Holly Rollosson Piano Studio
Play music you love
Student and parent testimonials
Clients of Holly Rollosson, formerly of Hall Piano Company, New Orleans
Now teaching in Tacoma, Washington
The progress my son Parker has made since his lessons with Ms. Holly exceeded my expectations. Not only did he grow as a piano player, his confidence grew. She allowed him to express himself musically by encouraging Parker to bring part of his own character into the music.
As a mother committed to exposing my son to music, it was a challenge finding a teacher that was a good match for Parker. Ms. Holly maintained high expectations of excellence while balancing the relationship with Parker in a very caring and concerned way. Parker always wants to go to piano lessons and loves spending time with Ms. Holly because she makes his lessons fun. Playing and practicing the piano was not a chore but rather an activity he performed joyfully and voluntarily.
During Ms. Holly’s recitals she goes beyond the call of duty to make each student feel special. Students perform their pieces with excitement and a sense of pride. It was during this time that I witnessed the wonderful connection that developed between her and her students. She builds such a beautiful rapport, allowing them to feel confident in playing the piano. She believes in positive affirmation, which makes the students self-motivated players.
~ Tabatha Byers, mother of Parker, age 11
Parker and his dad at a recital
Proud of their awards!
I remember first taking lessons and only being able to play with one hand. Then before I realized it, I was using two. Now I’m playing both bass and chords in songs (something that takes almost three hands to do).
My skill level definitely increased and it wasn’t boring to practice because Mrs. Holly let me play the songs I wanted to play. She is a really awesome teacher and I absolutely would not have gotten into playing piano if it wasn’t for her.
~ Corey DeBautte, age 20
If you’re looking for a piano teacher you’ve come to the right one… With an ear tuned to her students, Holly develops a lesson plan to suit each individual, while allowing them to choose the type of music they enjoy. It keeps them interested as they progress.
I’ve never met a person like Holly. She is always positive, uplifting, and encouraging. My boys have been taking lessons for four years and have really grown in their musical talent. I feel we have been blessed to find her and I don’t think we’ll find anyone else like her.
~ Holly DeBautte,
mother of Corey, age 20, and Cody, age 15
Where do I begin to tell the story of how wonderful an instructor, mentor, and person Holly is? As the mother of two children who have been lovers of music since they were youngsters, we have, over the years, experienced many different music teachers for both piano and guitar. Due to these vast experiences, it seems an obligation to share with you the joyful and rewarding time my daughter has spent at the piano with Holly for the past four years.
Sami had lost interest in playing the piano and was on the verge of quitting when we found Holly, who genuinely renewed Sami’s inquisitiveness about the piano as an instrument and the enjoyment it creates. Sami learned more from Holly in one year than she had from her former teacher in three. Holly is optimistic and encouraging while subtly challenging her students without their awareness.
Holly allowed Sami to develop her talent while gently guiding her toward genres of Sami’s specific interest. She has the knack of making each and every student feel special... Truth be told, Holly has been a blessing for Sami and my family, for we all reap the benefits of Sami’s beautiful playing in our home.
It is my sincere hope that many, many children and adults have the incredible opportunity to learn music as well as to witness the life-loving philosophy exuded by Holly on a daily basis. She genuinely shares her love of music with her students and, as a result, her students gain a keen insight into the world of piano… Just ask my daughter!
~ Linda Preston, mother of Sami, age 18
Holly with Margo, age 6
Sami's winning smile as
she plays the piano
My son took piano classes from Holly for one year of the four years he has studied at Beverly Park Music Academy.
In those four years, Holly was the only instructor who found a fun and effective way of getting my son to learn. She had an unbelievable way of giving him the confidence and skills he needed to excel in his piano playing. Holly’s techniques made my son want to learn more and he was eager to attend his weekly lessons. I saw such great improvement in his playing under her teaching. Holly took the time to send my son little cards and notes of encouragement in the mail. My son was so thrilled to receive them. These gestures made him feel special, important and encouraged, and were excellent confidence builders.
Without reservation, I give Holly the highest and strongest recommendation in her continued pursuit of engaging and leading students in their musical journeys.
~Mr. & Mrs. Jonathan McCamey, Sr.
I have three girls ages 12, 14, and 15. All of them received piano lessons from Holly Rollosson for five years, with very good results.
My background in music consists of seven seasons with the Anchorage Symphony and two seasons with the Seattle Symphony. This experience put me in contact with many capable and talented people in this field. In my opinion, Ms. Rollosson’s understanding, from the basics to the advanced, coupled with her ability to teach, puts her in a very small group of instructors that I could recommend.
On a more personal note, if my girls grow up to be anything close in character to Ms. Rollosson, I will be very pleased.
