Profile
EDUCATION
I was born and raised in Los Angeles, California and began piano lesson when I was eleven years of age and continued for about nine years. During this period I received coaching from Dr. Emely Lion, a popular teacher in Hollywood. I attended the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music in 1964 for one semester. As a music major, my formal music education was rather sporadic after 1965 but I gained semester units from LACC and Pierce Community College. Beginning In 1991, I started to work on my Bachelor of Arts degree from Canterbury University and completed it in June of 1995. I also studied with Concert Pianist, Laura Spitzer 1990 – 1991. I was previously a member, in good standing, of the Music Teachers’ Association of California for over twenty years. In June of 2019 I moved to Marietta, Georgia. I am currently a member of the Asheville Area Piano Forum.
EXPERIENCE
I provided piano lessons in Santa Clarita, CA for about 30 years. I believed that I was pretty well liked by my students and families. I was overwhelmed with the outpouring of love, apparition, support and gifts I received upon announcing that I was moving to Georgia. I was overjoyed! It was a pleasant shock that these families reacted this way. In many cases, I became a part of their families. I have a tendency to build relationships. It was truly heart breaking to leave these loyal, dedicated families but moving was a necessity for general health reasons. Also, most of my family lives in this area. I believe that my success in teaching piano comes mostly from the wisdom I’ve gained in dealing with many types of people over the years. I’ve taught about 1,000 students through the years. I’ve learned that knowing who you’re dealing with is as important as knowing your subject matter. After about four lessons, I’m usually able to relate to the individual student’s needs. In a few cases, I was very successful in teaching children with learning disabilities, such as autism. My other related experiences included being a music director and pianist for three community churches in Simi Valley and Santa Clarita, California. Most of my teaching was independent but also taught for studios and a school district including Big Valley Music, Keyboard Galleria, Jennings Music & Education and the Hart School District while residing in Santa Clarita.
OBJECTIVE
My experience tells me that most people have some musical talent. My objective is to allow that ability to surface. I understand that some students have a fear and resistance to learning. I try to remedy that problem by using humor, understanding and clarity, as I often explain the same idea five different ways. It’s my job to understand the individual personality, sensitivity and mind set of each student. I also like to make most musical projects interesting and fun. After about six months of lessons, I begin to see the talent unfold in a natural way. As a general rule, my students have two musical projects to work on. I use standard method books through level four. After level four, I lead them to music by master composers. At this point, I’m also receptive to teaching music for school projects, pop music and religious music. I believe that my objective is fulfilled when my students reach their goals.
I get a deep sense of satisfaction when parents smile and say: ”We never imagined that our daughter would play like that!” I’m a smile maker.