Teaching Studio

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In my 25-plus years of teaching, I have yet to meet a student, a person, who doesn’t like music. So many people want to play music. Learning how to play the piano is a fantastic way to play music yourself. Skills and musical knowledge learned on the piano also directly carry over to other instruments. The piano is a primary instrument in jazz, classical, popular, liturgical and many other musical forms.

Playing the piano is something you do yourself. The pianist shapes the music s/he is playing, using your own knowledge and musical instincts and know-how. The learning process develops better coordination. Multi-tasking skills including reading what is on the page in front of you, moving both hands and fingers in different ways, and maintaining a beat at the same time. And you can play with other musicians, family and friends.

I have taught piano continuously in the Twin Cities area since 1999.   Earlier I taught private piano in Germany, and I've taught my other instrument the double bass for several years as well. I  taught through Bloomington Community Education for over 10 years.  Currently, I teach in student home settings, at home in SE Minneapolis on a new Grotrian-Steinweg 6' 2" grand piano, and online using Zoom.    I have approximately 20 students; that number has been considerably higher in past years. I primarily teach in Bloomington, Edina, and in adjacent SW Minneapolis, and currently in St. Paul and on Zoom.    I teach all ages, from five to 80 year olds.   Student recitals are held once a year.   

I emphasize basic skills including note reading, sight reading, and scales.   I’m a big fan of the Faber Piano Adventures series for beginners and early intermediate students.   The Faber collections offer a variety of musical styles and present new concepts and technical challenges in a very coherent, useful fashion.   I also use Wynn-Anne Rossi's well-crafted short pieces which feature rhythmic and note-reading challenges.   Study and practice time is more limited than it was generations ago.   Thereafter it’s important to move on to study some of the most significant piano selections in the repertoire, including works by J.S. Bach, Beethoven, Debussy, Scott Joplin, Gershwin and others.   The student develops key technical skills, studies disparate musical styles, and begins building a piano repertoire.

It must be stressed that each student, each learner, each musician and pianist, is different.    Some students find note reading to be rather easy.   Others have a more difficult time.  Dyslexia can make note-reading difficult indeed.    Yet Dyslexia needn't stop piano playing.   Some students quickly learn music by ear, almost ignoring the printed page.   This is both good and bad, as the ear doesn't always understand what the music actually is.   The teacher's job is to assist the student in areas where s/he has difficulty.    Patience is most important, on the part of the teacher, a parent, and the student him/herself.   Above all, piano playing can and should be a pleasure.  

The pandemic brought Zoom teaching to the forefront. Overall I found piano teaching on Zoom to be quite successful for many, but not all, students.     Currently, in 2024, I now have or recently have had Zoom students in Florida, Texas, Virginia, New Mexico, and in greater Minnesota.   I have taught remotely from points outside the Twin Cities, and regular in-person students have used Zoom during snowy and icy weather, or when there has been illness that otherwise would result in lesson cancellations.
  

Please don't hesitate to contact me if you are interested in piano study, either for your child, for yourself, and for another adult.  
Mobile: 612-804-9679