~ Alfred A. Owen,
father of Hayley, Kelsey, and Callyn
Nearly three years ago I walked into Hall Piano in New Orleans looking for someone special as a piano teacher. I played music for many years in New Orleans as a drummer in a local performing group. I knew rhythms and many different genres from playing all those years, but note reading and music theory were absent. Holly made me feel comfortable in a new learning experience. My reading skills have improved and I am able to read melodies and chords and play many of my favorite songs.
Because of Holly's patience, I am now studying with a local performing pianist taking my playing to the next level, learning blues and jazz and some favorite New Orleans songs.
I recommend Holly for all ages. Start piano lesson now, it's fun and rewarding.
~ Louie Prechter,
paper distributor sales representative
Holly with Louie
“I have been studying piano with Holly Rollosson for eighteen months, and have accomplished more in that time period that I did with my four previous teachers.
At the outset she asked about goals. She explained how she was going to help me accomplish my objectives. And she has done so. She has been very flexible and has helped me improve playing both classical music and improvisation, which was my main goal.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my lessons with Holly and would highly recommend her as a piano instructor for students at all ages and various levels of ability. I am sorry to see her leave [New Orleans].”
~ Charles F. Hirling, Jr.,
CPA and investment advisor
One of Holly's adult students, Bob, with someone
famous: New Orleans' one and only Dr. John!
I am a retired school teacher from New Orleans. I have always wanted to learn to play the piano, so when I retired I decided to pursue this as a fun thing to do as part of my routine. What originally was just something fun to do, turned out to be serious and still fun!
I have really enjoyed taking piano lessons with Holly. She has motivated me so much and has been very patient and puts no pressure on me. This experience has been rewarding! I was afraid the first year to participate in a recital, but after finally doing so, I was sorry I waited so long. I look forward to next year's recital.
Any adult who dreams about playing piano will enjoy it with Holly and want to learn more and more!
~ Beverly Tregre,
retired school teacher
Beverly triumphant after
her first piano recital!
I took piano lessons with Holly every Saturday afternoon, and not only did I grow as a piano player, my time with Holly enriched my life. Holly was able to impart her enthusiasm and love of playing the piano to me. She customized the music and lessons to my skill level while at the same time providing challenges to keep the learning process going. By allowing me to choose some of the piano pieces I wanted to learn, I became part of the teaching process.
A wonderful connection developed between Holly and me. Holly would relish my accomplishments and acknowledge each newly learned measure of music. She was very proud of each and every one of her students. It’s evident that she encourages each student to bring part of his or her own character into the music; she sees each student as an individual and draws upon their strengths to teach them in ways that work best for them.
I highly recommend Holly as a piano teacher and am envious of her future students who can experience her contagious passion and love of music first hand.
~ Sister Jackie Bates, r.c.
Jackie
I have been taking piano lessons from Holly since November of 2009. Before that I was an absolute beginner with another teacher for 2 years. My experience with Holly has been such a pleasure and I have learned a great deal. Within a month of having Holly as my teacher I could hear the improvement in my playing.
Holly is not only a kind, patient, and extremely talented teacher, she also works beautifully with “older” students, which I am. She always has a smile on her face, works within my comfort zone, and welcomes the music that I love. I did not have these pleasures with my previous teacher. I highly recommend Holly for young and older students, and will miss her friendship as well as her ability as a teacher. She is the best!
~ Barbara Michel, homemaker
Barbara and Holly
A fun inter-generational activity:
Students Brenda and granddaughter
Kya taking piano lessons together.
Holly Rolloson was my second piano teacher. My first teacher showed me the basics, but piano was still boring and just another subject in school that I had to spend time on before I could go outside to play. Miss Holly, as I called her, changed that in short order when I started taking her lessons.
No longer was piano just about mindless scales and boring songs, although scales are nonetheless important. I plunged into the world of movie themes and well-known classics of differing difficulty that I had heard a hundred times before and loved. The moment I was able to create the same music with my fingers that I had heard only on CDs, piano changed from a chore to excitement unimaginable.
Behind it all was Miss Holly with her encouragement, knowledge, and suggestions that made each song more and more enjoyable to learn and then play my heart out upon. Lessons were also a joy to attend because they were all about exploration, excitement and creativity, all of which poured out of my teacher and her fingers whenever she took to the bench herself to show how to play this or that. To top it off, she gave as good as she got in the area of friendly jokes and jabs.
Holly has had a great effect on my piano abilities, and even now as piano lessons with my current teacher are about scales and difficult music, I still have the same excitement and love for piano that Miss Holly gave me simply by having it herself.
~ Scott Alford, 14 years old
