jazz Piano club

At Seattle Jazz Academy we offer small group classes and private instruction for pianists looking to expand into the jazz style as well as private one on one coaching for intermediate to professional level players. Our beginner curriculum focuses on teaching the fundamentals of jazz theory and piano playing while having fun playing music. For intermediate through professional level students our private lessons are a la carte, but rooted in students being able to meet a set of academy standards. Our club offers lots of community events, masterclasses and concerts making it much more than a piano studio, but a community of like minded musicians serious about furthering their musical abilities.

seattle jazz academy's

Group Piano Study at Seattle Jazz Academy

For students with previous piano experience but who are 'jazz beginners' our adult group class program has proved to be a big hit! Learn the basics and fundamental skills necessary to play jazz piano in a fun, casual, small group setting. Our group classes are twelve weeks long each and start quarterly. Coached by an experienced instructor this is a great beginning step for pianists wanting to get into jazz but do not want the pressure of meeting with a private instructor weekly.

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SJA academy student Mark speaks about his experience studying jazz piano

“every week I do something I’ve never done before, and once in a while when I do that I jump up from the piano and I say, ‘Holy cow, what was that!’ It’s a lot of fun.” - Mark

mack grout

head piano instructor

Born in 1985 in Seattle Washington, USA, Mack started playing piano at the age of three. Studying classical piano seriously until age fourteen, he then became interested in jazz and blues music and started studying with Larry Key. Upon graduating from South Kitsap High School in 2004 Mack won the national Louis Armstrong award, and obtained scholarships to multiple schools including Berklee College of Music and Cornish College of the Arts. At Cornish he studied jazz piano performance and composition under his mentors Dave Peck, Denney Goodhew, Randy Halberstadt, Chuck Deardorf and Jim Knapp, graduating magna cum laude in 2008.

Since then, Mack has worked full time as a jazz composer, soloist and band leader, performed nationally and internationally in styles from jazz to pop and everything in between, and also worked abroad for several years as a musical director for international jazz clubs throughout Asia. As an instructor, Mack has taught at colleges in the pacific northwest and mentored a full studio of serious students, over a dozen of which have gone on to continue their music study at high level conservatories around the world. Mack continues to perform as a soloist and sideman in original projects, and in 2016 founded Seattle Jazz Academy, a school for serious pianists interested in jazz and improvisation.