Testimonials

Lydia Boyer

Gary Geiger was my piano teacher for the majority of ten years. He began teaching me in 1992 when I was 4 years old and I continued lessons with him until 2002. He had started teaching my brother roughly a year earlier and after 2002 my mom also took lessons with him. Gary is an unbelievably gifted instructor who makes music accessible to students of all ages and abilities. As a very young child, he taught me to read music, strengthen my technique and ensure that I developed comprehensively as I grew as a musician and a person. I owe a significant amount of my music theory knowledge to Gary, which carried over to the other instruments I played. Gary knows how to balance musician development with creativity during lessons, whether it is perfecting the art of high-fives after a flawless performance of a piece or letting the student pick the next piece to work on. In my case, Gary was able to use these supplemental practices to harness my high level of energy into music. Piano lessons and Gary defined much of my early life, and if I were looking for a teacher again, Gary would be my only call.

Caryn Jacobs

Gary is the perfect piano teacher.  He is excellent at teaching technique, fingering, dynamics, you name it, at every level.  Yet at the same time, he has a deep and nuanced appreciation for the repertoire and brings out elements of each piece that enrich one’s playing.  We have fascinating conversations about the great composers when learning their pieces.  Over my lifetime, I have had numerous piano teachers – Gary is at the top by far. 

Rick Ferguson

I've known Gary since 1991. In that time, he has shown time and again the ability to communicate his passion for and love of music to his choir students and audience. Gary's passion for teaching and reaching others through musical inventiveness is unique in my experience. I highly recommend Gary and the Evanston Children's Choir to all those who love singing and celebrate the power and beauty of cultural diversity.

Teju Deshpande

Gary has been an amazing piano teacher and coach. He has worked with my daughter over the past few years. She has grown significantly because of his teaching. Even more important, he has made piano enjoyable and fun for her. She looks forward to lessons and loves the variety of pieces and music. Gary's recitals are well organized and he always goes above and beyond to ensure that all the student at his recital are comfortable and enjoy the performance. He works extra hard to work around schedules and easily accommodates injuries.

Gary also teaches piano to adults and he is incredible. He has a unique way of choosing the right pieces that allow you to feel like you are progressing every week. He is patient, encouraging and in particular, very very accommodating with challenging work and travel schedules. He shares stories and backgrounds of the pieces and musicians and brings music alive. His energy is contagious and lessons are absolutely the highlight of our week.

We are lucky to have the opportunity to work with Gary - we know we will continue working with him for a long long time.

Sarah Gordon

My child has been taking piano lessons with Gary for the last two years, and we can't say enough wonderful things about the quality of his instruction. Gary always knows how to provide the next-appropriate challenge to ensure continuous progression. He also balances technique (scales, drills, and exercises) with fun pieces that my child has a say in selecting. You can't go wrong if you are considering Gary as a piano instructor!

Yan Tina Zhuo

Gary is a passionate and talented piano teacher and choir director that knows how to encourage young musicians to learn and grow. My daughter enjoys her piano lessons, and the rich variety of music that she gets to play. She joined the Evanson Children's Choir during pandemic, and has found the experience rewarding. Singing brings her peace and joy at a time when life is interrupted by the pandemic. Gary also helped my daughter by giving helpful feedback to the piano trio piece she wrote. She won the first place in IL with her piano trio piece in a Junior Composer contest organized by National Federation of Music Clubs.

Jie Li

My daughter came to Gary after having spent three years with her previous teacher focusing on tests and competitions and having lost interest in piano. In her words, Gary knows how to talk to kids in a way that is fun and engaging but also get the message through. Classes are enjoyable and productive. When Gary points out a mistake or weakness, he does it in a way that reaches kids without being discouraging. Instead of just criticizing, he offers strategies to overcome a problem. He also engages her in choosing new pieces to study. He motivates her to present her interpretation of the music. Gary has renewed her interest in piano. We highly recommend Gary as a piano teacher.

Stephen Ondra

Gary Geiger is a talented and dynamic teacher and performer of music. He has the unique ability to expect and inspire students to achieve their potential, while still being kind and patient. His enthusiasm and love of music is infectious and is matched by his enthusiasm and commitment to teaching. He is dedicated to his students and the craft. It was a pleasure to watch him teach and work with my daughters and many other students over the years, both in the home and at the recitals he organized.

Nezih Altay

Gary has been teaching piano to our daughter for five years and seeing her advance every day has been very rewarding. Gary is an amazing teacher and that is able to connect with her and motivate her when we can’t at times. We strongly recommend Gary! He is amazing!

