Elham Fanous

M.M., Manhattan School of Music; B.M., Hunter College, City University of New York

Piano

Faculty since 2021

Mr. Fanous has performed as a soloist at the Kennedy Center and library of Congress in Washington, DC, Carnegie Hall in New York City, and at various venues in Germany, Holland, Italy, and Poland. He has also played for members of the diplomatic corps of Australia, China, Germany, Italy, and Korea, as well as for former Afghan President Hamid Karzai and international dignitaries in Kabul, and at the Afghan Embassy in Washington DC in the Embassy Series “Uniting People Through Music Diplomacy.” Outreach performances in New York include solo recitals for Canadian Women for Afghan Women, Alignist Book Club, Women for Afghan Women, NYU Forum on Law, Culture and Society, Hebrew Home for the Aged in Riverdale, and Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts.

Mr. Fanous has been awarded full scholarships to participate in notable summer festivals including Classical Bridge at Steinway Hall and Merkin Hall, the International Keyboard Institute and Festival at Hunter College, the Chopin to Gorècki piano festival in Poland, and others. Competition prizes include the Golden Key International Piano Competition in Frankfurt and the Hunter College Concerto Competition. He has been profiled on National Public Radio, WQXR Artists to Watch, the BBC, NBC Nightly News, Military Times, AirForce Times, the New York Post, and media outlets in Germany, Italy, Britain, India, Pakistan, Taiwan and China. He has received awards from the Young Musical Scholars Foundation and Anna Sosenko Assist Trust Fund, and is the subject of a German television documentary.

I believe that every student has a unique way of learning and the teacher must adapt to that. It is important to relate to each student so that they feel comfortable learning with that particular teacher and to have some personal connection with them. The psychology of teaching is one of the most important and crucial aspect of teaching that every teacher should understand. Music has changed my life and I believe it can change others’ as well.