Most conservatory students and graduates are proficient at playing their instrument, yet they often do not understand what the piece they play is truly about. The true nature of music is coded in the score, but most lack the keys to access this information. Namely, proper training in solfege/ear training, harmony, and analysis that is of course linked to performance practice! Training for musicians in conservatories in these topics is generally divorced from musician’s practice and performance and unfortunately it is not uncommon that the standard of aural training even in professional musicians is quite low. It is my goal to reconcile these discrepancies and provide first and foremost essential material to become a more complete musician.

Music, is important to remember, is an art of the ear! Not an art of the fingers nor other body part. This is easy to forget as there is indeed a technical barrier to be climbed in every instrument in order to effectively communicate through music. Nonetheless, music is played with the ear. By this I mean the mind’s ear, and this is what my courses in aim to develop. To add to this, music is the most intangible of the arts. It is then in the educated musician’s grasp and control only when there is a thorough understanding of both Harmony and Form. In harmony we deal with the vertical relationship of a tone in its harmonic context, and in form with the tone’s horizontal relationship developed through time. The fact that a piece must be performed starting at the beginning of a piece and played till its end does not mean that it is the way it was created. Good education in form/analysis has the goal of clarifying this.

As musicians, performers, and teachers, it is our duty to understand what a piece is about in order to communicate it effectively to the audience. This is performance in its essence, like an essay titled “my understanding of what this piece is about”. Precisely because of this, since we are dealing with some of the greatest minds in the history of humanity, it is also our duty to build ourselves through serious education to ask the great masters of music the right questions and further our understanding of the masterpieces we are in charge of performing. We have great responsibility in our hands… The great masters of the past depend on us.

My courses are tailor-made to the student’s needs. Whether for preparation for auditions, concerts, or other projects, or to complement what is otherwise very superficial music theory foundations taught in many conservatory style institutions. Understanding of harmony and form in particular are essential for the serious musician. The performer who has little to no knowledge of these topics risks being just a puppet, an orchestral slave dependent on someone else’s ideas about music to be able to create something worthwhile.

If you are interested, you can write to me via the Request Info button at the top of the page, or at the form below. I look forward to hearing from you and to working together. Trial lessons are available.

DONATIONS: These lessons are offered on a pay-what-you-can basis. Open to anyone with the dedication and ambition to learn. If you have the means, your donation helps sustain this work and allows me to offer lessons to others who could not afford them otherwise. The usual price of private music lessons in this country ranges between €40-€60 per lesson. These lessons are offered to anyone who needs them, regardless of their financial situation. A limited number of spots are available. This work is not only my calling, it is also how I make my living. Your support allows me to dedicate myself fully to teaching and to share this knowledge with more musicians.