James Gary, professional pianist & teacher, has served as Music Director for the San Francisco Pacific Musical Society and the Junior Bach Festival of Berkeley as well as the Music Director and Conductor for the Mozart Festival of Alameda. In these capacities he as worked with both professionals and students bringing performance opportunities to thousands of young artists and for established professional musicians.

Over the past thirty years, he has had the happy duty to oversee the distribution of hundreds of thousands of dollars in scholarship funds to deserving students in the San Francisco Bay Area. A James Denver Gary $5000 Young Artist Scholarship is awarded annually.

As Professor of Piano at the Music and Arts Institute of San Francisco, Mr. Gary taught students seeking a degree in applied music and also developed a special program for children ages 4 to 6 for the junior department.

As a private instructor, Mr. Gary has had the privelage to teach many fine students, helping to prepare many of them for numerous competitions around the US, many of them winning thousands of dollars in scholarship monies.

Mr. Gary has been blessed with a number of fine teachers. Long study with Samuel Pendleton, and advocate of the internationally respected Tobias Matthay and a member of the Matthay Society . Extensive study with International Tchaikowsky Piano Competition Laurate Winner Roy Bogas, and special study with Arthur Fiedler, Lili Kraus, and Rosina Lhevinne .

He has appeared on various national radio and television shows presenting special, rarely heard or performed works by Mozart. Both Mr. Gary and his pianist and teacher wife, Rufina, performed in a special performance with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra in a memorial concert to commemorate the untimely death of conductor Calvin Simmons . They are featured in a recently released book " One Minute Super Stars" for their unusual talent of performing on Music Glasses. These talents were also showcased in a television commercial for Earnest and Julio Gallo Wineries.

Mr. and Mrs. Gary are the parents of four sons. The eldest, Brian Gary, is the Music Director at the House of Praise Christian Center HOPCC.org, the keyboard player for Country Music's Linda Davis Chely Wright, Rhett Akins and Christian Artists Carman, FFH, 4Him, Wayne Watson, The Derins and others. Prior to this he played keyboards for Rock & Roller Eddie Money and has performed publicly from age 4.