From my 12yo daughter: I have been a student with Susie for about 2 years now. She is an incredible teacher, who lets you choose whichever song you like. She is gentle but strict, and assigns very little homework which she doesn't take too seriously. Her teaching methods are kind and patient, and she's done wonders for me. I highly recommend taking lessons with her, she'll take you very far. From me: Susie has been a really excellent choice for a kid who leans toward pop music. She does a great job of making sure that my daughter does her theory homework (without being a taskmaster about it) and learns to sight read, which is great, because my kid inherited my ear and could easily skate through just memorizing what she hears and not be able to sight read later in life. I wish that Susie had been my teacher - I'd probably be able to read sheet music! LOL We've seen a lot of progress with both piano proficiency and my daughter being able to sing and play at the same time, which is fun to watch and listen to. Overall, highly recommend. As a bonus, my kid gets to truthfully tell her friends that she has a rock 'n roll piano teacher who played keyboards for Billy Idol and Mick Jagger. Sweeeeet. read more

Susie is a wonderful piano teacher. My 10.5 year old started with her about 1.5 years ago and she made incredible strides and really quickly. What's more Susie has helped nurture her love of music. We have done both in person and Zoom classes and both have been great. Susie is a caring, loving, dedicated teacher. read more

Susie is the best piano teacher! She is so supportive and fun for our boys to work with. They get all the benefits from learning piano in a joyful environment. It's like having your favorite aunt teaching you piano! read more

Her seven year old is taking piano lessons with Susi right now and is learning a lot. Susi is great with her tailoring the instruction to where her daughter is and teaching fundamentals and a fun way. I highly recommend her! read more

My 9-year-old daughter has been taking piano lessons with Susie for two years now. She enjoys them very much. The great thing about Susie's teaching style is that technical mastery is subservient to cultivating the joy of musical expression. My daughter loves to sing and play her favorite songs on the piano. It turns out that to do those things, she has to learn tricky chord progressions and finger patterns. This seems like an ideal teaching method. I know that if I were learning to play an instrument myself, I would want to learn from Susie. read more

My son has been taking private lessons with Susie for about a year. She is great; she does so well with kids and makes the lessons fun and engaging for them, and even plans homework around seasons and what they are interested in. She has gone long on many sessions when they get in a groove. I selected her because she tends towards more "fun" music rather than boring classical music. She also is a great singer and works a bit with that. Can't wait for our daughter to start with her when she is old enough. read more

We just love Susie as a piano teacher and a person. She's fun, creative, enthusiastic, warm hearted and has my daughter really enjoying her lessons. A couple of years ago, she wanted to quit lessons (with another teacher). I asked her why she wanted to stop playing and she said it was because she couldn't sing to her classical piano songs and she loves singing so much. Because of her age, no voice teacher would work with her. I spoke to many. A friend of ours suggested Susie. We tried a lesson and she was hooked. We've been with her for almost 2 years now. Susie has been teaching her how to play the piano and sing at the same time. It is so much fun to listen to her play and sing. Also, Susie worked with my daughter a few months back to create a CD of my daughter singing my favorite song to give to me as a birthday present. That was such a nice gift! She also has art supplies in her waiting area so siblings or parents can sit there and draw. Personally, I enjoy the spirograph. read more

My son started with Susie over 5 years ago and my daughter started 2.5 years ago. They have both learned so much over the years with Susie. Her teaching style is patient and kind. She wants piano to be fun for her students, so she combines theory and basic fundamentals with teaching songs they help choose. They have learned to play notated pieces, blues riffs with improvisation, and chord accompaniment with patterns so they can adapt to play pretty much any song later on. She also introduces a variety of musical genres, including rock/pop, classical, jazz, Disney/kid songs, ragtime, holiday tunes and anything else the kids are interested in. She is a great teacher and loves to see her students thrive when they really get into a song or style. At home, my two will often sit down now and play for fun, and there is always music in the house. I know they will keep it with them as they grow up. We highly recommend Susie! read more

