Tess Shaw

Biography

Tess Shaw earned a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from Brigham Young University in 2012, where she studied with Robin Hancock, Richard Anderson, Jeff Shumway, Scott Holden, and Irene Peery-Fox. Master classes and additional private instructors include Helen Crane, Timothy Schoessler, Peter Mack, Theresa Bogard, Barbara and Gerhardt Suhrstedt, Paul Pollei, Nelita True, Logan Skelton, William Heiles, and Yefim Bronfman.

Tess maintained a private piano studio for fifteen years before joining the team at Bakersfield College. She played the piano for CSU Bakersfield’s choral and instrumental programs from 2019-2025 and has worked extensively playing Catholic, Methodist, Lutheran, and Jewish services. Notable performances include the Young Artists Competition at Nelson Performing Arts, the 21st Century Piano Commission Competition at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts, the New Music Café at Illinois Wesleyan University, and the College Music Society's West Regional Conference.

She and composer Kyle Shaw have three children and, in addition to musicking, enjoy reading, gardening, and hiking.