Study with Michael

I’m a committed music teacher with 15 years of experience giving private lessons. I teach students of all ages and levels, including children, professional musicians, and adult beginners. My specialties include:

Piano Lessons
Composition
Music Theory
Jazz Improvisation
Musicianship

I am now offering in-person lessons at my home studio again. I am located in Northwest Detroit. All students and parents must be masked, no exceptions. I also wear a mask during lessons. For students who still prefer virtual lessons, I’m still offering virtual lessons too.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do lessons cost?

Lessons cost $70/hour. For shorter lessons, this is prorated (for example, a 30 minute lesson would cost $35.)

What forms of payment do you accept?

I accept PayPal, Venmo, Cashapp, check, or cash.

How long are lessons, and how frequent?

This completely depends on the student. For my youngest students, often 20 minutes is enough time. Most children ages 7+ are fine with a 30 minute lesson. More advanced students (high school, college age, and professional/post-college students) often elect to do 60 minute lessons. If you decide to sign up for lessons, we’ll tailor a plan to your specific needs.

Frequency of lessons really depends on your goals as a musician. If you’re trying to learn the piano without any previous training, or are serious about growing as a musician, I recommend weekly lessons. Some students elect for bi-weekly lessons, which is also fine (especially if you’re doing 60 minute lessons.) Other students elect to have lessons on an a-la-carte basis, every once in a while. That’s great too. I’m happy to work with you in any capacity.

Is my child the right age to begin lessons?

I start some students as young as 5. Many students are more ready at 6 or 7. And there is no such thing as “too old” to start with piano or music lessons! In addition to my young students, I have many adult students.

What does a typical lesson look like?

This will vary drastically from student to student. For advanced students, we will set specific goals together and work together to achieve those goals. Recently, I’ve worked with advanced students to create original compositions, analyze scores, and prepare pieces for recitals and other performances.

For children, I put a big premium on learning how to read music. I absolutely love playing by ear, and I do use aural techniques in my teaching as well, but I believe fundamentally in building music literacy from a young age. So we’ll spend a lot of time working on strategies to read music and perform written compositions.

For beginning adults, I’ll also work with you to set specific goals and help you achieve them. If you’re interested in learning jazz improvisation, we’ll work on chord voicings, scales, modes, learning some songs to improvise over, and maybe begin transcribing solos. If you’re interested in playing your favorite songs from movies or video games, we’ll work on that together. If you want to learn more about the fundamentals of music theory, I’ll help you grow in that way. I’m completely happy to guide you toward a positive musical experience.

For all of my students, I believe music should be an enlightening, fun, and growth-oriented activity!

What is your cancellation policy?

Any cancellations that happen within 24 hours of your lesson time will be billed as a normal lesson. Students may cancel more than 24 hours in advance without being billed.

Do you only accept local students?

No! I am currently accepting students from any location.

Can I sponsor another student’s music lessons?

Absolutely! If you’d like to donate the gift of music to a student in need, please reach out and let me know. We can work out a range of options.

Testimonials