“It’s really about a love of sound — and knowing how to hear what it’s doing.”
MIKE CURPHEY
About
Mike Curphey has played the piano for over forty years — first as a boy soprano with the San Francisco Boys Chorus, later as a recording artist for the Piano For Film library, and now as a teacher working with adults who are serious about getting back to the instrument.
That path is unusual, and it’s the point. Decades spent mixing dialogue and recording solo piano gave me an ear trained to hear exactly why a passage isn’t working. I bring that to every lesson.
Lessons are available online or in person at my studio in Moraga — serving San Francisco and the east bay.
If you’ve been away from the keys for years and feel like you’re starting over, I know exactly where you are — and how to get back.
Recordings
Three pieces I’ve recorded recently — chosen because each asks for something different from the hands and the ear.
Three disciplines, one ear
Decades at the piano, in a recording studio, and in front of students have
taught me the same thing from three directions: hearing precisely is the whole
skill. Here’s what each background brings to your lessons.
40+ years at the keyboard
San Francisco Boys Chorus
Accompanist
20+ years teaching
Private studio, Rheem Valley
Student Recordings
Dialogue editing & mixing
Recording for Piano For Film
Audio Sweetening
Notes on the craft, the mind, and the music.
Occasional essays on what it means to play the piano seriously in the modern world. From the philosophy of imperfection in the age of AI to the neuroscience of how practice reshapes the brain.
These are not tips for beginners. They are perspectives on the discipline of listening, the value of struggle, and the human signature that only a maker can leave.
July 2026
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