ABOUT

Choosing the right teacher is the most important initial step in your musical journey!

I aspire to teach in a welcoming, positive, friendly, fun and open manner and I strive to make all of my students feel comfortable and at ease when engaged with lessons.  I take the extra time get to know my students individually and keenly aim to broaden and develop their love of music. 

I give my students the freedom and encouragement to explore their own creativity, yet at the same time give them a structured & disciplined foundation from which to work from. Incorporating these ideals into my lessons gives students a sense of inspiration, achievement, and self confidence, in addition to acquiring skills that they can take forward in life.

I have many years of experience in teaching varied piano methods, including but not limited to: Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), Trinity College London, Faber Piano Adventures, Bastien, and Alfred. Methods are chosen with careful consideration to the student’s individual musical history, desires, aspirations and goals. For example: very young children learn much faster through play, and I teach a method that specifically emphasizes the musical imaginative nature of young beginners (Faber My First Piano Adventures).

I feel that one method is not suited to all students and I am very mindful in choosing the appropriate method that will most inspire and educate that particular student, keeping in mind their personal goals. I have had many diverse students with different musical tastes, so I include a choice of genre and repertoire that the student will enjoy,  such as, classical, pop, jazz, blues, popular, or songs from musicals and movies, including Disney and chording/lead sheets for Pop songs and improv.  For example, when a student comes to me for lessons, I give them a solid foundation with structured lesson plans and short/long term goal setting, but am flexible with a choice of musical genre that will inspire them and one that they will enjoy learning, practicing and playing.

If it is the examination route you would like to explore, I also teach graded curriculum exam programs with both Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) and Trinity College London (TCL). I write individual exams programs, lesson plans with goal setting for each student corresponding to the level they are currently studying.

My lesson plans are well-rounded and all-encompassing, in which I not only teach the musical repertoire, I also incorporate: theory, sight-reading, technique, performance pieces, and musical history. I call them my “All-In-One” lessons. So you can rest assured you will be receiving a well-rounded and fully engaging musical education.

I accept students starting from 5 years of age, up to and including senior citizens. Each age group calls for different approaches to teaching and I take into account these differences in my lessons, as well as individual personalities. It is well known, that engaging in learning an instrument in senior years provides many mental health benefits. This also applies to the younger generations, as learning a musical instrument helps them achieve higher grades in school. 

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I have studied through the highest grades of both Royal Conservatory of Music, and Trinity College London (England) and am currently in the process of studying for my classical piano ATCL performance degree with Trinity College London.

(even piano teachers need to keep exploring new horizons!)  

I also have a certificate for Piano Pedagogy studied through 

The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM).

I am looking forward with excitement and anticipation in our musical journey together!

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Ms. Dee Hamel

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(807) 323-1504

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drydenpianostudio@icloud.com

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87 Memorial Avenue

Dryden, Ontario, Canada

P8N 2M1