For nearly forty years, I have taught classical piano and piano pedagogy in my studio in El Cerrito. I have adjudicated at various contests, including Junior Bach, and taught and lectured at the World Piano Pedagogy Conferences. The thrust of my interest and my work has always been teaching; to pass on my love of playing the piano and give my students the skills necessary to play to the best of their abilities, and to train others in this endeavor. Playing the piano is an activity which enriches the lives of both the student and their family and friends, which grows and changes as the student matures by bringing the creation of live music and the interaction with it into their lives.

My BFA in Piano Performance from UCLA was augmented with five years of private pedagogy training with the late Shirley Effenbach Howard, student of the great Russian pedagogue, Sergei Tarnovsky. My other teachers included Roy Bogas, Joan Benson,  Anatole Kitain, and Bess Karp for harpsichord. Under Shirley Effenbach’s guidance, I studied teaching techniques and the curriculum of the Peabody Conservatory Preparatory Department. Curriculum alone does not make fine teaching. We studied all aspects of piano teaching; be it how to train a beginner to sight read, the development of a beautiful singing tone, proper approaches to prevent injuries and much, much more. I try to inspire each student to play to the best of their ability, to learn the skills and approaches necessary to challenge, but not overwhelm, so the experience brings the sense of satisfaction that comes with well executed artistic expression.