Adolfo Mendonca
About
Hi! I offer piano lessons for people with any skill level and age! I've been teaching music over the last 20 years, and I've taught more than 250 piano students (individual private lessons), in addition to many group classes. I'm currently a full-time instructor in a prestigious conservatory, and I have been receiving invitations to teach lectures and workshops in prestigious universities. I'm very sure I can be a great instructor for you.
I have a master of music degree from the University of South Florida, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in music education. I have also attended lessons in may other music schools in order to acquire a wide set of foundations in music. In addition to that, I had lessons with prestigious instructors in the US (Chuck Owen, Mark Taylor, Lynne Arriale, Chris Rottmayer) and in Brazil (Arrigo Barnabe, Roberto Sion, Nailor Proveta).
I also have a great background as a performer, since I played so far in the US, France, Brazil and Mexico, including performances in some well-recognized venues and jazz festivals, and opportunities to share the stage with a few Grammy award winners. Also, in Brazil, I have been recently selected as one of the 10 best pianists in my state (with emphasis on popular music).
An important information is that I'm a bilingual person! My native language is Portuguese, but I'm also a fluent English speaker. That means that I have a non-native accent, but I can speak and understand English in a very advanced level - I have a 7.5 IELTS English speaking score, and I have attended a graduate degree in the United States).
You will find more information about me, including videos of performances in the US and Brazil, on my website: www.adolfomendonca.com
I believe that individual real time lessons are the best for the student's development. In those lessons, we will discuss topics based in your main needs and interests, but frequently students want to get fundamentals or to improve their skills on popular music, classical music, jazz, pop, blues, improvisation, harmony, composition and music production. I can cover any of those subjects on any level. If you're on the very beginning of music learning, than I will give you a more general experience with music, covering a wide set of foundations to let you understand how to think as a musician.
Master of Music - University of South Florida (2020)
Bachelor of Arts in Music Education - Universidade Federal de Sao Carlos (2017)
Full-time instructor at Guarulhos City Conservatory (2015-2021)
Recommended Student texts will vary very much on student's music genre preferences, learning style (classical, popular, jazz), age and level. I can say that I enjoy very much using certain Hal Leonard methods for jazz students, but we don't actually need the book... and that I will likely teach J.S. Bach, Chopin preludes and Gurlitt etudes for intermediate level classical pianists. With very advanced jazz players, I will probably use Jerry Coker's Elements of Jazz Language, in addition to my approach to teach voicings, which is based on Andy Laverne's Quickchords book.