A native of Voronezh, Russia, pianist Alyona Waldo has pursued an accomplished and versatile career in the United States as an active a chamber musician, collaborative pianist, and educator since 2004. In New York City, Alyona served as a staff collaborative pianist for Mannes Prep Division, performed as a regular first-call pianist for the Listen Closely project in uptown Manhattan, and had opportunities to perform with top-tier professionals such as Todd Philips of the Orion String Quartet and acclaimed vocalist Denyce Graves. Now in Madison, Alyona has already built up a large private teaching studio, and works as collaborative pianist for the cello studio of Uri Vardi at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Festival engagements include collaborative artist for La Lingua Della Lirica vocal festival in Novafeltria, Italy and the Bolshoi Ballet Academy Summer Intensive in Middlebury, Connecticut, pianist for the CelloMania series at Highlands-Cashiers Chamber Music Festival, and piano faculty for the International Piano Festival in Portland, Maine.