“Sophia Agranovich is an extraordinarily gifted piano teacher. Her unique musical pedigree is evident to her students at each and every lesson. Her lessons are a perfect marriage of music history, theory, and technique. She tailors her instruction based on each of her students’ level of maturity, technical skills and desire for musical knowledge. She imparts her vast musical knowledge with a compassionate expertise that is unparalleled. Her optimistic and encouraging instructional technique forges an unbreakable bond of trust between student and teacher. This trust and respect allows for exponential musical growth amongst her very talented students. Remarkably, her instruction does not stop when her students master the technical aspects of a piece. Ms. Agranovich continually inspires her students to understand and express the passion and emotion that the composers intended. She utilizes metaphors and vivid emotional descriptions to help her students understand that music is not just technical prowess. Music without passion and emotion is empty. Her students embody this message at every one of their performances.
Ms. Agranovich leads by example. In addition to her instructional time, she is also an active performer. Her students have the opportunity to not only attend her concerts, but listen to recordings of her past musical accomplishments. She is a valuable coach for helping her students overcome stage-fright because she experiences the same pre-performance jitters as her students do, due to her active concert schedule. She encourages all of her students to perform regularly at competitions, auditions and recitals. She is continually grooming her students to reach beyond the basics of being someone who plays piano. Ms. Agranovich is creating artists.
Her confidence in her students’ abilities is contagious! She believes in her students’ abilities perhaps more than her students believe in it themselves. Her confidence breeds confidence and bravery in her students. Her repertoire selection for her students may at times seem like sheer and utter madness. But the musical challenges presented to her carefully selected students yields the most profound surprises when these students accomplish a musical miracle that neither student nor teacher thought was possible. This may be Ms. Agranovich’s greatest strength as a teacher. Her ability to inspire her students to reach beyond what they thought was possible.
I would without reservation recommend Ms. Agranovich as a piano teacher for any serious student that desires thoughtful and profound instruction in classical piano. The student should be prepared to work harder than they have ever worked before. With a promise of this level of commitment from the student, and the unparalleled guidance from Ms. Agranovich, I promise that the student’s musical journey will be duly rewarded.”
-Donna M.
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“It gives me great pleasure to strongly recommend Sophia Agranovich to you. I came to know Sophia a couple of years ago, when my daughter enrolled for piano lessons with her. Since then, I’ve had an opportunity to watch her teach my daughter every week. I have also seen her perform at the Watchung Arts Center, and heard her play on WQXR Classical radio.
Having heard her play, I already knew what an amazing artist Sophia is. What is even more amazing, however, is that she is able to transfer her talents to her students. I have been extremely impressed with how passionate and dedicated Sophia is about teaching piano. She teaches my daughter in a very structured and organized manner, as a result of which my daughter has made huge leaps. Sophia has the keen eye and ear to spot mistakes in both content and style, and the patience to keep correcting my daughter even when it takes time. Because of her, my daughter has progressed very rapidly in her piano performance, both technically and artistically.
Sophia always sets the bar high for her students and encourages them to participate in high-level piano recitals and competitions. Her lofty expectations have really encouraged my daughter to aim high and not be easily satisfied. Thanks to Sophia, my daughter has become very motivated and energized to become a top-level pianist. Watching Sophia play is truly a pleasure and an inspiration for my daughter, and she looks forward to becoming like her one day. I am really happy and content with how Sophia has prepared my daughter for the road ahead.
Being a Professor at Rutgers University, I certainly know how challenging it is for a teacher to convey complex concepts and techniques to students, while keeping them engaged and interested. Sophia has a gift for doing that extremely well. I am privileged to have her as my daughter’s teacher. I strongly recommend her to you for professional engagements.”
–Alokparna (Sonia) Basu M.
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“Ms. Sophia has been an inspiring piano teacher to my two daughters. We switched to Ms. Sophia about 2.5 years ago when I observed no interest and little progress from them in playing piano. After only one lesson with Ms Sophia, I already noticed a positive change in their attitude. Within a year, I have seen how they transformed into real musicians; before, they were simply playing notes out of obligation, now they are playing music out of enjoyment. The most outstanding qualities Ms. Sophoa has as a music teacher are her ability to motivate her students, her admirable artistic style and her passion towards music. I strongly recommend Ms. Sophia for anyone who is serious in learning to play piano.”
