About the Teacher
If there is anything I love as much as making music, it’s teaching others about music. A native of the Pacific Northwest, I taught my first piano lesson to a family friend when I was just 14 years old, which was enough to convince me that teaching was the career for me! Since then, I’ve spent time as a special education classroom teacher, college piano faculty, private instructor, and program director, all while living in New York and Massachusetts. In 2019 my husband and I (and our cat Lina) moved to Southeast Portland so we could be close to our families. I became a full-time private studio teacher, and it’s been the best job ever.
In addition to running my private studio, I am the President of the East Portland District Music Teachers Association and the Membership Chair of the Oregon Music Teachers Association. I’m a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music and an adjudicator for the OMTA Syllabus Program. I’m also a past Tholen Fellow with Portland Piano International, and I perform solo and chamber recitals a few times throughout the year.
Before moving to Portland in 2019, I was adjunct teaching faculty at Smith College and Bay Path University, and teaching assistant for piano and aural skills at University of Massachusetts Amherst. I was the director of the Adaptive Music Program at Community Music School of Springfield. My bachelor’s of music is from Pacific Lutheran University, and I have a master’s of science in teaching from Fordham University and a master’s of music from University of Massachusetts Amherst. Outside of music, I keep busy with training for and competing in triathlons, hiking with family, cooking, and gardening.
I welcome students of all ages and levels; approximately half of my students are school-aged, and the other half are adults, mostly working professionals. I primarily teach classical repertoire, though a variety of styles are explored at the foundational level. My students are passionate music lovers who are eager to learn.