Sam Chandler

About Sam

Sam Chandler is a dynamic and versatile pianist, composer, and educator from Duluth, Minnesota. A Ravinia Steans Music Institute Jazz Program Fellow and Berklee College of Music graduate, Chandler has studied with Ayn Inserto, Billy Childs, Kenny Werner, Greg Hopkins, Rufus Reid, Ryan Frane, Yoko Miwa, Steve Wilson, Steven Feifke, and Kevin Harris. He has played with Bijon Watson’s and Steven Feifke’s Grammy Award-winning Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra, the Ayn Inserto Jazz Orchestra, Berklee’s Billy Childs Ensemble, the Berklee Jazz Composition Workshop Orchestra, and the Berklee Jazz Composition Faculty Ensemble, in addition to various groups at venues including Wally’s Jazz Club, the Lilypad Inman, and the Cellar Dog in New York City.

Chandler has served as a teaching assistant at Interlochen Center for the Arts’ Jazz Piano Intensive since 2022 and will continue as faculty beginning in 2024. He was a tutor in Berklee College of Music’s nationally recognized Core Music Tutoring department for two years, a peer-to-peer service where students receive help for their fundamental music courses at Berklee. After graduating from Berklee, Chandler also held teaching positions at Page Music Lessons in Boston and The Northerly School for Music in Duluth. He is continuing his education at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York earning a Master’s Degree in Jazz Studies and Contemporary Media, with an emphasis in Jazz Writing.

I believe that anyone is capable of learning, playing, and enjoying music. I aim to share my enthusiasm with my students and audiences, no matter what kind of music I’m teaching or playing. Whether someone has experience or is a complete beginner, my goal is to foster a healthy relationship with playing the piano in a student, both physically and mentally/emotionally, and it's an honor and pleasure to help students walk that path.