Trinity College Dublin university graduate. Piano teacher with over 10 years experience teaching grade exams (ABRSM & RIAM). I teach in English.

Kom meer te weten over Peter

• Vertel ons wanneer jouw passie voor muziek is begonnen en meer bepaald wanneer de voorliefde voor jouw instrument is begonnen.

  When I was quite young my uncle showed me how to play his bass guitar, and then sometimes piano. I remember playing the left hand of Riders on the Storm while he played the right. My family noticed that I was able to play melodies on the piano by ear and enrolled me in lessons when I was 8 years old. I liked piano, but I didn’t love it until I was about 16, when I played Beethoven’s Pathétique sonata for a grade exam.

• Naar welke muziek kan je eindeloos naar luisteren zonder er gek van te worden?

  Endlessly is tough, I always have to change at some point, but I keep coming back to Beethoven, The Beatles and my favourite hip-hop artists.

• Vertel ons over de moeilijkste of bijzonderste les die je ooit hebt gegeven.

  Nothing too extreme but I’ve had one or two lessons with kids that couldn’t sit still. That can be a challenging lesson to give – but often in this case the lessons improve if they’re allowed to stand and move a little.

• Wat is volgens jou het moeilijkste instrument om te beheersen en waarom?

  I would say violin is an extremely difficult instrument. In the beginning it can take years before it consistently sounds in key. I’ve only tried it briefly myself, but it’s incredible once mastered.

• Wat zijn, volgens jou, de sleutels tot succes?

  To find pieces you really enjoy so practicing becomes addictive, then you’ll improve a lot without needing to force yourself to sit and do drills. Although the drills will help too.

• Noem een of meerdere muzikanten met wie je om 2 uur 's nachts in een bar graag zou willen improviseren en vertel ons waarom.

  I’m a big fan of The Beatles, and Lennon & McCartney would be amazing to work with. Especially after seeing how they improvise ideas while songwriting.

• Kan je ons een leuke anekdote vertellen die met jouw beroep of schooltijd te maken heeft?

  A proud moment of mine that I think about now and again was at an award ceremony at my high school. Our school music teacher started making a speech about a student who had performed really well throughout the year and in their final exam. I didn’t expect it to be me but then my teacher started making eye contact with me in the crowd and talking to me personally from the stage in a room full of people. I’ll never forget it because she was a massively influential teacher in my life and her words were extra meaningful.

• Wat maakt jou een geliefde Superprof bij al jouw leerlingen?

  I pay attention to the student and approach each lesson in a way that fits for them. Each student needs a slightly different approach, some do better with subtle encouragement and others with direct encouragement for example.