“When parents come to me and wonder how I make kids learn music, I tell them I don’t make them do anything besides have fun,” said Dirk Kraus, owner and founder of Windsor’s Piano & Guitar Institute. “We can fight it, or we can make it fun; I always say if it’s not fun, don’t do it.”

 

“Life is too short to not have fun. We believe that music is fun and fundamental to learning. Our goal is to make learning to play the piano or guitar fun, so kids want to learn. That’s our secret and that’s what’s kept us going all these years,” Dirk said.

 

“When I was three, I came home from preschool one day and said I wanted to play the piano,” Dirk recalled with a warm laugh. “We didn’t even own a piano and my parents weren’t very musical. My mom’s college roommate happened to have a piano we borrowed, so we found a teacher and it snowballed from there.”

 

Dirk studied music through school, working on a Ph.D. at Louisiana State University. He taught his first piano lesson in 1985. “From that first lesson, I realized the fun part of music is teaching…it’s passing on that passion and seeing students master a really cool song. I’ve had a lot of fun teaching and I’ve never wanted to do anything else,” Dirk said.

 

After meeting his wife and working at a music school in Ohio, Dirk and Jen made the move to Colorado with the sole intention of opening a music school. “We looked all around the country at different options and Northern Colorado seemed to offer that balance of mountains and outdoor activities, and a good home for a business. We made the right choice,” he said.

 

The Kraus family moved to Northern Colorado in August 2001. The Piano & Guitar Institute opened in November. Jen and Dirk are both teachers, Dirk teaches music, and Jen teaches elementary school.

 

In the more than 20 years since it opened, the school has taught thousands of kids and adults guitar and piano. Their main Windsor campus has seven teachers, and they teach more than 200 students a week. The school puts on four recitals a year, with a big cumulative showcase each June. “Seeing students achieve a good performance is one of the best parts of being a teacher,” Dirk added.

 

“In addition to making it fun, we also have a set curriculum that leads students through learning their instrument. Of course, all the teachers bring their own styles, and we teach at the student’s pace, but we all teach the exact same thing. It’s that consistency that breeds success,” he detailed.

 

In 2021, the Kraus family made a big move. Through a partnership with the Poudre School District and the John F. Kennedy School, Jen and the family moved to Berlin where she teaches 5th and 6th grades. “This move has been wonderful for our family. It’s been such an experience and our kids have really blossomed here. We planned to stay two years, but we’ll be here for four because we love it so much.”

 

“It has worked out beautifully. I was already teaching classes virtually because of the pandemic, so I just carried those classes right over to Berlin,” he said. “The business is still thriving and now I’m reaching students on nearly every continent.”

 

Dirk notes that his family was able to make the move thanks to his longtime teacher and studio manager, Christie Herndon. “Christie has worked at the school for 14 years. She’s the reason we were able to do this, and she’s done an amazing job helping me run the business while I’m away. I’m so grateful for her,” he said.

 

When they’re not teaching, Jen and Dirk love to spend time with their kids – Jayden (16), and twins Alia and Riley (13). They are enjoying exploring Europe and they travel as much as they can. Dirk loves to do puzzles in the cold Berlin winters and ride his bicycle across the country in the summers.

 

“We just send a huge thank you to the entire Northern Colorado community for trusting us with your music lessons. We love playing music with your kids. Music is fun and fundamental to learning! Our goal is to make sure music is fun for all,” he said.

 

Piano & Guitar Institute offers in-person and online classes. Learn more at pianoandguitarinstitute.com.