We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jaclyn Mrozek a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Jaclyn , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

My parents have always encouraged me to pursue my music. They were there through all of the wins (and the many unfortunate losses) and I have never had to question their support.

When I started piano lessons at the age of 9, my parents heard of a family looking to rehome an old upright piano.

A very big and very old piano.  The ivory keys were chipped and the wood holding up the music stand was cracked.  However, it was cheap and the sound board was in excellent shape.

It didn’t matter to me how the piano looked.  It would be my own to play on whenever I wanted.  That is all that I cared about at the time.

The family that we purchased it from was about 2 streets away in our neighborhood. My dad had the idea to put it on the back of a neighbors pick-up truck and then slowly make way to our home, all while he would steady it on the back.

This was the early 90s when everyone was always outside together. So one can imagine that, although it started with just my dad and a neighbor, by the time they made it to our house, about 15 men had gathered to help out. It became quite the spectacle of the weekend.

That old Ludwig & Co. piano quickly became my best friend. Thanks to the chipped keys, it is no exaggeration when I admit it has seen my blood, sweat, and tears throughout the years. Knowing what I know now about pianos, it is pretty amazing that it still has a beautiful sound and an astounding soundboard.

Things were not easy financially growing up, but I never had any idea. All I knew was that I had a precious piano of my own, teachers who supported me, and parents who made sure I was able to have all the music I needed. They took me to lesson after lesson, week after week, evaluation and competitions, dealt with my performance anxiety, and to this day support my music and my students.

I wouldn’t be doing what I am doing if I hadn’t had their support growing up. It may have started as a hobby for me but has since become a meaningful career. I am forever grateful.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My name is Jaclyn Mrozek and I am the owner and teacher at my piano studio, Piano Kats LLC. I have an incredibly supportive husband, three amazing kids, three fluffy cats, and one energetic dog that loves to hang out at lessons.

Helping students find their voice in music is my passion. My approach to teaching has transformed from an initial emphasis on strict structure and tradition to a more creative, music-centered, and gamified approach to learning.

We still participate in many evaluations, competitions, and recitals, but my main goal is that my students recognize their own voice as musicians first and become pianists second.

And I must say, we have so much fun during the process.

Piano Kats currently provides both individual and group lessons. Throughout the year, we offer numerous ensemble and performance classes alongside one-on-one sessions.

Beginning in December, I’ll be arranging consultations with fellow teachers to enhance both the business and creative aspects of teaching.

Looking ahead, I’m eager to recruit lead teachers and mentor aspiring junior instructors. Stay tuned for exciting announcements in the next 12 months!

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Absolutely.  Piano teachers and other music teachers are often well trained in their craft, but not so much in the administrative and customer service part.  After all, this is a business and not a hobby.

It took me a while to jump all in for my business.  So for about 7 years I worked full time in a busy office while teaching students after work.  At the time it seemed like I would never reach my goals, but upon reflection I could not be more grateful.  That job gave me in-depth training of multiple systems, training in customer service in different cities, project management experience, and more.

In fact, I did not realize what an issue the business end was for other teachers until I became heavily involved in teacher organizations. Most of these teachers have multiple degrees but lack the education in a truly successful and well organized business with systems, accounting, and all the other non-creative admin ‘stuff’ that us creatives like to ignore.

I respect that so many teachers are addressing this.  This is where networking with other teachers, attending conferences, and hiring other experienced teachers for consulting comes into play.

Despite my own administrative experience, I still was not equipped to run my own business, so it has been a bit of a journey.  I am always learning but now my studio is strong with systems and auto-admin jobs that run in the background.  I love sharing this with other teachers and helping them get set up too.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

I believe that our profession is occasionally misunderstood, with some people viewing it more as a hobby.

I’ve even been asked if I plan to pursue a “real job” in the past. To this I simply smile and respond that it is actually a real career and I have no plans to transition to something else.

Another disheartening comment is the phrase, “those that can’t, teach.” I know so many amazing teachers who can do SO many amazing things and just because they choose to teach doesn’t mean they can’t do something. Trust me, they aren’t just teaching, there is a lot of DOING.

Teaching presents several other challenges as well, and one of them is establishing fair rates for both the teacher and the student.

Charging adequate tuition that isn’t going to break the bank for families while still covering expenses, resources, instrument care, taxes, and healthcare is challenging and often discussed in the teaching communities.

I once heard a highly regarded teacher mention that, for every one hour of teaching, there’s typically three hours of planning involved. When you consider that, in an average studio with 25 students, each lesson lasting 45 minutes, the workload adds up to over 56 hours per week.

On top of that, there are additional responsibilities like working with local associations, organizing recitals, and evaluations. It’s clear that teaching music is a truly serious endeavor.

This all involves a lot of ‘can dos’ equaling out to a highly respectable and a very real career.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.PianoKats.com
• Instagram: Www.instagram.com/the_pianokats
• Facebook: Www.facebook.com/pianokats

Image Credits
Karen Anderson Photography