Teacher Tiffany

How old were you when you began learning to play your instrument?
6 years old, at the piano

What do you Love about Teaching?
I love spreading the joy and excitement that I find in music to my students! I get to come up with new ways of explaining how to do things and it challenges me to be creative. It’s so rewarding to see students have “aha!” moments, or celebrate together when they overcome something they used to find difficult.

Where did your receive your Degrees in Music / Dance Education
Bachelors of Music for Piano Performance at Manhattan School of Music.
Masters of Music for Collaborative Piano at Manhattan School of Music

Your Unique Approach to Teaching
I believe in a personal approach—to first build a connection with a student before instruction. A student is not just a student coming in to learn piano; he or she is a person with outside interests and things going on in their lives. I like to learn about them (aside from their music facet) in order to understand them better as a whole, and so that they feel safe, heard, and comfortable to learn and ask questions. As that is established, I focus on building a strong foundation and playing with ease, and we can have fun with that through games, improvising, and playing duets together. One of my goals is also to have students take ownership of their musical journey, and that is done by holding them accountable in their practice. There will be some weeks where lessons might be rough, but I strive to be a compassionate yet firm teacher—we are on the same team and I am rooting to see my students succeed!

What do you enjoy about teaching at Myriad?
Myriad fosters a supportive environment with friendly teachers and a plethora of resources. It’s also wonderful to take part in pedagogy meetings and see how the school lives out its values. I definitely appreciate this community that values both students and teachers equally.

What are your hobbies & Interests?
I love drinking boba (and consider myself to be a boba snob). I am happy to tell you about my favorite places, or tell me yours! I also love jokes— one of my favorite musical jokes of all time is “What is Beethoven’s favorite fruit?” Ask me to find out 🙂

Do you speak any other languages?
Cantonese and Mandarin (both conversational)

Favorite Inspirational Quote
You can tune a piano, but you can’t tuna fish! (Unless you adjust its scales…)