ABOUT JULES MATTHEWS

Private Piano Lessons
Cost: 30 minute lessons are $133 a month
45 & 60 min lessons also available
Schedule: Fridays, and some weekday mornings

I started playing by ear probably at age 3 or 4, with my boogie woogie playing Grampapi, who played and sang everything by ear. My other Grampa was also a pianist, singer, and musician – I had a very musical and ‘music-loving’ family.

I started classical at age 6. When I hit Grade 7 in Jr High, it was discovered that I didn't *actually* read very much music - I had always just asked my piano teacher to play the piece each week and I would simply remember it and play it by ear. I had to suddenly learn how to read the actual notes, and then quickly became an excellent sight reader because I was thrown on the piano for jazz band, choir, and jazz choir. I was one of the only piano players in my class, and that sort of remained my role until the end of grade 12.

My Grampapi took me to most of my piano festivals and competitions, and bought me a DQ ice cream cone afterwards, no matter how I placed. If my Dad brought me, then we would get a Wendy’s chocolate-malted on the way home. Chocolate ice-cream apparently played heavily into many of my childhood pianoing years. For some of my younger years, my Grandpapi would give me a new fishing lure each Saturday if I had practised 30 mins a day all week. Being so openly supported by my musical parents and grandparents absolutely formed my passion for music, and I think bribery helped during the younger years when I wanted to go play in the park with my friends instead of practising.

I went to music school and studied rock, jazz, composing, and film scoring. Playing by ear, improvising, composing, and fast sight reading got me a lot of really interesting gigs, including writing and playing for a [dreadful] movie filmscore, accompanying for opera singers, playing in folk, classical, and rock fusion bands, accompanying for all sorts of choirs, being a session player in recording studios and an on-demand accompanist for festivals, and I got to record on a lot of CDs. It also led me into learning and then teaching many other instruments.

I absolutely love music, and lessons with me are fun, enthusiastic, joyful and joy-filled, and supportive, no matter what your level. I welcome all ages of adults, (including absolute beginners of any age!), and kids, ages 6ish and up. I also teach ukulele and run children’s rock star groups and adult group classes.