Ava is ready for fall lessons!
If you don’t know, Ava (Gardner, of course) is our studio cat who’s been known to wait at the window for students, watch students from atop the piano, and even - when the stars are aligned - join students on the bench. In other words: she’s all about students. Summer lessons are always a little more sporadic than the rest of the year, so she’s excited for the activity to pick back up. Cats do love a routine…
…and so do piano teachers! I’m gearing up for the fall, including making my annual piano-teacher-splurge trip to Groth Music, where I recently picked up a bunch of music, pictured above. I was especially excited to find the theme music from one of my favorite movies, The Apartment, and a new-to-me urtext edition of music by female composers from the 1700s-1900s. Isn’t it gorgeous? I might have to do some of my own piano exploring before Fall Quarter starts. I also couldn’t resist picking up Bad Bunny, just in case.
While the summer teaching schedule has been a little lighter, I’ve been busy in other areas of music education. Back in June, I presented a session about teaching diverse composers to kids at the Minnesota Music Teachers Association’s Annual Convention. I was delighted to find that I wasn’t the only teacher focused on this topic. Dr. Sara Langmead presented on the pieces by underrepresented composers included on this year’s Piano Contest list, and I got to leave the convention with some new female composer busts to boot! They’re excited to be the newest members of the studio.
Can you guess who they are? (Answer is at the end of this post!)
In July I got to go on a lovely family trip to France. Highlights were paying respects to Chopin’s grave - something I’ve been wanting to do since I was a 10-year-old pianist - and seeing an opera at the beautiful Palais Garnier in Paris. I hope I get to return someday soon.
Other than that, I’ve been working behind the scenes to develop my Allegra Sparkle music education project as a resource for teachers and parents. We have composer highlights and music listening suggestions on Instagram and Facebook, with more coming soon! And I’ve been lucky to be a fellow in the prestigious Fred Rogers Productions Writers’ Neighborhood program, which wrapped up earlier this year. It’s given me so much knowledge about and insight into all the work that goes into creating positive and nurturing children’s media.
Here’s me at Fred Rogers Productions in Pittsburgh - a dream come true!
I’ll close this update with a return to my students, who I remain endlessly proud of. In the 2025-2026 academic year, Gardner Piano Studio had performers at the MMTA Honors Concert at the Minneapolis Convention Center, the SPPTA Adult Piano Recital at the Landmark Center in St. Paul, and, of course, our own studio recitals.
Bravi, tutti!
The deadline to register for Fall Quarter piano lessons is August 26, so be sure to reach out soon if you’re interested in joining our studio. I can’t wait for another year of piano adventures, exploring even more music, and, of course, finding new strategies to keep Ava from plucking the piano strings…
Enjoy these final weeks of summer!
Cheers,
Lillie
The composer busts are: Mélanie Bonis, Teresa Carreño, and Florence Price.
