Jessica Westerman

Besides her work as a young coach/accompanist, Jessica is also a percussionist. It was in a band concert that she discovered the joy of collaboration. Solo piano was no longer enough. Now she finds her greatest joy in collaborating with other artists.

At ten, it was my idea to take piano lessons. Learning piano, practicing and going to lessons gave me something to enjoy, something to work for, and eventually something to be proud of. It was all I could think about: what piece would I learn next? What does each and every musical symbol mean? who was this new composer I had never heard of?, what’s it all going to sound like?, how can I make this better? I formed a personal relationship with music.

Surprisingly enough, though music was definitely my passion, I “fell” head over heels for it 7 years later at the New York All State Conference in Rochester, NY. I had been accepted as a percussionist, playing marimba and xylophone in the symphonic band. We were playing a fast new piece, very heavy on percussion parts.  We only had three days to learn it. It was such a struggle to put it all together that the entire band got frustrated.  Yet when the day of the concert arrived, we played as if telling the entire audience: “Listen to how beautiful this piece is, what we can do with it!”  And it worked so well that when the conductor smiled I started to cry a little.  It was just tears but it was a feeling I had never felt before

Up until that point I had only known that music gave me the chance to understand myself. But I realized that music also gave me the chance to understand others, to work with others, and to communicate with others on the stage. It was not just my own satisfaction; it was all of us together that made that piece special.

My dream is to become a professional coach and accompanist, to gather experience after experience and to be the best that I can be. I want to create a happy, healthy life where I play the piano with others, and for others; sharing music and giving music. A life that is full of personal and musical bonds.

Studying in Europe is so important in the search to create new musical bonds. The beautiful backdrop and rich history that you can see in the buildings, food and scenery is so inspiring. The most important thing is to meet new people and learn from someone else’s culture.

It is important to form new relationships and continue to grow away from home. My heart starts pounding just thinking about it!