Hi there! My name's Amy McCutchen, and I am so glad you are here. I love to teach kids of all ages piano lessons in Orlando. I currently teach out of my home music studio in Orlando - Maitland - Altamonte Springs, FL. My goal for this blog is to talk about all things music and specifically the piano. I figured, for my first blog post, I'd share a little bit about myself.
I have loved the piano since I was very little, and I was super eager to begin piano lessons with my best friends' mom when I was about 7. (Peep embarrassing photo of myself). I'm going to be honest - I didn't always love to practice though! I had my moments of wanting to quit, but always came back to it. Thankfully, I was never pushed too hard and it was always just a fun hobby during my elementary and middle school years.
When my family moved out to Oregon in my Junior year of high school, my mom found out about a really great piano teacher that she thought I could take piano lessons with. (I had been really into basketball at my small school in Florida, but the huge, public high school in Oregon's women's basketball team had won nationals multiple years and I was NOT on that level.) I was depressed to have left everything and everyone I had known back in Florida, and spent a lot of free time practicing piano! My new Oregon piano teacher was AMAZING, and really helped to incentivize me to practice with her level of care and love for music.
Before I knew it, it was time to apply for colleges. I had never thought I'd want to get a degree in music, but after praying about it and talking to a number of people, I decided I wanted to go into the field of music therapy. I applied to multiple colleges all over the country, and ended up deciding on going back to my roots. Florida State University! It was the cheapest option, and they have one of the top rated music therapy programs in the country. I was so excited.
Stay tuned for part 2 where I'll talk about my AMAZING college experience in studying the piano...
I love this, Amy! Can’t wait to keep reading about your piano experience and the path God brought you along to become the incredible piano teacher you are today! Your piano students are so blessed to have you!