NIKKI STOIA, coach/accompanist, piano soloist, conductor and singer. Nikki Stoia is known for her musical versatility, with repertoire that encompasses traditional and contemporary classical and popular music. Ms. Stoia’s concert work has taken her to many U.S. cities, including New York, Washington, San Francisco and Honolulu, and as accompanist for the Smith College Chamber Singers, she appeared in concerts in London, Paris, Berlin, and Stockholm, among others. Ms. Stoia's performance as piano soloist with the Massachusetts Wind Orchestra of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and her duo-piano recital with conductor Raymond Harvey (Kalamazoo Symphony) have been aired by National Public Radio. She has also appeared in performances at various U.S. and Canadian venues as a member of the “Bob Becker Ensemble” and has performed in concerts at International Tuba and Euphonium, International Trumpet Guild and Percussive Arts Society conferences. Ms. Stoia is presently a Senior Lecturer in the University of Massachusetts/Amherst Department of Music and Dance and Co-Director of its Opera Workshop, Music Chief Undergraduate Advisor, and Associate Dean of Advising for the College of Humanities and Fine Arts. She is a four-time Distinguished Teacher Award nominee and a 2006 Outstanding Academic Advisor Award winner at the University. Ms. Stoia is also Music Director and Conductor of the Springfield (MA) Symphony Chorus, having previously served as its accompanist for nineteen years. From Fall 2003 through March 2005, she was the Music Director, conductor, and pianist for all the premieres and subsequent performances of the new opera The Captivation of Eunice Williams. Ms. Stoia holds a Master of Music degree in Vocal Accompanying and Chamber Music from the University of Massachusetts/Amherst, acknowledged as a Phi Kappa Phi graduate and is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Smith College, where she majored in Music and German.