Milodia Music: piano and singing lessons in Helsinki

hi! this is a place to explore.

The world of music is vast and full of things to discover. You don’t need a finished plan for the lesson. Together we’ll find a good place to start building more skill.

Piano or singing?

[01 / choose your path]

Piano lessons

You can be a complete beginner, an experienced player, or an adult, teen or child returning to music. Lessons are planned around what you want to learn and what your goals are.

In piano lessons we can approach playing in many ways: a new piece, a work already in progress, or musical understanding.

More details What happens in piano lessons? Hide details

Piece, technique and expression

We can focus on learning a new piece you want to play, or on refining something you’ve been working on for longer. In practice we might find the most useful technical exercises, sharpen motor control, learn to understand what is happening musically in the piece (for example through chord analysis), and develop interpretation and expression: how fast or slow you play, how loud or soft, how you use the pedal, and how all of these are fine-tuned in relation to each other.

Musical understanding

The piano is also an excellent tool for learning musical understanding. We can study reading notation, what scales and keys are, how chords are built and relate to each other, or even what equal temperament actually means.

Starting level and instrument

You don’t need to know anything yet, and being rusty is fine. In my lessons you don’t need to worry about how “well or badly” things go — we are there to learn a skill. What you need is a willingness to learn and curiosity about music. To get the most from lessons, it helps to have regular access to a piano. If you’re unsure whether your instrument is suitable, get in touch and we’ll see what kind of study it supports. MIDI keyboards used with music software can work very well for basics (notes, chords and so on), but they are not well suited to playing, say, Beethoven sonatas.

Ask about piano lessons →

Singing lessons

For adults who are starting out and for those who have already been singing for longer. Get to know your own voice and build ways to practise purposefully outside the lesson too.

In singing lessons we can work on songs you enjoy. If it’s your first lesson, it’s a good idea to bring a few different pieces — I’ll choose the ones that work best as study material.

More details What happens in singing lessons? Hide details

Material

I can also suggest songs if you don’t yet know what you’d like to sing, but it’s important that the material feels meaningful to you — you are the best expert on your own taste.

How a lesson goes

Lessons usually begin by warming up the body with light movement and stretching. That gets the blood flowing and helps avoid vocal fatigue or hoarseness from singing cold — just as you’d warm up at the gym before lifting. From there we warm up the voice with various vocal exercises. This part is often really fun and playful as we get to know your voice, learn how it works, and explore different ways to use it. Then we move on to songs: melody, rhythm, pronunciation (if the song is in another language), and technique so singing feels as comfortable as possible.

What we’re aiming for

At the same time you build an understanding of what to do and notice in each moment. The most important aim is always the joy of singing and learning, and feeling freer with your own voice.

Ask about singing lessons →

Where do we start?

[02 / your starting point]

I’m starting from scratch

You don’t need to know yet what a sensible goal would be. We’ll find a safe and interesting first step.

I’m returning to music

We’ll figure out in practice what you still remember and where to continue. There’s no exam.

One tricky spot

You can bring a piece, a recording, or a single problem. We’ll make it smaller and something you can try.

I want to understand more

We’ll build listening, technique and practice habits that transfer to the next piece.

What do you take away from a lesson?

[03 / lesson takeaways]

01 // starting point

A clearer sense of where you are now.

What already works? Where does uncertainty or stuckness show up?

02 // experiment

One thing you can hear or feel.

We change one thing at a time and notice what happens.

03 // next step

An exercise you can continue on your own.

A useful observation becomes your own small tool.

The piece is both the goal and a tool for learning

[04 / how we work]

The aim is to build skill — listening, technique and practice habits you can use beyond the music we study in lessons. We learn to notice what already works, what is challenging, and how the challenge can be tackled, and from that we build an exercise you can use independently outside lessons too.

Notice

What is happening in the playing, the voice or the body? What already works?

Explore

We try one change at a time and listen carefully.

Strengthen

A change that works becomes an exercise you can repeat on your own.

Apply

We take the same skill into a new passage or the next piece.

This approach may suit you when…

[05 / if this sounds like you]

→ 01

You want to learn to guide your own work.

You don’t just want to repeat instructions — you want to understand how you progress.

→ 02

You want to learn to play or sing a particular piece.

We’ll bring it to the lesson and look at what it’s really about.

→ 03

You want advice on a specific playing or singing technical problem.

We’ll turn the problem into a smaller, tryable, repeatable exercise.

→ 04

You want to understand better what is happening in the music.

Reading, listening, technique and expression get to connect.

Lessons and pricing

[06 / practicalities]

Start here

Trial lesson

45 min · piano or singing

50 €

One-time offer for new students · at the Arabia studio

Home teaching +10 € → 60 €

Most common choice

Piano or singing lesson

45 min · same price for both

70 €

Single lesson at my studio in Helsinki

Home teaching +10 € → 80 €

Longer lesson

60 minutes

piano or singing

85 €

When you want more time in one session

Home teaching +10 € → 95 €

Home teaching in Helsinki and Espoo: travel time and travel costs are included.

