Piano Trends Music Company

Ashley Beleny is a music teacher and associate at Piano Trends Music Company in Crystal Lake, Illinois. Her love and passion for music began in her church where she was often found singing in the choir. The church was an important part of her musical upbringing, which led to participating in the Professional Children Choir, an organization that traveled around the country and even internationally to the United Kingdom. Ashley is also a multi-instrumentalist having played piano since she was five years old, adding guitar and during the pandemic she picked up the cello.

John Benedeck sat down at the keyboard during his NAMM interview to demonstrate the riffs and clever tunes he plays as an organist for the Chicago Cubs baseball team! He is proud to have the role and provided great stories about playing at Wrigley Field. John is also a music teacher at Piano Trend Music Company in Crystal Lake, Illinois. The role is very meaningful to John as he was able to learn from some wonderful teachers growing up, all of whom emphasized how important it is to enjoy music making. In 2020 he was hired to play organ for the Cubs and likes to say his role is to

Aldren Briones is a passionate musician and songwriter who found great satisfaction in providing music lessons at his local music store. The store, Piano Trends, was founded by Tim and Bobbi Paul and is located in Crystal Lake, Illinois. Aldren was hired in 2018 and in addition to his role as a music teacher, he is an associate with the store helping with inventory, answering the phones, and providing general support. During the pandemic of 2020, Tim formed a live online program each day from the store to encourage those in lockdown. The program called Lifting Spirits Though Music

Amy Nelson is the store manager for Piano Trends Music Company in Crystal Lake, Illinois. She began working in the store in the 1990s before having a wonderful opportunity to play trumpet in the orchestra pit for Broadway musicals as well as world tours. Among the musicals she played for are “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” and Fiddler On the Roof.” While she continues to play live shows, including for the likes of Adele, Amy returned to Piano Trends in 2011 to manage the store and take part in their live-streaming program Lifting Spirits Through Music. Her journey in music began in the

Tim Paul may have been destined for a career in the piano business. Growing up, his mother was a piano teacher and his father a piano technician. One of his earliest jobs was as a ballpark organist for the Midwest League baseball teams, the Quad City Cubs and the Clinton Dodgers. After studying piano tuning, Tim and his wife Bobbi, who is a piano instructor and adjudicator, opened a music store together in Crystal Lake, Illinois in 1990 called Piano Trends Music Company.

Bobbi Paul is the Co-Founder of Piano Trends Music Company in Crystal Lake, Illinois. Bobbi and her husband opened the music store in 1990 and have been proud to see it grow into an important part of their community. Her lifelong connection with the piano began when she was four years old when her grandmother provided lessons for her. She had wonderful and inspiring music and vocal teachers along the way which led to her own music degree and interest in teaching. She developed her own methods for providing music lessons in the Chicago area for those with special needs.

Jason Paul was in middle school when his parents decided to open a music store. Jason recalls painting the walls and the grand opening of the store, Piano Trends in Crystal Lake, Illinois. His parents Tim and Bobbi Paul included Jason in the business, but never pressured him to work in the store. That was just something Jason wanted to do and the more he became friends with the staff and customers, the more he enjoyed business. Besides his passion for music and the store, Jason also has a great story about watching the filming of Groundhog Day in nearby Woodstock, Illinois.

Barb Schotanus learned the clarinet while in the Catholic Band Program as a young girl. She enjoyed the program so much that she earned her music education degree at DePaul University and became a Band Director. In 2003 she joined the Piano Trend Music Company team becoming a music teacher and the store manager. Among her responsibilities are scheduling and running the store’s lesson programs, which links her right back to the early days of her career, a process she greatly enjoys.

Bruce Waters grew up with his guitar ever-present. He played for small events around the Chicago area as a kid and started providing music lessons when he was 18 years old. He later toured with the likes of Ricky Skaggs, Merle Haggard and Hank Williams Jr. Among the highlights of his playing career was appearing on stage at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville on the bill with T. G. Sheppard, Tammy Wynette and his guitar hero Jerry Reed.  More recently Bruce can be found at Piano Trends Music Company in Crystal Lake, Illinois, giving guitar lessons. His philosophy in teaching is to mak