Remembering my first piano teacher. Who are you thankful toward from your early days?

@TheHorse (227732)
Walnut Creek, California
May 5, 2025 3:02pm CST
I took piano lessons from from the time was maybe five until I was eight. I cannot remember her name, but I remember where she sat, and how she taught me. I got little silver stars in my piano book as I was working on a piece. I got big gold stars in my piano book when I completed a piece. When we moved from Berkeley to Chicago, when I was about to turn nine, my parents hooked me up with an older lady who was way too serious. She didn't even want me to play sports with my friends after school. I quit piano lessons but kept playing piano. Now, I want to be like my first piano teacher. I want my students to ENJOY playing music. Today, I am practicing Children's Dance, by Alex DeGrassi, on guitar. I am going to teach it to Kate, my 15-year-old guitar student who has been with me since she was twelve. She had a similar experience to mine with an overly serious (in her case) Russian lady who made piano "not fun." She and I have never done piano together, but I have told her that I would be willing to teach her "improvising" on piano. Not reading others' notes. Generating your OWN music.We'll see if it happens. Have you had certain teachers who inspired you? I am going to get back to practicing Children's Dance now. I survived getting my blood drawn.
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7 people like this
6 responses
@DaddyEvil (151004)
• United States
5 May
I'm glad you survived your doctor appointment. At least we know they didn't drain you completely. You're sentences still made sense.
2 people like this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
5 May
Whew. I am glad to hear that.
1 person likes this
@DaddyEvil (151004)
• United States
5 May
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
5 May
@DaddyEvil I still have my little piece of cotton taped on. But I am feeling OK.
1 person likes this
@RasmaSandra (86077)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
5 May
My piano teacher was a Latvian woman who cam for The Bronx in NY to my mom's apartment in Brooklyn once a week to teach me piano and bring me notes to practice. There were two more Latvian households she visited on the same day so she did not just travel for me,
2 people like this
@RasmaSandra (86077)
• Daytona Beach, Florida
6 May
@TheHorse she taught me piano through high school and then I just played for the fun of it and purchased song sheets like Yesterday and others I enjoyed but I never became a Billy Joel piano player
2 people like this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
7 May
@RasmaSandra I never liked Billy Joel.
2 people like this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
6 May
Was she a good teacher? Did you keep playing piano?
2 people like this
@xander6464 (45198)
• Wapello, Iowa
7 May
You sound like a very dangerous, rich, out-of-touch Coastal Elite, with all your woke hippie liberal talk of wanting kids to enjoy things. You'd never make it in an American state like Texas.
1 person likes this
@xander6464 (45198)
• Wapello, Iowa
13 May
@TheHorse Austin is just East California. Or West New York. Take your pick.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
7 May
I'll have you know I was baptized in Texas. But it was Austin, so that doesn't count.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
31 May
@xander6464 South side of Chicago. Hyde Park.
• United States
5 May
Making music fun sounds like you would be a great teacher. I took piano lessons when I was almost a teen and my teacher was a cranky old man. It wasn't fun. I hated the music he chose and I quit not long after. Sometimes I'm sorry I didn't stick it out but overall I might have enjoyed a different instrument
2 people like this
• United States
2 Jun
@TheHorse he was more into the older stuff (classical) and he was indeed an old fuddy duddy himself. I would have preferred something more upbeat and modern.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
6 May
What music did he chose?
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
31 May
Or a different teacher. What music did he choose?
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (356254)
• Rockingham, Australia
6 May
I had an English teacher who inspired me. My piano teacher was a nun. She was strict but not too fierce.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
6 May
Nuns have a "reputation." But I have never actually met anyone whose knuckles were slapped by a nun during piano lessons.
2 people like this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
31 May
Am I correct in assuming your knuckles were never slapped with a ruler?
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (356254)
• Rockingham, Australia
1 Jun
@TheHorse No, she never hit me over the knuckles.
@LindaOHio (191505)
• United States
7 May
I can't think of any teachers that inspired me. I went to a Catholic school Kindergarten through 7th grade. The classes were normally about 35 kids. I don't remember anyone getting any "one-on-one". Junior high was fun. High school was torture. 3,000 kids in the school and I was put in a lot of Honors classes. It was extremely tough. I'm glad you made it through your blood draw.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
7 May
My high school was really small. About 400 kids. We had some really good teachers and some surprisingly bad ones.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (227732)
• Walnut Creek, California
8 May
@LindaOHio Where was it? Top ten? That's quite an honor.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (191505)
• United States
8 May
@TheHorse At the time, my HS was rated in the top 10 of the nation. They were extremely tough. I did not enjoy high school.
1 person likes this