Happy holidays!
I hope everyone is having a restful holiday break and a peaceful start to the new year. I have been reflecting on 2018, which was my first full year of teaching piano in St. Paul after nearly a decade of teaching on the east coast. At the start of the year, Gardner Piano Studio had just 10 students. Now we have 19 students who make up about half of my overall teaching schedule — busy, busy! And GPS students have had a busy year, too! Many of them participated in the MMTA Piano Contest in January, the BAMTA Piano Festival in March, the MTNA eFestival, our Spring and Winter Studio Recitals at the gorgeous St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church in St. Paul, and our fun summer patio recital at Red Balloon Bookshop. Students of all levels have performed a variety of works by Gurlitt, Czerny, Kabalevsky, Chopin, Shostakovich, Beethoven, and more.
In 2019, we are looking forward to our next studio recital on June 9th in the Thelma Hunter Recital Room at the Landmark Center, more piano competitions and festival dates in the region, as well as a casual recital for our adult students — stay tuned!
We are currently in the middle of Winter Session, Spring Session will begin on March 11th, and the flexible Summer Session will begin on June 18th. New students can step in at any time. I hope you’ll join us in our next year of music-making, whether it is through signing up for lessons, attending concerts, or offering crucial practicing support at home.
Warmest wishes for the new year, and, of course, happy practicing!
Yours in music,
Lillie
