Acclaimed pianist and educator Dr. Hannah Roberts will launch the St. Francis Music Society's concert season with a free performance Nov. 13 at St. Francis at the Point Anglican Church.

The concert begins at 6 p.m. and marks the first event of the society's 2025-26 season, offering coastal audiences a chance to hear a rising figure in American classical music. Donations will support future programming and checks should be made out to St. Francis Music Society. The church is located at 17280 Scenic Hwy 98 in Fairhope.

Roberts serves as assistant professor of piano at the University of Alabama, where she teaches piano and piano pedagogy. Before joining UA, she taught group and applied piano at the University of Oklahoma as a graduate teaching assistant and previously instructed at music academies in Alabama and Oklahoma.

Her career blends teaching and performance. Roberts appears regularly as a solo and collaborative artist and has earned top placements across competitive stages. Her honors include first place awards at the MTNA Oklahoma Young Artist Competition, OMTA Collegiate Competition (Graduate Division), University of Oklahoma Concerto Competition, Oklahoma Community Orchestra Young Artist Competition and ENKOR International Music Competition. She was named Division Alternate in the MTNA Young Artist Piano Competition (South Central Division) and has received awards in the MTNA Alabama Young Artist, Alabama Music Teachers Association and American Virtuoso International Music competitions, among others.
Roberts has performed in settings from university halls to international stages, including concerto appearances with the University of Oklahoma Symphony Orchestra and the Oklahoma Community Orchestra and a featured performance at the Schlöss Esterhazy in Eisenstadt, Austria. Recent and upcoming recitals span institutions across the country, among them the University of Missouri, Ball State University, University of Houston, Ohio University, Western Kentucky University, Mississippi State University, University of South Alabama and Bryan College.

She also works extensively with colleagues and guest musicians at UA, served as staff pianist for the 2022 International Horn Competition of America and was formerly staff accompanist for the University of Oklahoma School of Musical Theater.

Active in the field's scholarly and pedagogical circles, Roberts presents workshops and research at national gatherings, including MTNA, NCKP, CMS and GP3 conferences and the Music by Women International Festival. Her writing appears in American Music Teacher, Piano Magazine and the MTNA e-Journal, and she has contributed video projects to the Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy's From the Artist Bench and Inspiring Artistry series.

Roberts also collaborates with the Piano Music She Wrote Project, advancing research and recordings of piano works by women in the International Music Score Library Project. Her academic recognition includes a nomination for the University of Oklahoma Dissertation Prize for research on Scottish-American pianist Helen Hopekirk and the College Music Society David Kushner Paper Award for work on injury prevention strategies for pianists. She earned the 2023 Edward T. Cone Fellowship from the Society for American Music.
Her research interests span American female composers, pianist health and wellness, twentieth- and twenty-first century pedagogical repertoire and rote teaching for beginners.

Roberts holds a Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Oklahoma, studying with Jeongwon Ham, Barbara Fast and Jane Magrath. She earned a Master of Music in Piano Performance from the University of South Alabama under Robert Holm and has performed in masterclasses led by Alan Chow, Angela Cheng, Logan Skelton, Douglas Humpherys, Kenneth Drake, Ralf Heiber, Michael Kannen and Axel Lenarduzzi.

She is a member of MTNA and the College Music Society and serves on the board of the Alabama Music Teachers Association.

St. Francis at the Point Anglican Church has grown its music society in recent years, reflecting Baldwin County's broader investment in classical and choral programming. Organizers expect a strong turnout, noting the region's support for touring artists and emerging talent.

The concert is open to all ages. For more information, call the church at (251) 925-1255.