FAQs
- What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
Any student that contacts me through Thumbtack, will obtain the discount rate posted in my Thumbtack profile page. If you have visited my music lessons website, you will find the Thumbtack special discount to be quite substantial.
- What is your typical process for working with a new customer?
First, I will set up a phone or Skype meeting with the new student to find about his/her musical goals. I would like to know about the musical styles the student loves, the artists the student listens, the music genres the student would like to learn and explore. These information helps me organize the right type of curriculum and material for our joint musical explorations. I believe music lessons should always be fun, but grounded in a strong curriculum that will help the student achieve their musical goals and develop the necessary skills. I teach music at my studio in Los Angeles. My studio is located in the historical Village Green. I also teach Online to students worldwide. I use several cameras to enhance the online music lesson experience. Online students will receive a video recording of their lesson.
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
I earned a Bachelor of Music from Berklee, a Masters of Music from New England Conservatory and an Honorary Doctorate of Music Arts from Shepherd University. Some of my teachers include Edgar Valcarcel, William Thomas McKinley, Herb Pomeroy, Ran Blake, Anthony D’Bonaventura, Stephanie Tiernan, James Williams and others. I taught at Berklee College of Music, New England Conservatory, Musicians Institute in Hollywood, the Cornel School of Contemporary Music, and currently I serve as the Piano Chair at the California College of Music in Pasadena. As an author, I have published books on Latin Jazz, Ear Training and Solfege, Keyboard Voicings, Keyboard Technique, Contemporary Improvisation and other music subjects. As a producer, arranger, songwriter and keyboardist, I have worked in Los Angeles, New York and Boston areas.