Teaching Philosophy

My mission is to guide and develop my student’s relationship with the piano, building healthy hand technique and sensitive musicianship. Developing an ear for subtlety as well as the technique for projecting on stage are both emphasized during lessons, giving students the skills and confidence to succeed. I have taught students of all ages - collegiate, post-retirement and children - and find unique strengths and capability from students at every stage in their life. I find it rewarding to work with collegiate students - getting to know each student as I help them build their skills and confidence as they transition into their professional careers. I also find joy in running piano workshops for children ages 3+, using creative imagery and story-telling to teach using the refreshing worldview of a young child who is just beginning to know the world.

Planting seeds for music is a rewarding process.

Biography

Korean-American pianist Samantha Cho is currently Professor of Piano Pedagogy at San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Her recent appearances include NPR Live Session, San Francisco Symphony's SoundBox series, Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert, Noontime Concert and Classical KING. Passionate about playing chamber music, Samantha has performed with members of the San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Ballet Orchestra and Minnesota Orchestra. Her solo and chamber music recitals have been broadcast on ArteTV, WFMT, San Francisco Symphony +, Classical KING, KTSF 26 and NBC Bay Area.

Samantha is also passionate about teaching students of all ages. She has held the position of Associate Faculty at Cabrillo College since 2022, joined the faculty at SFCM in 2023 and maintains a private piano studio in San Francisco Bay where she lives with her husband, daughter and cat.

Samantha received her BM at Northwestern University, MM at Cleveland Institute of Music and DMA at University of Minnesota. Born in Los Angeles, she began her childhood piano lessons with Robert Turner and continued her studies with Paul Schenly, Kathryn Brown, Sylvia Wang and Alexander Braginsky.