C I N D Y L A M P I A N O S T U DI O
“Cindy Lam cultivates a remarkably singular piano studio culture that inspires excellence, encourages creativity beyond the keyboard, and nurtures community in support of arts education. Her approach honors the whole child and engages parents meaningfully in their musical development."
-Rachel Fine, Executive Director, Yale Schwarzman Center; pianist
About Us
Cindy Lam Piano Studio (CLPS) is a comprehensive, neuro-affirming teaching studio dedicated to providing classical music training through a science-based, progressive educational philosophy to students of all ages and levels.
CLPS focuses on the growth of the student as a whole person through a play-based development and mastery of musical skills.
Our collective goal, as a community of teacher, students, and parents, is to enrich the childhood, education, and development of every student by nurturing creativity, celebrating individuality, cultivating a lifelong love for music and the arts, building invaluable life skills, and most of all, inspiring and igniting an enduring and insatiable love and pursuit of learning itself, ultimately empowering students to be thoughtful and thriving citizens in the world.
“Cindy Lam has ignited our daughter Sonya’s passion for music with a teaching methodology that combines genuine rigor and technique with an incredible sense of fun.”
-Annette Savitch & Jeremy Kleiner, Oscar-winning film producer
FAQ’s
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CLPS accepts applications for prospective students by referral only.
The application process includes an online application & a parent interview in order to ensure a quality pairing and partnership between teacher, students, parents, and studio community. If you have the name of a referral, please apply using the form at the bottom of this page.
Currently, all applicants for 2024-25 and Summer 2025 will be considered for a waitlist and will be notified when there is availability.
Please note that application requests without a valid referral will not be processed.
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The studio is located in Old Town Pasadena, California. Address and parking directions will be provided upon registration.
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Using individualized curriculum and project-based learning plans, coupled with research-based pedagogy and core principles of progressive education, each student is encouraged to take an active engagement in their own learning as they embark enthusiastically on their quest to achieve complete understanding and mastery of the fundamentals of music performance, theory, literature and history.
CLPS also provides settings for collaborative group learning and peer review, as well as opportunities for self-directed learning, to supplement each student's weekly individual instruction.
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Beginners under the age of 9 generally start at 30 minute lessons once a week. Depending each student’s development, lessons can extend to 45 minutes, or to two lessons a week of either 30 or 45 minutes each.
Because every child develops in various ways at respectively different rates, their desire and readiness for longer or more frequent lessons will also vary respectively. It is studio policy to err on the side of "less is more.” When ready, students will generally express their enthusiasm to graduate to longer lessons by saying, "Aww, that went by so fast!" or "I wish we didn't have to stop now and that we could keep going!"
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The ideal family that would thrive at CLPS is actively seeking a progressive education that aligns with positive psychology and connection-based parenting principles, prioritizes socio-emotional learning, self-compassion, kindness, and humility as family values, and welcomes neurodiversity in their community.
The ideal CLPS parent desires for their children to think for themselves, encourages autonomy (with the right support, of course!), sees their child for who they are, and understands that every child is on their own individual growth journey and will develop at their own pace.
The ideal CLPS student is curious, loves to learn, kind, creative, has a strong sense of self, and, most importantly, loves music.
I kindly decline to work with students who are only taking piano to “learn discipline,” or to pad their college resumes, who are otherwise unenthusiastic about music.
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Students typically have lessons once a week.
Depending on several factors, such as enthusiasm, frequency of practice, & rate of improvement, etc., some students benefit from additional lessons during the week.
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Parents are welcome to sit in during lessons to observe what and how their child is learning — this helps parents to stay in tune with their child's music education experience, as well as participate during practice at home.
In the case that a student is distracted by their parent's presence, the parent will kindly be asked to wait outside during the lesson.
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In order to get the most out of their lessons, students are encouraged to play and experiment at the piano on their own, as well as work on meaningful practice at least 3-4 times a week.
In order to make the most out of time spent at the piano, students are assigned specific goals to reach on their own during the week, rather than logging x minutes of practice per week.
The more students and parents put into practice, the more they will get out of their experience with piano.
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The short answer is no.
At CLPS, our focus is on cultivating a love of music and learning. Studies show that more learning and development takes place through exposing students to as much variety of musical material as possible, as opposed to practicing the same piece(s) for an extended amount of time to meet an arbitrary “learning deadline.”
The building of a solid foundation of mastery in any field is most efficiently established without setting a competitive learning environment.
If, in the rare case that a student has a strong desire to enter a competition, performance coaching and preparation is available.
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The most recent educational research shows that feedback and evaluation, as well as intrinsic motivation, are more effective for long-term learning, progress, passion, and performance, than the traditional ranking of students, or extrinsic motivators like trophies or awards.
CLPS emphasizes an optimal learning process that is a continuous loop of goal-setting between student and teacher, followed by feedback from: teacher, peers, and student.
In addition to specific feedback and self-evaluation at every lesson, students have performance opportunities throughout the year to play in a public setting.
As a result, CLPS students can typically tell you in great detail where they stand in terms of their strengths, progress, and areas for improvement.
“Cindy has given our girls a love for the piano, and she is the rare teacher who understands that kids learn best when they feel safe and welcomed. She keeps the challenges appropriate for each stage of their development and gives them clear tasks for each week. They look forward to their lessons!”
-Nathan Cole & Akiko Tarumoto,
First Associate Concertmaster & Assistant Concertmaster,
Los Angeles Philharmonic
APPLY TO CLPS
CLPS accepts applications by referral only.
If you have the name of a referral, please use the button below to start the application process.
Currently accepting applications for a limited number of students for Summer & 2026-27.
Please note that requests without a valid referral will not be processed.
Cindy Lam is a brilliant young lady whose ideas in music education are revolutionary.
-Nitzan Haroz, Principal Trombone, Philadelphia Orchestra, Former Principal Trombone, LA Phil