Adult Piano Lessons
It’s never too late to learn to play the piano—or to come back to it.
Adults come to lessons with all kinds of musical backgrounds. You might be starting from scratch, returning after decades away from the piano, or already playing and looking for a different approach. You might want to play classical repertoire, understand harmony, improvise, accompany yourself or others, write songs, or simply make music for your own enjoyment.
Lessons are personalized around your experience, interests, and goals, while developing the musical skills and understanding that will help you become a confident, independent musician.
Beginners
You don’t need any previous musical experience to start piano lessons as an adult.
As a beginner, you’ll learn your way around the keyboard while developing your musical ear, technique, rhythm, and understanding of how music works. We’ll play music from the beginning rather than treating musical concepts as prerequisites that need to be mastered first.
Reading music is part of the process, but it isn’t the whole process. You’ll also learn by listening, playing by ear, experimenting, improvising, and recognizing musical patterns.
My goal is to help you build a strong foundation while making real music from your very first lessons.
Returning Pianists
Maybe you took lessons as a child and haven’t touched a piano in twenty years. Maybe you’ve continued playing occasionally but feel stuck. Or perhaps you’re an experienced reader who would love to feel more comfortable playing without a score.
You don’t have to start over.
We’ll begin with the musician you already are: what you remember, what you enjoy, what feels comfortable, and what you’d like to be able to do that you can’t do yet.
For some returning pianists, that means rebuilding technique or reading skills. For others, it means learning to play by ear, understand harmony, improvise, or approach familiar repertoire in a new way.
The goal isn’t to recreate the piano lessons you had when you were younger. It’s to build on your existing experience and find an approach that makes sense for the musician you are now.
Your Musical Goals
There isn’t one correct way to be an adult pianist.
You might want to:
Learn classical repertoire you’ve always wanted to play
Play jazz or understand lead sheets and chord symbols
Play pop, rock, or folk music
Accompany yourself while singing
Develop your ear and learn to play music you hear
Improvise more freely at the piano
Compose or write songs
Understand harmony and how music is put together
Improve your technique and performance skills
Simply sit down at the piano and enjoy making music
Your interests help shape our work together.
At the same time, I want to help you develop skills that extend beyond any one piece or style. Listening, technique, reading, harmony, improvisation, and musical understanding all contribute to greater independence at the piano.
You don’t need to arrive with a perfectly defined goal, either. Part of taking lessons can be discovering what interests you.
Getting Started
You don’t need to practise for hours a day, own a grand piano, or have everything figured out before you begin.
You do need access to a piano or suitable keyboard and some regular time to make music between lessons. We’ll work together to find realistic ways of practising that fit your goals and your life.
If you’re interested in lessons, please reach out. I’m always happy to answer questions and learn a little about what you’re looking for.
When you get in touch, it’s helpful to tell me:
A bit about your musical background
What’s bringing you to lessons now
Some of the music you’re interested in
Whether you’re interested in in-person, online, or hybrid lessons
In-person lessons take place at my studio in Winnipeg’s West End.