrews.

Together with her husband, Quintin Doyle, Ancuta has been an ambassador for Hospices of Hope since 2008, supporting palliative care in South Eastern Europe. Their fundraising efforts—including chamber music concerts, private recitals, and performances at venues such as London’s Globe Theatre—have raised over £33,685 for the charity.

Ancuta is also Artistic Director of the Ardtornish Piano Retreat and Concert Series, held annually at Ardtornish Estate, Lochaline, and of the MoltoPiano International Summer School in St Andrews (www.moltopiano.co.uk).

Richard Michael occupies a unique place in the musical life of his native Scotland, as he has the versatility to improvise on any theme, in any key and in any given style.

He has a virtuosic piano technique enabling him to give recitals on “The History of Jazz Piano”, encompassing every major jazz pianist from Fats Waller to Keith Jarrett, and is a master of stride piano playing. 

Years spent as Head of Music in Beath High School, Cowdenbeath have led to an easy rapport with audiences explaining how music works. A popular broadcaster on Radio Scotland since 2007, he has revealed to thousands of listeners the secrets of the jazz masters in his role as “Jazz Jargonbuster”.

He is Honorary Professor of Jazz Piano at the University of St Andrews, and played a major role in the development of the ABRSM Jazz Piano Syllabus.

Richard, through his pioneering work with Fife Youth Jazz Orchestra, has been influential in the development of many of our finest musicians such as Calum Gourlay, Helena Kay, Fergus McCreadie and Kim Macari. Richard currently runs a ”Virtual” FYJO with members from all over the UK.

He has had a regular feature on BBC Radio Scotland’s “Jazz Nights” for the past 14 years, opening up and explaining how jazz works to thousands of listeners, and is one of the country’s most experienced educators.

He is currently working on a book and DVD for Hal Leonard Inc. entitled “Jazz Piano for Kids”, is teaching improvisation on Nicola Benedetti’s Foundation, and plays the organ in Abbotshall Church, Kirkcaldy. 

 Dorine Sorber is a Dutch pianist, collaborative musician, and piano teacher. 

She started  piano lessons when she was 7 year old, and was admitted in the class of professor Mikhail  Markov for gifted children a few years later. She subsequently studied in Paris with Youli  Galperin at the académie d’art Franco-Russe, and at the Royal Conservatoire of Brussels with  professor Yevgeni Moguilevsky and professor Mikhail Faerman, where she obtained her  Bachelor and Master degree in piano performance, and her Mphil in piano pedagogy.   

Dorine spent 3 summers in Russia in 2002, 2003 and 2005 to study with professor Viktor  Merhzanov at the Summer school in Memory of Sergey Rachmaninov in Tambov.  

Dorine currently works as a lecturer at the junior department of the Royal Conservatoire of  Scotland, as well as a piano teacher at St Leonards school in St Andrews. 

Dorine is passionate  about piano pedagogy, and particularly about how to create a deep, beautiful sound, how to  play with expression, while developing a healthy technique. She is an active pianist and  collaborative musician, and is part of the piano trio ZeNoBo, founded in 2022.  

Hungarian pianist and chamber musician, Alina Horváth has an international career spanning performance and education. She studied piano performance and music theory at the Béla Bartók Conservatory, Budapest before graduating with First Class Honours and a Master’s degree from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, where she studied with Jonathan Plowright, Petras Geniusas and Jane Waterfield. 

She has received a number of prizes recognising both her solo and collaborative work, including the Philip Halstead Prize for Piano, the Governors’ Recital Prize, and the Mary D Adams Prize for Chamber Music at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. She was also the winner of the Music Without Borders International Contemporary Music Competition, Hungary, receiving both the First Prize and the Audience Award.

Alina has appeared as a soloist with the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Symphony and Wind Orchestra. She has performed widely across the UK and Europe at venues including the Edinburgh Usher Hall, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, and Palace of Art (MUPA), Budapest. Her interests extend to historically informed performances as well as contemporary music, and she has premiered and recorded works by Scottish contemporary composers; Alison Bean and Rylan Gleave.

Her work also includes contributions to original research and recording projects, most notably the Oxford University Press edition of The Works of Robert Burns, where she worked with early keyboard instruments. She has also collaborated with international film composers on original soundtracks.

Alina teaches at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland - Junior Conservatoire and works as a Kodály educator and accompanist with the National Youth Choir of Scotland. As a co-founder of international online piano schools, she develops multilingual teaching resources and leads masterclasses focused on technique, stylistic awareness, and imagination. Her dedication to teaching has been recognized through awards for excellence in teaching from the Carmel Arts International Talent Academy and accolades from competitions including the Scottish Young Musicians Competition. 

Rebecca Cheng first studied a Bachelor of Science at Sydney University majoring in Biochemistry and Pharmacology, followed by a Diploma of Education to become a Science teacher.  With the offer of the Sydney Gordon Vicars Scholarship from the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, this enabled her to study a Bachelor of Music Performance under the tutelage of Head of Keyboard Ms Elizabeth Powell, and Piano Accompaniment with Mr David Miller.

In 2012, Rebecca was appointed Head of Keyboard at The Scots College, Sydney Australia. In 2014, she was given a scholarship to study a Masters of Education in Educational Management and Leadership from the University of Sydney and at the University of Cambridge, UK.

 In 2019 and 2023, Rebecca was privileged to be appointed as Tour Leader of The Scots College International Music Tour, travelling to the UK and Scotland. This has now opened up a wonderful collaboration between St Andrews University and The Scots College.

Rebecca has a strong passion for caring for people’s mental health. She is currently finishing her Masters of Counselling, and hopes to add this dimension to her teaching role in fostering a well-rounded and holistic journey for each student. She is a member of the NSW Accompanists’ Guild and has just completed the Dalcroze Eurhythmics Intermediate Award.

