Hi, I am new to this post, so please bear with me. I am a semi-retired piano teacher, who taught for many years, and had many wonderful students. Right now, I am teaching only one student, a woman I taught when she was a child, and who is now a piano teacher/school music teacher who wanted to come back to hone her piano skills. It is a delight to teach someone who really understands everything I tell her!! To answer the question that was asked: Could I ever consider teaching if I could not play the pieces I expect my students to learn? NEVER!! Now, I am not a concert pianist, nor would I ever want to be; performing is definitely not my thing, although I have performed many times, under many different circumstances. But I can and do play everything I expect my students to play. How can you teach someone to play an instrument if you can't play it -- and play it well? Would you want to take lessons from someone who could not play their instrument? I think not. The whole idea that those who can, do, and those who can't, teach, is ridiculous!! Anyone who can't play the piano, and play it well, should not be teaching piano; if they ARE teaching piano, they are doing so under false pretenses.

I understand all that, and yet, and yet...

One of my mother's friends is a piano teacher. Once, we asked her to play. She played a Chopin waltz, very very badly. No expression, poor rhythm, bad technique. I was listening to her and thinking: what are her students learning? Mind you, she is "only" teaching beginners, but that's the most important stage - what are they learning?

All of the teachers I've had, crazy as they were, were either concert pianists or at least trained to be concert pianists. (a couple of them failed because of overwhelming performance anxiety - but not because they couldn't play). The teacher has to be able to demonstrate whatever it is that the student needs to see/hear. If s/he can't, how will the student learn?

As for being unwilling to play "Happy Birthday" for a birthday celebrant because music is your job, not your hobby - come on. Law is my (soon-to-be) job, not my hobby - and I argue intellectual property issues with anyone who wants to argue with me. If you take no joy in making music, you have no business being a musician; in fact, if you take no joy in doing whatever job you're doing, you have no business doing that job. And how long does it take to play "Happy Birthday"? Seconds? Hardly long enough to want to charge union rates for it. Nonsense.

I think everything that could be said on this thread has already been said, a long time ago, and many, many times over!
Please just let it die ...

Just MHO

R.I.P.