Welcome to
Studio V

Whatever your goals,
You are welcome here.

Whether you are a concert artist who needs better technique or to push through a block, or a complete beginner to any musical education and want to begin a relationship with music, you are welcome here.

Studio V is a professional musical teaching studio in the heart of Washington, DC, offering private instruction in piano, composition, and musicology.

Current and former students have included lauded recording artists, music teachers, producers, DJ's, conservatory students, international piano competition winners, and various enthusiasts of a diverse background. The Studio is a European Classical studio, in the Beethoven-lineage tradition, building a holistic and supportive musical community of learners grounded in a rigorous academic approach. Studio V is a nationally recognized private teaching studio, most recently featured in The Washington Post, in Capital One Bank advertisements, and through years of distinguished partnerships with the Johns Hopkins University, Washington Ballet, and Washington Performing Arts, among others over the years.

“I want Studio V to prove to people
that classical music is a living tradition,
not a study of the dead. I want Studio V
to prove to those in classical music
that the community can build models
that prioritize kindness, diversity, support,
enthusiasm, and being a helper
to each other without sacrificing
excellence and drive and ambition.”

— Matthew J Viator

about Matthew j Viator

Matthew J Viator is a graduate of the Peabody Conservatory of Music. Mr. Viator's teachers include Christopher Theofanidis, Libby Larson, the late Nicholas Maw, Shafer Mahoney, Nancy Roldan, Cory McVicar, Gigi Reeks, and David Smooke, and private studies in etude idiomaticism with the late Leon Fleisher privately in his first year at Conservatory.

While in Conservatory, his works received premieres at the Peabody Opera Theater, the Peabody Conservatory, Isaac Stern Hall (Carnegie Hall), Steinway Hall, First Unitarian Church, Mount Vernon United Methodist Church, with commissions from NASA, NPO’s, Concert Artists, and various musicians and generous private patrons of the arts.

Mr. Viator is the composer of a wide array of works, notably Chamber and solo works, including an operetta, Efstathios, several Piano Sonatas and Klavierstucke, String Quartets, Sacred Choral Works, Piano Concerti, a Violin Concerto, a Viola Quartet, and numerous etudes for the instruction of piano technique. In addition, Mr. Viator is the author of various books, including the textbook Approaching the Piano (2010) , an integrated pianistic / theoretical curriculum at the Piano.

Mr. Viator has sat on various boards, including the Maryland Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, the Alexandria Choral Society, and as the founding chairman of Guerrilla Music, Inc. He has sat on distinguished alumni panels for the Johns Hopkins University, lectured at Shenandoah Conservatory of Music, and guest teaches courses in Music Business at the Peabody Conservatory of Music as well as other institutions.

Mr. Viator has been featured in The Washington Post, Capital One Bank Advertisements, Distinguished Alumni of the Johns Hopkins University, among others. He regularly concertizes in private venues and concert venues in Washington, New York, and across the eastern seaboard.

Mr. Viator lives in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, DC, with his partner, Amilcar. They are the proud parents of Ludwig, their dog, and Nimrod and Lucy, their cats. He and his partner are both active members at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Capitol Hill.

Our Story

Matthew J Viator teaching Zachary 2010.jpg

From Humble beginnings

It was October of 2009, the economy was in tatters, and I had recently been dumped onto the doorstep of the world, fresh from my graduation from the Peabody Conservatory.

Being a young musician is usually hard enough in the best of times; being a young musician who has to make his way in the world when there is an economic downturn can be simply scary. At the suggestion of my then partner and my family, I decided to throw caution to the wind and to found Studio V, a musical studio devoted to approaching music and musical community in the ways that I most valued. Studio V would prioritize deep learning, a holistic and supportive community that offered sincere care for its members, but with the rigor and the ambition usually found in more cut-throat musical communities.

I wanted Studio V to prove to everyone that classical music was a living tradition, not a study of the dead. I wanted Studio V to prove to those in classical music that the community can build models that prioritize kindness, diversity, support, enthusiasm, and being a helper to each other without sacrificing excellence and drive and ambition.

In short, I was a young idealist, still optimistic enough to take a chance and believe it would work. And how fortunate I have been to see my students and my community exceed even my wildest expectations all those years ago.

The Studio Continues to Grow

As the years passed, I was fortunate to work with several students who challenged me to grow as an educator, and who proved the value of my community-focused model of holistic, supportive, rigorous education.

Several years ago, the studio developed a great salon model for musical community, hosting large and joyful gatherings of students and friends to make music, share views and aspirations, and come together in the refinement of their crafts. I’ve been told by many that my Italian tradition of cooking a feast has been a defining feature of these gatherings.

Over the years, studio students have built parade floats together, they have entered and won international piano competitions, they have prepped and gotten into Conservatories, they have come together and founded a separate non profit devoted to guerrilla musical education events, have had raucous socials at the studio with live chamber music and visiting artists, and have created a dedication to learning the piano and writing music that is remarkable.

Matthew working through a score with Christina.jpg

Into the Present day.

Today, we are still true to who we have been, but we continue to strive and to grow as musicians and as friends. I know that I continue to challenge myself as an instructor, because I see being stationary as giving up. I hope to be a better teacher tomorrow than I am today, and I hope to continue my dedication to my own betterment year after year. I know that my students will keep challenging me to grow even as I am challenging them to believe in themselves and to do the deep learning that will make them the great musicians they dream of being.

We welcome everyone, of every level. Join me for a coffee or a cappuccino, and a conversation. My door is always open.

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Welcome to Studio V

Whatever your goals,You are welcome here.