Xander D. Birchfield

Bio & Experience

I began playing piano in 2015 and have been teaching since 2020. My musical journey began as a percussionist, and my time as drumline captain in high school is where I discovered my love for teaching. This passion inspired me to create Birchfield Piano in 2022, a music education company that now teaches students across the country.

I hold a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from Randolph-Macon College. One of my projects, "Characterization of the Acoustic Properties of 3D Printed Materials," combined my two passions. I compared different 3D-printed materials to spruce wood, aiming to find a cost-effective alternative for creating musical instruments. The research led to the successful creation of a 3D-printed ukulele prototype with acoustic properties comparable to its spruce wood counterpart.

In addition to my work at Birchfield Piano, I am a civil engineering technician for MSA, an architecture and engineering firm, but my passion extends beyond the world of design and into the realm of music. I am also the volunteering pianist for the Ashland Church of God. In my free time, I love playing the piano and creating my own music, drawing inspiration from artists like Elton John and Billy Joel.

Teaching Philosophy

My philosophy is rooted in my belief that music and engineering, while seemingly different, share a common DNA of problem-solving and creative design. I bring this unique perspective and formulaic approach to every lesson, helping students understand the "why" behind the "how." This process gives students the skills and confidence to not only perform music but also to create their own. 

Teaching Hours & Availability

Below is my general availability for teaching. Once you register for lessons, I will be in contact with you about scheduling your lessons. If none of the times below work for you, send me an email with your availability and we can try to work something out together. 

Texts & Necessary Materials

I have adopted Alfred's Basic Adult Piano Course Levels 1 - 3 as my primary piano method. The book series does say that it is for adults. However, younger pianists can still learn from the book and do well with the lessons. I have taught the songs in the book to students from all ages 6 and up. 

I do recommend purchasing a copy of the book either hard or soft copy. If you have never had lessons before, purchase level 1. If you have some experience, wait until your first lesson and we will discuss which book to get. No matter how students get the book, they need to make sure they can annotate the music in the book. I have a digital copy I can share pages out of if needed, but students will need to ensure they print the music prior to their lessons. Otherwise, learning the music during lessons can become difficult. 

I pull from other sources as well for the music and theory I teach to students. All of my students learn to read music and then I also teach improvisational/musical writing skills with chord charts. While not necessary, Alfred's Essentials of Music Theory is a good reference for most music theory topics. It gives a quick summary of the topic with practice problems all on one page and it covers about 75 topics. I recommend it for students planning to have a teaching career in music. 

Attendance Policy

• Should a student need to miss any portion of a lesson for any reason, a 24-hour notice in advance of the lesson is required via email, call, or text. At this point, a make up credit will be posted to the student's account for a later appointment. Certain extreme circumstances will be handled on a case-by-case basis as long as the student contacts me within 24 hours of their lesson. 

• Students will not receive make-up lesson credits for lessons in which they do not attend without prior notification of the instructor. Should the instructor need to miss a lesson, the student(s) will be notified and make-up lessons will be conducted at a later appointment. 

• Should a student be late for a lesson, the instructor will wait for 10 minutes before canceling the lesson. If you are planning to be late for a lesson and you do contact the instructor 24 hours in advance, it is recommended that you still reschedule the lesson if you would like your full amount of time. Usually students are taught back-to-back without any buffer time, so it’s difficult to give students their full time when they are late without delaying other students. 

Assignments & Award System

• In addition to the lesson every week, students may have small homework assignments that will help them better understand piano theory. Also, students will have at least one page of music out of the textbook to practice every week and they may also need to practice their recital music. All assignments are posted to my Google Classroom page. Each student will have their own section heading in my Classroom with their name on it where I will post all of their notes and assignments. 

• Point values are assigned to each task students complete. Points are awarded on three conditions: Completeness, Improvement, & Effort. I will average these points to get a final percentage at the end of the term. Below is my award system breakdown. 

  • Theory & Piano: 60%

    • Theory Assignments: 10 pts each

    • Piano Performance: 5 pts per page of a song assigned

  • Lesson Participation: 15%

  • Recital:25% 

• Students who attain a 95% point average by the end of a term and receive a recommendation from their instructor, will receive the Birchfield Piano (BP) Excellence Award. This award will give students a discount on their next month of private lessons or group course tuition charges, whichever comes first. 

• Synchronous Students: Generally, all theory assignments (written homework, online quizzes, etc.) are due 24 hours before your next lesson unless noted otherwise on your Google Classroom assignment. This will allow me time to check your work prior to the lesson, so you can get the most out of your lessons. Any theory assignment submitted beyond one (1) hour late will only receive half credit. All credit is lost once the assignment is 24 hours overdue. Please reach out to me ahead of assignment due dates if you feel you need more time. 

• Asynchronous Students: Generally, all assignments (theory work and piano practice videos) are due every Monday at 5pm EST unless noted otherwise on your Google Classroom assignment. I will then provide feedback and further assignments every Tuesday following the Monday deadline. Assignments are accepted up to 24 hours late, but will only receive half credit. Late work may also result in your next assignments being posted a day later. All credit is lost once the 24 hour grace period has passed. Please reach out to me ahead of assignment due dates if you feel you need more time. 

If you have any questions regarding any of the information in my profile, feel free to contact me and I will be happy to help!