How it all began

Andrea Biedermann began studying the piano at the age of 8 in a small town in the interior of British Columbia, with a farmer as her first teacher. Andrea studied for 10 years with a variety of teachers, all lovely people, and truly loved studying the piano. But there was a big, BIG problem Andrea didn’t realize until well into her 30’s. She had learned so many terrible habits that she was unable to perform and express music to the full extent of her abilities. Because of this, Andrea spends a great deal of energy as an instructor making sure her students don’t have to dig their way out of the same situation Andrea did.
The person who helped Andrea start on her new path to good playing habits was a man named Thierry Gudel, a European concert pianist who had just immigrated to Canada. She started from scratch, with years and years of terrible habits to fix. With Thierry, Andrea began studying the R.C.M. (Royal Conservatory of Music) method . It took Andrea six years of studying, practicing and re-learning, to build a new and strong foundation. These lessons cleared the way for her, so that she is now able to pass this knowledge along to her students who are either starting the instrument for the first time, or need to work on and correct their own bad habits.
After many years, Andrea engaged a new teacher, Dr. Carla Dodek. She challenged Andrea and continued to aid her ongoing growth as a pianist and teacher. Andrea also studied with a truly amazing woman and theoretical teacher by the name of Deborah Choit. Debbie was instrumental in helping to overcome the hurdles of theory and all the challenges they present. Thanks to great tenacity on both our parts, Andrea is able to pass along the rudiments of piano theory to those who study with her.
The latest teacher to enter Andrea’s musical life, one of the world’s great gifts,  was Walter Prossnitz. Andrea first met Walter at a day camp for piano students, where he was a guest artist. It was exciting to watch how he moved and played, and inspirational to work with someone who had studied at Julliard and performed at Carnegie Hall. He made Andrea rise farther and higher than I expected, and helped me see the truly limitless possibilities of the piano.
Andrea has had the opportunity to study with some of the best piano teachers on the planet, and the experience and knowledge she’s gained is not only a gift to her, but to her students as well. With a great deal of persistence and many challenges (imagine being stuck without a piano for 8 months!) Andrea achieved her A.R.C.T. in Piano Performance.
Today, Andrea continues to learn and grow as both a pianist and instructor for you.