Early Years
About me, I began taking piano lessons at the age of 8, after picking out tunes for years on the piano. A piano teacher my parents knew advised them to waiting until I could read fluently to ensure later success. While that can be true for some children, it was not true for me. Many children read well enough or have the skills to begin reading before the age of 7 or 8. Highly motivated, I continued to play through middle and high school for studio recitals, I completed Guild Auditions and played a full solo length recital as a high school senior. I also accompanied many school and church choirs.
College and Graduate School
In college, I completed a Music Education degree that included a Degree With Recital. I prepared the same as a piano major would have for the performance I graduating with a BME from Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama. After graduation, I taught music classes and gave piano lessons at a private school. In graduate school at the University of Miami, Florida, where I earned an MM degree, I continued taking lessons, expanding my experience of teaching music to younger children. In both of these degrees, I participated in excellent vocal ensembles. I again accompanied vocalists, instrumentalists, and choirs.
Professional Experience
I taught music in Maryland, Virginia, and Florida to ages as young as two and half (Montessori) all the way through college. I accompanied All County Chorus in Maryland, as well as many other chorus concerts and solo competitions. More recently, I pursued a Primary certificate in Montessori (AMS). I completed an internship working with primary ages, 2.5 years – 6 years old. This experience broadened my understanding of how children learn, focusing on how to make learning meaningful to a child, based on their individual strengths and challenges.
Music has been a constant thread about me throughout my life, providing a lot of joy, challenge, and connection. Music is a real language, common to every person and every culture. Piano lessons with Sue Kranz is just an extension of my lifelong love and enjoyment of music. Music can enrich the lives of anyone who participates!