Rebecca currently lives in Sydney, Australia. 

Italian pianist Andrea Vigna-Taglianti has performed as a concert soloist and chamber musician in major venues across Italy, the United States (American Liszt Society – gala concerts in Boston and New York for the opening of the new Boston chapter), the United Arab Emirates (as “special guest” at Paris Sorbonne University Abu Dhabi), Croatia (Epidaurus Festival in Dubrovnik), Germany (Palais Wittgenstein in Düsseldorf), the United Kingdom (London Liszt Society and Netherby Hall), the Holy Land (Brigham Young University in Jerusalem, Al Quds University, Prince Turki Theatre at An-Najah University in Nablus, Edward Said National Conservatory of Music Concert Hall in Ramallah, and Bethlehem’s Church of the Nativity for the closing concert of the Italian Presidency of the Council of the European Union), Sudan (National Museum of Khartoum, for the EU and the Italian Embassy), and Bahrain (Manama, for the Italian Embassy during the Week of the Italian Language in the World).

Some of his performances have been broadcast on radio and television in Italy (RAI Radio Tre), Switzerland (Radio della Svizzera Italiana), and Croatia.

Mr. Vigna-Taglianti has been a prizewinner and finalist in some piano competitions. In 2008 he received the Premio Ghedini, awarded by the composer’s daughter “for the high artistic level achieved by his interpretations.” He has served as a jury member for the Alpi Marittime International Music Competition, the Sartirana Lomellina National Competition in Italy, the Nicolaus de la Flue Piano Competition in Jerusalem, and the New Piano Stars Piano Competition in Glasgow. He was the founder and first artistic director of the Piemonte and Valle d’Aosta Steinway Society.

He graduated in piano performance with highest honors both from the “G.F. Ghedini” National Conservatory  and the “G. Cantelli” National Conservatory of Music. He pursued further studies at the “G. Marziali Academy of Music” in Milan with Maestro Bruno Canino and in London with Leslie Howard.

Currently, Mr. Vigna-Taglianti is a piano professor at the “G.F. Ghedini” National Conservatory of Music in Cuneo and at the “Scuola di Alto Perfezionamento Musicale di Saluzzo” (Italy). He previously taught at the International Music Institute and the British International School in Abu Dhabi, and for four years at The Edward Said National Conservatory of Music in Jerusalem, where he also served for two years as branch academic director.

He is the curator of the Italian edition of the internationally renowned piano method “Piano Adventures” by Nancy and Randall Faber.

Mr. Vigna-Taglianti holds a cum laude diploma in Music Therapy from a four-year course in Assisi, with a specialization in Didactic Music Therapy under Dr. Rolando Benenzon (Buenos Aires). He also holds a diploma in Biomusic and Evolutionary Music Therapy. He obtained his specialization in educational support activities at the University of Turin with the highest marks, with a thesis on metacognitive music–motor training.

Together with pianist Massimiliano Génot, he completed research on the music and life of Giuseppe Antonio Unia, pianist and composer at the Italian royal palace during the second half of the 19th century, published by Turin University Press (Studi Piemontesi). He has recorded for Sheva Collection, Halidon Music (together with flutist Ubaldo Rosso), and Tactus Records (with Massimiliano Génot, world premiere recording of Unia’s piano music).

Amit Anand is an Indian-born, Scotland-based composer whose compositional work spans chamber, orchestral, electroacoustic and film music, often weaving together Indian and European traditions with elements of jazz and folk idioms. Raised in Hassan, South India, he began engaging with music at the age of three and later moved to Scotland in 2015 to study composition at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with Rory Boyle, Dr Colin Broom and Prof. Alistair MacDonald. Since graduating with a BMus (Hons) in Composition in 2019, he has been based in Glasgow, developing a distinctive voice that explores hybridity, memory and cross-cultural connection.

As a composer, Amit has written for a wide range of ensembles and contexts, from intimate solo and chamber works to larger-scale orchestral and electroacoustic pieces. His music has been performed at festivals and venues across the United Kingdom and has attracted attention for its fluid integration of rhythmic and modal ideas from Indian classical and folk traditions within contemporary Western forms. Recent projects include Interwoven, a work for female chamber choir that explores historical and emotional ties between India and Scotland and was premiered in the Scottish Parliament.

Amit maintains an active profile as a performer, primarily as a keyboardist, and has appeared with groups such as the Banine Music Ensemble, Top Note and Raag’n’Tonic. Through these projects he has performed at venues and festivals in India and the UK, collaborating with a wide range of musicians and often working at the intersection of improvisation, arrangement and new composition.

In parallel with his creative practice, Amit is closely involved in music education and training. He holds a part-time teaching position at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, where he has delivered modules including Composition for Media, Introduction to Film Scoring, Film Scoring In-Depth and Musicianship at undergraduate level and also in the Junior Conservatoire. His experience in the conservatoire sector informs his growing catalogue of educational repertoire: his pieces have been published in graded exam books and syllabuses by ABRSM and Trinity College London, and in 2025 he was appointed as an ABRSM examiner for both practical and performance grades.

Alongside his institutional work, Amit runs Pianoshaale, an online piano studio and resource that offers tuition and courses in regional Indian languages, aiming to make Western classical music and composition more accessible to non-English-speaking communities. This commitment to access and inclusion runs through his teaching, composing and curatorial work. 

Whether composing, performing, teaching or engineering, Amit’s work is driven by a consistent search for new perspectives in music and by a desire to create spaces where listeners and performers can encounter sound with curiosity, openness and a sense of shared discovery.