–Yu-Yun H.
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“Mrs. Sophia is a very patient and good teacher; my son started studying with her about 4 years ago. We are happy to find her to be his piano instructor. She always encourages the students and also keeps them interested and challenges them to play hard pieces. I will definitely recommend her to anyone.”
-Julia L.
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“I am recommending Ms. Sophia Agranovich as both a gifted music teacher and
a distinguished performer. My son Robert started taking lessons with Ms.
Agranovich six years ago. Under her professional eye, Robert’s passion for piano flourished. Not only did Ms. Agranovich develop Robert’s technique, but also taught him how to bring out the subtle nuances in every measure. Thanks to Ms. Agranovich’s instruction, Robert has won top awards in numerous competitions and has performed at well-known venues, such as Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, Lincoln Center, and Steinway Hall. As an aspiring pianist, Robert looks up to his music teacher. He attends Ms. Agranovich’s concerts and owns many of her recordings. Ms. Agranovich is truly a wonderful teacher and an inspiration for her students.”
–Aneta A.
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“Balancing constructive feedback and encouragement, technical skill and self-expression, this challenging yet calming class has become a highlight of each week.
It is no wonder that in the ten years since I first started learning piano here, my enthusiasm for music has only grown.“
-Lillian Q.
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“The intent of this letter is to lend my highest and most enthusiastic recommendation for Ms. Sophia Agranovich, a highly skilled and inspiring piano teacher, brilliant piano performer and active music community organizer.
Ms. Agranovich taught my son piano from the 8th to the 12th grades (2015-2020). While my son’s primary instrument is voice and secondary instrument piano, Ms. Agranovich’s skillful instruction enabled him to make extraordinary progress on the piano and to win gold and silver medals in numerous piano competitions.
Ms. Agranovich is a compassionate and patient teacher with an appreciation for the academic pressures which students must balance with piano study. Ms. Agranovich steadily encourages and inspires students to practice diligently, enter competitions, and perform at concerts to reach their full potential. She possesses a rare ability to support students both mentally and musically to enable them to thrive in their musical endeavors in today’s challenging world.
Ms. Agranovich also demands a high standard of technical and musical excellence from students. Ms. Agranovich’s own training is impeccable and music interpretive skills extraordinary, and her students consistently exhibit outstanding technique and musicality at public performances and competitions. Ms. Agranovich is furthermore flexible and entrepreneurial, encouraging students to compose and improvise to develop diverse musical capabilities. Many of her students have gone on to both perform and compose at the college level and beyond.
Finally, Ms. Agranovich is a powerful force within the music community. Together with her colleagues, she organizes recitals, concerts, and competitions to provide students plentiful performance experience. Ms. Agranovich herself performs regularly in concerts and produces professional recordings, enabling students to benefit from her experience. Several of Ms. Agranovich’s public appearances can be viewed on Youtube, and her recordings are available for sale on Amazon.
My son is now a freshman at Northwestern University, pursuing dual degrees in Computer Science at McCormick School of Engineering and Vocal Performance at Bienen School of Music. The advanced level of technical and musical skill which my son achieved with Ms. Agranovich lend him a competitive advantage at Bienen, enabling him to learn music swiftly, record his own accompaniments, and collaborate effectively with a wide variety of musicians. He actively composes music and embraces different musical genres, and he feels confident doing so due to his extensive musical background, of which a foundation in piano study forms a crucial element.
I cannot recommend Ms. Agranovich more highly, and I feel fortunate that our family benefited from her wonderful teaching and expertise.
-Tanya P.
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“Sophia Agranovich is an amazing piano teacher! She is very conscientious and always strives to bring out the best in her students. She is not only great at teaching piano techniques but also at teaching her students to play with passion and emotion. My daughter’s skills improved very quickly and dramatically soon after starting lessons with Sophia. In fact, she went on to win several prestigious international competitions and was also selected to participate in a master class. My daughter’s success is due, in large part, to Sophia’s hard work and dedication.”
-Susan Z.