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: the 2020 Morton Gould Young Composer Award, the 2020 MTNA Young Artist Composition Competition, 2019 ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award, the 2019 US Open Music Competition, 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. 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, MTNA, Society of Composers, Inc., and MTAC. 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 has 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.