Teacher Profile: Austen Ma
About Austen Ma
Austen is a pianist, percussionist, songwriter, and producer who has spent over 20 years immersed in music. His love for music began in preschool with piano and has continued to grow ever since. Along the way, he has explored instruments ranging from saxophone and cello to percussion and most recently voice, finding new ways to connect with music through every stage of life.
He studied piano through the Music Teachers' Association of California’s Certificate of Merit program, reaching the highest level (Level 10 Advanced) for both performance and music theory, and went on to earn honors in MTAC Panel evaluations. His classical piano training has shaped the foundation of his musicianship, giving him a deep understanding of technique, harmony, and composition that continues to influence how he performs and creates music.
As a percussionist, he competed in both marching bands and percussive arts on the international stage. Through Winter Guard International (WGI), one of the world’s premier competitive percussive organizations, his ensemble won two World Championships in Dayton, Ohio from 2009 to 2013. During that same period, his ensemble also earned every Bands Of America (BOA) regional championship and Western Band Association (WBA) title. He served as a percussion lead from 2012 to 2013 and went on to teach private lessons to high school and drum corps students.
Today, Austen is a full-time independent musician and producer, writing and producing original music across pop, rock, and electronic genres. He has worked alongside and learned from industry professional engineers and musicians whose work spans artists such as Coldplay, Avicii, Ed Sheeran, Post Malone, and others. He enjoys the craft of every part of the creative process, from writing melodies and lyrics to arranging, recording, and mixing.
Outside the studio, Austen has worn a few different hats, from studying medicine to building technology startups to competing internationally as an archer. He's always loved learning new disciplines and finding meaningful connections between them. Austen brings that same curiosity into music, drawing on his experiences to help students discover what inspires them and find their own voice through music.