About
I teach in multiple platforms in music, not just piano lessons. I also focus on composition and theory matters, and even musicianship as well.
The room I have has a piano and four chairs, so I can rent a half-hour or an hour in blocks depending on the days the student or students want to come for lessons.
In the past, I was able to adjust to the level of the student in my teaching style quite quickly. For example, I was able to deal with a few beginning level piano students with much easier repertory or material.
Reviews
Kenness J.
Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
I often use an applied teaching method directly at the piano to spot mistakes, errors, and faults and figure out mainly through verbal cues ways to correct them.
The other processes in teaching style for music theory, composition, and ear training is the process of "I play" and "you answer" where I do something on the piano and the student answers, or I give out short-term assignments that can be done in-lesson, such as multiple choice.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I earned a Bachelor of Music in Piano degree at Roosevelt University in 1994 (cum laude), and then got the Master of Piano in 1995 and the Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance in 2002 and Literature (both graduate degrees) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
I also got the Inside Minor in Music Theory at the U. of Illinois in 2000 during my doctorate program and also published one doctoral dissertation during my study, focusing on some of the operatic transcriptions of Franz Liszt.
I also published some music-related blogs on Blogger on the Google platform and I had expertise on the Finale music notation software program for over 20 years.
I also had done Youtube online instructional tutorials related to piano around 2013 onward.
I also have mainly classical piano experience for nearly 30 years, and compositional experience for over 25 years, composing both original and borrowed compositions, and most of them for the piano medium. Additionally, some of my compositions include piano pedagogy pieces for intermediate-level pianists, and concert studies for advanced-level pianists.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
The pricing for lessons is this;
One half-hour is going to be $25-30 depending on student level, and one whole hour is $35-40 also depending on student level.
How did you get started teaching?
Well, I started piano teaching in the mid-1990s when one of my professors, Kenneth Drake, offered me a teaching assistantship. I graciously declined because at that point, I wanted to concentrate very seriously on my piano major in graduate school. But I did started to do piano instruction at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as an independent tutor for 2 students, two adults, and one child, all of them African-Americans. For one additional student, I also did about 15 weeks of tutoring at the same place in musicianship.
What types of students have you worked with?
A mixture of adults and children, but mainly adults.
What advice would you give a student looking to hire a teacher in your area of expertise?
The best teachers often will charge more in proportion to the credentials one has. The more credentials the teacher has (such as terminal college/university degrees, teaching experience, professional memberships/clubs, state certifications if needed, etc.), the more you will expect to pay for that teacher or instructor. Expect to also pay a bit more if the teacher has concert experience or has a professorship in a college. The least expensive teachers will often perform in an ensemble or band and would be independent teachers usually teaching at home or at a non-school facility.
What questions should students think through before talking to teachers about their needs?
1. First of all, be very aware about your overall ability and/or grade level in your subject or skill, or familiarity of the subject or skill.
2. Get a sample of what you know so far and give the sample to the teacher so that teacher can enhance your lesson plan or future lesson plans.