About The Author

Fay Barrs, author of The Barss Theory BooksEducated in England, Fay Barss is a certified, independent music teacher who maintains a music studio and lab in Richmond, Virginia. Fay is proud to have served her Local, State and Southern Division in numerous capacities, which included two term Presidencies on both the State and Local levels, as well as chairing State Audition competitions for 15 years. She is pleased to continue her service through current positions at the local and State levels.

Fay has been published in both American Music Teacher and Clavier magazines, and has also presented at the World Piano Pedagogy Conference. In 2001, she was the recipient of Teacher of the Year awards from both the Richmond Music Teachers’ Association (RMTA) and the Virginia Music Teachers’ Association (VMTA). Seven years later, she had the extreme honor of being named a Music Teachers’ National Association (MTNA) Foundation Fellow in Denver, Colorado.

Fay’s teachers and mentors include the late Florence Robertson Givens, as well as Eugenia Evans, with whom she worked closely on the teachings of Theodore Leschetizky. Fay authored the Barss Music Theory Books, a thirteen level theory workbook program designed for use in private or group teaching environments, as well as home/self-paced study.

Over the years, Fay has joyously taught music and music theory to a generation of students, and is now most gratified to welcome several “grand-students” to her studio – all wishing to learn music as their parents did. She has worked successfully with people with disabilities, to include those who are blind. No matter who she is teaching, however, Fay’s philosophy has always been the same: to help students set and achieve their musical goals and, above all, to nurture a genuine love of music.