taryn leonard instructor

Taryn Leonard

Instruments Taryn Leonard Teaches:

About Taryn Leonard

Taryn Leonard is a native of Hagerstown. She began learning piano at the age of four and by age sixteen had undertaken extensive study on saxophone, flute, clarinet, oboe, and bassoon under the instruction of Farrell Coy at Shepherd College. As a child in the area, she played in many local honor bands and musical theatre productions and won the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award at Smithsburg High School. Taryn began teaching private students locally at the age of seventeen. She attended the prestigious University of North Texas and graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Music in Saxophone Performance with minors in Mathematics, Physics, and Music Theory. While in Texas, she studied saxophone with Eric Nestler and James Riggs and performed on all saxophones, flute, clarinet, and piano in a variety of settings from large ensemble to solo. Taryn continued to teach private students while living in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Taryn went on to study Physics at University of Maryland, College Park after moving back to the D.C. area. From there, she began teaching full time and realized that it was her passion. Since then, Taryn has taught hundreds of private students in the Washington D.C. metro area, Frederick, Hagerstown, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. She also performs locally on piano and all woodwinds: solo and in various types of ensembles. She has guided many students on multiple instruments and loves to teach doubling as an important skill for woodwind students. Ms.Leonard prepares her students for honor bands, auditions, and performances using a wide variety of tools like science, breath work, music theory, and improvisation at all levels. Taryn is also a Reiki Master and Certified Meditation Guide and loves to use mindfulness as a tool in teaching students of all ages to relax and have fun while playing music.

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