Therese Miller

Biography

With over 15 years of teaching experience, Therese Miller is a music educator specializing in piano, violin, and viola instruction. Throughout her career, she has increasingly focused on working with preschool, kindergarten, and first-grade students with curriculum that is developmentally attuned for these formative years. 

Therese teaches lessons that are engaging, playful, and developmentally appropriate, with an emphasis on kinesthetic learning. Through this interactive approach, her students develop a strong musical foundation while remaining motivated, curious, and confident. She is committed to preparing young children for long-term success by establishing technical habits that support smooth and sustainable musical growth. Her ability to teach is further strengthened by formal training in the Paul Rolland, Suzuki, and Mimi Zweig pedagogical approaches. These methodologies have shaped her emphasis on healthy technique and beautiful tone. 

For more than 15 years, Therese maintained a 75-student private studio in the Champaign-Urbana area, working closely with families and adapting instruction to each child’s individual learning style. Additionally, Therese has close to a decade of experience teaching at Montessori schools, providing both private music classes and group lesson instruction. 

Therese studied with Masumi Per Rostad, Thomas LeVeck, Victor Cayres, and David Hobbs. Through this mentorship, she developed a refined understanding of tone production and disciplined practice habits at a high artistic level. She translates these complex concepts into developmentally appropriate instruction for young children, laying a technical and musical foundation that supports more advanced learning as they grow.

Teaching Philosophy:

I believe early music education should be joyful and spark the natural curiosity of the child. When lessons are interactive, creative, and responsive to a child’s interest, students are able to learn. It is during this time that you can quietly build the technical skills and musical foundation that will support a lifetime of musical growth. I believe music instruction should be structured, intentional, and focused on teaching fundamental skills that students can build upon for years to come. These skills include steady rhythm and internal pulse, basic music reading fluency, musical expression and phrasing, as well as beautiful tone production and technique.

Careful introduction of these fundamental elements ensures that students are not just playing notes, but independently understanding their music. My goal is not only to teach students how to play, but how to read both the pitch and rhythm of their pieces. When these strong foundations are achieved, a child will practice more willingly and approach challenges with enthusiasm rather than fear or resistance. These skills will empower students to become independent musicians capable of handling more rigorous study later on.

Training:

University of Wisconsin: Madison, Wisconsin

Suzuki Teacher Training

PRSPS: Paul Rolland Method Training