KU Community Music School
The KU Community Music School strives to inspire students of all ages to develop and nurture their joy in music. We offer programs in private piano instruction at various intensities with a wide array of performance opportunities. The University of Kansas School of Music provides us with a home for our private lessons, studio classes, master classes, and recitals. Aspiring graduate students from the School of Music provide quality instruction under the guidance of world-renowned pedagogue and Cordelia Brown Murphy Professor of Piano Pedagogy, Dr. Scott McBride Smith.
The KU Community Music School offers private piano lessons to students of all ages and interests. Lessons are held once every week, with 30 weeks of lessons in the academic year.
Piano Basics
- This program is for the student who loves to learn and enjoys making music. It includes 30 weekly lessons per year, and students perform on each of the four recitals. The cost is regular tuition. See tuition contract for more details.
Accelerated Program
- Students who love to perform and compete will benefit greatly from this program. In addition to regular lessons and recitals, students have the opportunity to participate in KCMTA events, and KU studio classes and master classes. The cost is regular tuition plus entrance fees, which vary by event. See tuition contract for more details.
Policy and Tuition
Enrollment Form
Contact
Questions or concerns? Contact Mingxi Zhang or Xiaoyi Zhang at bach0402zmx@ku.edu & 1218xyzhang@ku.edu.
Complete Calendar
Mingxi Zhang — Co-Director, Community Music School
Mingxi Zhang, born in Harbin, China, is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts in Piano Performance degree under Dr. Scott McBride Smith at KU. She joined the KU Community Music School as one of co-directors on May 4th, 2024. Before studying at KU, she holds a Bachelor of Music degree in piano education from China Conservatory of Music. She was awarded both national scholarship and academic scholarship for her Master of Music degree study with Dr. Peijun Han at China Conservatory of Music.
On the academic side, she has published 3 academic papers. On the piano performance side, she has won awards in international piano competitions, including the 14th Singapore International Chinese Competition (gold medal), Golden State International Piano Competition in North America (first prize), the 23rd Santa Cecilia International Piano Competition (first prize), Paderewski International Piano Competition, Poland (the special award), etc. She has given piano solo recitals as well as played with vocalists and other instrumentalists. For teaching, she once had an internship at a primary school for half a year. Besides, she has many one-on-one piano teaching experiences.
Xiaoyi Zhang — Co-Director, Community Music School
Xiaoyi Zhang, born in Yantai, China, is currently pursuing a Master of Music in Piano Performance and Pedagogy degree under Dr. Scott McBride Smith at KU. She joined the KU Community Music School as one of co-directors on May 4th, 2024. She also finished her bachelor’s degree here at KU, and her major was in music education. Before studying at KU, she studied at Shanghai Theatre Academy for two years in the Cultural Industry Art Research major. She was awarded national and academic scholarships when she was in the Cultural Industry Art Research program.
On the academic side, she is an MTNA member, and her proposal was accepted by KMTA/MMTA State Conference. She also is the professional-level teacher in USMCE system. On the piano performance side, she has won awards in Shandong Young Piano Talent (the 2nd place), Shandong Piano Teacher Competition (the 3rd place), Piano New Star competition (the 3rd place), ect. During her undergraduate, she did two and half years of field trips to teach in Lawrence kindergarten, elementary, and middle school. In addition, she also have four years of piano teaching experience working with different ages students. Her lesson content not only includes piano techniques but also music theory, music history, sight reading, and aural skills.