MEET MAESTRA COLLINS

A Dedicated Music Instructor

Yessenia Mercedes Collins began her piano studies when she was 7 years old in Miami Florida. Her undergrad education began at Miami Dade College, where she studied under concert pianist Kevin Wayne Bumpers. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Music Education from The Florida State University, where she studied piano with critically acclaimed concert pianist Leonidas Lipovetsky. Additionally, she is certified in Level I Orff Schulwerk.
 

Yessenia has over 20 years of experience teaching piano, music theory, song writing, music history, and general music to students of all ages, in both individual and classroom settings. She has conducted children's choirs and school musical productions including dance choreography. 

 She has taught at the elementary, middle school, high school, and adult age groups, and enjoys sharing the joy of music in multi-cultural environments.    

As a student at Miami Dade College, she was the recipient of the Vernon L. Smith award for outstanding leadership during her time as president of M.E.N.C. Miami Dade College, Kendall Campus chapter. She was also the recipient of a Composition Competition book scholarship.

Also interested in World Music, she took part and performed with the FSU Balinese Gamelan for 9 years under the direction of Dr. Michael Bakan. In addition to performing music, she also practiced Balinese dance for 3 years under the direction of Balinese dance Guru Iga Candra Dewi.

​

In her quest to reach a broader group of learners, she has developed innovative approaches to music pedagogy.