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I see music as an inherent part of our human experience.  It is both a language and an art that I am honored to be able to study and to teach....one of my favorite things about teaching is watching someone's eyes light up when they realize they can make music at the piano. 

 

I have been teaching piano lessons in the Conejo Valley, to both children and adults, for over 20 years.  I teach beginning, intermediate, and early advanced students.  I teach the fundamentals of rhythm, music theory, music reading, and piano playing technique.  I often supplement traditional classical repertoire with pop, broadway, jazz, and other styles of music according to the interests of each student.  Student recitals are held twice a year, offering a place for developing pianists to share their playing and learn valuable performance skills. 

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I learned to play the piano as a child from a wonderful teacher, Catherine Bobbs.  Some of the teaching methods I use today I first learned from her.  As an adult, I expanded my love of piano playing (and started to teach) under the guidance of Peter Yazbeck.  As my studies became more serious, I studied with Mark Richman, who helped me become a more advanced, technically skilled pianist, and a better teacher.  I quote him often as I work with my own students.

 

Catherine, Peter, and Mark are master pianists and master teachers, and I am so fortunate to have been able to study with each of them.  In addition to my private study, I studied music with an emphasis in piano performance at Moorpark College for two years.  Before completing my undergraduate work at UC San Diego, where I majored in psychology, I spent a semester abroad in Ghana, devoting quite a bit of my time there to learning traditional West African Music.

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My academic studies over the past two decades have included both music and psychology.  The result has been a rich study of both music and of psychology.  I often find myself combining knowledge from both fields when teaching.  

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Aside from teaching piano, as a musician I have worked as an accompanist for singers and for a children's choir. I've performed at private parties and events.  I even taught preschool music for a short time...so cute!  

 

I am a member of the National Guild of Piano Teachers, which gives my students more opportunities to develop their skills by participating in Piano Guild Auditions.