Music has always been a driving presence in my house and life.

about me

I grew up as part of a musical family being a 3rd generation pianist and hearing my Mum practising Bach and Debussy around the house. My Dad introduced me from a young age to prog rock, classic rock and folk music by taking me to concerts and watching DVDs. Surrounded by music and inspired, at the age of 7 I started music lessons myself under the tuition of a local piano teacher. 

Whilst doing my A Levels at Greenhead College I was lucky enough to meet and play with many great musicians both my own age and older. A highlight for me was playing drums for Damo Suzuki who cut his teeth with the pioneering krautrock band Can. Between the ages of 16-18 my taste in music broadened to the extent that genre was irrelevant and I was performing more and more regularly alongside my studies. This included a band tour to Paris, Eastern Germany and solo piano performances for my college. It was also during this period that I started studying jazz theory and technique both in my private lessons and through self-directed study. Bands such as Snarky Puppy and GoGo Penguin and artists such as Brad Mehldau and Keith Jarrett informed and inspired this music making!

University

Studying music at the University of Sheffield again presented me with the opportunity to meet and share knowledge with many fantastic musicians who I now call my friends. Highlights of my student life included performances at Oxford University and Sheffield Cathedral. Receiving tuition from Valentina Kalashnik allowed for an eye opening experience that led to a completely different perspective on my technique and a fresh approach to studying piano. My final year dissertation gave me the opportunity to look further in to the question of “Why do we like the music we like?” This ethnographic piece of work was highly commended by academic staff. 

It was also during this time that I started teaching piano to students of a variety of different ages and abilities whilst discovering my love of helping people achieve their musical potential. 

Now then… 

I’m now celebrating my 8th year of teaching piano at the age of 27. Since I started I have taught at local music schools, organised concerts for my students, made some great friends through my work and become one of the most in demand piano teachers in the Sheffield and South Yorkshire area. In my spare time I’ve also been playing drums in my band Malah Palinka which has led to us playing Sheffield’s Tramlines festival and getting national radio play on BBC Radio 6! 

My Objective

Playing the piano is the best thing I’ve done with my life. Not only do I believe that music-making has inherent worth but various studies and real-world situations have shown that musicians benefit from increased confidence, communication skills, cognition and coordination. I firmly believe it is a myth that some people are musically “gifted” whilst others aren’t. Everyone has musical ability. Sometimes it merely takes the right teacher to encourage it to grow.