Monica is a collaborative pianist based in Bolton and is the Music Director at Pilgrim Congregational Church in Southborough. Monica joined Joy of Music in 2023. She has been teaching piano for over ten years in both private and group lessons. She is experienced in teaching beginners of all ages, informs and includes parents in the learning process, and knows how to tailor her teaching for each student’s individual needs. She and her students work together to choose music that inspires, excites, and challenges them to grow.
Monica joined Opera Columbus and Capital University's Resident Artist Program for the 2020-2021 season as a vocal coach and pianist for their productions of A Tale of Two Cities, La Bohème, and The Marriage of Figaro. In the spring of 2020, she earned a Graduate Performance Diploma in Vocal Accompanying at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, where she was the rehearsal and performance pianist for Leonard Bernstein's MASS conducted by Marin Alsop, Puccini's La Rondine and Il Trittico, and the world premiere of Kirke Mechem's opera Pride and Prejudice. At Peabody, she was also awarded the InterPlay Teaching Artist Grant in collaboration with the University of Maryland Baltimore County, the Clara Ascherfeld Award in Piano Accompanying, and was a finalist with mezzo-soprano Cierra Byrd in the 2019 London Song Festival’s British Art Song Master Class and Competition led by Roderick Williams. She holds a Masters in Collaborative Piano from the Longy School of Music of Bard College and a Bachelors in Piano Performance from West Chester University of Pennsylvania.