Renee
Lacey
 Renee Lacey |
Renee Lacey
received her Bachelors Degree in Music Education from Idaho State
University, where she now teaches class and applied piano. Graduating
with high honors, she received the Outstanding Freshman Music Theorist Award
in 1986, as well as various other scholastic achievement awards while
studying at ISU. Her applied piano instructors include Cecil Simmons,
Norma Mastrogiacomo and Dr. Clive Swansbourne. Renee is also an
independent teacher, and has been teaching piano lessons in her home for about 15 years. She is active in Music Teachers National
Association, where she recently completed a 2-year term as State
President for the Idaho.
An advocate for using the latest technology with her teaching, Renee incorporated a computer lab into her curriculum in 1993, to augment her teaching and maximize lesson time. This soon led her to a search for ear training software she could use to help her students prepare for syllabus exams. Finding nothing available to meet her needs, Renee soon began outlining ideas for a program of her own. Meanwhile, she learned that her brother Von Hanks, a dentist from Bellingham, Washington, was looking for an opportunity to learn computer programming. When she approached him with her idea, he saw it as the perfect opportunity for him to learn. The two of them soon joined forces and became a team, starting on a new software series called Ear Training Expedition. Five years later, they released the first title, "Ear Training Expedition Part 1, Elementary. Due to its popularity, they have since developed a second title, "Ear Training Expedition Part 2, Intermediate". Von continues to practice dentistry,
with a laptop in his back room, where he can work on programming between
patients. Renee, in addition to her teaching, takes in as many music
conventions as time and resources will permit, showcasing the software and
giving workshops on ear training. Ear Training Expedition is now being used
by students of all ages, in private studios and classrooms across the United
States and in Canada. |