
Ellen S.

Teaching Locations:


Teaching Locations:


Levels taught:
Beginner, Intermediate, AdvancedThat being said, I also emphasize the importance of having a solid foundation that allows for the capability to progress further. With teaching technique to beginners, I focus on fun exercises and activities that are easy for both the students and parents to understand and practice at home. Additionally, I believe that music theory is an essential building block to understanding how to read music effectively, so I begin every lesson with a short music theory lesson on basic harmony exercises that teach intervals, key signatures, reading clefs, and different types of scales.
Please contact me if you're interested!
About Ellen S.
I am a recent graduate of the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, where I received bachelor's degrees in piano performance and philosophy. I have strong passions for philosophy, piano pedagogy, chamber music, and contemporary music. I recently won first place in the Camerata Artists International Virtuoso II Competition, was a gold medal winner in the International Keyboard Odyssiad Competition, and was a finalist in the Jacqueline Avent Concerto Competition at the Sewanee Summer Music Festival, and the University of Michigan Undergraduate Concerto Competition. I attended the Manhattan School of Music Pre-College Division in New York City for 10 years, and the Brearley School for middle and high school.
The primary goal of my teaching is to fully engage my students with piano and music in general in ways that are uniquely meaningful to them. I realize my students come from diverse backgrounds with either some idea of a musical goal, or none at all beyond a general interest in music; my teaching method is catered to every student's individual development. I hope to teach students who not only strive to learn the piano and improve on their skills, but also strive to be artistically and spiritually fulfilled to live better lives.
Reviews
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Ellen is a great piano teacher. She has a great music foundation, in both theory and practice. Her lessons are structured. You learn both theory and beautiful piano pieces. She is extremely friendly, patient and encouraging. She has good taste of music and she is very passionate about what she does. She a great musician in addition to being a great instructor.

Ellen is a skilled and knowledgeable teacher!

Ellen is very thorough in her teaching method, while being super encouraging and patient! She incorporates elements of music theory, technique, and musicality naturally throughout the lesson. On top of that, I also like her ability to customize her teaching approach to help me accomplish my goals!

Ellen is great at teaching both my daughter and myself. Very friendly, personable and understands the piano and classical repertoire at a high level. She’s really helped me with my fundamentals and music theory. My daughter (who is much better than I) mainly studies classical music with her and I love to hear her progress. Ellen is warm and accommodating and I’d recommend her to anyone!
Photos & Videos
3 Photos & VideosEducation
Piano Performance and Philosophy
Sep 2016 - Dec 2020University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
High School Diploma
Sep 2009 - Jun 2016The Brearley School
High School Diploma
Sep 2006 - May 2016Manhattan School of Music Pre-College Division
Languages
English
Fluent / Native Proficiency
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