What to expect from a great piano teacher?

[gyhujbox5]

What makes a great piano teacher? Is it good enough to be just competent and capable of sharing his/her knowledge or there are other more subtle qualities? Is it also critical for a student to find the best possible teacher or "good enough" is good enough?

[quantum]

https://www.reddit.com/r/piano/comments/4qbfkv/what_to_expect_from_a_great_piano_teacher/

[45310]

Great piano teacher- first - experienced, 2 - intuitive, 3- got education in Russia from the prestigious universities. Teacher - who focus on the teaching, not - performances

[keypeg]

Great piano teacher- first - experienced, 2 - intuitive, 3- got education in Russia from the prestigious universities. Teacher - who focus on the teaching, not - performances

I totally disagree with no. 3 which I struck out.  This would imply that any teacher who is not Russian-educated is bad, and vice versa.  I know one pianist/teacher who had to relearn technique because of what had been done by a Russia-educated teacher.

Everything else I agree with.

[zebra555]

What do Russian teachers tend to do?  I’ve heard many implications that they have a particular way of teaching that’s not popular - but not sure why?

[ranjit]

Arguably, the fit between the teacher and student matters immensely. I don't know what really separates a good teacher from a great one, but I think giving counterintuitive, specific advice which still somehow works is a mark of a great teacher.

[lelle]

What do Russian teachers tend to do?  I’ve heard many implications that they have a particular way of teaching that’s not popular - but not sure why?

Thats funny, I have heard the opposite - that russian teachers are the best for instructing technique and a solid foundation. Some Russian teachers can be very strict/hard on the student, maybe. Curious to hear what kind of bad experiences people hae had with russian teachers?

[brogers70]

A good piano teacher leaves you, at the end of each lesson, psyched to go back to practicing, armed with some new approach to working on whatever problems you are having, and motivated to listen carefully to some aspect of your own playing you had not been paying enough attention to.

What skills they need to produce that result depends on the level and personality of the student.

[quantum]

Curious to hear what kind of bad experiences people hae had with russian teachers?

I've had Russian teachers, non-Russian teachers from a Russian lineage, and masterclasses from Russian teachers.  The experiences have been both positive and negative, but for the most part they were positive.  I would say it is more about teacher-student chemistry than anything else. 

A teacher that is obnoxious is simply a person acting obnoxious, no matter their nationality or the amount of impressive letters that follow their name.  Unfortunately, there are quite a few of these in academia.  It is just toxic teaching, and I stay away from people like that. 

Thats funny, I have heard the opposite - that russian teachers are the best for instructing technique and a solid foundation.

My experiences would agree with this.  Russian teaching has a way of explaining technique very effectively without getting drowned in technical jargon.  It is a very direct manner of teaching that allows the student to quickly grasp topics, and the reasoning behind technique.  I have found the Russian manner of teaching technique far more beneficial than some North American manners of teaching that are unnecessarily wordy, exercise-first music-second approaches. 

[jimf12]

My current teacher is a graduate of a conservatory in Lithuania, she is in her 60's so that would have been part of the USSR at the time she was there.   I can only guess that she was a disciple of the "Russian school".

I'll call myself a reasonably competent amateur, with no goal other than improving.   I sought out a teacher after I realized after a re-dedication to the piano that I was only going to get so far relying on lessons taken almost 40 years ago supplemented with YouTube videos.    I did not seek out a "Russian school" teacher, she was available and had impressive credentials so I signed up.

Whether or not this is because she is from the Russian school, or just a good teacher, I do not know - but it's technique, technique, and more technique.    So much technique.    I never remember a teacher devoting this kind of time to technique.   Hand positioning, lifting the fingers, how the wrists rotate in arpeggios, relaxation in the hand, focusing on which muscles are engaged etc...    And while I've developed some bad habits over the years, many of them are being addressed and it's making a difference in my play.   

 

 

[Bob]

Answers to everything.

Guidance/direction.

Inspiration.

A push.

More ability... To see different paths, to practice, literature, etc.

[gipsypiano]

I have 4 piano teachers and they are exactely what I expect from them and, logically, they are also my 4 spiritual masters fore quite some long years now.
The are.
Water, fire, crystal and air.

I know I can still learn for hundrets of years from them and if I didnt get the message one time, there are always singing angels like birds or frogs who explain me in their way how to do most efficiently and in infinite details with magic and creative structures in music.