Ava Nazar
www.avanazar.com
Pianist Ava Nazar is a co-founder at Prelude Music Program NYC. She is a graduate of the Juilliard school where she received her Master of Music degree, and Manhattan School of Music where she received her Bachelor of Music degree.
In the summer of 2025, Ava released her debut album Nahoft on Parma Recordings, which was featured on PBS and Classical 24. She has been invited to perform at prominent venues such as the United Nations, Merkin Hall at Lincoln Center, National Sawdust, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, as well as at universities including Duke University and Santa Clara University. Her festival appearances include the Aspen Music Festival, the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, and the Stanford Jazz Workshop.
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With over 16 years of teaching experience, Ava focuses on helping students become confident, expressive musicians through healthy technique and creative learning. Many of her students have earned ABRSM distinctions, won competition prizes, and been accepted to prestigious music festivals. She has taught at institutions including the Brooklyn Music School and Nord Anglia International School.
Passionate about expanding access to music, Ava served as an AmeriCorps fellow with ArtistYear, teaching music in a New York public school, and has volunteered as a pianist with Sing for Hope, an organization that brings art to communities in need. She currently serves as assistant director of the Bronx County Chorus, the longest-running chorus in the Bronx.
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Raised in a musical family by her father, a prominent music educator in Iran, Ava is passionate about creating a supportive and engaging environment that fosters a lifelong love of music.
Private & Group Piano
Anousha Kafashian
Anousha Kafashian is a distinguished pianist, educator, software engineer, and co-founder of Prelude Music Program NYC. She earned her Bachelor of Music degree from the University of California, Irvine, and continued her education at Mozarteum University in Salzburg, Austria, where she explored computer music.
Anousha has a second bachelor's degree in computer science at Oregon State University. She developed an interactive sound installation commissioned by the Salzburg Museum of Modern Art during her time at Mozarteum, blending her passion for music with technology.
After graduation, Anousha worked as a software engineer at Apple and then Intel for several years. She also developed and published her first music-related app, iClef, on the Apple App Store. iClef allows users to practice reading music from staff paper using different clefs, while tracking progress and training for sight-reading.
Throughout her career, Anousha has performed on renowned stages such as the Solitär Uni Mozarteum and the Salzburg Museum of Modern Arts in Austria, as well as the Paris Lodron University in Salzburg.
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With over a decade of experience in music education, Anousha is not only an accomplished performer but also a dedicated piano instructor. She is experienced in both private and group instruction, having taught at esteemed institutions such as Musicum in Los Angeles and the Carl Orff Institute in Salzburg.
Private & Group Piano
Nami Nazar is a composer and multi-instrumentalist currently studying Violin Performance at the Juilliard School under Naoko Tanaka. Before joining Juilliard’s college division, he studied at Juilliard Pre-College, where he developed his foundation as a violinist.
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Nami has had numerous performances at prestigious venues such as Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center, the Apollo Theater, and Tehran’s Vahdat Hall. He has served as concertmaster and soloist with the Tehran Music Conservatory’s Orchestra, has won several competitions, including the National Youth Music Festival in Tehran, and has attended the Meadowmount School of Music for two summers.
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In addition to performing, Nami teaches music at Pardis for Children, where he works with students of Iranian heritage, introducing them to Iranian songs and culture. Through music, he helps children learn the Persian language and deepen their connection to their cultural roots.
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As a composer, Nami is dedicated to creating music that bridges innovation and tradition. With a strong passion for film scoring, he is focused on making it the centerpiece of his artistic journey. His recent engagement has been composing music for the play A Study About the Ecologic Arts Is Needed, which has been performed at the Chain Theater Winter Festival in New York.
