Chicago, IL Classical Piano Lessons

Matthew has studied piano for over 20 years and has taught for over 10 years. Covering all styles you can expect a well rounded lesson with focus on theory and technique. Students will learn major and minor scales and keys and be able to identify chord types and shapes while reading music.

Experienced piano teacher of 10 years available for eager students of all experience levels and ages! I structure my lessons so students learn what they want to learn, while also building a strong foundation of music theory, sight reading, technique, and stylistic skills. I specialize in classical and accompaniment, Faber Piano Adventures piano series and a wide array of repertoire books, and also have the following tools available to use during lessons: piano, extensive musical library, iPad with YouTube and numerous other musical apps, quarterly group lessons, bi-annual recitals.

I love teaching and playing piano, and would love to share my passion with you!

For children, I prefer the Piano Adventure Series, and for adults I use Alfred.

Read my profile carefully before you sign up with me. Classical Piano is for dedicated, serious students. Not so serious? Take Piano, if you own one and you will actually practice, or Music Theory if not. Classical Piano is standard technical exercises, with an emphasis on learning how to sight read in rhythm and recognizing concert repertoire. The student may set a goal or aspiration to be kept in mind while creating lesson plans and choosing methods. Introduction to Basic Improvisation is often used as a motivational reward for technical progress. If you can sightread Clementi, or you've played in competition, look for a more advanced teacher.

For the past two years, my focus in my music studies has been primarily in classical piano. A few of the composers whose works I have had the great pleasure of practicing as well as studying in depth have been: Johann Sebastian Bach, Claude Debussy, Edvard Grieg, and Franz Joseph Haydn.

Every teacher has different teaching approach and philosophy. I'd say every teacher that I met tries their best to help their students to learn and develop as a musician and a well-rounded person. I love teaching and sharing with students. I help my students to gain interest in music and art and enjoy playing music. In my lessons, I aim to help my students to become independent in music playing and learning so they can keep playing music for the rest of their lives with or without a teacher.

I've concertized in tux and white tails in front of symphony orchestras and played recitals that required two intermissions, all by myself.

First time playing piano? Resuming after years of not playing the piano? No matter your age or experience, you can always learn and improve.

You are never too old to start learning! I make piano fun without sacrificing basics! We focus on improving both aural and sightreading skills.

A typical lesson usually consist of:
1/3 scales/arpeggios/etudes
1/3 repertoire (1-3 pieces)
1/3 freestyle (aural training, sightreading, learning any piece that the student wants).

Depending on the skill level and interest of the student, this may vary.

I can also help you in preparing for ABRSM/RCM piano exams.

I make sure I am meeting the specific needs of each student, help them reach their individual goals, and most importantly, make lessons fun.

I was trained by a Russian teacher and some American teachers. The student's greatest opportunity, when it pertains to learning an art like piano playing, is the understanding of doing something very simple first. That simple thing is playing a scale which is analogous to drawing a straight line. Picasso said that if an artist can draw a straight line, then he can vary that line and draw anything. Playing scales first can be seen as the first mode of checking his or her personal sound. A skilled teacher can train the student to build sound by doing scales and exercises and playing music.