My name is Rhoda Pickens and I teach piano in Cibolo, near San Antonio, Texas. I moved from the UK early in 2017, where I was teaching over 30 students a week.

I studied piano in the UK and have qualifications in ABRSM Grade 8 Piano (roughly equivalent to RCM level 10), ABRSM Grade 5 Music Theory (Distinction) and an A* in GCSE Music.

I have been playing the piano for 25 years. I started playing for my church from the age of 12 and at the age of 15 I accompanied a mixed choir singing Faure’s Requiem. I was also awarded the music prize for our year in high school.

When I was 17 I accompanied my school choir and instrumental exams on the piano. I spent a few months in The Netherlands and ended up accompanying the local choir in all their rehearsals and a concert. For many years I have continued to play the piano, sing and lead worship in church. I was Head of Worship for several years at two churches in Wales, UK.

More recently I spent a year studying the UK’s leading professional development course for piano teachers and gained the Certificate of the Piano Teachers Course with the European Piano Teachers Association in the UK. I also gained the ABRSM Certificate for Music Educators (CME). In 2015 I became accompanist for Llanelli Choral Society in Wales, UK, and kept the position until we moved to the USA.