We’re looking forward to introducing you to Alek Wasserman. Check out our conversation below.
Hi Alek, thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to share your story, experiences and insights with our readers. Let’s jump right in with an interesting one: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
We’ve had plenty over the past year. In 2025 alone, we’ve had the following accomplishments:
-A voice student went on to study at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts
-Two piano students won first and second place in the same age category of the WSPTA Moxley Scholarship Competition
-Triad Music Academy was named Winston-Salem’s Top Music School by BusinessRate
-We surpassed 200 currently enrolled students for the first time in our history
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Alek Wasserman and I’m the Founder & Lead Piano Instructor of Triad Music Academy (TMA) in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. We have grown to be the largest independent music lesson program in the city because of our emphasis on providing a consistent lesson environment with a focus on curriculum.
Our students can count on weekly lessons, recital opportunities, our bank of online supplemental lessons, and our “unlimited lesson support” (think tech support outside of the lesson).
I was a public school music teacher for four years prior to starting TMA as my piano studio. Over the last three and a half years, we’ve grown from scratch to over 220 students across piano, voice, guitar, violin, viola, and songwriting/recording. We currently have 15 awesome instructors.
I like to think it’s the combination of our awesome teachers and our structure that makes us stand out. We are also the only music school in Winston-Salem run by a licensed K-12 music educator (my license is still valid until 2026!) so we value effective teaching techniques.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. Who saw you clearly before you could see yourself?
I give a ton of credit to my professors across the three universities I attended – Lawrence University, Oberlin College and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.
Heading out of high school, my skill set as a pianist was very underdeveloped. I’m grateful to Professor Michael Mizrahi at Lawrence University for taking me in, even when I didn’t know how to even play scales.
Going into my master’s program, I think I had a lot of talent, but I wasn’t very mature. I didn’t have the best grades in undergrad, so I’m very fortunate that Professors Joanne Erwin and Jody Kerchner gave me the chance to attend Oberlin and learn about teaching there.
Where I truly got the luckiest was with Professor Dmitri Shteinberg at the UNC School of the Arts. I had essentially taken a year off from playing the piano before I got to him, and somehow he was able to make room for me in his studio. I still credit him for my students’ successes with everything he taught me about piano technique in just a year.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
There were plenty of moments when I was in U.S. Army Basic Combat Training.
I spent 6 years enlisted in the 440th Army Band of the NC National Guard, and joining the Army at the age of 25, surrounded by 17-year-olds who were made to be my peers, was extremely difficult.
The hardest part for me was the Forge, when we rucked for days. My boots were too small so my heels and bottom of my feet were totally messed up. They didn’t let us sleep, but I had to keep going in order to get my first job as a professional pianist.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
Absolutely! I am a very strongly opinionated person in general, and that extends into my work.
When I post on TMA’s social media, I always try to tie it in to something I actually believe about the work we’re doing.
We’ve covered teaching methodology (why we use Piano Safari instead of Faber Piano Adventures), student success, and the grind of the personal journey I’ve been on since starting TMA.
All of it is my real experience and best attempt at growing and curating this organization.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What are you doing today that won’t pay off for 7–10 years?
This is not at all unique to me, but in essence I’m building an asset when I work on growing TMA.
Owning a business is not easy. I work six days a week, and I still teach every single day that I work, in addition to all of the marketing, administrative, and other tasks I go through daily.
But eventually down the line, I will own a school with office staff to run it so I can work when I want. The goal probably would be to focus more on the strategic side of things once we get there, but it’s coming.
Every new student we acquire is one tiny step closer towards having that efficiency of time. This will also pay off in the long run for the students when I can delegate more tasks and build the best possible experience for them.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://triadmusicacademy.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/triadmusicacademy
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alek-wasserman-1316a38a/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/triadmusicacademy
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@triadmusicacademy
Image Credits
All photos credited to Rebecca Emilson (Becca’s Pics)