J.J. Saul

We feel very fortunate to have Gary as piano teacher to our two children, 6 and 8 years old. Gary is an excellent musician, has a ton of teaching experience, and is great with kids. He brings to lessons lots of enthusiasm and patience and has inspired, guided, and nudged our children into becoming quality piano players. As we try to raise these wild animals into civilized human beings, we’re thrilled to have Gary on our team.

Nancy Davidson

I couldn’t recommend Gary highly enough. He has taught all three of my children and has been a musical influence in our family for many years. He is accomplished, flexible and fun, and kept my children interested in piano from elementary school through high school and beyond. Piano will always be a part of all of my children's lives thanks to Gary.

Saralyn Sacks

Gary has been our son's piano teacher for the last few years. I can't recommend him more. He's so patient, kind and keeps the lessons and music choices fun! We feel our son has really excelled because of Gary and his teaching methods. Gary is extremely organized and communicative and passionate about what he does. We feel very lucky he's our son's piano teacher!

Joanna Lingnau

It's been wonderful to watch my children flourish under Gary's teaching. He tailors his lessons to each of their very different personalities, nurturing their curiosity, focus and confidence to grow their piano skills. I also appreciate his communication to me as the parent, I always feel I know each child's challenges and progress. We feel lucky to have been able to work with Gary... it took some time until he had an opening for us, but it was well worth the wait.

Barbara Mahany

Gary Geiger, who taught our son piano for about four years, was a burst of joy when he came in the house for every week's lesson. He is a gifted teacher, and I have watched him bring out the best in a range of students. I would sometimes be in tears listening to him (from another room) as he taught our son how to make music. And to have fun while doing so. He is magical at adapting lessons so each child can tap into the heart of what's being learned.

Christine S. Escobar

Gary is a very skilled and enthusiastic teacher. My daughter has been his piano student for less than 2 years and she has made fantastic progress through her lessons. Gary has a great love for music and a dedication to music education. He brings this joy to his teaching. He offers students a solid foundation of core studies that form the basis of a great pianist, while being flexible to the varied learning needs of his students.

Teri Mascherin

Gary has taught both of our daughters piano from the age of about 6 years through High School. He connects very well with young students. Through his students' recitals I have seen that Gary is equally adept at teaching very talented musical protégés and kids who simply want to learn to play for their own enjoyment. He meets each child where he or she is and finds a way to make learning piano both fun and fulfilling for them. He is simply terrific!

Vangelis Economou

Gary is a great piano teacher, who taught two of my children to play piano in a remarkably skillful and engaging series of lessons. Although both had innate talent, Gary's patient and painstaking guidance provided them with an appreciation for the music and his enthusiasm propelled my daughter to choose music education as profession. I recommend Gary heartily and without reservation.

Colby Kingsbury

Gary is terrific with my girls who are not only different ages, but who have very different personalities and require very different teaching styles. Every week, Gary challenges my girls to work harder through creative and clear instruction and positive reinforcement. I am amazed and impressed how far they have come in such a short time. Because of Gary, my girls are loving piano lessons and they work very hard to please him. We plan to work with Gary for years to come, and I strongly recommend him as a piano teacher for any young student.

Dan Hansvick

Gary taught both of my daughters for several years each. He has a firm grasp on the skills and capabilities of each student, connects with them, uses his creativity to make learning music interesting and fun. It was a pleasure to work with Gary and I never had to worry about whether my children were being encouraged to do their best and stretch their capabilities. I highly recommend Gary for individual voice and piano as well as the Evanston Children's Choir where he does fantastic work with groups of diverse children.

John Thomason

We hired Gary as a piano instructor for our daughter a few years ago and retained him for years until my daughter stopped playing in favor of another instrument. Gary is the consummate professional: high energy, punctual, professional, and clearly passionate about piano and helping kids learn not just to play but to appreciate. Moreover, Gary is a really good guy with a positive outlook on his work and high standards.

I would recommend Gary with no hesitation at all to anyone looking for a piano instructor. Although we used him only for our daughter, I'm certain he could instruct at any age and any level.

Stephen Ruppert

Gary is a great piano teacher. He has been working with my two sons aged 8 and 13 for
the last few years. We really appreciate the way he engages them in the process. He keeps things positive and moving forward. He also does a great job of explaining what to do and why it is important. We also appreciate that he is willing to work around changing schedules. After we agree on a time for the lesson each week other commitments still come up. And while there are times we just have to cancel, usually he can find time a bit later or on another day to still have the lesson. He is very flexible. We feel lucky to have found him.

Terry Unterman

Gary is a wonderful piano teacher and person. He has taught our son for 13 years, since just before his 4th birthday. He engages young people at every level of skill and maturity, and takes joy in their accomplishments. He has a depth of knowledge and a love of both music and young people. Energetic, engaging, encouraging, patient and inspiring! and fun and kind!

