“Nicholas has been such a great and supportive teacher for our son. He is doing better in school, sitting up taller, and taking the initiative and responsibility to focus on his work. We credit this to the values he is learning in his piano lessons.”
- Parent testimonial
“...but perhaps the only thing I take more seriously than my passion for collaborative piano would be my responsibility for teaching.
It is precisely because of this immense sense of pressure and obligation that I feel towards my students that I don’t undertake a teaching relationship lightly.
I feel very fortunate in my musical upbringing to have studied only with teachers who themselves were performers and focused on the art of performance as their core teaching value.
As a result, I have adopted the same teaching approach to instill in the few students I do take on the ability to master complete musical literacy and secure performance competency.
I believe this is best achieved by assigning students or ensembles carefully selected repertoire from the standard piano or chamber literature, while working through a detailed preparation process with an upcoming performance goal in mind.
I leave it up to my students what they do with their achievements beyond that- be it competitions, more performance engagements, or just playing for their own enjoyment.
I demand from my students in each of my lessons and coachings exactly what I demand of myself as a performer: a comprehensive and intimate understanding of the composer’s score coupled with a systematic technical and musical approach of how to achieve it every time.
After many years of working with students of all ages and levels, I find that my goal for them has always been the same: Whether they play recreationally or professionally, every student should receive the same needed pianistic and musicianship skills to take their level of playing anywhere they want it to go.”
-ND
“Mr. Dold was one of the most demanding teachers I ever worked with, but I loved every moment of it. He zeroes in on every detail of my playing while explaining things in a direct and easy-to-understand manner.”
- Student testimonial