According to Caileen Tallant-Adams, music can actually improve people’s lives. Everyone should have access to music education, according to her namesake company, Tallant Music Studio.
“Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime,” goes an old saying. When it comes to teaching music, Tallant-Adams uses the same mindset.
To us, it seems like the question is, how might music improve and enhance your life? Even though we are all very well trained, I believe we can meet people where they are, so that’s what we’re going to do,” she said.
Before starting her business, Tallant-Adams juggled her studies, performing and teaching on the side as an instructor at Slater Music Academy in Fort Thomas. Initially seeing herself as a performer, she grew passionate about teaching, viewing it as a more sustainable way to stay engaged in sharing music with others.
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When Slater Music Academy combined with Northern Kentucky University’s Preparatory Academy in 2020, it ended operations. Tallant-Adams had planned to open her own school at this time, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced her to postpone her dream. There was a void in the market following Slater Music Academy’s closing.
Tallant-Adams established Tallant Music Studio, a Fort Thomas-based private, one-on-one music education center, in July 2020.
Piano, voice, drums, strings, guitar, flute, and piccolo are just a few of the instruments for which Tallant Music Studio offers instruction. Depending on demand, brass lessons may resume as they were previously offered. Additionally, the studio is launching a rock band curriculum that will enable students to join ensembles that are specific to their genre.
With 14 teachers and more than 250 pupils, Tallant and her colleagues have expanded the company since then. The studio is now housed in a bigger structure at 112 N. Fort Thomas Ave.
“Anyone can come here, which is another thing I really like,” Tallant-Adams added. It’s not like we’re expecting you to perform all of these things or teaching you how to play the piano in a performance. Perhaps all you want is to learn how to play a song, or perhaps you want to resume playing something you used to do.
Since the students at the studio range in age from six to seventy-six, the student group is diverse. Its qualified teachers adapt their methods to each student, allowing them to enjoy music-making at their own speed.
Veli Franta, a Tallant instructor, has been teaching piano for over 40 years.
Teaching people of all ages is challenging, but it’s also a really fulfilling experience, which is why I enjoy it, she added. I must modify my strategy for every pupil and attempt to determine what works and what doesn’t.
Since launching her company, Tallant-Adams has encountered difficulties keeping younger pupils’ interest during classes. It can be challenging to maintain young people’s interest in social media given its growing popularity among them.
In order to address this, Tallant-Adams and her teachers want to establish a rapport with younger pupils by utilizing their passions for TV series, video games, and other media to enhance their lesson plans. Tallant-Adams also shows students how playing an instrument can be used in real-world situations, such as performing for live audiences. She hopes to spark the students’ curiosity in this way.
“I believe the part where you discuss how you could do this if you wanted to, and then you see all the different avenues,” she remarked.
Since she didn’t initially want to pursue an entrepreneurial path while in college, Tallant-Adams is especially thrilled of the fact that Tallant Music Studio will celebrate its fifth anniversary in 2025.
I do have a chemistry degree, but it s collecting dust in my basement, she laughed.
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