Sarah Shipp

Pianist Sarah Shipp leads an active career as a performer, teacher, and collaborative pianist. She is a current masters student at Brigham Young University where she teaches group piano classes and private students.

Sarah was born in Lusk, Ukraine and lived in an orphanage where music was banned. At two years of age she was adopted by an American family with a passion for music and is now the youngest of seven children. She was instantly drawn to the heavenly compositions of Chopin, Liszt, Mozart, Ernesto Lecuana and Bach as she found her new identity, which has defined her life ever since. 

She started piano lessons at the age of five and has competed in many competitions including: BYU Young Musicians Festival where she studied with Dr. Irene Peery-Fox and Dr. Jeff Shumway, Utah State music festival, UMTA, and the Utah Symphony Youth Guild.  She also attended Stoney Brook International Music Festival, with a performance at New York City’s Yamaha Piano Salon, and Interlochen Center for the Arts. She played in masterclasses with Steven Beus, Dr. Irene Peery-Fox, Weiyin Chen, Ronald Bratigum and Jeffrey Kahane. 

As an advocate for community outreach, Sarah has performed in many community musical gatherings including non profit MUNDI project performances in local elementary schools. 

In 2016 Sarah performed at Carnegie Hall in the American Protégé International Piano and Strings Competition winner’s recital. Since then, Sarah has performed in guest masterclasses with Esther Ahn, Ronald Bratigum and Jeffrey Kahane. Sarah was also a featured performer at New York City’s Yamaha Piano Salon, and Interlochen Center for the Arts.

Sarah is passionate about collaborative piano (accompanying) and has shared the stage with various vocal and instrumental students at BYU. She has also accompanied musical theatre classes and improvised music for dancers. Some of her favorite collaborations have been performances at Brevard Music Center and performing with the BYU Celtic Ensemble.

When she is not playing the piano, Sarah spends time as an artist, ballroom and folk dancer. She also loves to read and play tennis and pickleball.

My goal as a teacher is to guide and mentor my students through their musical education in many different areas. I hope to be able to teach all my students the necessary sight reading, technique, aural and theory skills, and relevant historical context they need so they can learn and teach themselves any piece of music, no matter the genre or style. I hope to build a foundation for my students so they can teach themselves and direct their own musical journeys whether that be as concertizing performers or finding joy and purpose in their lives through music and connecting with others. I hope to inspire my students to find joy in music like I have throughout my life and pass on the lessons and experiences previous teachers have taught me.

I value a studio environment where teacher and student are a collaborative team learning together. My greatest teachers have been those who love their craft and inspire their students to find joy in the learning process. They are the kind of teachers who adapt their teaching styles to each student’s learning modalities, deeply listen to their student’s needs and become trusted mentors to their students. These teachers know how to organize and break down difficult concepts into their smallest forms and ask questions that encourage the students to think critically about what they are learning. They create an environment where students can feel safe to openly share their thoughts and worries and build a positive, respectful relationship for all parties involved.

A combination of experiential learning and study of educational learning theories have helped me become the guide and mentor my students need:
• Lev Vygotsky’s scaffolding methods and Zone of Proximital development have greatly influenced how I design my lesson plans and build relationships with each of my students. My role as a teacher is to make that connection within the zone of proximital development that leads my students from their current levels to the next piece of knowledge they need.
• Thomas Gordan’s conflict resolution advice to parents has inspired me to reflect on how to have difficult conversations with students and continue to build a respectful, positive relationship between teacher, student and parents.
• Bruner’s emphasis on student centered discovery learning combined with some rote work has helped me create an environment where both student and teacher can access Csikszentmihalyi’s flow state and optimize learning together.

Lessons are student driven in my studio and every lesson plan is customized to my student's needs. I'll teach repertoire of any genre depending on what the student wants to learn with additional pieces to assist with developing technique and musical skills for the desired pieces. I'll also include composition and arranging lessons for students who wish to learn those skills.