Biography

A versatile pianist and dedicated teacher, Dr. Robert Carney consistently finds unique and creative ways for approaching the concert stage and the piano studio. His concert programs frequently feature hidden gems in the piano literature including works by American composers such as Corigliano, Menotti, Rzewski, and Liebermann. An active soloist and chamber musician, Carney's recent and upcoming engagements including concerto performances in Kansas City and Topeka and solo recitals in Europe and the US states of Indiana, Illinois, Nebraska, Tennessee, and Missouri. His students have been prizewinners in state, regional, and international competitions and have appeared with orchestra and performed at prestigious venues such Merkin Hall in New York. In great demand as a clinician and adjudicator, he has presented sessions on topics ranging from teaching technique and expression to using Web-based tools in the piano studio. His current research focuses on using Web-based communities for facilitating independent learning, and he will be sharing this research in Europe, Canada, and the US this coming year.

Carney is currently Associate Professor of Music at Southwest Baptist University where he teaches applied and class piano, piano pedagogy, piano literature, aural skills, and music appreciation. He spent last summer teaching at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in Michigan and at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign where he will return again this summer

Carney has degrees from the University of North Texas (DMA) and Louisiana State University (MM) and has studied at the prestigious Aspen Music Festival in Colorado. While in the Dallas area, he built a large private studio and served as Coordinator of Instruction at the Master's Touch School of Music and on the faculty of North Central Texas College. Active in many professional organizations, he is currently President-Elect of the Missouri Music Teachers Association.