Teaching is at the heart of what I do. I officially began teaching piano in the summer after my first year as a student at the University of Toronto, Faculty of Music; that was an unbelieveably 50 years ago!  One of the first things I noticed was that teaching made me far more aware of what I did as a pianist. Hearing someone play and deciding how the sound needed to change required me to think deeply about my own processes, how I would practise the passage, what element or elements were at the foundation of playing the piano.  I, not surprisingly, became a better teacher of myself.

To some extent, we all model our teaching on how we were taught by our teachers. I was fortunate to spend 5 years studying with Margaret Parsons-Poole after she had retired from the Royal Conservatory of Toronto but was still teaching some people in her home. This was after I graduated from U of T.  Most lessons were two and one half hours, but some extended to over four hours if we were deeply into making changes in my playing.  Mrs. Poole's integrity, musical knowledge, her ability to help me hear things that I never had heard before, to refine rehearsal techniques, and her genuine care for me as person was a priceless gift, one that I feel responsible to pass on to my students. She is the example of the teacher to which I have aspired.
If you are interested in studying piano, theory, harmony or music history, please contact me by email through this website. I provide in-person lessons, and I also teach online using Zoom.