My seven-year-old daughter has been learning piano with Gene for a year now. I did a great deal of research on group lessons vs. one-on-one lessons and then searched far and wide (for over a year, as I was preparing for the right time to introduce a new activity to my daughter) only to find him a few blocks from my house! I only have positive things to say about him.
My daughter was first exposed to the piano through the music class at Chinese school. My daughter would linger by the piano after class, and her teacher, who played the piano during the lesson, mentioned that my daughter might enjoy piano lessons. Because my daughter already exhibited signs of interest, I felt that one-on-one was the way to go.
I wanted a teacher who was 1) a little outside of the box, 2) willing to make the experience fun for my child - not too strict and 3) experienced enough to have seen a wide range of students to know what to do for my child if/when she experiences difficulty. Neither I nor my husband play the piano, so if our daughter had problems we wouldn't know if it was the material or the teacher/teaching method/style. With Gene, who has tremendous experience teaching in public schools, I knew that I wouldn't have to worry so much about pedagogy. More recently, when Gene updated his website, I learned that Gene is a graduate of Berklee College of Music which I didn't know when I hired him. I feel very privileged to have him as my daughter's piano teacher.
During the first few months, my daughter would come out of the lessons completely exhilarated and bursting with glee. When things started to get harder, Gene was able to help us get through it successfully. Now, my daughter goes to our electronic keyboard on her own. I have to pull her away from the keyboard to get her to school on time and to get her to bed at a decent hour! I'm extremely happy with how my daughter has taken to piano, and I'm very fortunate to have Gene teaching her.
Gene is very patient and works with students from where they are. My daughter may arrive to her lesson extremely excited about a new song she learned on her own. Gene will listen and give pointers, and then will redirect her back to the day's lesson. He's good at managing the pace of the lesson. My daughter always enjoys going and the time zips by. read more