When my husband, Tim, retired, he planned to learn piano. Long a fan of Duke Ellington, Tim finds swing very engaging, and hoped to play in that style. Unfortunately, life (in the form of a serious car accident and a diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease) put piano on hold. When Judith Muir noticed Tim’s voice she suggested singing lessons. These became piano lessons with an important singing component. Because Tim now struggles with the cognitive impairment (including short term memory problems) and the coordination difficulties that often accompany Parkinson’s, these lessons are a challenge for both Judith and Tim. Judith choses songs that are familiar to Tim. First they sing a song. Then Tim gets a copy of the words with the notes of the melody. Finally the chords arrive. As he learns a piece he sees how it is structured. Singing while playing helps him find the correct key as he works through a song. Since March, when NY shut down in response to Covid19, lessons have continued over FaceTime, a new experience for us all. Judith offered two half-hour lessons. The shorter time (30 minutes vs. 60) and greater frequency (two classes per week) are better suited to Tim’s new learning style. Judith’s efforts to adapt her lessons to accommodate Tim’s learning difficulties have helped Tim progress in his piano work. While he may never play like Duke Ellington, he enjoys his time at the piano and looks forward to the day when he puts melody and harmony together and sings one of the Duke’s classics.

Judith is a creative teacher who adapts her teaching method and style to the needs of the student and the situation. As a Parkinson’s patient I struggle with memory problems and cognitive impairment. When Judith introduces a new song, she presents it in as many ways as she can. This disassembly of the piece makes it easier for me to learn and then to play complicated pieces. Judith’s flexibility is not limited to the piano lesson itself. When Covid19 shut the state down she turned to the FACETIME app to continue our lessons. This eliminated travel time and allowed social distancing, enabling us to continue our lessons on a regular basis. Once on FACETIME, we switched from a weekly one-hour lesson in Judith’s studio to two half-hour sessions online. The shorter, more frequent lessons are well suited to my current attention span and ability to process new information.

I highly recommend Judith Muir as a music teacher. I have had lessons as a child, in college, and now in adulthood and Judith is like no other music teacher I have ever had. Judith is passionate about music, and her love is evident in her enthusiastic teaching techniques. She does not drone on and on about music theory, but instead incorporates bits and pieces of theory as they come up in the piece being studied. Judith is calm and supportive, and above all extremely encouraging. Her patience makes learning fun. She is not the stereotypical “rap your knuckles when a wrong note is played” type of teacher. Judith does not make students feel bad about mistakes, she really is there to help them. She does not believe in devoting hours to scales and finger dexterity exercises (when I first met Judith, she instructed me to “throw out” my Czerny and Hanon exercise books!) She does not follow some sort of rigid developmental timeline, but allows the student to develop at their own pace. Judith is a wonderful and talented instructor who encourages her students to develop their musicality. Thanks to her positive and encouraging manner, lessons with Judith are always enjoyable.

Our house has become a Broadway musical as Sarah is singing throughout the day, about pretty much everything that she does. And I do have to say on those rare days where she is cranky, she always leaves you happy and skipping and singing through the house. It is fun to watch. Anyone who wants to instill a life-long love of music in their little ones would be a fool not to share their kids with you. I also have a 15-year-old who used to have a dreadful work ethic with her clarinet, and I remember how horrible she sounded. Now her band director is encouraging her to compete for 1st chair, based on her dedication to her instrument and how amazingly she plays. Any parent should have you work with their older kids on their instrumental playing as well.