Featured Artist
Mary Pendleton-Hoffer is a pianist, harpsichordist, celestist and organist, who has lived a thoroughly musical life, performing as a soloist, chamber musician, accompanist and orchestral keyboardist. She has traveled the U.S., western Europe and Mexico in a musical career that began at the age of two, studying with her father. He was an exceptional pianist and pedagogue who had studied with Tobias Matthay and at the Matthay School in London, during his service as a Captain in the US Army in World War II.
Mary made a piano debut at Wigmore Hall in London. In 18 years as orchestral keyboardist with regional orchestras, the Phoenix Symphony (AZ) and the Florida Orchestra, she has performed everything from the standard solo concerti and oratorios, on piano, harpsichord, and fortepiano to jazz piano, Too Hot to Handel, and the music of Frank Zappa. Her discography includes five recordings with those orchestras, and an assortment of chamber music with strings and winds.
Mary discovered chamber music in high school, relishing experiences with the likes of clarinetist David Shifrin and friends. In Arizona, she has been a member of Bach West, Bel Canto Piano Trio, the Bel Canto Players and, in Florida, the Phoenix Ensemble, The Florida Orchestra Chamber Players, and the Myakka River Piano Trio. The latter group recorded music by Haydn, Casadó, Gwenneth Walker and Astor Piazzolla. Festivals include Chamber Music Sedona, the New Hampshire Music Festival, and Park City International Chamber Music Festival. Mary has also performed many recitals of art song with a wonderful variety of voices, but most enjoyed working with her husband, tenor Warren Hoffer, in repertoire focused on his specialty, British song.
Mary holds the Bachelor of Music degree in music literature, and a Master of Music degree with double major of piano and harpsichord from Texas Tech University, where she studied with Thomas Redcay, Jerry Paul Brainard and Fernando Valenti. Her Doctor of Musical Arts degree with majors in both solo performance and collaborative piano, studying with Stephen De Groote, was completed at Arizona State University. Her dissertation, The Orchestral Keyboard, a practical guide for pianists, is the result of her orchestral experience. She studied for two years in London, working with Matthay specialist, Denise Lassimonne, and in master classes at Morley College, London, with Gwenneth Pryor and Martino Tirimo. She earned performance diplomas from both the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal College of Music, London. She has taught at Texas Tech University, Arizona State University, and in the Maricopa AZ Community College District. Mary is a former President of the American Matthay Association for Piano (www.matthay.org), and has been the Editor of its journal, The Matthay News since 2017.
Mary also is an Earth and Planetary Geologist, holding a Master of Science degree from the School of Earth and Space Exploration at ASU. Her thesis explored aeolian features on the surface of Mars, using data from the NASA Sprit Rover.
In her most recent adventure, Mary is discovering the magnificent world of the organ. She has begun a Masters degree, studying with eminent concert organist, Dr. Kimberly Marshall. She is enjoying a fascinating “new” world of repertoire, and meeting wonderful unique instruments in visits to the Historic Organs of Argentina and the Smarano Academy in Italy.