About Sarah O'Brien

Education has been a continuous and very positive focal point throughout my entire life as a student and as a teacher. Playing the piano and studying French have been my two passions. To be able to help others experience these two enriching pastimes has brought me much happiness.

My background and experiences are varied and full. I began teaching when I was in grade school by helping teach the younger children in Sunday school. In high school, I tutored English and helped teach 3rd-grade reading. After graduating from the University of Michigan and also receiving a diploma from the Sorbonne at the University of Paris, I then taught junior high and high school French in Connecticut and Wisconsin.

I also studied at the Bradford Conservatory of Music in Milwaukee to learn how to arrange music, work with chords, and accompany. This approach enabled me to write my own teaching materials and to design a piano course that included the new skills I had learned.

I presently teach both piano and French privately in my home studio, with English tutoring also available. I continue to play piano extensively for church services, accompanying choirs, weddings, funerals, parties, and school events. All this has enabled me to help my students broaden their own playing by learning how to perform and also how to prepare for piano competitions.