Piano Lessons in Hartsdale, NY

Instruments: Piano Guitar Voice Saxophone Flute Clarinet Ukulele Oboe Bassoon English Horn Keyboard

I began teaching oboe and piano lessons when I was in college at Ball State University, about 8 years ago, and have added the other instruments over the course of the last 5 years. I struggled with intense performance anxiety, and found that singing at open mics relieved some of the stress I felt when I played the oboe. I encourage singing everything through before even touching the instrument, and ask all of my students to get comfortable with singing in lessons, because it's going to happen! Read More

Instruments: Piano Trumpet

I have been teaching since childhood. I am available as a tutor in trumpet, beginning piano, music theory, and general music. Musical studies began early started for me on piano at age 6. At age 10, I started trumpet in the school band and after interested in the more traditional classical and church music. My teaching experience dates back to my college days, I have been consistently teaching students for 20 years. Encouraging regular practice on a consistent schedule is one of the key points I like to emphasize for younger students, as it tends to help the student progress and gain a passion for the instrument and enjoy the music and motivate them to practice and continue to learn. Read More

Instruments: Piano Guitar Trumpet Drums Bass Guitar Organ Synthesizer Harmonica Banjo Ukulele Mandolin Recorder Double Bass Mallet Percussion Orchestral Percussion Conga Latin Percussion Keyboard Electric Guitar Djembe Acoustic Guitar

Each year after that, I got a new instrument and taught myself how to play it. I got the John Phillip Sousa award for playing trumpet in my high school orchestras. I love playing music in bands and I am always consistently playing music on a daily basis. I would love to be able to teach others how I taught myself music and I hope that other people can be as good as me and make the world more of a musical place. Read More

Instruments: Piano Saxophone Flute Clarinet

My first love is jazz, and as such I have a strong love of improvisation and aural skills, which I believe are relevant in all forms of music (even Bach improvised!). Once some fundamental skills and theoretical knowledge is ascertained, I like to build on more advanced musical skills like learning songs by ear, being able to identify certain common chord progressions, helpful tips for memorizing pieces, and learning to personalize music through expressive techniques and improvisational application where appropriate. Read More

Instruments: Piano Voice Trumpet Trombone Clarinet Euphonium Tuba

For beginning students, I always start by learning the notes on the staff that corresponds with their specific instrument. Knowledge and confidence of this is crucial to the learning process. Next, I pick a method book to work through to learn the fundamentals. For trombone, I use Rubank's "Elementary Method." It is a great progressive studies that has great explanations, exercises, etudes, duets, mini-solos, scales studies, and more for young students. Read More

Instruments: Piano

The structure of each lesson is always tailored to the student, but typically involves working hands-on with material, charting progress week to week, and refining the way that the student applies his or her focus while practicing passages. I often like to emphasize the use of expressive dynamics, rhythmic coordination between the two hands, and melodic phrasing. Given the open-ended nature of the musical experience, I hope to impart valuable insights into these technical aspects of performance and practice while also providing general guidance in accordance with the student's personal vision. Read More

Instruments: Piano Drums Mallet Percussion Orchestral Percussion

For beginner students on drums I use Ted Reed's Syncopation and Stick Control by George Lawrence Stone. These books provide a great foundation for every drummer and once we put together a great foundation our potential greatly increases. I also assign a great deal of listening for my students from all areas of music. For more advanced students we do use Syncopation and Stick Control as well but there are a number of other great resources such as The New Breed by Gary Chester or Creative Coordination by Keith Copeland. Read More