Today we’d like to introduce you to Nancy Weems.
Nancy, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I begged my parents for piano lessons, even before we owned a piano in our home. After beginning at age six, I immediately knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life making music, and I have never stopped since! I grew up in a very small Southern town in Arkansas where my first musical experiences included playing for almost every single wedding, funeral, community, school and church event in town!
Then, it was onward to my serious professional training at Oberlin Conservatory of Music and later, the University of Texas, where I received my Bachelor and Master degrees in piano performance. Eventually, I was honored to represent the United States in the 1981 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition (one of only thirty pianists chosen worldwide) and I was proudly the only Texan in the contest! Though I did not win the competition, my piano studio wall is still graced with a framed copy of my official designation by the governor as a proud “Yellow Rose of Texas!”
My teaching career began in earnest when I joined the faculty of the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston in 1982, where I am now the Madison Endowed Professor of Piano. I have spent over three decades teaching there and those years have been graced by a long line of wonderful students from all over the world, many of whom are now my dearest friends and colleagues.
So many of them have made music their passion – as performers, university professors, private instructors, church musicians, and lovers and supporters of the arts in their own communities. It has been the greatest joy of my life to watch the impact that my students have already had – locally, nationally, and globally.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Being a serious classical pianist is never an easy road – the competition is fierce and there have been many heartaches along the way. The absolute dedication that is required to develop technique, repertoire and artistry demand many grueling hours of practice a day – very similar to the type of training schedule necessary for an athlete to develop his/her highest potential. And this type of training must go on for many years and years of study in order to fully master one’s performance art.
My own numerous experiences with competitions taught me valuable lessons about persistence and determination in the face of disappointments – lessons that I have tried to pass on to my own students as they face their inevitable challenges in the professional musical world and in life. There will always be someone “better” -but it is the journey and the striving for excellence every day that brings the greatest joy and satisfaction as an artist and as a human being.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
My career as an artist-teacher of piano performance has developed right alongside that of the development of the Moores School of Music at the University of Houston! When I joined the faculty in 1982, the school showed enormous potential but had such a long way to go to make its mark in the musical world. Now, our reputation as one of the premier music schools in the nation is reflected by the outstanding success of our wonderful students and faculty. In the piano area, our students represent every part of the world.
In my studio alone, I have taught lessons to talented young pianists from Europe, Mexico, South America, Central America, the Middle East, Russia, Iceland, China, Korea, Malaysia, Taiwan, Japan, Russia, South Africa, as well as all parts of the U.S. My students have won awards in major national and international piano competitions, including the Van Cliburn International, the Leeds International, the Bach International, the Hummel International, the Hastings International, the New Orleans International, the San Antonio International, the Music Teachers National Association, etc.
And in Texas alone, my piano graduates of MSM hold faculty piano positions at the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Texas at San Antonio, St. Thomas University, Baylor University, Southern Methodist University, Sam Houston University, and West Texas A&M University. Worldwide, my graduates are also teaching in Europe, China and Mexico. I could not possibly be more proud of their accomplishments, and of the role that I have been blessed to play in the development of their talent and their dreams!
I have always loved what I do and feel extremely lucky to have spent my life doing something that I am passionate about!
What were you like growing up?
Besides playing the piano, I loved EVERYTHING else musical, as well – especially singing!
My best friend and I formed a singing duo in junior high school, and the big highlight of our young lives was an invitation to audition for the “Ted Mac Amateur Hour!” – an award that we won by getting first place at the Arkansas Sate Fair Talent Contest!
Another singing highlight was my coveted role as Guinevere in the high school production of Camelot! My piano students tell me that I still sing constantly when I teach, even though I am completely unaware that I do that!
Contact Info:
- Address: 3333 Cullen Blvd. Room 120 School of Music Building
Houston, TX 77204 - Website: www.music.uh.edu
- Email: nweems@uh.edu
Image Credit:
Nancy Weems, Nathan Zhang, Kenny Broberg
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