Valerie Kampmeier

Founder and Director of Free To Create, Life Coaching for Musicians, providing expert assistance, encouragement and inspiration to musicians throughout the world by Zoom, Skype, FaceTime and in person.

A talented piano student from the age of five, Valerie has been teaching since she was a graduate student at one of London's premiere conservatories, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She worked with graduate piano accompaniment students, as well as gifted children.

While living in North London, she also ran a successful home studio with regular student concerts and many examination successes. Her students have gone on to be professional musicians, actors, dancers, lawyers, and doctors--all with a deep love of music, and appreciation of the arts.

Valerie emphasizes the importance of technical, physical, mental, emotional and creative freedom at the piano, a wide range of repertoire, improvisation and composition.

Stepped into the position at several days' notice and ran the K-6 music program successfully for three months, including devising and preparing the Holiday Program and writing 300 music reports whilst the teacher was on sick leave.

Faculty: Bachelor of Music degree programme at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, London. Responsible for teaching history, style and analysis of Western classical music, musicianship, composition and improvisation. Also student advisor.

Head of Lower School and musicianship teacher in the Junior Department of G.S.M.D.

Conductor of Junior and Chamber Choirs.

The Chamber Choir, founded by her in 1996, performed with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment under Paul Daniel, and took part in a live broadcast on BBC Radio 3 with the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Leonard Slatkin.

Pianist, coach and assistant conductor, Glyndebourne for new opera, "Misper" by John Lunn.

Rehearsed and directed professional soloists and groups of up to seventy young people in acclaimed première.

Hired as pianist/coach, and stepped in to conduct rehearsals for several weeks when conductor became sick.

Pianist and conductor, Opera Circus artistic residency in Portugal for an international management consulting firm.

Devised, rehearsed and conducted groups of up to eighty management consultants in a series of shows resulting from three-day intensive workshops.

Freelance repetiteur for Mecklenburgh Opera, London.

Acclaimed premières of contemporary works by British and European composers. Performed in two BBC films of music by the composers of Terezin.

Pianist and coach at the Académie Internationale d'été, Nice, France.

Worked alongside international voice teacher Noelle Barker , OBE, and coached singers in French.

Masters' degree in Spiritual Psychology, University of Santa Monica, California

"Continuing Professional Development" - one-year course at G.S.M.D., training in practice-based research, improvisation, composition and workshop direction.

The course included researching and writing a 5000 word dissertation and presenting it as a public lecture to the Academic Board at Guildhall. The dissertation on "The Impact of RSI on Creativity in Musicians" was based partly on the results of a series of creative workshops for musicians affected by RSI (Repetitive Strain Injury). It attracted considerable interest and acclaim, both from within the institution and outside.

Studied the Kodály Method for two years under David and Yuko Vinden, founders of the Kodály Centre of London. David is one of the foremost exponents of Kodály Music Education in Britain.

 Guildhall School of Music and Drama (Advanced Studies/ Piano)

University of London, Royal Holloway College, Bachelor of Music (Hons) London (Upper 2nd)

She has distinguished herself as an outstanding musician, teacher and facilitator [and] an excellent communicator.

She gets to know the students' strengths and weaknesses, and then uses her large bank of educational and artistic tools to help the children reach their potential.

I met Valerie at an opera audition in London and was so impressed with her playing that I asked her for private coaching.We ended up working and performing together in numerous recitals, concerts and auditions during a ten year period. Valerie is the most knowledgeable and sensitive coach I ever worked with. She has all the skills one could wish for in a coach as well as a great range of musical knowledge and depth of experience. She has a rare sensitivity both as a performer and coach and she has guided , supported and helped me to mature as a singer.

 I have always found Miss Kampmeier's work to be of an exceptionally high standard. She is a natural and gifted teacher who has a real sensitivity and understanding... Her knowledge and understanding together with her tremendous energy and enthusiasm ensures that she gains extremely high results in all her work.... She has a very likeable nature which is infectious.