Q & A Session with Bethany Cothern
Q: What do you love about teaching?
I love teaching and am grateful to do it every day in both the piano studio and Pilates studio! I have spent much of my professional life and education studying how to become a more effective teacher.
Teaching movement through Pilates is so gratifying because I get to teach directly to the body: the epicenter through which all life is experienced. I’ve found that when we take better care of our bodies, there can be a ripple effect into how we feel mentally and emotionally, too.
Walking alongside clients as they get to know themselves and their movement patterns is deeply gratifying. Finding new ways to explain an idea or choreography to clients is fun for me, especially with those who are curious about their bodies. When someone notices a shift in their movements due to increased awareness or reports increased ease or strength, I get really excited!
Q: What is it that makes your work unique?
I came to Pilates because of the chronic pain I was experiencing as a classically trained pianist. In 2019, I was dealing with pain throughout my body, especially in the joints of my hands when I played piano. After a series of tests and treatments, I was diagnosed with Joint Hypermobility Syndrome, with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome suspected. I knew something had to change about the way I approached the instrument.
I began retraining my piano technique with musician-wellness educator Dr. Barbara Lister-Sink. Focusing on my whole body at the piano and challenging long-standing movement patterns gave me an entirely new perspective. I experienced firsthand how much movement habits, body awareness, and alignment can affect every aspect of life. I now play piano pain-free and work with classically trained pianists in my home studio to help them develop more sustainable movement patterns.
As part of my journey with movement and functional anatomy studies for wellness, I began gaining strength through Pilates in 2024. It is the only form of exercise that my body loves without reservation. Since completing my Balanced Body Pilates Teacher Training with Jennifer Gianni and Melissa Kakavas and my Pilates Tonic Mentorship with Sydney Craig, I have deepened my practice and experienced an almost complete evaporation of the chronic pain symptoms that had been following me my entire life.
Q: What are your five best attributes?
- I am a lifelong learner and am constantly looking for ways to deepen and expand my knowledge. I am regularly observing master teachers, listening to podcasts about Pilates or biomechanics, reading a new wellness book, finding new research, or attending workshops for continuing education.
- I value the proprioceptive aspect in every move and love to help clients chase new sensations in their muscles and sense of alignment.
- I have enriched my Pilates training with other interdisciplinary studies or research into the Alexander Technique, biomechanics, hypermobility, functional anatomy, Body Mapping, neuropedagogy, and Laban Movement Analysis.
- I love variety in my own Pilates practice, so you’ll most likely encounter something new in my classes. I like to take a familiar movement and help clients experience it in a new way.
- Teaching is my full-time job and one of my favorite things in life! I teach both piano and Pilates, and sometimes I can’t believe how lucky I am to spend my days helping people reach new levels of understanding.
Q: Who do you find yourself working with most often?
If you like a mix of calm and focused proprioceptive work, experiencing the variety of the Pilates repertoire, and feeling your body gain strength as you seek to understand functional movement on a deeper level—you’ll like working with me.
I enjoy the challenge of working with clients who have hypermobility, musicians and artists, as well as anyone who struggles with chronic pain.
Bethany’s Bio
Bethany brings a thoughtful, movement-based approach to helping people feel more comfortable, capable, and connected in their bodies. She holds a master’s degree in music with an emphasis in injury-preventive keyboard technique and brings her background in proprioceptive training for musicians, body awareness, and movement education to her Pilates teaching.
She has a particular interest in helping people whose jobs or hobbies involve repetitive movement build strength, improve body awareness, and develop a deeper sense of alignment.
Bethany completed her Balanced Body Pilates Teacher Training with Jennifer Gianni and Melissa Kakavas, followed by the Pilates Tonic Mentorship with Sydney Craig. Her additional studies include the Alexander Technique, Body Mapping, biomechanics, functional anatomy, neuropedagogy, and Laban Movement Analysis.
