Humble Roots
Blue Tree owner & educator Rebecca Smith began teaching piano lessons from her home in South Minneapolis in 2010. Once the neighborhood caught wind of a new piano teacher in the area, word spread and Smith's student base grew rapidly. Soon, there were more students than could be accommodated by Smith in her home; she began to realize that music education was lacking in some of the South Minneapolis schools in the area, and in some cases, was completely nonexistent. "These kids were hungry for interesting, challenging and fun music instruction," Smith explains, "and teachers that they could relate to and lessons that they actually enjoy."
After the first annual student recital held at a rented facility had an even larger turnout than expected, Smith became convinced that this thing was bigger than she was - and thus, Blue Tree Music Education was born. "I needed a multipurpose space that could accommodate more students," says Smith. It wasn't long before the stars aligned and she came across a storefront for rent in the Corcoran neighborhood in South Minneapolis. Smith states, "It was perfect." The grand opening in December of 2012 brought even more students, and, more teachers - as guitar lessons were added in the New Year, and voice lessons soon after.
Since its inception, Blue Tree has taken root and grown into a beautiful community music education program, centered wholly around its students & families. Blue Tree currently staffs 32 teachers & offers private music lessons, group classes, monthly Parents Night Out events and a brand new neighborhood children's choir. In fact, the growth of Blue Tree has been so rapid, that it has expanded twice, into both the neighboring North & South retail spaces.
Come be a part of the Blue Tree family!