Biography

Yuko Shiina attended the Tokyo College of Music, receiving a Bachelor of Music degree in piano under the tutelage of Yukiko Sato.  She then moved to Los Angeles in 2001, earning her Master of Music in Piano Performance at California State University Long Beach with Professor Shun-Lin Chou.  After her studies, Shiina embarked on her own teaching career, establishing a piano studio in the East Los Angeles area.  As a member of the Music Teachers Association of California, she guided many students through the annual Certificate of Merit Piano Exams.   In addition to her teaching, Shiina served as the official pianist for the LA Chinese Musicians Ensemble Choir, the Voice of Love Chorus, the LA Philharmonic Chorus, the Multi Phonic Singers, Voice of LA, and the JCUAA choir.  She has also performed frequently with instrumental musicians—as an accompanist, in chamber music, and as concerto soloist with orchestra.  Shiina is a recipient of the Young Artist Award, given by the Los Angeles Classical Performing Art Institute, and the Young Performer Award, granted by the International Composer Society in Los Angeles.  

Shiina then moved to Minnetonka, Minnesota in 2022, where she established the Pine Island Piano Studios along with Anders Martinson.