Hazel Ghazarian Skaggs

Hazel Ann Ghazarian Skaggs (August 26, 1920 - March 4, 2005) [1] was an American author, composer,[2] and music educator who specialized in piano pedagogy.[3]

Skaggs was born in Boston[4] to Seeran Bardezbanian and Hagop Ghazarian. She married Paul Skaggs.[5]

Skaggs earned a pedagogy diploma from the New England Conservatory of Music; a B.A. and M.A. in psychology from Fairleigh Dickinson University; and an artist diploma from the American College of Musicians. She also studied at the Universities of Colorado, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Her teachers included Dr. Clarence Adler, Howard Goding, Ernst Levy, and Gladys Ondricek.[6]

During her years at New England Conservatory, Skaggs wrote short stories for the Boston Post.[7] She contributed to The Art of Teaching Piano (edited by Denes Agay),[8] and wrote many articles for music journals (see below).

Skaggs was a deacon in the Armenian Presbyterian Church and enjoyed folk dancing as a hobby.[1] She belonged to and held office in several professional organizations:

  • National Guild of Piano Teachers (national chair 1964-1992)[6]
  • Piano Teachers Congress of New York City (president 1975-1979)[9]
  • Professional Music Teachers Guild of New Jersey (Board of Directors 1987).[1]

The Professional Music Teachers Guild of New Jersey established the Hazel Ghazarian Skaggs Memorial Piano Competition which continues today.[10] The Piano Teachers Congress presents Hazel Ghazarian Skaggs Awards to outstanding students.[11] 

Skaggs’ music and writing were published by the Boston Music Company, Carl Fischer Music, Century Music Publishing Company, Schroeder & Gunther Inc., Summy Birchard, and the Willis Music Company.[12][13][14] She composed some songs for soprano.[6] Her articles and compositions for piano included:

Articles
  • “A Hypothesis and a Look Inward” (Piano Quarterly)[15]
  • “A Plea for the Transfer Pupil” (Music Journal)[16]
  • “Group Piano Teaching” (Journal of the American Liszt Society)[18]
  • “How Can We Save the Beginner?” (Music Journal)[16]
  • “Is the Make Up Lesson Necessary?” (Music Journal Anthology)[19]
  • “Teachers Are Not Born” (Music Journal)[16]
  • “What About Student Recitals?” (Music Journal)[16]

Piano
  • Flight to the Moon[13]
  • Impressions of Snow[20]
  • Little Blue Lady[13]
  • Little Girl from Mars[12]
  • Petite Ballerina[20]
  • Polka Dot Clown[20]
  • Prelude and Fugue[6]
  • Sonata[6]
  • Thumbs Under (exercise book)[6]

References
  1. "Hazel Skaggs Obituary (2005) The Record/Herald News". Legacy.com. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
  2. Hixon, Donald L. (1993). Women in music : an encyclopedic biobibliography. Don A. Hennessee (2nd ed.). Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-2769-7. OCLC 28889156.
  3. Stern's Performing Arts Directory. DM, Incorporated. 1999. ISBN 978-0-930036-30-0.
  4. Stern, Susan (1978). Women composers : a handbook. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-1138-3. OCLC 3844725.
  5. Skaggs, Hazel Ghazarian. "ancestry.com". Ancestry.com. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
  6. Cohen, Aaron I. (1987). International Encyclopedia of Women Composers. Books & Music (USA). ISBN 978-0-9617485-2-4.
  7. Ararat. Armenian General Benevolent Union of America. 1961.
  8. Agay, Denes; Skaggs, Hazel Ghazarian (2004). The Art of Teaching Piano: The Classic Guide and Reference Book for All Piano Teachers. Yorktown Music Press. ISBN 978-0-8256-8111-0.
  9. The Music Journal. Hampton International Communications. 1978.
  10. Skaggs, Hazel Ghazarian. "Professional Music Teacher's Guild of New Jersey" (PDF). www.pmtgnj.com. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
  11. "Honors Program Winners 2020". pianoteacherscongress.org. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
  12. Office, Library of Congress Copyright (1968). Catalog of Copyright Entries: Third series.
  13. Who's who in American Music: Classical. R.R. Bowker Company. 1985. ISBN 978-0-8352-2074-3.
  14. League, Music Education (1963). Comprehensive Guide for Piano Teachers and Piano Auditions Syllabus. Music Education League.
  15. The Piano Quarterly. Piano Quarterly, Incorporated. 1967.
  16. Music Journal Annual. Music Journal, Incorporated. 1957.
  17. Dennis, Pamela Richardson (2011-01-01). An Index to Articles Published in The Etude Magazine, 1883-1957, Par t 1. A-R Editions, Inc. ISBN 978-0-89579-711-7.
  18. Society, American Liszt (1983). Journal of the American Liszt Society. American Liszt Society.
  19. Music Journal Annual Anthology. Music Journal, Incorporated. 1959.
  20. Claghorn, Charles Eugene (1996). Women composers and songwriters : a concise biographical dictionary. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-585-03162-2. OCLC 42329817.
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