I specialize in piano and composition lessons for dedicated students of all ages and levels.
My students range from advanced competition winners to those who play for their own enjoyment.
Piano Lessons ->
<- Composition Lessons
John Syzygy has been teaching piano and composition to students of all ages and levels for over 20 years. He creates a relaxed yet highly structured learning environment where students discover ways to cultivate new skills, practice efficiently, perform confidently, and learn about the theoretical and historical aspects of their repertoire. His primary goals are to inspire creativity and musical excellence, and help his students gain wisdom about themselves and the world at large as their love for music flourishes. His studio is often full and a waiting list is common.
John’s students have received numerous awards in regional, state, national, and international competitions. A sample of recent top prizes for his students includes: 2023-2024 Luna Lab Composition Fellow, the 2023 NFMC Outstanding Strings Composition Award, the 2022 YoungArts Award, the 2022 Pacific Musical Society & Foundation Competition, the 2022 ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award (Honorable Mentions for two of his students), the 2022 US Open Music Competition (Open Own Composition Category), the 2020-2021 MTNA Composition Competition, the 2021 NFMC Wilson Piano Award, the 2021 Sounds New Young Composer Award (Honorable Mention), the 2020 Morton Gould Young Composer Award (Honorable Mention), the 2020 NFMC Olga Klein Nelson Award, the 2019-2020 MTNA Composition Competition, 2019 ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award, the 2019 US Open Music Competition (Open Own Composition Category), the 2018 MTAC Composers Today State Contest, the 2018 National Federation of Music Clubs Junior Composers Contest (Western Regional Level), the 2017 NAfME Electronic Music Composition Competition, the 2017 MTNA Composition Competition (California), the 2016 Miami International GuitART Festival Competition, the 2017 Robert Avalon International Composers Competition, the 2016 Sue Shannon Memorial Award for Composing, and many more. His students are regularly selected to play at the annual MTAC Convention, as well as local Honors Recitals.
Many of John’s students have chosen to pursue careers as professional musicians, and have continued on as music majors or minors at schools such as the Blair School of Music (Vanderbilt University), Mills College, Lawerence University, the University of Puget Sound, University of Michigan, Cal Poly, and more.
Since 2011, John has owned and operated Play Music Studios, a teaching studio in Cupertino, CA.. He is a past member of the Board of Directors of the Music Teachers Association of California, (Santa Clara County Branch), and an active member of ASCAP, NAFME, MTAC, Society of Composers, Inc., and MTNA.
John Syzygy received his B.M. and M.A. in Composition from San Jose State University, where he was a two-time winner of the Eva Thompson Phillips Award for Composition. He regularly performs around the San Francisco Bay Area and, and spends a lot of time visiting parks, concerts, and museums with his family. He studied piano with Dr. Gwendolyn Mok, Dr. Laurel Brettell, Debbie Poryes, and Marc Steiner. His primary composition instructors include Dr. Pablo Furman, Dr. Brian Belet, and Dr. Daniel Wyman.