Matthew Edwards

A Life in Music

Dr. Matthew Edwards is a musician of many facets.  As a pianist, he has been hailed by critics for his “…considerable talent…honest musicianship and a formidable technique.”  His performances have taken him throughout the United States, appearing as recitalist, guest artist, concerto soloist, and collaborative artist. He has performed in South Korea, and has given masterclasses at several prestigious Korean schools, including Yonsei University, and the Seoul Arts High School. He has also served as a judge and clinician in Thailand and Serbia, and has been asked to give masterclasses and recitals in Southhampton, England after the current health crisis subsides.

His competition winnings include the Grand Prize in the Stravinsky Awards International Competition, and First Prize in the Music Teachers National Association National Collegiate Finals.  He received his Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Maryland, where he studied with Robert McDonald.  

For fourteen years, he served as Professor of Music and Director of Keyboard Studies at Missouri Western State University.  Through his efforts, Missouri Western became an All-Steinway School, and the piano department has been recognized across the state for excellent training, attracting students from around the country, and from Asia.

His piano students have won numerous prizes, in competitions such as the National Association of Christian Schools National Competition, the Delta Symphony Orchestra Competition, and the Missouri MTNA Collegiate and High School Competitions.  His undergraduate students have gone on to complete Master’s and Doctoral degrees at Indiana University, the Eastman School of Music, the Peabody Conservatory of Music, and the University of Texas at Austin.

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As a lecturer, he has been featured at the National Conference of the Music Teachers National Association, the World Piano Pedagogy Conference, and at the World Piano Conference in Novi Sad, Serbia. In 2018, he was asked to be an adjudicator at the 5th Trinity College of London National Youth Piano Competition in Thailand.

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As a conductor and coach, Dr. Edwards has served as the rehearsal pianist/coach for the Peabody Opera, the Annapolis Opera, and as musical director for Opera AACC and the MWSU Opera.   In 2012, he served as guest conductor with the Jefferson City Symphony Orchestra.  As a choral conductor, he has led the Howard Community College Choir in Columbia, MD, and in the Fall of 2021, he took the position of Director of Choirs at Faith Christian Academy in Kansas City, MO.

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As a composer, he has had major works premiered in Chicago, Salt Lake, and Baltimore, and he is a contributing author for the Hal Leonard Student Piano Library.  

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As an editor for the Schirmer Classics Performance Editions, published by G. Schirmer Publications, he has contributed nine books in the series, which are available internationally, with more planned. 

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Dr. Edwards lives in Kansas City, MO with his wife, Kelly.  They have three incredible children, one terrific son-in-law, and a particularly amazing grandson.