Kay Girolamo

My story is probably like that of many people who take up the piano. Maybe even yours?

I started playing at age six and took private lessons for about three years. I was no piano superstar. I was spectacularly average. However, the lessons taught me the fundamentals of music and gave me a life-long love of the piano. Growing up, I sang in school choirs and later in community choirs, but my family and my career in accounting kept me busy. There were months—sometimes even years—when I didn’t play the piano at all. But it’s something I’ve always been drawn back to.

Decades passed until I finally decided to get back to taking lessons.

In time, my own teacher began encouraging me to consider teaching. You never realize how much you know—and how much you still have to learn—until you teach. Working with students requires me to look at concepts from all kinds of different angles. They frequently come up with questions I’ve never thought to ask. I meet each student at their own skill level and constantly tailor my approach to how they’ll learn a given concept best. It’s exciting, challenging and not-just-a-little-bit humbling.

Teaching kids is fun; there’s so much energy there! With experience as an adult piano student myself, I also hold a special affinity for teaching adults. I really appreciate the slower, more thoughtful approach most adults have and the agency they take in their learning. I feel like I can be more of a personal tour-guide than an instructor: helping them understand the local language and customs (aka music theory), showing them sights they might not have found on their own (repertoire), and keeping them from unintentionally getting into too much trouble (piano technique).

I’d love to walk with you through your own piano journey!