Ellen Price Elder

Ellen Price Elder is a Professor of Piano at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM). Her roles include teaching applied piano to graduate and undergraduate majors, coordinating the class piano program, and instructing piano pedagogy courses. Dr. Elder founded the Southern Miss Piano Institute, which provides private piano lessons to pre-college students and adults in the community. She is an accomplished performer, having appeared as a soloist and collaborator across the U.S., South America, and Europe, and frequently serves as a masterclass clinician and competition adjudicator.

• Degrees: DMA and MM in Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor; BM from the University of Southern Mississippi.

Her expertise spans Piano Performance, Pedagogy, and Collaborative Piano, and she has mentored students who consistently win awards and honors. Dr. Elder is actively involved in professional organizations such as the Music Teachers National Association, College Music Society, and American Liszt Society.

• Steinway & Sons Top Teacher Award: 2017, 2021, 2023, 2024

She previously served as President of the Mississippi Music Teachers Association and Hattiesburg Music Teachers League.