Packages and other pricing

Lesson packages · studio

45 min / session

5-lesson package	335 €save 15 €
10-lesson package	660 €save 40 €

Lesson packages · home teaching

45 min / session

5-lesson package	385 €save 15 €
10-lesson package	760 €save 40 €

Expert services, choir coaching and similar: priced per project.

Location Hämeentie 155, Arabia, Helsinki. Entrance from Kaanaankatu, next to jeweller Tarkkanen. Map, entrance at the marker ↗ Find a route in HSL Journey Planner ↗
Times Weekdays 13:00–20:00. Feel free to ask about a time that works for you.
Prices All prices include VAT 25.5%.

Ask about availability →

Teacher

[07 / the person behind the page]

Calm, curious and purposeful work.

I’m Milla Nissinen, a Helsinki-based music teacher and musician. I teach piano and singing at my studio in Arabia, Helsinki. I also teach in students’ homes.

Read more Background, pedagogy and education Hide background

Pedagogical approach

My starting point in teaching is curiosity, ease, playfulness and fun. The world of music is vast and full of things to discover — new pieces or new ways of working. You never “finish” this craft, and everyone is on the path at their own point. What matters is coming to it, discovering and learning something new about music and yourself.

My lessons are enjoyable and relaxed without dropping purposeful work. We find the edge of what you can already do, then carefully build skill beyond that. That is hugely interesting! Mistakes belong here — through them we learn the most and see where we are.

As a person I’m calm, good-humoured and encouraging. I find something interesting in all kinds of music, and you can bring game or film music, more traditional classical repertoire, or even Finnish iskelmä — as long as it can somehow be realised through piano or singing. There is a lot to draw from and learn in every kind of music, and exploring it together is fun and inspiring.

Experience and educational background

I have over ten years of teaching experience alongside my studies. In recent years I’ve taught full-time, and with many students the collaboration has continued for years. I also teach in students’ homes through Akateemiset Muusikot.

I hold a Master of Music and a music pedagogue degree. I’ve studied music broadly in several institutions, including the Sibelius Academy of the University of the Arts Helsinki. My studies have included singing (classical and pop-jazz), piano (classical and free accompaniment), choral conducting, organ, and music theory and analysis. I apply all of this in my teaching according to each student’s needs.

I take each person’s uniqueness into account in my teaching and choose tools according to what works best in each situation. Let’s find the tools that suit you best together.

Education

Master of Music (Sibelius Academy, University of the Arts Helsinki, Church Music, major in singing, graduated 2023)
Music Pedagogue (UAS) (Lahti University of Applied Sciences, Instrumental teaching, singing, graduated 2016)
Musician (Lahti Conservatory, upper secondary vocational, main subject piano, graduated 2011)

Small questions

[08 / before you write]

Do I need a ready-made goal?

No. You can come with a piece, a question, or plain curiosity. The first lesson helps find a starting point.

What kind of music can I bring?

There’s something to explore in all kinds of music. You can bring game or film music, classical, iskelmä, or other music that can be realised through piano or singing.

Who are the lessons for?

Piano lessons are open to beginners, teens, children, adults, and people returning to music. Singing lessons are for adults who are starting out and for those who have already been singing for longer.

Where do lessons take place?

At the studio in Arabia, Helsinki, at Hämeentie 155. Entrance is from Kaanaankatu, next to jeweller Tarkkanen. Home teaching is also available in Helsinki and Espoo. Milla also teaches in students’ homes through Akateemiset Muusikot.

Do I need my own piano?

To get the most from lessons, it helps to have regular access to a piano. If you’re unsure whether your instrument is suitable, get in touch and we’ll see what kind of study it supports.

What would you like to learn?

In your message, say whether you’d like piano or singing lessons, what you’d like to learn, and what times usually work for you.

Or write directly: milla@milodia.fi

Policies and terms

[09 / packages & cancellations]

Payment and invoicing

Trial lessons and single lessons are invoiced by email afterwards (usually at the end of the month). For lesson packages (5 and 10 sessions), the full invoice is sent after the first teaching session and is paid in advance. Payment term is 14 days.

Validity of lesson packages

To keep learning purposeful and regular, lesson packages are valid as follows:

A 5-lesson package is valid for 4 months from the purchase date.
A 10-lesson package is valid for 8 months from the purchase date.

Unused lessons are not refunded after the validity period ends, unless a long-term illness has been agreed separately.

Cancellation terms

If something comes up, cancel the lesson at least 24 hours before the agreed start time. Lessons cancelled later or missed without notice are charged at the normal rate, or count as a used session from a package. If the teacher is ill, the lesson is moved to another time free of charge.

Piano and singing lessons in Helsinki