Music Lessons in Valley Township, PA

Instruments: Guitar Bass Guitar Electric Guitar Classical Guitar Acoustic Guitar

Helping a student develop his or her own musical voice is my ultimate goal, so crafting our lessons in a way that helps achieve this is how I approach teaching. I believe that students learn best in a nurturing environment where they can feel free to experiment and be free from judgment. I help students define a goal and work towards it in a relaxed but confident and consistent manner. Read More

Instruments: Drums Mallet Percussion Orchestral Percussion Conga

I have a library of material that I use to teach instrument fundamentals, solo repertoire, rudimental vocabulary and most important music theory and language. Goals vary from student to student, I am here to help exceed those goals as well as having everyone walk away feeling accomplished and comfortable with their weekly efforts. The big picture is to make sure that the students I teach perform their music well but over time and in good practice become confident and comfort with the language of music. Read More

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Flute Clarinet Recorder

My beginning students learn the fundamentals of their instrument. I want every student to get a well rounded education from me. Woodwinds students study from Essential Elements. Young piano students use the Faber collection and older students use the Bastien series for the Older Beginner. Practical Theory from Sandy Feldstein is used for instrumental students. Spike and Party Cat piano theory books is used for younger piano students. I encourage students to learn solo pieces and memorize scales so they can audition for various festivals. Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Drums Music Keyboard Electric Guitar

For beginner students, I often begin with the foundations of the instrument. For drums, we would be practice the rhythmic subdivisions (quarter, eighth, sixteenth notes) and slowly work them into grooves that they can easily start to pick out of their favorite songs. When the fundamentals have been established, we can learn more advanced grooves, dissect songs together, and learn how to improvise and write our own drum parts. My biggest focus as a teacher is to help the student discover the music that they want to learn and make so that they can develop their own unique voice. Read More

Instruments: Violin

For more advanced students, who have an idea of what they want from their lessons, I will typically play less than with beginner students and focus on listening to the skills and techniques they have already developed. This allows us to have more in depth discussions about the finer details of their playing such as expressivity, technicality and really playing music as opposed to simply playing notes on a page. Read More

Instruments: Piano

I've been teaching piano to students of all ages as my sole profession since 2002.  I usually have between 20 and 25 students at a time.  I have also earned certification through the Music Teachers National Association through a combination of testing and proofs of competency.  I keep up to date professionally  through my memberships in Lancaster Music Teachers Association and the Main Line Music Teachers Association, the National Guild of Piano Teachers and in my role as the Center Coordinator for the Music Development Program.  Most of all though, I've learned from my students, who are always the best teachers.  The part I love best about my job is that I get to cater the curriculum to each student individually.  Each student can have their own "best assignment". Read More