Welcome to piano pedagogy at the University of Colorado Boulder College of Music!

Our piano pedagogy program trains both undergraduate and graduate pianists to become excellent and knowledgeable teachers at all levels. Undergraduate students majoring in piano performance gain practical teaching experience through various courses in pedagogy.

The Master of Music in piano performance and pedagogy program seeks to prepare excellent piano teachers familiar with the soundest educational approaches and technologies who are capable of teaching children, adolescents and adults in one-on-one and group instruction in private studios, preparatory music schools and colleges. The program is designed to train teachers who are also pianists of the highest caliber, capable of performing at a professional level. Our students gain practical experience teaching at different levels and ages through the CU Boulder Youth Piano Program, Continuing Education piano lessons for adults, and group classes for music majors and non-majors.

By the end of their studies, our students will have attained the following competencies:

  • Skills in teaching music through piano to children, adolescents and adults at the elementary, pre-college and college levels
  • Skills in teaching class piano and keyboard skills to college students in group settings
  • Ability to plan and sequence a piano curriculum that includes the development of musicality, technical, functional and creative skills for diverse ages
  • Knowledge of a broad range of educational materials at the elementary, intermediate and advanced levels
  • Knowledge and experience using instructional technology such as electronic pianos, piano laboratory systems, computer software and hardware, and communication tools such as Powerpoint, LCD projectors and web pages
  • Appropriate written communication skills for the creation of research papers and essays, and preparation of articles and reviews for magazine publication
  • Presentation skills appropriate to professional conferences and lecture recitals
  • A high level of performance skills across a wide variety of styles

alejandro cremaschiAlejandro Cremaschi

Alejandro Cremaschi, NCTM, received his MM and DMA degrees from the University of Minnesota. He earned undergraduate degrees from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and the Universidad Nacional de Cuyo, Mendoza, Argentina. He studied with Dora De Marinis, Nancy Roldan and Lydia Artymiw. He was a prize winner at the International Beethoven Sonata Piano Competition in Memphis, Tennessee in 2001. Cremaschi’s current pedagogical research areas include concert repertoire and pedagogical music by Latin American composers; student achievement, motivation and practicing strategies; and the pedagogical uses of technology. He has been a presenter at numerous national and international conferences, and has published articles in the Research Studies in Music Education journal, Journal of Music, Technology and Education, Clavier Companion and the MTNA e-journal among others. He is an active performer, and has recorded as a soloist and as a member of Trio Cordilleras for the labels IRCO, Ostinato, Marco Polo and Meridian Records. Cremaschi teaches piano pedagogy, applied piano, class piano and keyboard harmony, and coordinates the class piano area at CU Boulder. He was president of the Colorado State Music Teachers Association between 2012 and 2014. MORE