I wish I had Susie as my piano teacher when I was a kid! She's outstanding. She encourages her students to learn songs that they can sing and share with others, while also teaching the basics of music theory, sight reading, etc. Our kids play piano pretty well after less than two years of lessons -- and enjoy playing. I can't recommend Susie highly enough -- I've sent a few friends to study with her too. read more

Susie is an extraordinary teacher; warm, patient, very encouraging, endlessly positive and lots of fun! She's the piano teacher you wish you'd had when you were young! In her first year of learning piano, my daughter has made rapid progress. Early on, Susie had her playing contemporary songs alongside teaching theory and solid basics. Being able to play and sing along to hit songs is completely engaging for my kid and inspires her to do the "work" of learning the piano because she knows how much fun it is being able to play a song she loves! Susie's studio is lovely - comfortable for waiting parents, easy access off the freeway, great parking. I'm so grateful my friend recommended Susie to us! read more

Lessons with Susie have been life changing! I started up again after learning some piano as a kid but never knowing I could actually play the music I loved. I'm now doing that thanks to Susie D, who is both a talented musician and teacher! The lessons are the perfect balance of theory, songs and building my own creativity. I am 4 years in and forever grateful to Susie!! read more

My son originally started piano lessons at age 6 with a classical music-oriented instructor. My son was uninspired and wanted to quit. We then followed a friend's advice and gave Susie Davis a try. Her approach and musical sensibilities (rock, blues, pop, boogie-woogie) were such a fresh and fun change. My son happily took lessons from Susie for years and developed his abilities to sight read, play by ear and perform at recitals. I would (and have) strongly recommend Susie for children and adults who want to learn to play piano with a wonderful musician and person. Also, don't let the Pt. Richmond studio location deter you, we traveled for years from Albany and the travel time was 15 minutes and well worth the commute! read more

Our daughter is currently a Junior studying piano at Oakland School for the Arts. She began her piano training with Susie Davis at age 6 and continued with weekly 45 minute lessons for the next 5 years. We credit Susie with being one of our daughter's greatest heroes and role models. Because of Susie's creative influence and encouragement, our daughter is currently gigging regularly with her jazz quartet, composing and arranging her own music, and hoping to become a professional musician one day. From the very first lesson, Susie establishes and cultivates a supportive atmosphere where her students are able to jump right in. And then, like magic, Susie's students are playing and singing numerous musical selections - all because Susie makes the learning fun and accessible. We will always be grateful for Susie Davis. She started our daughter on her musical journey - which continues to shape her passion for life. read more

Susie Davis is a natural born musician and consummate performer. Her studio walls are covered with star studded photographs, platinum/gold albums and awards attesting to the fact that she's a star, and the "real deal". Her career has spanned genres and instruments, vocals, musical arranging, composing, and thankfully for her diverse group of students, teaching. I met Susie almost 20 years ago when my then small children took piano lessons in her Marin studio. Susie's innate sense of how to teach to reach each individual was as obvious then as it is now, and I remember her teaching me how to accompany my 4 year old son on the piano "jamming" in an effort to encourage him to develop his formidable musical skills. It worked, and he went on to study classical music and symphony performance. But that's not all....After I retired, I decided to learn to play the piano and have been taking lessons with Susie for over a year during which I've been astonished by Susie's patience and commitment to the process of teaching so that anyone, including me, can unlock the joy of making music. Oh, and if you're already an accomplished musician, just ask Mick Jagger, Susie can teach you how to do it better!! read more

If you are looking for a music teacher, look no more. Susie is a fantastic, caring music teacher. When my daughter was losing interest in her piano lessons (didn't enjoy the music selected for her, and didn't want to practice), I went in search of a new teacher. After one lesson with Susie, my daughter was hooked. Through Susie's method of teaching, and her interest in finding out what music my daughter liked, my daughter was learning the music she wanted to learn. Susie encouraged my daughter to sing along while playing the piano which, now, she is able to do with ease. Susie combines technique, notation and theory into each lesson, while still keeping the lessons fun and engaging. Music is a huge part of my child's life. She is able to figure out any piece of music she hears because of Susie's teaching. In fact, there are some people who call my child a 'human spotify'. I would strongly recommend Susie to any prospective families looking for an inspirational and effective music teacher. read more