Vera Holczer-Waroquet

Vera Holczer-Waroquet, a Hungarian pianist born and raised in Budapest, Hungary, began her formal music education at the age of nine via the Hungarian music education system under Andras Boglarka and later at the Budapest Bartók High School Conservatory under the guidance of Alex Szilasi, where she developed a deep passion for piano performance and teaching. At the age of 19, she continued her studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), under the guidance of Vitaly Margulis, further refining her artistry with her debut performing Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in Royce Hall and in Pasadena as part of a concert series under conductor Donald Neuen. Her pursuit of excellence led her to Cleveland, Ohio, to the Cleveland Institute of Music in 2000.

Upon moving to the Chagrin Valley area, Ms. Holczer-Waroquet established a home-based piano studio that rapidly grew to accommodate 100 students per week. Recognizing the need for music education in the area, she founded the Aurora School of Music on November 8, 2003, which today provides music education to over a thousand students. During the past twenty-three years of operation of ASM, Ms. Holczer-Waroquet has established her students’ performance venues, community outreach connections, WCLV classical radio station’s regular guest interviews and KeyBank Studio live performances, regular guest artist appearances at local schools as a collaborator, and appearances as the soloist for Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the local Kenston Schools band, all before building ASM’s own Concert Hall in 2016 and establishing the ASM Philharmonic Orchestra in 2023, with its biannual concert series featuring ASM faculty and students alike. The joy of featuring faculty as principals and soloists with the ASM Philharmonic, and of performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 as a soloist—a dream role for Ms. Holczer-Waroquet—came to fruition in 2024 under the leadership of distinguished conductor Yun Cao.

Today, Aurora School of Music, after a decade with its own state-of-the-art Concert Hall, is able to foster regular master classes, recitals, and concert series ranging from small ensembles to full symphony orchestras across classical, jazz, and rock/pop genres, as well as its annual full musical theatre production. In addition, ASM provides a statewide Aurora Young Artist Competition series for piano, strings, and percussion, with woodwind and brass competitions being added in 2027, completing the vision for the Aurora Young Artist Certification Program, with theory and ear training classes, technique exams, and juries that have earned respect and recognition throughout the region.

Ms. Holczer-Waroquet is also the author and creator of the Vera Piano Method, a groundbreaking approach to music education developed over more than 25 years. The Vera Method has trained over 75 teachers and had an impact on thousands of students both within and outside the Aurora School of Music. This innovative method is a game changer in music education, designed with a deep understanding of all learning modalities that engage students as young as three and students with diverse learning needs.