Emily Jenkins is an American pianist who specializes in musical theatre, art song, and opera. She regularly collaborates with professional singers and ensembles around the midwest and south, including recent productions of Godspell, Into the Woods, Disney’s Descendants, and performances with The Link Theatre Company and Opera Memphis. Guest conference performances include the 2019 and 2020 Music by Women Festival, College Music Society regional conferences, a featured performance with Dr. Amanda Wilton at the 2021 American Viola Society Festival, and an Arkansas tour of Franz Schubert’s Die Winterreise with baritone Matthew Carey in 2019-2020. For five weeks in summer 2019, Jenkins was an adjudicator for the International Piano Performance Examination Committee in Taiwan, where she evaluated over 1,500 beginner to advanced pre-collegiate pianists on prepared repertoire, technique, and music history.

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In addition to her active performance schedule, she also owns and operates Jenkins Piano Studio (see the Lessons tab for more information) and is frequently asked to work with local churches as a worship accompanist/soloist. As an educator, Jenkins has taught piano students of all ages and levels for 10+ years, both in her home studio and at community music schools. Her love for piano teaching evolved from her early interest in collaborative music-making and passion for sharing life-long skills that can be enjoyed by anyone. She has presented her research on chamber music and piano pedagogy at various state and regional conferences and has hopes to revamp her bi-weekly podcast, Gaining Proficiency, in Fall of 2021.

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Jenkins is on staff at the Foundation of Arts in Jonesboro, Arkansas, where she is Associate Artistic Programs Director. She holds a Masters of Arts degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music and Dance and a Bachelors of Arts degree from Goshen College (Goshen, IN). While at UMKC, she was awarded a Keyboard Skills Division Graduate Assistantship, where she instructed group piano classes at all undergraduate levels. In her spare time, she loves to cook, listen to true crime podcasts, and take walks with her dog, Lucy.