About me
I have a private practice in piano teaching and in the Alexander Technique in Barnwell and Oundle area. I also work as an Alexander Technique and piano teacher at Oundle School. I recently stopped working in the Junior Department of Guildhall School of Music and Drama. I used to work as a piano teacher at Luton Sixth Form College and at JFK Catholic School in Hemel Hempstead.
I come from Estonia. As a child I studied piano at Tallinn Music High School. The standard of music teaching at this school is very high, and most of the students continue their studies to higher education and become professional musicians. I continued my piano studies at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre. I was supposed to graduate in spring 2000, but unfortunately, I injured my arms in autumn 1999 and couldn’t subsequently play piano for two years.
As a child I was always told by my various piano teachers that I shouldn’t raise my shoulders, or I should free my tight arms. It was much easier said than done: I just couldn’t play without tightening up. I was also very ambitious and wanted to be the best all the time, which isn’t a bad thing in itself. However, the combination of ambitiousness and excessive muscle tension let to my injuries.
I had also injured my neck while doing yoga exercises, so suffered a lot of neck and shoulder pain, too.
How I teach piano
Learning piano should be fun. I want to make sure that everyone who studies with me loves the whole process. Lots of music teachers are very focused on results and, in some cases, this can take out all the fun.
I believe that it is possible to achieve both – the fun and the results.