PAMELA PYLE

When Pamela Viktoria Pyle joined the fine arts faculty as an assistant professor in collaborative piano, she never imagined her introduction would be so pronounced. A native of New York City, the events of Sept.11 propelled her to organize a benefit for the American Red Cross during her first semester. Through her vision, she brought together faculty and students in an evening of performance at Popejoy Hall on Nov. 3.

"It was a great opportunity for us to offer our individual and collective expressions," she says. "I met more people than I would have in 10 years and I look forward to doing more collaborations of all kinds."

Pyle, the daughter of a pianist, first displayed her musical prowess at 18 months, when she would stand in her crib and sing for two hours at a stretch. At 6, she began studying piano. Her level of playing took a huge leap when the family moved to Reston, VA., when she was 11. Under the tutelage of exceptional teachers, she excelled, and in high school the Virginia Music Teachers Association named her state champion.

She earned a bachelor's degree from the New England Conservatory, where she developed an interest in playing chamber music. After graduation, she followed renowned violinist and teacher Dorothy Delay to the Juilliard School where Pyle worked as a coach and performer. Eventually, she earned her master's degree at Juilliard, then worked for Itzhak Perlman and the Juilliard String Quartet. During this time, she spent her summers with DeLay at the Aspen Music Festival, coaching and playing concerts.

Seeking more responsibility as a performer, teacher and collaborator, Pyle joined the UNM faculty and is looking forward to building a flagship program in collaborative piano. Teaching has been a part of her repertoire since helping instruct her mother's piano students as a youth.

"I love music, talking about it and helping people feel something through their understanding of it,” she says. “I enjoy the process of working with students to find a way to express their emotional regions to the music and then, stimulate them to feel more."

Pyle has recorded two CDs, one with a violist and another with a violinist, and has appeared on a variety of television and radio shows. Now, she can add producer to her long list of accomplishments.

MARY TSIONGAS

For example, she incorporated light-activated sound of the Everglades in an old book, titled Birds of America, for an installation in her Sound Book Series. When the viewer shines a flashlight on the open book, songs of birds erupt from the piece. "By using technological components to reference nature, it reminds us of the connection we've lost to the natural environment and how something that mimics nature has taken its place,” she says.

Prior to moving to Albuquerque, Tsiongas had been teaching at the San Francisco Art Institute since 1995. She earned her master of fine arts degree in film, video and performance at the California College of Arts and Crafts. Previously, she obtained two bachelor's degrees, from Boston College and the Massachusetts College of Art.

Tsiongas left the Bay Area to teach electronic arts at UNM. As the only professor teaching exclusively in this relatively new medium, she will create new curriculum in the Art and Art History Department. She also oversees the department's computer lab. I'd like to make the program more expansive and make more connections locally as well as nationally and internationally," she says.

"I've always been drawn to teaching, especially at the college level," she says. "As an artist, ifs a good way of keeping current with what's happening in the art world, and the exchange of ideas is important.”