Scott Hurwitz

Gary has taught our daughter piano for many years. We absolutely could not ask for a more dedicated, patient, creative, fun, enthusiastic, supportive, and enriching piano teacher than Gary. Our daughter thinks the world of Gary and with his great teaching style she has steadily improved over the years to become a very solid piano player. Our entire family (including our dog) loves when Gary is around the house as his enthusiasm for life is contagious! We have and will continue to highly recommend Gary to anyone looking for a great piano teacher.

Robert Ballmer

Gary Geiger has taught our son piano for over three years. We are delighted with his teaching and his relationship with our son and family. We picked Gary because I knew he was a fantastic performer from his work accompanying the Music Institute Chorale. But there are lots of people who are great performers and so-so teachers - not Gary! He really knows how to teach, too! He is very organized and keeps our son focused on the specifics of improving each piece they study together. He issues music binders to students and writes detailed assignments in a notebook each week. He is very specific with the notes; as a result, my son easily knows exactly what to practice each day, right down to which scales, which stretches, and which measures of pieces need work. When kids know exactly what to do, it makes their progress very smooth with little frustration. (Gary's organization methods have actually been great models for my son's schoolwork, too.) Gary focuses primarily on a classical repertoire and music theory, which is what we wanted, but he has also helped my son learn to read lead sheets and play by ear.

Gary's personality is very warm and caring with an undertone of high expectations. My son loves going to lessons because he enjoys talking with Gary so much, but they also accomplish a great deal in the limited lesson time. Gary has created a supportive community in his studio. We have gotten to know several families well from seeing each other at recitals and recital receptions. From our experience observing recitals, we have been impressed with the progress of all his students over time, which proves his teaching is effective with many and not just our child.

Because of Gary's skills as a piano teacher, he sometimes has a waiting list for students. My advice is: sign-up. He is worth the wait.

David Madison

Gary started as one of our children's choir director and has since become the piano teacher for 3 or our children. Gary has a wonderful rapport with each of our kids and has been able to cater his approach to each one, quickly learned each child's strengths and weaknesses. From our children's perspective, they all look forward to their weekly lesson and greet Gary with laughter and joy each week.

Amelia Bartolotta

I have known Gary since I was a little girl and he taught piano lessons to my sister and me. Gary is a wonderful teacher, both passionate and patient, he is great with kids and really knows how to engage his students. I even went back to Gary in high-school when I was auditioning for my high-school musical to get his take on my audition piece. He deep knowledge of what makes a great performance really helped me musically and with my confidence. I recommended Gary for any level of piano or singing student.

Jacki Davidoff

Gary is a delight in many regards; he is an exceptional teacher; he has a great rapport with kids of all ages; he makes it fun to learn; and he has a wacky sense of humor that our son resonates with. Gary is also a seriously good musician and his love for music is something he shares readily with his students.

John Bolling

We highly recommend Gary Geiger, our son's piano teacher. He brings knowledge and experience to every lesson. He works well with our son - challenging him appropriately and offering encouragement and supportive feedback. His enthusiasm for piano is contagious!

Fritz Reichenbach

All three of my children have taken piano lessons from Gary, and we all love him! He's fun, energetic, creative, and inspiring in his approach with younger students and patient with older students as they grow and sometimes plateau before picking up speed again. We have recommended him to friends who have been equally pleased with his work, and we would have no hesitation recommending him to anyone wishing to bring the joy of music into his or her child's life!

Lisa Schneider Fabes

Gary has taught my 2 girls for several years. He is patient, makes piano fun and modifies his teaching style to fit each of my daughter's personalities. He communicates well and reliable. You can't ask for a better teacher.

Julie M. Bender

Gary has been teaching our children piano for four years. He is a wonderful piano teacher, and he works really well with our children, who are currently in 6th, 4th and 2nd grade. Our children have learned so much from his instruction, and have come so far in their piano skills since starting with Gary. He is good at pushing the kids; and knowing how hard to push. Gary has introduced our kids to a nice variety of music while also being sure that they work on their core skills -- scales and other technique exercises. Gary is patient with the kids and has a good sense of humor -- both kids and parents appreciate both of those qualities in him; both qualities are imperative for a piano teacher, in my opinion. Gary is an all-around good guy. My kids have also really benefited from his twice-a-year recitals. Recitals provide goals, opportunities for accomplishment, comfort in being on stage, etc My kids are comfortable playing piano, singing, talking, etc, in front of a group, as a result. All in all, we appreciate Gary very much.