Lessons with Emily
I’m a lifelong musician and music educator and I want to help you or your child explore your love of music, achieve your musical dreams and play with other people. I’m professionally trained and experienced in multiple genres but I’m always curious about learning more and developing my abilities in more styles and instruments! I look forward to sharing my enthusiasm and experience with you and seeing how I can use it to help you on your journey.
I did my undergraduate degree in music performance at the University of British Columbia, graduate artist diplomas in music performance at the Vancouver Academy of Music and Concordia University and then a masters degree in creative and cultural entrepreneurship at the Goldsmiths University in London, UK. In that time I also trained at multiple residencies and festivals across the world. My training began in traditional classical, but I eventually expanded into contemporary classical, improvised and experimental music, jazz, klezmer, rock and Balinese gamelan. Over the last 25+ years I’ve been studying, performing, composing and teaching in multiple settings. These have included private teaching, chamber/ small group, large ensemble rehearsals, clinics and workshops, and full class music. I am pleased to offer a full CV upon request.
Email me to book your free trial!
What people are saying about lessons with Emily
We were very fortunate to have Emily as our child’s first teacher. She noticed his enthusiasm and made him to feel like a musician. I was able to be present for some of the lessons and was impressed by the way she broke down the teaching and made helpful suggestions. He absolutely thrived under her tuition and she set him on a great path for learning.
-Parent of former student
Emily has always been full of unbridled energy. She energizes everyone around her and I can’t think of a better person to learn from!
- Elizabeth Brown, oboist, Artistic Director
As a student of Emily’s for several years in London, I would like to say how much I gained from her. I restarted clarinet at the age of 60+ after a gap of twenty years. I was also primarily a self-taught clarinettist and had learned much that was wrong. Emily’s disciplined approach helped me improve my understanding of the instrument itself and of written music, to which I had previously taken rather an approximate approach.
Though Emily was particularly good at teaching the fine details of the music we played I must emphasise that she also encouraged overall musicality, imagination and story-telling: the big picture. She communicated to me her own enthusiasm for many genres of music. Emily’s lessons always made me want to practise and improve. She helped me choose pieces to play that I found very motivating; I still play them. I think her teaching skills could be applied to anyone from five to ninety-five.
Emily is an excellent professional musician in her own right. She creates music of her own and is adept at improvisation, particularly on the bass clarinet.
-Jill Grinstead