Barbara Kudirka

I always manage to find the pianists and/or musicians at a party.  A couple of years ago, I had the pleasure of attending my cousin's daughter's graduation party in Wilmette, Illinois.  Claire took piano lessons as a younger child and in high school, and she has always had an interest in music and particularly the piano.

I had the honor of meeting her piano teacher Barbara Kudirka.  We spent some time chatting about my favorite instrument, and I told her a little bit about my past piano teachers.

Before I comment on Ms. Kudirka, I want to add that the quest to find the right piano teacher for your child can be a challenge.  Today, it probably involves exploring various teachers' websites on the net, and perhaps speaking with family and friends who have a favorite piano teacher.

In the case of Claire, it was actually her Dad that found her teacher.  I think that it says something about her Dad, in that he believed in his mind, that music should be a priority, and was determined to find a quality teacher for Claire.  Often in family situations, it can be said often, it may be the parent who didn't have music lessons, who wants to pursue that activity for their child.

I add in the case of Claire, her mom's parents bought their family a beautiful spinet piano.  When I would go to visit my cousin, I would always make it a point to look at the music Claire was working on, mostly out of curiosity.  And music was a priority because the piano was in the living room, with no competition from the television!! Hooray!!

In any event, I only met Barbara Kudirka at that one event, but again, it was a real piano connection as I would like to say.  She seemed generally interested in what I was saying, and I add that enthusiasm of amateurs may be exactly the thing to keep piano teachers going forward in life.

Now that Linked In is available, I had the opportunity to look at Barbara's credentials.  She is the Director of Worship and Music at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church in Arlington Heights, Illinois and she has degrees in Piano Performance and Piano Pedagogy from Northwestern University - School of Music.  Her credentials also reference her interest in the music of the Romantic Era.  That is near and dear to my heart for sure.

Not only can Barbara play the piano, she is also an organist and a choir director at her church.  The role of church musician is not an easy one.  One has to please the pastor, as well as the congregation, which is a challenging task for the best of musicians.  However, Barbara states on her Linked In profile that as a theologically trained lay minister in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, she is called to serve the church in the areas of music and faith formation.

I must add that some of the greatest musical experiences of my life have occurred in the church setting, so even though I didn't discuss Barbara's work at her church, I feel like I share some level of kinship as a contemporary choir member in my own church.

My cousin's daughter is soon to be 25, and if she plays I think it might be just for the fun of it all.  So I don't know that my path will cross with Barbara Kudirka anytime soon.  But I feel that in meeting her, again, it just establishes, quite concretely, that there is a place for the piano in anyone's life.  Even if you end up forsaking a career as a musician, to play the piano in the evenings, or at the Christmas holidays, the piano is there to inspire you, and make the quality of your life better.

Again, I think it takes a special person to take the time to seek out a quality piano teacher.  Claire's Dad did just that when he found Barbara Kudirka.  What a gift!!