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SharpMinds Music Academy
An Authorized Yamaha Music School - Faculty
The Founder
Patricia Ooi Englehardt, Ph.D.
Patricia Ooi Englehardt, Ph.D., founder and director, has been actively involved in music education for several years, with teaching experiences in the Royal Academy (UK), Trinity College (UK), Yamaha Music Education (Japan), and the American public school systems.
A scholarship student at the Berklee College of Music, Patricia was the resident pianist for the Berklee Wind Ensemble with several performances at the renowned Berklee Performance Center and the Boston Hatch Shell. Patricia received her master and doctoral degrees in music education from the Frost School of Music, University of Miami, Florida.
Born in Penang, Malaysia, Patricia’s role as the Music Director of Yamaha Music Malaysia included the monitoring and raising of music education standards and student population in the Yamaha schools throughout Malaysia.
Dr. Englehardt also directed and coordinated various music education programs, such as:
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Teacher training seminars
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Music workshops
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Music camps, and
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Teachers’ educational symposiums.
In her secondary portfolio as Director of Music Studies at the Yamaha Academy of Arts & Music in Malaysia, she was one of the main initiators and facilitator of joint degree programs between Yamaha Academy and foreign universities in the United Kingdom and Australia. Patricia also directed several musical productions, concerts, festivals, and served as a Yamaha examiner and adjudicator of both local and international music competitions during her tenure.
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Dr. Englehardt was appointed Yamaha Music Education Specialist and Yamaha Grade Examiner by Yamaha Corporation of America, and conducts teacher training seminars and examinations in the US. Currently, she manages and directs the Yamaha Music Education System courses (YMES) at SharpMinds Music Academy.
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With the establishment of SharpMinds Music Academy, and as a passionate educator, Dr. Englehardt hopes to encourage students of all ages to experience the joys of music making. She believes that music nurtures both mind and soul, and music education is a gift of a lifetime.
Our Instructors
Leefei Chen-Jenkins
Dr. Leefei Chen-Jenkins earned her Bachelor’s degree for piano and harp at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She continued her harp graduate studies at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. Leefei completed her Master’s degree in 2003, and in 2008, she graduated with her Doctorate of Musical Arts (DMA) in harp performance from the University of Miami in Florida.
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Leefei was the winner of the Anne Adam National Harp Competition, and Pennsylvania State Harp Society Grandjany Award. She has also performed with the Florida Philharmonic, New World Symphony Orchestra, the Florida Grand Opera, the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, Miami Wind Symphony, and Miami Symphony. Dr. Chen-Jenkins has had performances on such Broadway shows as My Fair Lady, Peter Pan, and South Pacific. She also has performed with Sarah Brightman, Johnny Mathis, Frank Sinatra Jr., Lucie Désirée Arnaz, Styx and more.
Leefei teaches individual piano classes at the Academy, where her students have achieved superior ratings in the Florida Federation music assessments.
Alexander Sancho
Alexander Sancho, born and raised in Miami, is a talented pianist and composer. Alex graduated from FIU with his B.M. (2011) and M.M. (2013) in Piano Performance, under Professor Kemal Gekic and Dr. Jose Lopez.
Alexander Sancho has played with many different orchestras/ensembles across South Florida. Some awards won are 1st Prize in Florida Federation of Music Clubs (Composition), 2nd Prize in the FIU Concerto Competition, 2009 and 2011, the Undergraduate Performance award from the FIU School of Music, 2011, as well as the Teaching Assistant position in Piano.
In 2012, he was awarded the Philippine Consulate of South Florida Leadership Distinction Award for Outstanding Achievement and Performance in Music.
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Currently, Alex teaches composition classes at SharpMinds Music Academy, where students have earned awards from his guidance and expertise.
Though coming from a classical background, Alex takes a musically-eclectic approach in his endeavors, with influences from Hip-Hop to Electronica that help shape his understanding of music. Alex believes that diverse-music education can benefit society. In 2018, he founded ALEX SCORES MUSIC, an original-music service for film, advertising and video production. Alex has been an instructor at SharpMinds Music Academy for several years, having nurtured some outstanding young pianists and composers during his tenure.
