Jessica Hansen Wheaton is an active member of the NS Registered Music Teachers Association (NSRMTA) and has been teaching piano students of all ages and levels for over twenty years. She comes from a musical family – both of her parents are pianists & teachers – and as such, has been playing the piano since she was 6. In addition to teaching privately over the years, Jessica has taught piano and related subjects at Acadia University, where she was also head examiner for the School of Music’s external piano exams. Since then, Jessica has been residing in Lower Sackville where she runs a successful piano studio, and has built up a wonderful reputation with her many students.

Jessica began her piano studies at the Maritime Conservatory, and completed a Bachelor of Music degree at Acadia University and a Master of Music degree at the University of Montreal both in Piano Performance. Her teachers have included Constance Hubley, Peter Allen, John Hansen, Marc Durand, and Maneli Pirzadeh. She has won many awards and competitions, and has performed as a soloist in such venues as Oscar Peterson Concert Hall, The Glenn Gould School (The Royal Conservatory of Music), Claude Champagne Hall, Orford Arts Centre (OrfordMusique), and The Music Room, just to name a few. As well, Jessica has performed in masterclasses with some of Canada’s top classical pianists including Angela Hewitt, Janina Fialkowska, Marc-André Hamelin, André Laplante, Jean Saulnier, and Anton Kuerti. In addition, she has also acted as an assistant instructor and coach to Richard Raymond at the University of New Brunswick’s Summer Music Festival.

Jessica is a teacher at heart and understands how to get the best out of her students. She is a patient, firm and enthusiastic teacher, who looks to inspire students to reach high levels of achievement while at the same time, enjoying their lessons. Jessica loves to share her joy and passion for music with her students. With each lesson, she brings creativity and energy, providing a supportive learning environment and instilling the values of discipline, confidence, and musical curiosity and exploration. Along with nurturing student’s self-esteem and
confidence and enabling them to express themselves and experience the joy of musical expression, she focuses on developing a solid technical foundation for agile technique and injury prevention. Throughout Jessica’s teaching career her students have consistently achieved high honours on Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) exams, and have also placed highly in local music festivals and competitions. Above all, it is Jessica’s aspiration as a teacher to help instill a love and appreciation for music and inspire each individual to work toward their musical goals.