Westborough, MA Piano Lessons

essary to function within your favorite genre of music. At the same time, I may introduce you to some forms of music less familiar to you. You can then use that experience to bring a fresh approach to your chosen style.

The name of the game is time-keeping and time feel. You will be expected to practice with a metronome, but also with recorded tracks. We will record your playing and listen back. This is one of the best ways to improve your playing.

Double bass and/or double pedal also taught as well as left foot clave, Latin percussion, piano, and music theory.

*** Studio Equipment ***
Two drum sets, full PA, fender rhodes piano, congas, timbales and hand percussion, frame drums, bongos, DVD player, audio recording capabilities. Parents can sit in on lesson.

*** Travel Equipment ***
I can bring a practice pad set to the student's home. Metronome, ipod, some lesson handouts, and occasionally DVD's will also be brought.

*** Specialties ***
All styles and levels: rock, jazz, Latin, percussion as applied to drumset. Reading, time feel, counting and singing

than 30 years, I am currently the Director of Worship for the chapel at Gordon College, a small Christian school north of Boston. I'm often involved in city-wide music events in Boston’s faith-based community and in demand as a featured musician for church services, parties, concerts and other events.

I hold a Masters of Music from New England Conservatory in Jazz Piano and am comfortable and fluent in a number of musical styles. In addition to private lessons and performing, I do music transcription, workshops, and all forms of vocal and instrumental arranging. My passions include morning coffee, finding new guitar chords, creating killer PowerPoint presentations, and trying to figure out how to use my smart phone.

*** Lesson Details ***
My priority as a teacher is to make the learning process fun, life-giving, and productive. I teach with patience and humor, at a challenging but not frustrating pace.

Some quotes from my students:
"I absolutely love learning from Bil! I've watched my playing and the playing of others at church vastly improve as a result of his training."

"[Bil] is filled with a large amount of knowledge, so while sitting under him you not only learn about how to play but you learn about music history and theory. Beyond being a good teacher he is genuine and friendly and cares about others."

"I have really enjoyed working with Bil. His patience and wealth of knowledge has helped me come out of my musical shell and has encouraged me to discover my musical voice."

"Bil makes learning theory fun! His deep understanding of music is complemented by his contagious enthusiasm."

"Bil has taken me to a different level. I went from tab and basic guitar chords, to building jazz chords and a far greater understanding of music theory."

There are at least two ways that might set me apart from other teachers.

Firstly, I have honed and developed "people skills". I am an ordained minister and have held positions where I was formally and informally in a mentoring/pastoring role. I bring that sensitivity to my music lessons, understanding that personal and emotional issues can be triggered by the engagement with the music and skills being worked on.

Secondly, I've had a remarkable broad base of experience. My coursework has exposed me to a wide breadth of ideas and tools; my work life has been long and varied; I have had extensive experience in many different cultural contexts, both musically and otherwise; and I work well with many age groups and skill levels.

Regarding my teaching approach:
For beginners, I have a fairly consistent set of topics and skill sets to cover. Generally, in a few months, piano students (particularly those in middle school through adulthood) should know how to play major, minor and seventh chords, how to read simple chord charts and some very basic accompanying skills. Guitar students should know a dozen open chords and have been introduced to barre chords, and to have learned several styles of finger picking as well as strumming. Bass students should know how to find notes on the board and will have begun to learn how to fill out a song with an expressive but non-obtrusive bass line.

For intermediate students, the pace, direction and focus on lessons depends upon the goals and passions of the student along with the amount of time he or she has to practice. My goals for students at this level and beyond is to learn how to learn. I will use outstanding recorded examples of particular skills or stylistic idioms to help my students understand and master each new concept. I often will check in with my student to make sure that we are on track with what they are hoping for.

For advanced students, we will generally target very specific objectives. I also try to add elements of theory, history, culture, and even life lessons to apply to the topics we address. Because of my background in pastoral ministry, I can serve as a mentor addressing the emotional and relational issues of playing music as well as its technical aspects.

*** Studio Equipment ***
upstairs music room: fender Rhodes piano, keyboards, amps, drum set, seating for parents

*** Travel Equipment ***
if for guitar or bass, that instrument; I expect piano students to have an available keyboard and for other students to have their own instrument(s).

