Hi! I’m JohnWillard. I’m a pianist & composer.

My artistic mission is to compose works that tell stories and provide practical benefits. I offer fresh, innovative repertoire for performers and students, while also delivering pedagogical benefits for music educators. Whether literally or in one’s Imagination, I love hearing reactions, feedback, and personal interpretations of how my music makes listeners (and players) feel. As a composer I enjoy using musical ciphers and cryptograms—techniques that connect letters and words to musical notes to create unique melodies.

My pieces are usually inspired by nature, movie soundtracks, archetypes, and Nintendo video games. The Etherea Suite, Volume 1 for solo piano was self-published as an intermediate-advanced collection for piano students inspired by sci-fi/fantasy literature.
In June 2023 and 2024, my mixed chamber pieces The High Priestess and Constellations premiered at the Walden Creative Musicians Retreat with members of the International Contemporary Ensemble. Other collaborations include working with Sor Juana Elementary (Chicago, IL) in arranging an orchestration for the school’s debut fight song.

In my coaching sessions or private teaching, my teaching approach encourages students to create personal narratives around their pieces so they can meaningfully connect with their repertoire to express themselves better.

 My professional background is in music education, where I’m passionate about mindset, creativity, mindfulness, and self-empowerment for musicians and students. Recent music conference presentations include How Does That Make (Me) Feel: Exploring the Art of Meaningful Self-Feedback and Unlocking Creative Compositions with Cryptogram Composing at the 2025 National Conference for Keyboard Pedagogy. Along with coaching and accompanying middle school band students for solo & ensemble festival, I also upload piano tracks as musical meditations on the Insight Timer application.

 My journey with the piano began with lessons with the late Ms. Eleanor Morgan of Cape Coral, FL, continuing with the late Artist-in-Residence, Dr. Robert MacDonald at Florida Southern College. After earning bachelor’s degrees in music education & performance from Florida Southern College, I completed a Master of Music in piano performance from the University of North Florida.

 Check out my teaching and performing videos on my YouTube Channel @JwuPiano.
[New subscribers are always welcome! Like & comment on my videos, if you feel called ;-)]

My catalog of sheet music for piano and chamber ensembles is available at sheetmusicplus.com, sheetmusicdirect.com, and pianomusicdatabase.com. Downloading and purchasing my pieces directly from this site will be coming soon!