Lessons // Piano Lessons Near Me // Piano Lessons Durham

Sarah Collins Music

5.0 (11)

1 employee

13 years in business

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About this pro

My speciality is helping folks learn the fundamentals of piano while keeping things fun. I've worked with lots of students who've had bad experiences with other music teachers and been able to help them replace that bad experience with a great one. Music is fun! Let's keep it that way. :)

In short, I enjoy everything about the work I do. I love music and I love working one-on-one with a broad spectrum of people. Thanks to my preschool teaching experience, I have lots of skills to keep young students on track while maximizing the fun throught their lessons. I've learned that those skills of keeping things light and fun but focused also works quite well with adults - both beginners and intermediate players. There's nothing more joyful than helping someone learn to play a song they've always wanted to be able to play.

My teaching philosophy is rooted in my extensive experience in both early childhood education and musical performance. I value skills like independence, communication, and problem-solving, and I believe in the importance of honoring and developing a player's individual music and style preferences. The overall intent of my teaching is to guide students toward music as a means of expression and to teach students fundamental learning strategies. And I find that when we keep things fun and expressive and equip people with effective strategies, students have the momentum and skills to learn everything they want to know. ...and of course, the more you learn, the more you love it. :)

Credentials

Durham, NC 27707

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Phone verified

11 Reviews

5.0

Jen Becker

Sarah has been teaching my son piano for several years now and I have nothing but good things to say about her. She engages with her students on a very real and accessible level and respects them for who they are and where they are. Often the music my son learns is student lead and based on his interest in a certain piece of music (or movie or video game). The fun pieces are in addition to a great curriculum of theory, composition, scales, and more. This keeps him engaged and motivated. Sarah's communication with both my son and my family is fantastic. I highly recommend Sarah!

2021-06-04
Ariel Frager

Sarah connects with our son in such a delightful and playful way. She makes learning piano super fun even on Zoom.

2021-05-25
Elizabeth, parent & student

Sarah is a committed, thoughtful and extremely well-organized professional. We have known Sarah for more than five years, first as an instructor at Childswork and later as a private piano instructor. Both positions require a balance of creativity and flexibility with organization, technical knowledge and the ability to manage people, time and information. With more than 30 private students, Sarah always arrived on time, with an individual lesson plan. As a student, I always felt challenged and respected.

2021-05-25
Nancy, parent

Sarah is obviously very multi-talented. Not only was she an amazing teacher for our son, but we were impressed with her ability to create and grow a new professional business into a thriving, highly demanded music studio.

2021-05-25
Lenore, parent

My family and I have benefited from Sarah's services for more than four years. She was our son's kindergarten teacher for two years, during which time I was continually impressed with her insight and her ability to articulate her wisdom to my husband and me. Our child was one of many in her classroom, but somehow she managed to observe him and nurture him as if he were her only student. All of the parents felt this way! Which is why just about every single one of us enrolled our children in her piano classes when she moved on from teaching preschool to teaching piano lessons. From the very beginning, it was a delight to be involved in Sarah's piano school, from the organized and easy access way in which she arranged scheduling and online billing to the in-depth preparedness that she brought to every lesson. Sarah passed on organizational skills to our son so that he could keep track of his accomplishments and always knew what to be practicing. Sarah is a highly capable businessperson and a stellar human being.

2021-05-25
Eamon, parent & student

Ladies and gentlemen you have a good one here. Sarah blew into our house like a summer wind and accomplished beyond compare what we thought would be impossible. She, with her sense of humor, grace and nerves of steel took on our football playing, rough housing, tough guy 9-year-old and taught him to sit down, play piano and love it. I cannot imagine what that job must have been like. Sarah, half a dozen times a day, would walk into a different house, encounter a different disgruntled kid and then charm him or her into being better than they were. And yet as I write this, I notice that I have reduced her success to “charm,” when in fact, Sarah brought to her work a studied knowledge of her craft, a background in early childhood education and a dogged work ethic. On the business end, Sarah had clear boundaries, was well organized, and appeared to have a thriving business (as many of our friends who tried to get into her studio were placed on a wait list that was overflowing). Ladies and Gentleman you have a good one here.

2021-05-25
Marlie, fellow teacher

Sarah has a genuine interest in and respect for people. Her understanding of relationships, her ability to solve problems, her curiosity and her sense of humor are strengths that she brings to the work place. Her ability to think creatively and critically enables her to make individual plans that include challenges for students while building on their strengths and passions. I saw her engage with students in such a way that trust was the basis of the relationship. When trying to find a path, she took time to research areas that would help her students progress. Sarah also has tremendous organizational skills and possesses an ability to put others at ease, which helps establish an open and productive atmosphere.

2021-05-25
Kristin S.

Sarah is AMAZING with kids and brings joy and enthusiasm to every lesson. She is really good at keeping her students engaged and excited about playing the piano. She has an incredible gift for teaching and my kids have learned so much from her!

2021-05-20
Nancy Casey

Sarah is an amazing teacher. She fun and supportive and not at all intimidating. She helped encourage my son’s interest in music and I liked her so much I started taking lessons myself! Sarah strikes the perfect balance between encouraging creativity and learning songs above your level while at the same time reinforcing important techniques that are the building blocks for foundational learning. I HIGHLY recommend lessons from Sarah.

2021-05-17
Tonya Moore

Sarah Collins is a truly talented and experienced vocal and piano teacher. She meets kids where they are at both in experience and temperament. She does this with a refined and adaptable method, progressing kids along with discipline and LOTS of laughter. I couldn’t recommend Sarah Collins more.

2021-05-15
Julia J

My children have been taking lessons with Sarah for many years. Sarah is an excellent music teacher but even more importantly she really makes the effort to know my children and their interests. They look forward to seeing her every week! We were so glad to be able to pivot to online lessons during COVID—it’s been working really well!

2021-05-15