My approach to teaching

My approach to teaching begins with the question: “What motivates you?”

In other words,

• What are your musical goals?
• Who or what do you want to sound like?
• What kind of musician do you want to be?

From there, we’ll work together to find the right series of pieces and exercises to get you there. I will help you:

• develop your technique,
• improve your musicality and expressiveness, and
• deepen your understanding of relevant topics in music theory and history.

I’m currently training in the Suzuki Method, a pedagogy that emphasizes ear training and parental involvement. This is the same method through which I first learned piano, and I have found it most useful when teaching younger students (i.e. elementary school age).

I’ve taught students from a wide range of ages and musical backgrounds. Whatever brought you here, my goal is to help you find the connection between yourself and your instrument.

For more information, please see my rates and policies. To schedule a trial lesson, send me an email.

Testimonials from students and parents

“My daughter has taken lessons from Brandon for almost a year, and I have been amazed by his patience and skill with teaching young children. I like how his focus is getting even the simplest pieces to sound good by using the correct technique, and even throwing in some basic music theory to explain why some notes sound good together, or scary, etc. He has really worked hard to help her past challenges and keep her interested in learning.” —Anon. parent

“Brandon strikes a nice balance between letting me guide our lessons based on my interests and suggesting exercises that’ll develop my technique. Over the last 6 months, I’ve learned to elicit more beautiful tones from the piano, and I’ve become much more confident when reading new music.” —Jordan, age 32

“My son Andrew has been taking piano lessons with Brandon for almost a year. During this time, I have seen him improve a lot. On top of that, Andrew really enjoys his lessons with Brandon. According to Andrew, ‘Brandon is an awesome teacher. He is patient and very helpful when I make mistakes. He points out what I need to do so I won’t make those mistakes again.’ Overall, Brandon is a fantastic piano instructor and I would highly recommend him for those who are looking for a piano instructor.” —Anon. parent

“I look forward to my lesson each week, where Brandon helps me improve my technique and develop my own unique style of playing. As an adult student at a beginner level, he finds music I enjoy and deftly incorporates music theory as we work through the pieces. I couldn’t be more happy to have Brandon as my teacher as I finally pursue a lifelong goal of learning to play.” —Katherine, age 32

My musical interests and practice

On piano, I focus predominantly on European classical music, though my own experiences as a musician have taken me through jazz, pop/rock, Broadway tunes, and more (see below).

I am currently studying the music of J. S. Bach and his sons, as well as music written during the transition between the Baroque and Classical periods. I’m curious about the development of the keyboard sonata, domestic and casual music-making in the common practice era, and pedagogies used by composer-teachers from that time (a.k.a. the “Old Masters”).

Wherever possible, I try to study the music of this period through a historical materialist lens. Though I do not use period instruments, my practice is heavily informed by the technical particularities of these instruments, and how their mechanical and acoustical features were exploited by composers of the day.

Additionally, I also enjoy playing works by Frédéric Chopin, Franz Schubert, and Scott Joplin, to name a few.

I regularly accompany adult ballet classes at Shawl-Anderson Dance Company.

On mandolin, I play Baroque and Classical repertoire, including pieces written for violin as well as mandolin. Lately, I’ve been focusing on Telemann’s unaccompanied violin fantasies. I also enjoy playing Irish traditional and American old-time fiddle tunes.

On acoustic guitar, I’ve been studying various fingerstyle techniques, inspired by artists such as Elizabeth Cotten, Rev. Gary Davis, Blind Blake, Glenn Jones, and John Fahey. I’m working on arranging keyboard works by Bach for mandolin and guitar.

On electric guitar (standard, baritone, and bass), I play doom metal, heavy psych, spacey desert rock, and Americana.

On electronics, I make noisy improvisations and lo-fi beats (bleeps and bloops, to use the technical jargon).

My own path

I took private lessons from ages 6 to 18, studying primarily with Alyse Korn. Her pedagogy is deeply rooted in the Suzuki Method, and I carry these precepts with me to this day. Under her guidance, I performed in recitals, and I participated in annual evaluations held by the Music Teachers Association of California (Certificate of Merit Senior Medallion recipient) and the National Guild of Piano Teachers (10-Year National Roll). At around age 13, I started studying jazz with Alyse, and I attended Jazz Camp West three years consecutively.

In high school, I played alto saxophone in my marching and concert bands, and I was drum major my senior year. I also played piano in the school jazz band. As a keyboardist, I was occasionally called on to play vibraphone in the pit.

While a student at UC Berkeley, I continued playing alto saxophone in the University of California Marching Band. I was hired as the rehearsal and performance pianist for Berkeley High School’s production of Hairspray in 2012, and I conducted two of the four performances.

Around this time, I saw legendary mandolinist David Grisman perform as a guest artist with the Django Festival All-Stars at Yoshi’s, simultaneously introducing me to jazz manouche and the mandolin. I later bought a mandolin, and taught myself to play from collections of Irish tunes and old method books downloaded from IMSLP.

I graduated from UC Berkeley with a BA in English and Rhetoric in 2013. I continued to maintain my piano and mandolin skills as a hobbyist for many years, while my professional life took me further away from music. I worked as a classical music publicist, then as an administrator for a modern dance company, and later as an accountant. I picked up electronic music as a hobby, acquiring a few synthesizers, drum machines, and effects pedals along the way.

When shelter-in-place orders went out in 2020, I found that I had a lot of spare time on my hands. I started practicing piano and mandolin more than I ever had before, and I decided to commit myself to spending more time making and sharing music.

I took up private lessons again through San Francisco Conservatory of Music’s Continuing Education (SFCM CE) program, studying under Robert Schwartz. I performed Chopin’s Nocturne in C minor, Op. 48 No. 2, in the SFCM CE spring recital in 2022.

I also studied mandolin and guitar under Erik Pearson at the San Francisco Community Music Center, and mandolin under Baroque violinist Gail Hernández Rosa.

In 2022, I left my accounting career behind, started teaching piano and mandolin, and started accompanying ballet classes at Shawl-Anderson Dance Company. I currently play for Carolyn Goto, Andy Gaudet, and Wendy Diamond.

In 2023, I completed San Francisco Ballet’s Piano Accompanist Seminar.