Michelle Phelps, Beginning Piano & Songwriting

Specialties

I specialize in teaching singer/​songwriter and popular piano styles (also called chord style piano) in a highly personalized approach. You bring in a list of your favorite songs that you like to sing and/​or listen to, I select the songs that are most appropriate for beginner level, and you begin playing them immediately. No time wasted on songs that you don’t enjoy.

My approach to teaching shows you how to speak the language of music before you learn to read it, which is the order in which we all learned our first language. I will show you that the basic structure of music is simple and accessible. From your very first lesson, you will begin speaking and understanding the language of music. As your skills progress, so will your musical vocabulary.

History

Established in 2003.

I began teaching piano and songwriting ten years ago. My goal as a teacher has always been to give my students the skills and knowledge to play music that THEY love, rather than learning practice pieces from a method book. As a teacher, nothing makes me happier than seeing the «light bulb» go on for a student, and hearing them say, «This is so much easier than I thought it would be!» Over the years, I have taught students from ages 8 through 68, and my enthusiasm and passion for what I do continues to grow.

Meet the Business Owner

Michelle P.

Business Owner

Piano and songwriting are my greatest musical passions. From the time I was six years old, I’ve wanted to play piano. I’m a self-​taught pianist, and I wrote my first song at age 12. I’ve been influenced by many genres, including Jazz, Pop, Rock, Folk, and Country.

I have studied guitar and songwriting with Cindy Lowe, and Robin Flower (of Flower & McLaren). I have also studied songwriting with Steve Seskin and Pat Pattison. I have studied voice with Libby McLaren (of Flower & McLaren), and vocal performance at The Jazzschool in downtown Berkeley.

In 2004, I recorded my first album of original songs, titled «Honey From A Thorn». It received positive reviews from the Nashville writing and publishing community, and has enjoyed national and international airplay on many independent radio stations.

In 2008, I teamed up with singer/​songwriter Ginny Halstead to write and record an album of original children’s songs titled «At The Boogie Villa.»