Instructor Spotlight: September 2014

Mai Butler

Mai Butler, piano instructor at Harris Academy of the Arts, grew up in a musical environment. Her mother was a piano teacher and Mai always knew that the piano would naturally be a part of her life forever.

Mai was born in Japan in a town called Kawaminami in the Miyazaki Prefecture. “Miyazaki Prefecture is located in the southern island in Japan,” says Mai. The population of my hometown is about 17,400 and the best feature of Kawaminami is that it is close to both mountains and sea.”  Now, thousands of miles across the ocean, Mai lives in Lincoln, NE and holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts in piano performance.

Teaching piano is Mai’s dream job. “My students always make me happy,” she says. “I have very special connections with my students.  When I witness students' improvement, I am deeply touched by them and I reconfirm that my job is one of the most amazing jobs.  I have goose bumps when my students are able to deliver very beautiful tone color and quality.”

Mai is also involved as a performer in the Lincoln area, giving frequent solo recitals and piano duo recitals, teaming up with fellow pianist, Feifei Jiang. Whatever she is playing, her heart goes into it. “My favorite performance memory is when I was touched by my own performance.  I feel that I am practicing so hard every day to experience this special moment and it is one of the best feelings I have ever experienced.  There are two times these special moments happened to me: when I played a Beethoven sonata for my high school entrance exam (as a piano performance major) and when I performed a piano concerto with the Jefferson City Orchestra.”

Read Mai's Bio >>

More about Mai:

Do you play any other instruments?
I used to play trumpet when I was an elementary student as a member of marching band

What is your favorite kind of music?
I love all classical music. I love to listen to music from the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic periods.  I enjoy more playing contemporary music rather than listening.

What other hobbies do you have besides music?
My hobby beside music is window-shopping for home decorations.  I love looking at wall-decors, paintings, furniture, and gardening materials.

What is your favorite food?
I love Asian foods, especially Japanese, Chinese, Korean , and Vietnamese foods.  My favorite Japanese food is cold Soba (buckwheat noodles) served on a wickerwork platter and eaten after being dipped in a cold sauce.  

What do you think is the best movie of all time? 
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