Judy Collins tells about her piano lessons:

... I felt special to be singled out to sit at the feet of a wunderkind whipping out scales and exercises at lightning speed, working on "La Campanella," or bringing the slow movement of a piano concerto into easy, smooth performance. Mrs. Munson was always telling me it was not the speed that was important, but the concentration.

The repertoire I played at a young age consisted of Schubert sonatas and Mendelssohn pieces, fugues and waltzes by Chopin, and Czerny pieces to emphasize technique. I always spent a good portion of my practice session doing scales and exercises, the metronome keeping me in pace. I loved the big chorded passages in Chopin, the way my fingers could fly over the keys, making the music. For me playing has always been deeply satisfying, gratifying. Melody seems to soak up all the bitterness and pain of the world.

Sometimes when I practiced scales I put a book on the shelf of the piano and played while I read The Count of Monte Cristo or a Nancy Drew mystery.~~~from Singing Lessons

The independent teacher remains the backbone of the musical system in any

country. Spectacular and much favored artists and virtuosi of the classroom

may come and go, but it is the instructor who toils patiently over a long

period, with other considerations than fame and high fees in mind, that

America owes much of her high musical development. – The Musical Courier

Piano lessons and music theory

Teaching theory fulfills one of the important missions of the piano teacher by establishing that the art of playing is more than the mastery of the fingers, by providing the tools for greater confidence and security in performance, and by stimulating the mind and kindling the desire to read between the "lines and spaces" for more intelligent search and discovery.

It is fair to say that while very few piano students pursue a career in music, all are entitled to a complete musical education. It is also generally accepted that ear training, harmony, and structural analysis are primary requisites upon which to build an intelligent performance, since the main function of these subjects is to heighten the sense of hearing and musical understanding....

Today's teacher has a rich treasury of instructive materials from which to choose. But the method of presentation and the teacher's attitude play important roles in the student's receptivity or indifference. While enthusiasm, ingenuity, and preparation are the essence of the art of teaching, it takes a patient, dedicated teacher to crack the resistance of a student who would much rather play than think! To generate and maintain interest, attractive materials and appealing ways must be found. Concepts such as chord inversions and the order of keys and signatures can be confusing unless presented in a logical fashion. From Teaching Piano, edited by Denes Agay