Musika Quick Stats
25 Years
Since We Started
41,456+
Happy Customers
10,769
Cities with Students
3,123
Teachers in Network
Lesson Special - Up to 20% OFF! Get Started Now with a Risk-Free Trial!
Here are just a few of the many teachers offering Piano lessons in Kailua . Whether you are looking for beginner guitar lessons for your kids, or are an adult wanting to improve your skills, the instructors in our network are ready to help you now!
Instruments: Piano Guitar Bass Guitar Ukulele Music Keyboard Electric Guitar Classical Guitar Acoustic Guitar
I like to make sure that my students are organized. I encourage them to bring a notebook to class to write down what they are supposed to practice. It helps them to stay on task on set goals. I love to see a student who comes in prepared. We usually will start off with some warm up exercise and then get to working on the music. I like to teach musicality so I encourage improvisation, singing, clapping, tapping feet, and other physical body movements to help internalize the beat. Read More
Instruments: Piano Trumpet
I am very patient and supportive of my students. I do my best to encourage when needed, push when appropriate and praise when justified. It is imperative that each student is working towards goals that are right for them and encouraged to reach further and grow. I like to be a positive force in my students lives, someone that they can trust, look up to and know that I do care about them and whats going on in their life. Read More
Instruments: Piano Keyboard
I believe a well-rounded and practical approach to teaching music-- where students learn to not only read music, but also play freely with chords and scales to create their own music, learn by ear, and improvise. My goal is to help students grow so that they can play music in a personal and rewarding way, and develop the skills they need to play the songs that they love. I use both Piano Adventures and Alfred Premier method book series in my lessons. Read More
Instruments: Piano
My teaching experience dates back to my high school days, as I began teaching private lessons since 1981, and I have been consistently teaching students in my home studio. I taught kindergarden and elementary school in Sacred Heart Academy from 2002 - 2004 in a classroom setting. I believed that learning music improves the brain's ability to process timing, pitch and timbre. which helps kids pick up language, too. Brain can make sense of vowels, consonants quickly. Read More
Instruments: Piano
I find that individualizing repertoire is a powerful motivational tool as it encourages students to want to progress in order to meet the challenge of playing their preferred musical genre. To make lessons more fun and engaging for my younger students, i utilize the learning games and features that are programmed on my digital piano, Since my students enjoy them so much, I use it as a reward activity as well. Read More
Instruments: Saxophone
If you have a Music Degree, what is it in (Performance, Education, Musicology, Theory, Composition, etc) and why did you choose that degree?
I have a Bachelor of Music degree from Western Connecticut State University in Jazz Saxophone Performance. Before I attended WCSU, I was in a classically oriented program at a liberal arts college and I found it to be stifling creatively. I greatly respect the classical saxophone tradition, but as a tenor player I found that there was a lack of interesting tenor repertoire that I was able to play.
By pursuing a jazz performance degree, I found that it gave me more than enough time to practice what I was interested in while giving me a lot of time to perform outside of school and make my network bigger.
What musical accomplishments are you most proud of?
There are a few that come to mind. One of the most prominent is the first time I performed a composition that I wrote in front of an audience. The feeling of being able to share my work with people while playing with a great band was indescribable.
Another proud accomplishment of mine was performing with one of my longtime heroes Orrin Evans at a concert while I was a student at WCSU. Orrin is one of my absolute favorite musicians and being able to play with him was truly a blessing.
Finally, winning the Jazz Chamber Group portion of the 2016 James Furman Concerto Competition. I was placed in a great combo with some of my best friends, and being able to win while we were just being ourselves felt great.
Did you have a teacher that inspired you to go into music? How did they inspire you?
I actually have had a few teachers who have inspired me to be a musician full time. The first was one of my saxophone teachers in high school, John Lowery. John taught at a summer camp I attended, and he introduced me to some of the older jazz records that helped me shape my concept of how to play the saxophone.
The second was Mike DiRubbo, who taught me while I was at working Litchfield Jazz Camp in college. At this stage I was feeling very unmotivated about pursuing music as a career and I wasn't practicing as much as I should have been. Mike gave me a tough love speech about how I wasn't doing myself any favors by not trying my hardest, and that all the natural talent I had wouldn't help me if I wasn't willing to work hard. This was the wake-up call I needed to start studying music with everything I had.
When will I start to see results?
This greatly depends on the student and how much they practice on a daily basis. If a student is highly motivated to learn and they practice consistently on a daily basis and they grasp the material, you could see results in as little as 1 or 2 weeks.
For some students, there will be some difficulties with certain topics or with finding the time to practice, so the process will take a bit longer. It's important to be patient and understanding with each student while they try to find their way. It's a marathon, not a sprint.
What advice do you have about practicing effectively?
I find that splitting the allotted time I have to practice into 3 topics helps me tackle the most important elements of the saxophone: sound, technique, and music.
For example, let's say I have 1 hour to practice some things before I leave for work. By following the "rule of 3", I have 20 minutes for sound, 20 minutes for technique, and 20 minutes for music. I'd probably divide it up like this
Sound: 10 minutes of longtones with a tuner, 5 minutes of overtone exercises, and 5 minutes of altissimo practice.
Technique: 5 minutes of working on triad patterns, 10 minutes of scales in 3rds, and 5 minutes on arpeggios.
Music: 10 minutes working on a melody for a tune, 5 minutes on a transcription, and 5 minutes on an etude.
By doing this, I've covered a wide variety of topics in just 1 hour.
25 Years
Since We Started
41,456+
Happy Customers
10,769
Cities with Students
3,123
Teachers in Network
Trusted as the industry leader, for over 21 years the teachers in our network have been providing Piano lessons in Kailua to students of all ages and abilities.
We'll then reach out to the teachers for you.
Schedule the risk-free trial lesson directly with the teacher.
Continue with that teacher or try someone else.




