When students walk into Theresa Ronan’s piano studio at CSMA’s Mountain View campus, they are not only greeted with a smile but a friendly reminder to “Believe in the power of yet.”
Ronan believes in positive motivation. She wants her students to know they are in a safe space to learn and what they might not have mastered “yet” will come.
Musical beginnings
She has been teaching piano for more than 30 years. While there are many instruments to choose from, the piano spoke to her at an early age.
“I love the sound of it,” Ronan said. “As I got older and learned more about playing piano, I found that it is expressive. There’s a therapeutic aspect to it. If I’m having a bad day, I could just go to the piano and have at it.”
She recalls growing up in a traditional 1970s neighborhood where all the kids on the street knew one another and played together. There was a sweet lady in the neighborhood who had a piano who would have the children over and teach them songs.
“It was all about the sound, “ she said. “Touching all those keys and watching the pretty sound come out–it was really very cool.”
That sweet lady was Claire Appling. She was a longtime family friend and was the first person who taught her how to play piano and identify “middle C,” she said. Ronan would later begin professional music lessons after her parents saw just how serious she was about learning the instrument.
A supportive teacher
In addition to Appling there was one music instructor who truly inspired her musical journey. Her name is Helen Starr. Her guidance went so much further than,”Lift your wrist a little higher” or “curve your finger.”
When Ronan was 10, she lost a dear cousin to suicide. She said she remembers her mom taking her to a piano lesson at the time and recalls her mother explaining to Starr what had happened and that the family was having a hard time. It was Starr’s reaction that she would never forget.
“For that half hour, we just sat and talked,” she said. “That was the first time I saw her as another person. After that, I didn’t have to worry that I didn’t practice. It was a safe place and I learned that I could share my feelings. It was very healing. She also showed me how to use music to heal and how to channel my emotions and put it into the music.”
On the more technical side of instruction, Starr also helped her perfect her piano form and technique. This has helped her to avoid injury–something she saw fellow classmates in undergraduate school battle sometimes, she shared.
Teaching philosophy
When she was in middle school, she saw how music could connect her to others. When a teacher saw how good at playing she was, she was invited to accompany the school choir. She made new friends and grew musically and personally.
“It gave me a lot of confidence,” she said. ‘I thought to myself, ‘I have found my niche’.” I had found my people and it was a place of belonging. (Music) gave me friends.”
That sense of belonging and self-confidence is what she wants her students to experience on their musical journeys.
“I want my students to gain a lifelong appreciation for music,” she said. “ I want them to always be able to come home after a good or bad day and play music and or use their talents in the community. Above all, I want my students to grow into adults who can love, participate, and appreciate music throughout their lives regardless of their chosen profession.”
At CSMA, Ronan also teaches Intro to Keyboard for ages 5-55+, helps with our performance choir and training choirs and teaches in the Music4Schools program. While she loves the piano, she also loves to sing, she admits.
Her advice to anyone contemplating music lessons:
“Music is always going to be there for you no matter what. Go for it. You’ll never miss your window.”
By TaLeiza Calloway-Appleton
