Plants & Pianos

*The screen in front of you blackens and the title appears, with the narrator speaking in a pleasing, yet somewhat ominous baritone...

"In our music teaching system, the instructors are aided by two separate yet equally important groups: The plants, who visually enliven the studio space, and the pianos, who help us make music. These are their stories."

*Dun dun*

Nina - Brian's piano. Packs a punch for how small she is. She relocated from the exotic land of Duluth Fine Pianos (DFP) in the Spring of 2020, and loves her new home. A bit fiery at times, she loves the tumultuous music of Beethoven, revels in the splendor of Bach, but also loves art song, Bob Dylan, Frank Sinatra, and Adele.

Símone - Courtney's piano. Exotic, stunning, and also relocated to Encore from DFP in the Spring of 2020. (She and Nina were a package deal) Nina and Símone have a bit of a rivalry that defines them, much like Chopin and Liszt. The textures of Rachmaninoff and the virtuosity of Chopin give her life, but she also enjoys Leon Bridges and H.E.R.

Henrietta - Brian's digital practice organ. Recently single, Henrietta has moved around a lot in the last few years, but she has found her new home at Encore. When not creating marvelous music, she requests silence.

Paul - The satin pothos. Always perfectly coiffed, Paul would like everyone to know that he is perfect in every way, shape, and form. But, it's those who always seem perfect that we have to watch out for in the long run. He has the answers for every question you have, but you should really ask your mother instead.

Phil E. Dendron - The ever adventurous and overbearing philodendron. He grows everywhere and is happy wherever he happens to be, redefining what it means to be a plant at every juncture. Someone always has to keep him in check. That's not always an easy task with how many healthy vines he's got going for him. To our lovely friend, Macramé: thanks for taking great care of Phil.

Brent - The cunning spider plant. What you see is what you get... He's stylish, clean, and really likes his spot in Courtney's office. He can be a bit wiry, but we love him anyway.

Arnie Palmer - The majestic palm who lives up to his name. He won't quit being extra. He even had to have his hair done to get rid of some spider mites recently. Soooo many dramatic leaves... tsk, tsk. Much like his non-alcoholic counterpart, Arnie combines fresh, sweet, and tart into a plant we all love. He hates golf, though.

Lil' Deef - A small and struggling dieffenbachia. It's a bit of a Goldilocks and the Three Bears type of situation... too much sun, too little sun, too much water, too little water. What will it be next? He's trying to turn his life around and has made some great progress in the last few weeks. We're rooting for you, Lil' Deef!

George 3.0 - Orchids are hard, OK?!

Thelma & Louise - Also known as Laverne & Shirley, depending on the day, this daring snake plant duo is inseparable. They seem like one plant until you get a look up close. They'll be together forever, even when driving over a cliff.

Kevin - The golden pothos. Ever an attention hog, he has claimed his spot on the coffee table. If you were this fabulous, you'd do the same.

Oh yeah... then there's Courtney and Me (Brian). We teach here. We're pretty great.