Piano Lessons

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Paula Maya • Austin, TX • $30-60 per hour

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I have been teaching piano, keyboard, theory, harmony, and improvisation for over 20 years. Lessons include basic voice, as it's very helpful to any musician. I also teach Brazilian music for those interested. I'm a performing/recording artist and record label owner. I can help you with songwriting if that's your passion.

Detailed Information

Education:

* Classical piano lessons with international pianist Luiz Medalha
* Bachelor's degree in music theory
* Brazilian Federal University of Music for classical piano
* Improvisation and harmony with legendary pianist Luiz Eca. I've worked as his assistant
* Certificates from 2 Medieval music courses taught by reputable European teachers
* Composition with maestro Leonardo Sa
* Voice with maestro David Kyle and Steve Wall from the Seattle Opera

My teaching approach is tailor-made to your individual needs. Also, every lesson includes voice exercises and singing.

I have over 20 years of teaching music, piano and keyboard.

Eclectic musician - are you looking to expand your musical horizons? I have a wide experience with many styles of music, including classical, jazz, rock, blues, reggae, Caribbean, and Brazilian.

Singer, songwriter and recording artist - as a singer, songwriter, composer and arranger, I have released 4 records of mostly original material. I can guide you to find your personal musical voice.

Music theory and harmony - you'll be taught the basics of them when you learn the piano and keyboard. However, I can concentrate on this area, if that's what you are looking for.

Are you a Brazilian music lover? I'm originally from Brazil and was fortunate to study Brazilian music with some of the great masters in Brazil. If you would like to play a song like "Girl From Ipanema", and even sing it, I coach Brazilian-Portuguese enunciation as well.

Reviews:

Please find reviews here as well as on my page on teachstreet, listed on my "website's" section.
Pricing Details:

* $60 - 60-minute lessons
* $30 - 30-minute lessons usually for children

I look forward to talking with you!

Reviews

January 27, 2011

Paula is a fantastic teacher. I started understanding the piano better right away after we began lessons. Im a nineteen year old and she didnt treat me like a kid or talk down, it was alot of fun. Connecticut is lucky to steal her from seattle!

– Dillon
January 24, 2011

I took lessons with Paula for 3 months until she moved out of town. Paula is an excellent teacher, very knowledgeable of the fundamentals of piano and music theory in general. As an adult beginner, I was able to learn very fast with Paula thanks to her well-rounded approach to teaching. Moreover, she is a great person and I enjoyed spending time with her once a week. I highly recommend her.

– Pablo
January 24, 2011

Paula is a GREAT teacher. She worked with my teenaged son. She was really able to connect with him and motivate him. Great balance of fun but serious... He made tremendous progress. We were very sad to see her leave the Seattle area. I would whole heartedly recomend her.

PS: Having her come to our house for lessons was extremely convenient too. It saved us lots of family time.

– Bob
January 21, 2011

"Paula is valuable as a piano teacher because she instructs according to her student's goals. She's been playing for decades and is a recording artist herself, which obviously gives her the credentials and a special perspective...but during lessons, none of this gets in way of the student. She teaches you proper technique, but without turning the learning process into a bore fest. She exposes you to theory and the big picture, but without disregarding the student's natural tendencies of just wanting to play some songs.

Learning stays fun, but nearly without notice, the student still gets the proper education .

From a practical standpoint, Paula is a perfect instructor choice. As a 29 year old professional, I always had interest in playing the piano, but just couldn't find the time. Paula comes out to me, is always on time, and makes learning the keyboard fit within my schedule and its sometimes hectic pace."

– Scott
January 19, 2011

Paula was my daughter's first piano teacher. My daughter was 6 years old when she started piano lessons. Paula did a great job in teaching her how to read and play music. Carla enjoyed every lesson and would still enjoy it if Paula hadn't moved to the East Coast. I can highly recommend her as a piano teacher for kids and adults!

– Barbara

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Question and answer

Q. What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A. Don't choose a teacher just looking at the price alone. Schedule 1 lesson with somebody that you might be interested in, and go from there. Like my teacher used to say: a bad teacher is as bad as a bad doctor!

Q. Why does your work stand out from others who do what you do?

A. Besides being a teacher for over 20 years, I'm also a performer and recording artist. I have experience playing in different venues and group sizes. And I play several styles of music, including Jazz, Classical, Reggae, Soca, Sucus, SKA, Brazilian music. I can play by ear, or by chart. And can teach you to do the same.

Q. What do you like most about your job?

A. I like seeing the progress of students, and their satisfaction to be able to play an instrument. And everybody likes to sing, even if they say they don't! I include some singing in every lesson and it's great to see students relaxing about it
I also like teaching because it helps me as well. When I teach I always learn.

Q. What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A. My price. Which is $30. 1/2 hour, $60. 1 hour.
My method of teaching. I always ask what the student's goals are, and help them get there. So it's a very personal approach, and not cookie cutter.
What books do I use to teach. I can recommend books that I like. But I also try to use the books that the student might already have.

Q. How did you decide to get in your line of work?

A. I've been a musician all my life. Since I was a child. I studied over 10 years of classical music then started to branch out to other music styles. And have been teaching since I was a teenager. It's my passion. It's what I love to do!

Q. Tell us about a recent job you did that you are particularly proud of.

A. I'm very proud to know that all my students in Seattle were sad to see me go. I'm not happy that they were sad, but happy to know that they considered their lessons with me a valuable time in their lives.

Q. Describe your most recent project, what it involved, how much it cost, and how long it took.

A. I own my record label, Yellow House records. I'm about to release my 5th record of mostly original music. I'm very proud of it. It took 1 year and 1/2. It wasn't cheap, but that's OK. Because it sounds great.

Q. If you were advising someone who wanted to get into your profession, what would you suggest?

A. Know what you are teaching about. Care about your students. Be professional. Have passion for your work. your students will be inspired by your inspiration. If that's what you want, go ahead and start!

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Paula Maya

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