Jennifer Piazza-Pick
Soprano/Educator/
Advocate for Women Composers
TEACHING
Mission Statement
In order to guide artistic and personal growth in my students, I aim to provide them opportunities to explore their curiosity. Whether in the private studio or the classroom, I create a brave space that encourages risk-taking, self-awareness, and exploration of both standard and diverse repertoire in order to give students ownership of their artistry.
As a teacher, I consider myself fortunate to have taught talented students from ages 5 to 72 in both individual voice lessons and in the classroom setting. Whether teaching high school students auditioning for college programs, university undergraduates, or adult choristers, I search to design a long-range plan that will guide each student to reach his or her goals.
I approach my private studio teaching with immense curiosity, where we experiment to find each student's authentic voice. I want students to sound like themselves and no one else. In each lesson, we work together toward achieving that goal by exploring and devising solutions to technical puzzles and delving deep into the texts. My aim is to teach students how to apply the concepts and problem-solving approaches they are learning so they can use them on their own in the practice room. That way they are on the road to taking charge of their own lifelong learning. I also guide them to explore their own humanity to learn to bring the text alive. Because I value diversity, I strive to assign repertoire from a wide-range of composers, not simply the ones in the traditional vocal canon.
As a classroom teacher, I design course plans with the desired outcome in mind: what students will be able to do by the end of the semester or year. I then plan backwards from the goals to incorporate student-centered learning: group work, creative assignments utilizing technology, and lively class discussions to help students become empowered learners. My goal is to provide a classroom environment that feels safe enough for students to take risks, ask questions, and connect the course material to their own life experience in order to create curious leaners.
I have had successful private studios in Texas, Virginia, and Maryland, as well as in Heidelberg, Germany. My students have gone on to study at prestigious schools like the University of Houston and Yale University. They have been finalists and winners at NATS, Schmidt Youth Vocal Competition, TMEA All-State and Solo competitions, Golden Voices Competition, American Protégé Competition, and the Hal Leonard Vocal Competition.
Currently, I am Director of Music and Assistant Professor of Music (Voice) at Queens University of Charlotte. At the collegiate level, I have taught everything from Applied Lessons, Vocal Pedagogy, Class Voice, Diction, and Opera Workshop, to Music Appreciation, Women in Music and Aural Skills at academic institutions in three states. As a teaching assistant, I've aided professors in undergraduate diction, undergraduate vocal literature, and undergraduate and graduate vocal pedagogy. I’ve also taught high school-level choir and music theory as well as elementary music and choir. The institutions in which I have worked have had diverse student populations, including an HBCU, a university that was 75% Hispanic, and one that focused on working adult learners. No matter the context, I remain committed to fostering the musical and personal growth of each student, creating music lovers for life.