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Qinquan Zhang
Qinquan Zhang received his Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Cleveland Institute of Music with a minor in music theory. He received his Masters Degree in Piano Performance from Manhattan School of Music and his Master degree in Music Education from Teachers College, Columbia University in the city of New York. He is currently studying with prestigious Professor Kevin Kenner at University of Miami in Piano Performance and Piano pedagogy majors.
He has received intense professional training in both piano performance and music theory in China since middle school. He is also the recipient of top prizes of piano competitions including, but not limited to Xinghai Cup Piano Competition, ZhongSin International Piano Competition, Lira Piano Competition, Nice International Piano Competition, International Young Pianist Competition.
He performed at Carnegie Hall Weill Recital Hall, Greenfield Hall, Mixon Hall, Kulas Hall, etc. in the United States, China, Japan, Singapore, and Europe. He was invited to perform at Gläserner Saal, Musikverein and the Elgar Room, Royal Albert Hall in 2022. Zhang actively participated in music festivals such as Amalfi Music Festival in Italy, Music Alp International Music Academy in France, Summit Music festival in the United States, Shanghai international Piano Academy, and Beijing International Music Festival Academy in China.
As a music educator, Zhang interned as a music teacher at Beijing Special Education School and Beijing Tuanjiehu District Second Primary School. He worked as the exclusive assistant for the Head of Piano Department of Cleveland Institute of Music, Ms. Kathryn Brown, and the assistant to Mr. Jeffrey Cohen through his undergraduate and graduate study. Zhang worked as the Applied Piano Lesson instructor at Teachers College, Columbia University. He is also currently working in the Music Preporatory Program at the University of Miami.
Marina Radiushina
Marina Radiushina, D.M.A. is the artistic director of the Miami Chamber Music Society and Mainly Mozart Festival. She is a winner of numerous prestigious piano competitions including Horowitz and Rubinstein piano competitions.
Hailed as a “virtuoso whose playing is distinguished by rare depth of interpretation and understanding of style”. Dr. Radiushina made her debut with the Mariinsky Theatre Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Maestro Valery Gergiev in February 2012, appearing at the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory and Theatre Des Champs-Elysee in Paris.
Recent highlights have included performances at the Salzburg and Rotterdam Festivals with Valery Gergiev, Carnegie Hall with Sir Simon Rattle, David Robertson and Pablo Heras-Casado, appearances with Munich and Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestras, a recording project with the Brno Philharmonic, and chamber music performances with the members of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra in Israel and the Carnegie Hall Ensemble at the Suntory Hall in Japan.
Dr. Radiushina is a member of Carnegie Hall’s resident chamber group, Decoda. She was a recipient of a fellowship from The Juilliard School of Music and holds degrees from the Odessa Conservatory (Ukraine), University of Miami and the Cleveland Institute of Music.
Madison Ryan
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Madison Ryan has performed as a soloist and ensemble musician across the United States and Western Europe. She has used her experiences to develop a teaching style that combines the structure of the Suzuki Method with the body-awareness of the Roland Method, giving her students the skills and know-how to help them succeed, while working toward achieving their musical dreams.
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Ms. Ryan is an experienced educator, and performer, in both orchestral and chamber group ensembles. She has obtained her Master of Music in Violin Performance (M.M.), and currently pursuing her Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) degree at the University of Miami Frost School of Music.
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Madison is offering individual violin lessons at Pinecrest Community Center as a member of the faculty at SharpMinds Music Academy.
Arn Xu started playing piano at the age of six. Growing up in Miami, he graduated with his Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami. He received his Master of Music degree from the University of Toronto in Piano Pedagogy and Performance. He has studied under numerous world-renowned teachers, including Cynthia Chun-Kam, Tian Ying, Kevin Kenner, and Enrico Elisi. During his studies in Toronto, he served as a Teaching Assistant for the Graduate Conducting Program under Maestro Uri Mayer.
Arn has been teaching piano for over 10 years, and is also a teacher at the University of Miami Frost School of Music’s prep program. In both Miami and Toronto, Arn has taught in a group-class setting, as well as private lessons to students of all ages and skills.
In addition to being an active pedagogue, Arn has been described as a sensitive pianist in both a solo and collaborative setting, with performances and masterclasses throughout the United States, Canada, and Sicily.
