Upright Bass with Jessica P.

Jessica moved to the Chevy Chase/Bethesda area in 2009, having grown up and gone to school in New York and Ohio. She loves the area, and she and her husband are thrilled to be putting down roots in the community. As a performer, Jessica has traveled around the world, but throughout her career teaching has been one of her most important focuses. "As a relative newcomer to the DC area, growing my private studio has been a great way to get involved in the community. My teaching style is individualized, but I always try to include two important things: building a strong basic skill set, and developing creativity." *** Lesson Details *** Whether your goal is to make it into All-State, give a solo recital, play tunes at family gatherings, or just try something new for the very first time, I will help you succeed and have a good time along the way. In my view, the most interesting thing about performing music is that it is one of the few activities that engages both the left and the right brain at the same time. With that in mind, my teaching places equal importance on developing strong technique, and developing creativity. Students learn all the basics of music, and also spend time developing strong ensemble skills and strong background knowledge of style and repertoire, so that they can enjoy music in all kinds of settings, all their lives. Knowing from experience how "boring" it can be to learn by rote, I combine technical work with fun time playing duets together, improvising, and exploring a wide variety of styles and genres of music. After all, there is no experience so motivating as hearing a new piece that you HAVE to learn to play yourself! *** Studio Equipment *** lessons in either living room or upstairs office; Steinway baby grand piano in living room; *** Travel Equipment *** I expect piano students to have daily access to either a piano or a keyboard with 88 full-sized, weighted keys. Bass or cello students must have their own bass or cello. *** Specialties *** classical, baroque, renaissance