Music to me is an art of expression and therapy. I want to help students reach their full potential and achieve their music goals while developing a lifelong appreciation for music. The importance of music study is also rooted in scientific evidence. My students are encouraged to learn via fun and challenging methods of my teaching.
Why study music? Neuroscientists have demonstrated that brain development is a benefit of music education. Music helps build the child’s mind: improvement in speech and reading, academic success, IQ, working memory, and creativity.
I teach piano because my students inspire me and this leads me to continuously educate myself. Teaching is an opportunity for me to share my skills and pass on knowledge that I gain in an art that I love.
I teach ages 5+, including teens and adults. A personalized, Faber & Faber Method primarily informs my teaching. Some of the specific skills that I want to build in my students is making music to express themselves and to play using imagination. Physical/technical skills, along with music literacy and musicianship are just as important as artistry skills. These are all skills that will help my student become a well-rounded musician. To ensure my students receive comprehensive well-rounded musical instruction, I would create long term and short term goals and plans for incorporating these four essential aspects of music instruction.
I teach one-on-one private lessons to enable personalized lessons. I teach at the pace of each student, pushing them appropriately. When a student needs a refresher on note names or keyboard geography, we play a game to review. When a student is progressing quickly, we learn more pieces without the limitation and rigidity of sticking to the lesson plan or the ‘average’ pace. Students begin to learn scales within their first few lessons. We discuss posture, form, composers, articulation, and phrasing.
I would balance instilling a sense of discipline and structure with nurturing creativity and personal expression by helping my students determine their strengths and weaknesses, creating goals and a plan to practice daily diligence, create specific daily habits, and backup plans. Improvisation is encouraged.
The primary method books I use is Piano Adventures. Their supplementary books are available in multiple genres at each level and is used in my studio to provide students with more reading material as this improves sight reading. I may also use RCM Celebration Series, John Thompson’s, Bastien New Traditions, Wunderkeys, or Alfred. I also use The Easier Scales Book. Games are used for my students to learn theory, worksheets to learn composing, and assignment sheets for memorizing. I encourage my students to participate in music workshops, duet playing, theory lessons, and recitals.
I want my students to remember their lessons as fun, challenging, inspirational, educational. I’m primarily interested in providing my students with a solid foundation in the standard classical piano repertoire and the skills to be proficient pianists with functional skills who will be able to play for their own pleasure in the future.