Arn Xu
Jasming Senel
Jasming Senel started piano lessons at the age of 4 at SharpMinds Music Academy. As a member of the Academy’s inaugural class, Jasming has benefitted from the Yamaha Music curriculum throughout her piano career.
Jasming began in JMC 1 and went through the JSAC levels, including taking annual Yamaha grade exams and passing with high marks. This culminated in 2019 when she flew to Los Angeles to take the Yamaha Grade 5 examination. She is in the first class of students that earned the Teacher’s Certificate in both Piano Performance and Fundamentals. She is also a semi-finalist in the Steinway Piano Competition and Actors’ Playhouse Competition.
Jasming has been tutoring piano since 2018. She emphasizes technique, singing, sight-reading, and music theory and often prepares her students for auditions, examinations, and recitals.
In addition, for the last 10 years, she has been a violinist with the Greater Miami Youth Symphony. She currently plays in the Symphony orchestra as a first violinist and principal pianist.
James Woolwine
James Woolwine began playing the piano at the age of 7, and was winning competitions and scholarships by the end of high school. He has earned degrees in Guitar Performance and Music Business from the world-renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts.
Since graduating James has been an active professional musician, performing on guitar and keyboards in several bands and studios; and as a soloist. James is fluent in Classical, Metal, Rock, and Pop styles, while Folk would be his favorite.
James is also a dedicated composer/songwriter, and has released two solo albums, with more releases planned. He won first prize in the 2014 Topanga Fingerstyle Guitar Competition; and performed at the Grand Ole Opry as a finalist in the 2017 Enlightened Piano Radio Awards. http://jameswoolwine.com/
James has taught guitar and piano to students of all ages and ability levels on both sides of the country. He is dedicated to helping every student achieve their musical potential in a positive and supportive atmosphere. He has received accolades from his guitar and piano students, all of whom commend him as a “patient, methodical, attentive, kind, encouraging, and fun” instructor.
Melissa Martinez
Melissa Martinez is a soprano from Miami, Florida. She graduated with her Bachelor of Music in Voice Performance from the University of Miami Frost School of Music in 2020, having studied with Dr. Nobleza Pilar and Robynne Redmon.
Most recently, Melissa graduated with her Master of Music in Voice Performance from the Cleveland Institute of Music having studied with Dr. Mary Schiller.
Melissa has performed roles from several operas including Cendrillon, L'amico Fritz, Otello, and L'enfant et les sortilèges. In the summer of 2019, Melissa competed and won the top prize in the Mirabell Competition as part of the Patti and Allan Herbert Program at Salzburg. As the winner, she was presented in a public concert at the Marble Hall of the Mirabell Palace.
During her time in Cleveland, Melissa worked at the Cleveland School of the Arts as a vocal coach for its students. At SharpMinds Music Academy, Melissa will be teaching vocal classes and directing the SharpMinds Children's Chorus.
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Avery Linderman
Avery Linderman is a passionate guitarist and educator from Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
He received his Bachelor of Music degree in Guitar Performance from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2018. In his senior year he was awarded the Fred and Gail Fearing Award for outstanding contribution to the program and was awarded a scholarship to travel
to New Jersey and study with the famous Jazz Guitarist, Dave Stryker.
Avery has performed several shows throughout North Carolina in a variety of different ensembles, ranging from jazz bands to pop and R&B cover bands. Some of his highlights include performing with the North Carolina Jazz Repertory Orchestra, and opening for the famous rock band, Mother's Finest, at Lincoln theater in Raleigh, NC.
Apart from performing, Avery is an avid educator who loves to share the gift of music. In
North Carolina, he maintained a full studio of private lessons with students from all ages and backgrounds. He also instructed the jazz combos at Panther Creek High School and East Chapel Hill High School, where many students went on to qualify for the all-state jazz band
and received scholarships to study music at colleges.
Avery relocated to Miami, and received his Master's degree in Jazz Performance from the
Frost School of Music in 2023. He performs, teaches, and is involved with studio work in the area. Although Avery has a love for jazz, he is also passionate and experienced with all
genres of music.
He is student-oriented and creates a custom lesson plan that will help students achieve their musical goals while having fun in the process. His favorite thing about teaching is
“to share the joy of music and see his students become more creative and inspired because music is in their lives”.