*** Specialties ***
strong in jazz, rock, pop, gospel, sacred, R&B.

First Prize in the 14th International Piano Competition for Young Pianists in Rome, Italy, and was awarded a Special Prize. In year 2006 Ms. S. won the Puigcerda International Piano Competition in Spain. In the same year she recorded the complete works for piano and orchestra by Balakirev with the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra for NAXOS records. In 2008 Ms. S. received the “Outstanding Award”, which granted her a return engagement to give a second solo recital at Carnegie Hall in New York City. In 2010 Anastasia was awarded a Special Prize for the best interpretation of French composition at the International Piano Competition “Parnassos” in Mexico. Her solo recital in 2008 at the Myra Hess Concert Series in Chicago was broadcast live on WFMT Radio, in Internet, and on the TV-Station “Channel 25“; Anastasia was invited to play there again in 2011. Her career continues with numerous appearances as a soloist both in concertos with orchestra, in solo recitals, and in chamber music concerts in Ukraine, Germany, Macedonia, Italy, Switzerland, France, Russia, USA, and Japan. Anastasia’s recent engagements included a performance at the Bolshoi Hall of Moscow Conservatory as well as solo appearances with orchestras in the United States and Germany featuring concerti by Prokofieff, Mozart, Grieg, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich, and Stravinsky. In 2014 her new CD "Music of Russian-Jewish composers for oboe and piano" was released. Currently, Anastasia is working on her two new solo CD's for Centaur Records.

In 2013, Anastasia was granted the Extraordinary Abilities in the Arts permanent US residence, as one of a small percentage of those who have risen to the top in their field of endeavor. Anastasia served as an Adjunct Faculty in Piano and Chamber Music at the Hartt School, and is currently on faculty of the New England Conservatory in Boston.

I offer scholarships for advanced level students upon request.

*** Studio Equipment ***
Yamaha Grand Piano. Piano books and theory material available if needed

*** Travel Equipment ***
Travel myself by car

*** Specialties ***
Traditional piano method. Classical music.

feeds the other, is an ongoing process that requires a deepening awareness for the teaching artist of what their teaching brings to their art and what their art teaches them about learning.”

I am devoted and dedicated to helping find each of my students strengths, weaknesses and style of learning. Once I have identified these traits, I am able to develop lessons and repertoire that helps each students become the most efficient learner and best musician they can be.

I pride myself in creating a fun and safe learning environment in which I establish a firm musical foundation for my students. Lessons include: scales, etudes, articulation, dynamic and sight reading exercises, standard saxophone repertoire, recording and analyzing performances, saxophone/music history lessons, and exploration of the sounds, genres and artists of the saxophone.

Simultaneously, my students cultivate many other skills while learning how to play saxophone. Students enhance their fine motor skills and ability to memorize, students increase their overall self-confidence and become self-sufficient and creative problem solvers. I am passionate about educating and empowering my students and I enjoy connecting with a wide array of musicians of all ages, playing levels and backgrounds.

Feel free to contact me to inquire about lessons, I hope to hear from you soon!

Stephanie

Composition from The Guildhall School of Music) and back to Boston (Master's in Jazz Performance from The New England Conservatory). I play in a number of bands that play improvised music. I also have many composition projects and extensive training in classical piano repertoire. I split my time between the scenes in New York and Boston.

I hope I can be of use to you to teach classical piano, improvisation, music theory, songwriting, composition, or jazz vocabulary!

ng theory is best when students are excited to practice them!

I teach beginner and intermediate piano students. I've been playing piano for 10+ years with a concentration in contemporary keyboard and musical theater. Depending on the needs of the student, we can work on sight reading and classical technique, or learning how to read chord sheets and tabs online in order to play contemporary songs.

As a professional touring and recording artist, I like to work songwriting into all of my lesson plans. For any student particularly interested in songwriting, I can make that a much larger portion of the lessons. Songwriting is a uniquely intimate art. Rather than tell a student how I think they should write songs, I strive to empower the student to be able to make the artistic decisions that they want. By making conscious decisions based on their musical knowledge, the student can grow his or her's own unique songwriting voice.

My personal passion is contemporary songwriting, but my own musical journey included many genres like Classical, Jazz, Blues, Folk, Theater, and more. I would not be the songwriter I am today without all these different experiences, so my goal has always been to foster passion and excitement for the material any student is learning.