Robert Hjelmstad's Piano Studio

Introduction: I believe that my work stands out from others because I really tailor my approach to the student. Some students have time to practice a lot while others don't, and I believe you need to teach differently based on which category your student falls into. I also really try to have my students take ownership of their musicianship; the goal of teaching is to teach your students how to be independent, so I constantly strive to make sure my students know how to do their own problem solving. This leads to discussion-oriented lessons, where student and teacher freely exchange ideas, and this is where I believe true learning takes place. My favorite part of teaching piano is the joy my students experience when they achieve something they previously thought was impossible. There's no doubt that playing the piano is a challenging thing to do, which makes it even more satisfying to see when a student overcomes some type of obstacle.