I hold degrees in theology, church music, human development, strategic communication and business administration with a concentration in accounting. I have served as a private piano and voice teacher for over 13 years, owning and operating a private music studio which I later converted to music school servicing hundreds of students annually. I now teach part-time on the side to a select handful of private students, offering one-on-one piano and vocal lessons.
My Teaching Philosophy
My idea of successful music education centers around an holistic approach, namely that each element of music be explored and integrated into the entire learning experience for each student. This allows for the development of a well-rounded musician. I cater to both the recreational and competitive learner, realizing that playing a Billy Joel song is just as important to some as learning a Bach Fugue. Regardless of one's goals, a thorough and disciplined exploration of rhythm, technique, notation, theory, ear-training and repertoire is essential.
A Helpful Blog
Busy parents face the daunting challenge of finding the right balance of weekly activities to stimulate and expose their children, yet avoiding burnout and exhaustion in both them and their kids. I have witnessed parents with good intentions going into music lessons without having the correct expectations and thus dropping the endeavor out of frustration. Every parent wants their child to succeed; but so often in the hectic schedules of baseball, swim, chess club, computer coding class, math tutoring, soccer, dance, and music, good intentions get overwhelmed by excessive responsibilities. The mere stress of providing for families is tough enough on most. Throw in all the above expected activities that you believe you as a parent should be providing for your child, and you have a recipe for emotional and mental disaster. So how does one have a successful experience with music lessons?
The key is understanding from the start what is required of you, the parent. Music lessons are not like most activities where you can drop your child off, they have their "activity," then they can move on to the next. Successfully mastering an instrument requires years of lifestyle revolving around music exploration so that the child's musical journey occurs everyday outside of the lesson time. So often over the years, I have heard parents call in and say "My son can't make it tonight to music practice." It took me forever to understand why they referred to the lesson times with me as "practice." Until one day it dawned on me that this is how all the other activities in their child's life are considered: just an activity to which they could take their child. After which, they the parent could check it off their list for the week.
Your first step toward guaranteeing your child a successful music journey is to throw out the above-mentioned paradigm and embrace the idea that your child's music learning experience should be a lifestyle, not a moment during the week. Once this framework and expectations are established, you can more efficiently build your child's life around this concept. Otherwise, he or she will simply "piddle" with lessons and you will have wasted both time and money.
Calendar of Events
November 22-224, 2023 - Closed for Thanksgiving December 18, 2023 - Jan 5, 2024 - Closed for Holidays
What To Expect
Lesson length:
Sessions are 30 or 60 minutes long and private. The needs and level of the student determine the length. Typically, a free evaluation is conducted to determine placement.
Lesson format:
All lessons are delivered remotely via Zoom or Skype. The desired platform is determined during our on-call evaluation. Sessions are not group lessons but are one-on-one. Students will need quality camera, adequate screen size (to interact with me during the lesson), and high-speed internet.
Student ages:
While I teach all ages, I strongly recommend that students be old enough to have acquired self-discipline and strong attention spans. Because these sessions are online,
Payment and Missed Lesson Policies
All payments are processed automatically via the online scheduler at the beginning of each month. There are no makeup or refunds for missed lessons when the student fails to provide a 24-hour notice.
