My teaching philosophy is to develop and nurture the innate musical talent in students. Through exploring a variety of genres of piano music, I create a uniquely fun and exciting approach to Classical piano that may often come across as difficult and boring.
Through the annual recitals, instead of simply focusing on perfecting a few songs, students are given the opportunity to show off the skills that they have learned and practiced throughout the past year. In addition, playing in front of others not only helps students learn stage manner, but it also gives the important experience of overcoming any doubts, nervousness, or anxiety that they may face.
The students that have a particular talent in piano studies, through either innate abilities and/or dedication and hard work, I present opportunities of various competitions throughout the state and with other students of similar levels. This becomes a great way to receive objective critique and test the skills that they have practiced.
From my own experience, there is so much more to learning piano than just for the sake of taking music lessons. Because you play piano with almost all of your senses – your hands and fingertips, as you listen through your ears and feel through the body – it helps to build the foundation of emotional and creative development, as well as improving patience as well as raw technique. I found that students that were more impatient became more calm and peaceful, and students that seemed more introversive and depressed became more content and warm through playing music. Classical piano requires a long time of practicing to see real improvements, which may discourage some students. However in this case, instead of focusing on things that the students don’t find interesting, I select pieces that the students like in order to keep them excited about techniques that may have previously seemed boring.
If piano is a hobby, because rigid and difficult pieces and music theory can result in a loss interest, I provide a wide range of songs from different genres as well as teaching basic music theory. In certain cases, I transcribe songs from movies, classic popular songs, and etc in accordance of the students’ levels.
For students that want to pursue a career in piano, or want to play at a more competitive level, I teach appropriate theory and technique that follow each students’ level, as well as selecting various pieces that the students prefer from the list of songs from each level. By challenging the students based on their own individual ability and skill, I help the students naturally pick up important techniques imbued in each piece of music.
Lucia Roh
Certified Classical Piano Teacher
MTAC / SYMF / MTNA Member