About Thomas
I live in Riverdale Park with my wife, son, and two dogs and am excited to offer piano lessons to the community.
I finished my Doctor of Music Arts at the University of Maryland. Prior to that, I completed the prestigious Artist Diploma program at the Royal College of Music in London, England where I was named the Somers-Mountfort Scholar.
I began my career as a piano teacher when I was about halfway through my undergraduate degree in 2008. At the time, I had just three students - siblings in fact. They opened my eyes to the joys, fulfillment, and growth that teaching what I myself was still learning could give. I soon found myself teaching lessons to other undergraduate students from various other majors.
In 2010, I began my masters work and took a position teaching at the International School of Music in Bethesda. More firsts followed, including my first time teaching a child. At the time, this was nothing short of daunting but I am happy to report, 13 years later, that there was nothing to worry about.
I love living in Riverdale Park with my wife, Camille, and our dogs, Penelope and Biscuit. You’ll find me on one of the walking trails around Riverdale, at Franklin’s, or most recently at Manifest Bread.
When not at the piano, I work at The Phillips Collection in Washington, DC where I am the Concerts and Production Manager. There, I work on all aspects of the concert series, and we’re in the middle of our 83rd season.
In addition to music, also enjoy cooking, and am healthily obsessed with woodworking and furniture-making.
Not only was it fun, watching these young student progress from knowing nothing about the piano to playing recitals was incredibly gratifying. These days, I teach all ages from as young as 5 to folks in their 70s, though most of my students fall in the range of 5-12 years old.
I’m frequently asked if I prefer teaching one age group over another but the truth is, I don’t have a preference - all age groups are rewarding in different ways. I love how fun lessons can be with young children, how exciting it is when students in their teens start playing advanced music, and the chance to discuss music from a philosophical perspective with adults. There’s a saying that I find suspicious: “Those who can't do, teach.” I think this is totally false! I have learned so much from teaching that I in turn apply to my own work, so “Those who teach, learn more” makes much more sense to me.
As a performer, I have played in England, the USA, Italy and Serbia at venues and series including the Strathmore Mansion, Steinway Hall, Amaryllis Fleming Concert Hall, The Forge, the IN Series, the Bath Recital Artists' Trust, the Miami Summer Music Festival, the Columbia Festival for the Arts, and the World Piano Conference. My performances have also been played on 91.5 WBJC.
I’ve been noted for “riveting, emotional complexity” by the Washington Times and won first prize in the Sevag and Nairi Balian Concerto Competition in Siena, Italy, first prize in the Montpelier Arts Center Classical Recital Competition, second prize in the Rising Star Emerging Artist Competition, was awarded the the Helen Mack Memorial Scholarship at the Aspen Music Festival and School and the Charles F. Bruny Fellowship at the Garth Newel Music Center. I’ve had the privilege to study under Rita Sloan, Bradford Gowen, Ian Jones, Ann Schein, and my very first teacher, Wendy Dengler. I’ve played in masterclasses, which are a kind of public lesson/concert hybrid, for Emmanuel Ax, Ann Schein, Edward Parmentier, Agustin Anievas, Alan Feinberg, and Tamara Sanikidze.
While maintaining a great passion for the classics, I love performing new works in various genres. I have premiered and recorded music by composers including Evan Meier, Dorian Wallace, William Kenlon, Geoff Sheil, and Tomek Regulski, among others. I also enjoy performing in popular and folk genres, and have performed with innovative ensembles such as invoke, Boss Company, and the Trifilio Tango Trio.
