Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Prado.
Hi Jennifer, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I am a concert pianist and the founder of Prado Music Academy. I arrived in the US a few years ago following a dream, and after some struggle and working very hard, I had the great opportunity to make my dream come true. I opened my own music academy.
I started to play the piano at the age of 3 with my father, who is a great musician, and through his unique creativity, he shared his passion for music with me and built a fascinating music world that enchanted me until today. With the support of my family and long hours of study and practice, I became a professional concert pianist and played in concert halls worldwide for several years.
Combining my professional career with my passion for education, I started teaching at the age of 16. At that time, I realized that music was usually thought of in a way that was not creative or fascinating. Since then, my goal was to create a music academy in which every lesson was a magical musical journey for every student while following a structured curriculum that helps them to achieve their music goals.
After several years of traveling for concerts and competitions, I became a mother and I had to reshape my entire concert pianist lifestyle. I decided to stop traveling and reduced drastically my concerts, I finally started teaching more hours and dedicating myself to do more research about how to make a positive impact in the students’ music education and lives and instill in them the love and passion I had for music.
With no knowledge about how to create a business, I started educating myself about the first steps towards it and full of uncertainties and fears, but with lots of motivation, ideas, and most importantly sure that it was my dream, I put little savings together, borrowed on my credit card, and made the decision to open Prado Music Academy.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It has been challenging since the beginning but a rewarding adventure.
The first challenging experience I had was having to take intensive English lessons for seven months in order to be able to understand and teach fluently. Another big challenge was combining my previous experience of being a concert pianist with being a business owner which was a totally different world and required me not only to reshape my personal and professional life in a different way but also to understand the business setting from the very beginning since I didn’t have any previous business knowledge.
Ultimately, the arduous pandemic situation that we faced at the beginning of last year required me to adjust suddenly and transition my face-to-face academic curriculum to virtual education.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Prado Music Academy specializes exclusively in one-on-one music instruction for all levels and ages. We offer a large selection of courses including instrumental studies and music production programs.
Our comprehensive methodology surrounded by a highly qualified and experienced educational team is what differentiates us from other music schools because it is totally oriented to develop in a didactic, interactive and engaging way the musical abilities of the students while exploring the music through different perspectives and a focus on building a strong music base.
As a result of our commitment with education and our community, we build a meaningful relationship with the students and parents enjoying together what is the most rewarding part and we are more proud of, which is the spark in our students’ eyes after each music goal achieved.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
I believe that luck plays an important role in the success of any business, but it is not the only component. What is essential to me is to be present all the time in order to identify a great opportunity or react positively when something is not going as expected, for instance, with the pandemic situation. I personally believe that motivation, discipline, perseverance, flexibility are key elements that helped substantially to succeed.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.pradomusicacademy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pradomusicacademy/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pradomusicacademy
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCM8_0sSWKwSPgUtDzNY8L5A
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/prado-music-academy-los-angeles
