International prize-winning pianist Charisse Baldoria has given concerts in five continents and was a prizewinner at the San Antonio International Piano Competition, among the top pianists of the Sydney International and Hilton Head Island International piano competitions, first prize winner of the Society for Musical Arts competition, two-time winner of the University of Michigan concerto competition, and first prize winner of numerous competitions in the Philippines. In current programs, she negotiates with her Filipino identity, juxtaposing the indigenous with the colonial, and performing music from and inspired by Southeast Asia and Spain, of which the Philippines was a colony for 333 years. Her debut CD, Evocación, features music inspired by flamenco and tango, with pieces by Albéniz, Piazzolla, Falla, Scarlatti, and Buencamino, a Filipino composer. She has given a solo recital at the International Festival of Spanish Keyboard Music (FIMTE) in Almería, Spain, a series of concerts sponsored by Spain’s Ministry of Culture and the Instituto Cervantes. Awarded a grant by the Cuban Research Institute, Dr. Baldoria did research at Florida International University’s Díaz Ayala Collection. Her musical explorations have also taken her to Brazil and Indonesia. She has performed with poetry, video, live drawing, and dance in recent concerts, collaborating with dancer Julie Petry, video artist Ron Lambert, visual artist Lisa Corine von Koch, and performance artist Hunter Fine. She was artistic director of “Lumina” which explored the experience of light and darkness as inspired by Southeast Asian folklore, using video art, lighting effects, and dance, and piano music by Harrison, McPhee, Debussy, and Piazzolla. Charisse studied with Logan Skelton at the University of Michigan, where she received her doctoral and masters degrees. She currently directs the piano program at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. [CharisseBaldoria.com]