Kathleen's Piano Studio

Kathleen Feenstra ARCT, RMT, H. B.Sc

Kathleen Feenstra has been teaching piano and theory in BC's Fraser Valley since 2001.  Accredited by The Royal Conservatory of Music with an ARCT in Piano Performance (2010) and also an ARCT in Piano Pedagogy (2019), Kathleen is a member of the British Columbia Registered Music Teachers Association, the Association of Canadian Woman Composers, and is an Associate Composer of the Canada Music Center. She enjoys teaching, composing, and arranging, and is passionate about seeing her students succeed in their musical studies. 

As a composer, Kathleen specializes in creating works that are pedagogical in nature. She has created more than 100 pedagogical works for piano.  Her music is available on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, Amazon Music, Soundcloud and on all other major platforms. One of the greatest joys in her life is watching students premier her works in recitals and festivals. 

Kathleen has published four books of piano repertoire featuring music for all levels of students. Her books are published by 80 Days Publishing and are also available at Kings Music in Abbotsford and Chilliwack. Kathleen has also made numerous arrangements of popular pieces for her students.

Kathleen is a two-time winner of the CFMTA Call for Compositions: Rocky Mountain Ride, received 1st place in the level 3/4 piano category in 2016 and Maple Syrup Moon won in the level 5/6 piano category in 2022. Her works are included in the ACWC Piano Collective Catalogue and a number are also included in the ACNMP Contemporary Showcase Festival Syllabus.

Kathleen started playing piano as a child, learning to play by ear until she was old enough to begin formal lessons.  In her early years she studied with Brenda Cottrill. During high school, she studied piano with Dr. Betty Suderman and won the district music award as well as a number of other awards at local music festivals. Her musical training continued during university, where she studied composition while completing an Honors Bachelor’s degree in Biology and Environmental Science.  Following university, she completed her Associate of the Royal Conservatory of Music (ARCT) diploma in piano performance under Leslie Janos.  Since then, she has been awarded the following specialist teaching designations by the Royal Conservatory of Music: Elementary, Intermediate, and Advanced Piano, Elementary and Intermediate Theory, and Advanced Harmony.

In 2016, Kathleen was awarded the B.C. RCM Gold Medal for Elementary Piano Pedagogy. In 2019, upon the completion of her ARCT in Piano Pedagogy, she received the BCRMTA Piano Pedagogy Award for the highest aggregate mark in the province of BC.