About Us
OUR GOAL IS TO LEAD YOU TO BE THE PIANIST YOU DREAM TO BE!
ICS offers unique highly personalized piano instruction and coaching for pianists of a wide variety of levels and backgrounds, from beginners to concert performers. The emphasis on the musicianship and expression in performance as well as healthy technique provides many possibilities for pianists with physical injuries to heal and enjoy the piano. Comprehensive mind and body connection, taught at ICS, leads pianists to be free of the performance anxiety and play their best in performance not only in the practice room.
ICS celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2010. Founded in Colorado Springs, CO, it is now located in the Seattle area, WA.
Dr. Yelena Balabanova, ICS founder, was raised in the Moscow region of Russia, where she began her musical training at the age of four. She received a Bachelor's degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy Summa cum Laude from the Moscow Gnesins’ Music College at the age of 19. She holds a Master's degree in piano performance, pedagogy, chamber music and accompanying Summa cum Laude from the Russian State Academy of Music in Moscow and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder, where she studied with Larry Graham and Robert Spillman. Her teachers in Russia included famous Vladimir Krainev, Arcadiy Sevidov, and Dean of the Gnesins Piano Department Valentina Zvereva.
Dr. Balabanova has taught at the State School of the Arts in the Moscow region of Russia, at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and at the Renaissance Music Academy of Virginia, also frequently performing and judging state and international competitions. She is a sought –after clinician on such issues as injury prevention, artistry, and performance practice. Dr. Balabanova received the National Teacher Recognition Certificate from the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts for the exceptional artistic achievements of her students both in performance and composition. She is named an Outstanding Alumna of the State School of the Arts in Zhukovsky, Russia.
After working as an Artistic Director of API and Colorado MTNA Competition Chairman, Dr Balabanova also founded the Rocky Mountain Piano Soirees, a grass-root movement which has grown to bring together pianists from allover the state of CO.
Currently she is a MTNA Washington Chairman for the Arts Awareness and Advocacy.
Yelena always combines her teaching and educational activities with performing at many venues, such as Benaroya Hall main stage, Steinway Hall in NYC, tenure at the Colorado Music Fest 1999-2004, numerous festivals and concert series.
Yelena can be frequently heard performing for the 5000 people strong congregation of the First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue, WA, where her performances streamed live worldwide over the internet. She is an Artistic Director of the Soli Deo Gloria concert series at FPCB.
Dr. Balabanova has founded International Conservatory Studio, Inc. (ICS) in Colorado Springs in 2000. ICS students were recognized with many state, national, and international awards, and received scholarships to such schools as Peabody Conservatory, BYU, CU-Boulder, Cleveland Institute of Music, Wheaton Conservatory in Chicago, and others.
