Piano with Hillary S.

Hello! I am a professional musician and a candidate of the Doctoral of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Michigan. I have taught piano for over 10 years, with experience ranging from instructing college music courses to working privately with students of different ages, levels, learning disabilities, and backgrounds. I provide students with practice strategies and problem-solving skills during the lesson, so they can experience progress and enjoyment from mastering challenges. I want students to leave the lesson thinking: "I can do it!" I am always communicating and setting individual goals and expectations. I promote proper technique to support healthy practice and greater expressive ability. All the while, I strive to develop a student's critical listening skills and self-awareness. I aim to introduce students to a variety of the best piano literature so they can discover the excitement, beauty and enjoyment of playing music. My ultimate goal is to peak my students' curiosities and their desires to learn with each new piece we study. In short, I want my students to fall in love with the learning process, through music. Lessons take place either remotely via Zoom or Google Meet. I also teach music theory. I currently teach full-time with a studio of adult beginners, intermediates, young beginners, and pre-college students. Let's discuss what would be the best lesson length option for you/your child. I offer student recitals for all ages every month, and examinations with ABRSM and RCM. I have prepared my students for CM, RCM, ABRSM exams, high school auditions, pre-college programs, and college auditions (to major in music). Tell me what your interests are, and together we will craft a progression that will take you to your goals. If you are a beginner and/or don't know how to read sheet music, I can definitely help you! If you already know how to play piano and would like to develop yourself further, I can definitely help you as well.. Ready to learn how to play the piano? Contact me and let’s start! Please feel free to send me a message with any questions you might have. I am genuinely passionate about teaching music and sincerely care about each of my students and their well-being in addition to their musical progress. And if you are a part of my studio, you will find that I am very responsive and willing to help however I can. I look forward to helping you achieve your goals. Thank you for reading. Happy music making!