Teachers and Speakers

Celebrating the Spectrum is led by MSU Professors of Piano Deborah Moriarty and Derek Polischuk, both veteran performers and recording artists, the Celebrating the Spectrum festival assembles each year an array of knowledgeable individuals to offer a well-rounded experience for participants.

Deborah Moriarty is professor of piano and chair of the piano area at the Michigan State University College of Music, where she is a recipient of the Distinguished Faculty Award. A Massachusetts native, she made her debut with the Boston Symphony Orchestra at age 11. She has served on the piano faculty at the New England Conservatory of Music and the University of Lowell. Moriarty attended the Curtis Institute of Music, the Juilliard School, and the New England Conservatory of Music, where she received her Master of Music degree with honors. Major teachers include: Russell Sherman, Theodore Lettvin, and Beveridge Webster. A medal winner in the “Concours Debussy,” she is an active recitalist and soloist with orchestras throughout the eastern United States. She has also performed in Belgium, Japan, Colombia, Mexico, China, Italy, and the former Soviet Union. Moriarty is a founding member of the Fontana Ensemble of Michigan, and as an advocate of new music, has participated in numerous premiere performances including Milton Babbitt’s “Whirled Series” at Merkin Hall in New York City. She has recordings on the Crystal, CRI, Blue Griffin and Centaur labels.

Derek Polischuk is professor of piano and director of piano pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music. Polischuk received the Doctor of Music Arts Degree from the University of Southern California where he studied with Daniel Pollack. Polischuk has worked extensively with pianists on the Autism Spectrum for many years, and he has published articles on the subject in the MTNA e-Journal and American Music Teacher. At MSU, Polischuk has been the recipient of the Curricular Service-Learning and Civic Engagement Award and the Teacher-Scholar Award. In 2013, “Terra Incognita,” Polischuk’s recording of Impromptus by Franz Schubert and Thomas Osborne, was described in a review as a “thought-provoking mix of sensual pleasure and deep reflection.” In 2024, he released “Many Hands,” a recording of classical works by women composers featuring collaborations with four of his top MSU students.

Randy Napoleon was born in Brooklyn and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and he began his journey in jazz immediately after finishing his studies at the University of Michigan. Jeff Hamilton of the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra invited the young Napoleon to do a series of performances with them at the Hollywood Bowl. From there, Napoleon’s career took off, first touring nationally and internationally for a year with pianist Benny Green, and then full time with the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra. A three-year stint with crooner Michael Buble followed; Napoleon is featured on Buble’s Grammy-nominated CD “Caught in the Act.” Today, Napoleon is one of the most sought-after guitarists, known as a forward-thinking musician with a passion for the jazz guitar tradition. In addition to backing the best, he leads his own bands, joined the MSU College of Music faculty in fall 2014 where is serves as associate professor of jazz guitar and associate director of jazz studies.

Patrick Johnson is assistant professor of music theory at the MSU College of Music. He utilizes his dual expertise as a concert pianist and a music theorist to engage his students artistically and intellectually, striving to enrich students’ aural and expressive understanding of music while helping them to analyze and to think critically about it. He is the recipient of MSU’s Excellence-in-Teaching Citation (2013), awarded to six teaching assistants university-wide and the highest honor for instructors of that rank. As a pianist, Johnson performs regularly throughout the Midwest as a solo, chamber, and orchestral pianist. He received a Bachelor of Musical Arts in piano performance, with high honors, from the University of Michigan and holds a Master of Music degree in music theory and both a Master of Music and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance from Michigan State University.

Christian Gibson is originally from Metro Detroit, but grew up as a “third culture kid,” and spent a significant part of her childhood living in Budapest, Hungary. She is the Embedded Counselor for the College of Music and the College of Arts and Letters and started working for CAPS in Fall 2023. Christian has worked with collegiate students in several roles, including Resident Director, Advocate, Prevention Educator, Instructor, and Counselor. She received her yoga teacher training and RYT-200 HR in Fall 2024 from Yoga Connect Lansing. She loves to walk alongside students as they heal, grow, change, and come into more fullness- both for themselves and in their relationships. She is passionate about collective liberation and thinks the world would be a better place if we all took a few more naps. Outside of work (and depending on the season), you can find Christian outside gardening with her partner or inside, nose in a book, and snuggling with her pup, Maggie.

Lauren Snyder is a certified yoga teacher, health coach, and proud Michigan State University alumna, holding a B.A. in Elementary Education (2014) and an M.A. in Applied Behavior Analysis (2019). She currently serves as a behavior consultant (BCBA) for Clinton County schools and supports educator well-being as a wellness coach with Opportunity Thrive. Lauren is also the founder of The Integrative Behaviorist LLC, where she offers community-centered support that bridges behavior science and holistic wellness. Lauren completed her 200-hour yoga teacher training in 2025 and has maintained a dedicated yoga practice since 2022. She is especially drawn to restorative styles like yin yoga, yoga nidra, and slow burn, and teaches slower-paced, intentional flows rooted in traditional Sun A and Sun B sequences. Her classes are designed to be accessible, supportive, and nourishing—creating space for individuals to reconnect with their bodies, breath, and inner calm

Hae Won Jang is a versatile musician and educator, serving as organ instructor at Michigan State University and the Interlochen Center for the Arts, including its summer camp. She also serves as Organist and Associate Music Director at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in East Lansing. In addition to her church and academic responsibilities, Jang maintains an active interest in collaborative music-making with a wide range of artists and musicians, and was recently featured in the Exploring American Musical Roots project with the MSU Chorale, conducted by Dr. David Rayl and sponsored by the Budds Center for American Music Studies. Jang is also involved in an upcoming recording project. She holds a Master of Music in Sacred Music (Organ) and Harpsichord Performance from the University of Michigan, as well as a Doctor of Musical Arts and Master’s degrees in Piano Performance and Choral Conducting from Michigan State University.

Lauren Julius Harris is a Chicago native and was educated in its public schools. His belief that music matters, the topic of his presentation for this program, grows out of a love for music first nurtured by his parents, his best teachers. Thanks to them, he had the good fortune to begin learning about and enjoying music and other art forms while still a child, starting with piano lessons on his mother’s Baldwin grand. These were precious gifts and enriched his life. In 1965, he joined the faculty in the Department of Psychology at Michigan State University, where he’s been ever since. A member of the program in Cognitive Psychology and Cognitive Neuroscience, Harris teaches courses in developmental psychology, history of psychology, and neuropsychology. His research ranges from laboratory studies of cognition, emotion, and laterality of function, to studies in the history of psychology and neuroscience. Throughout, he’s been fortunate to have outstanding colleagues and students. He has served on the editorial boards of Developmental Psychology, the Journal of the History of the Neurosciences, Developmental Neuropsychology, Laterality, and Brain and Cognition.