Helena Michelson

EDUCATION AND BACKGROUND Originally from Riga, Latvia, Dr. Helena Michelson attended San Francisco Conservatory Pre-College where she studied piano with Mack McCray. She has also participated in master classes with Richard Goode and Awadagin Pratt. She received her Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Music from the University of California, Berkeley, and completed a doctorate (Ph.D.) in Music Composition and Theory from the University of California, Davis. As a composer, Dr. Michelson has been a fellow at numerous festivals including the Composers Conference, June in Buffalo, Domaine Forget, Source Song Festival, and many others. She is a distinguished member of the judging panel for The American Prize National Nonprofit Competitions in the Performing Arts. Dr. Michelson has years of experience teaching piano students of all ages ranging from beginner to intermediate. She also has extensive experience teaching music appreciation and has taught a course on American musicals. Her approach to teaching is reflective of her many activities and wide-ranging musical interests. TEACHING PHILOSOPHY Every student is different with their own unique personality. Depending on students’ needs, in my teaching, I strive for an individualized approach. I also incorporate aspects of music theory, history, and performance practice as they relate to different musical style periods. My pedagogical goal is to help students develop their own thought processes and approach their music studies in a creative and analytical way – learning skills that can be applied in a variety of ways.