Piano Lessons in William Penn Annex East, PA

Instruments: Piano Flute

I have been playing and teaching professionally for 32 years. I perform approximately 50 gigs per month on piano and flute as a soloist or duo with my husband (who is a teacher and performer on classical guitar, also in the Musika family). I have enjoyed classical music since childhood and would be in awe of anyone with musical ability. I am happy to now be able to play pieces that I thought could only be played by people with exceptional ability. Read More

Instruments: Piano Voice

It is important for both me and my student to have long-term and short-term goals. Long-term goals may have to do with technique--for voice, examples may be releasing tension or singing with proper breath support. Short term goals are more linked to repertoire and can be technical or musical. An example on the piano may be playing through a piece with a particular metronome marking. I have each of my students use a practice log so both the student and I can keep track of short-term goals. Read More

Instruments: Piano Flute Recorder

“Art Exists for the human species. I think that all of the people who love art, those who teach art, and all of you should burn with the obligation to save the world”    -Shinichi Suzuki I believe in encouraging my students and teaching one step at a time, which they can succeed and become confident musicians. I will also encourage them to listen to recordings of famous artists and make listening and practicing a part of their day.  For beginning flutists, I actually will teach them to spit (with aim) one grain of rice before they use their head joint for the first time. Read More

Instruments: Piano Organ Keyboard

I describe my teaching style as casual in that I tend to encourage creativity along with traditional classical music teaching. Also, I avoid repetitive drill and favor teaching derivation such as intervals as the basis of all scales and chords instead of memorizing scales. I integrate chords and chard variations as appropriate with the execution of a song. To emphasize the fun part of the lesson, which is song, the student participates in the song selections as well as the type of music which is taught. Read More

Instruments: Piano Voice Violin Viola Keyboard

Music is deeply personal; one must get to know each student's own personality, interests, and connections to music. Early on (both in the teaching relationship and in each lesson) one must assess where the student is, as to technical and musical growth, and with the music at hand. Then one finds, models, explains and encourages the next steps the student can achieve. Clear guidance and dialogue about what will happen outside the studio (listening, practice, rehearsal, performance) helps turn the weekly cycle of lessons into an upward spiral of progress, achievement, and reward. Read More

Instruments: Piano Organ Keyboard

For beginners who are children, I generally start with the John Thompson course which I still believe to be the best. Alternatively I use the Bastien method which I like because it teaches the students chords and music theory and contains catchy tunes, some of which the students already know. Later, I use the Music for Millions Series Books 1 and 2 which contains many excellent beginner and intermediate pieces that students enjoy playing and which can be challenging at times. Read More

Instruments: Piano

I encourage students to pick the music they want to play.  For those who have no prior music knowledge at all, there are numerous beginning methods that are satisfactory.  I teach harmony and ear training at a level in agreement with ability of the fingers to execute.   It is so nice to learn to play by ear, (starting with very simple tunes) going from the brain to the keyboard without the crutch of the paper score.  Of course this is the objective of preparation (study, practice) anyway, so the emotional feeling that the composer intended can be experienced and interpreted (and communicated to the audience) in a wonderful, magical way.  Read More