MEET OUR INSTRUCTORS
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Our teachers are passionate pianists' and performers who make lessons engaging and fun! You will be surprised at how quickly you can learn to become a pianist yourself. Write to us below to begin your musical adventure!
KYOICHI TSUTSUI
Co-Director, Piano & Theory Instructor
Pianist Kyoichi Tsutsui began his musical studies at the age of 6 years old. A student of Johanna Kwan in his early studies, he enjoyed a strong affection for music as a beginner and would successful reach the advanced level through the Royal Conservatory of Music in his training.
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With a firm belief in ongoing education development, Kyoichi continues his ongoing studies under Canadian pianist Derek Zhi Guang Chiu. While also maintaining repertoire at the ARCT level, Kyoichi has a passion for teaching that has led him to receive his Elementary Piano Pedagogy certification with the Royal Conservatory of Music.
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Believing in the benefit of a wide variety of interests and experience, Kyoichi nurtures many activities. A current student at the University of Calgary he is continuing his musical studies at the post-secondary level as well. He also enjoys are skiing, motorsports, soccer, and boxing.
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Kyoichi’s teaching philosophy is to prioritize the understanding and enjoyment of music. Playing and skill development is essential, but he believes that by having a strong foundation in deeper understanding of music can motivate each student to pursue their own unique musical goals! He believes that understanding music is something that will make you enjoy and appreciate it forever, no matter what your future studies may be.
SHIRLEY NHAM
Co-Director, Piano & Theory Instructor
Shirley Nham began her classical training at the age of 6 years old and since then, she has internalized a core lesson on the correlation between distilling passion in musicians while helping them effectively develop proficiency and musicality at their instrument as an instructor. During her years of study, she successfully completed the requirements in the Royal Conservatory of Music examinations all while performing in local competitions and piano festivals. She continues to develop herself as a pianist and teacher as she pursues the ARCT in Piano Pedagogy and Piano Performance. She is also working towards a BA in Music from the University of Calgary.
Over the years, Shirley has established a reputation as a highly versatile and creative teacher for students of all levels – from young children through to adults. Shirley believes that learning begins with the creation of a positive environment and it is this knowledge that has allowed many students to thrive under her instruction. With a tailored plan to each student’s goals, she excels with helping students prepare for RCM examinations and competitions but also loves teaching students who want to learn recreationally and for the pure enjoyment of music.
EDDISON LY
Piano and Theory Instructor
Eddison has been passionate for music since he started piano at the age of 8 years old. To this day, he continues his musical studies in both practical and theoretical components. Eddison will finish his practical level 10 RCM exam in August 2018. He has also completed music theory up to advanced rudiments, intermediate harmony, and history 2.
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Eddison is well versed in teaching a wide range of students regardless of age, level, or style. His goal is to help each student understand what music means to them, and to make it a new enjoyment in life. His philosophy is to build a strong foundation for sight reading, as he believes it is a significant challenge young students face.
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Aside from piano, Eddison has been singing in a choir group for the elderly and hospital patients to help them find comfort in music. On his spare time, he likes to watch movies and play board games with friends.
SAMMIE TRAN
Piano Instructor
Coming from a musical family where many have played and taught piano, music was always a part of Sammie’s life. Her formal piano instruction began under the instruction of Sonia Poon. Under her tutelage, she has been awarded with numerous scholarships and awards from Local competitions and festivals all throughout Calgary. Sammie’s musical journey continues as she regularly performs in recitals and in the Calgary Performing Arts Festival.
Sammie excels in tying musical elements into her pieces and continues to develop as a musician as she works towards her Grade 10 RCM examinations and the corresponding theory components.
SAMUEL LEE
Piano Instructor
Samuel began learning piano at the age of 5. He began his studies because his church had no accompanist. His father who was the pastor at that church gave him the encouragement. Samuel began performing for the church services at a young age of 9 years old! Using his rich experiences in classical and gospel music, Samuel is confident teaching improvisation on top of regular lessons.
After immigrating to Canada from South Korea, Samuel has been a piano accompanist for the Korean Bethel Presbyterian Church of Calgary. He periodically goes to a hospice with his missionary members to teach, sing, and perform piano. Samuel loves teaching and strives to make piano lessons an exciting part of the student’s week! Lessons can be offered in English or Korean.
GLORIA HUA
Piano Instructor
Gloria began her musical education at the age of 4. Excelling and showing great promise as a young student, she consistently received recognition during her early studies, winning numerous awards including scholarships through music festivals such as the Calgary Performing Arts Festival and Calgary APTA Festival.
By performing regularly in recitals and school shows, Gloria stays active in piano performance. Throughout high school she participated in the school concert band as a trumpet player and the school jazz band as a pianist. With her local concert band, she has often competed in music festivals and toured across Canada and in Nashville, Tennessee. She has also had the opportunity to teach younger kids to play the trumpet and jazz piano through band workshops.
DERRICK WONG
Piano Instructor
Derrick has received private piano lessons since a young age and has successfully completed piano exams under the Royal Conservatory of Music up to level 9. At this time, he has also participated in and helped facilitate local piano festivals and competitions for the Conservatory of Music.
His teaching style is based not only building a solid foundation of understanding and technicality, but he also likes to take it a step further and incorporate some solfege(sight singing) as well to further enhance note reading capabilities. It's safe to say.. his students aren't just budding pianists, but they are also excellent sight singers! He has also taught students to play recreationally in different genres as well as prepared students for RCM exams.
ANGELA KIM
Piano Instructor
Angela developed a strong passion for music from the moment she began learning piano. Currently, she is working towards receiving her Grade 10 piano RCM certification after completing many of the requirements for the theory and history RCM examinations. Throughout the years, she also had many other musical opportunities as singer in Concert Choir and a flute player in her Concert Band Ensemble. The excellence of her Concert Choir and Concert Band were demonstrated when they won awards from several festivals and competitions in Alberta. Angela also enjoys playing the violin. She has had the pleasure of experiencing the joy of playing duets with an accompanist during her recitals and has achieved her grade 6 RCM violin certificate.
