Piano Lessons
Below,
I relate some of my experience and philosophy as a teacher of piano
since 2007. For my credentials, you can take a look at
my music bio or my tutoring bio. You can also visit
my profile on Steinway's website, as I have been a Steinway
Educational Partner since 2009.
As a piano teacher, I have worked with adults and children, with
beginners, and with more experienced players looking for a push or a
new
direction. I have
developed many different teaching
methods based on what each of my students wants to get out of lessons.
The heart of most lessons I teach is learning to play or understand
songs. Usually, I rely
on my students to
select the songs they wish to study, which I then transcribe to
make personal arrangements fitted to their abilities. Of course, I will suggest or
recommend songs at times. I
also supply relevant exercises and music theory to accelerate the
learning process.
In teaching piano, I differentiate between concepts
and skills, while stressing the importance of mastering both. As
important as it is to understand the intervallic relationships in
something like the major scale, this knowledge does little for the
pianist if she or he cannot pick out the notes to the different scales
in real time. In observing that each person demonstrates unique
learning patterns and abilities, I
have learned that some people will
come to understand the conceptual through mastery of memorized tasks
while some will succeed with technical mastery only after achieving
some conceptual
understanding.
As my own musical journey has required me to internalize and master so
many different styles of playing, I am well-equipped to help my
students down whatever musical paths they choose. I also do my best to
make it as fun as possible. Learning new things can be frustrating, but
I try to structure things as gradual as possible.
For Beginners:
I use three different progressive series of books that each have
slightly different focuses: Alfred Complete Adult Piano Course, Faber
and Faber's Piano Adventures (different trajectories for either adults,
kids, and very young), and Bela Bartok's classic Mikrokosmos. I find that once most
students (especially adults) get past the first hurdles to learning
music, we tend to break away from these books (at least in part) to
pursue music that specifically interests them. I use the books because
they provide easily conquerable songs and exercises that gradually
introduce new techniques.
Theory/Improv/Composition:
At the heart of my teaching style is my personal method of introducing
and instructing music theory. I tie the theory back to the songs we
study and spend a lot of time developing and marrying the intellectual
and practical understanding of chords and scales. Even students that
have no interest in improvisation or composition benefit from theory in
that it makes it easier to learn songs.