David Leifer completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Pedagogy and
Performance in 2011 from the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance, where he studied piano and pedagogy with Dr. John Ellis. He holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano (2006) and a Master of Music degree in Piano Pedagogy and Performance (2008) from Westminster Choir College of Rider University, where he studied with Professor Lillian Livingston and Professor Ingrid Clarfield. While at Westminster, he was the winner of the 2004 Annual Westminster Piano Awards Competition, and had the honor of performing in the Weill Recital Hall of Carnegie Hall in 2007.
Dr. Leifer's teaching experience includes an appointment as a Graduate Student Instructor at the University of Michigan, where he taught college class piano, private college students, and students in the Piano Pedagogy Laboratory Program, the school's comprehensive pre-college program for children of varying ages and levels. While at Westminster Choir College, he completed a piano pedagogy internship teaching Piano Lessons Plus, a group class for children that incorporated creative listening, singing, technique, and movement activities. This internship was supervised by professor Phyllis Lehrer and assisted by Rose McCathran and Seth Slaymaker. Following this, he completed a second internship with Professor Ingrid Clarfield, working closely with two of her talented students in private lessons. Mrs. Clarfield's students have been successful in competitions and recitals, performing in venues such as Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center.
For the past few summers, Dr. Leifer has been invited to teach beginning group piano as an elective class for high school students at the Westminster Vocal Institute that takes place in July at Westminster Choir College. In addition, he has experience teaching piano and theory classes to students enrolled in the Middle School Vocal Camp at Westminster.
Dr. Leifer is a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music by the Music Teachers National Association. He joined the faculty at the Hunterdon Academy of the Arts in 2011, and will also serve on the faculty of the Westminster Conservatory of Music in Princeton, beginning in September 2011.
Dr. Leifer's Blog Articles
What Position Do I Play In, Again?