Student of the Week - Faye Forges
Faye Forges is this week’s Student of the Week! 
“I first saw an ad for Ridley Academy in March of 2023, and I decided to join the next Masterclass Webinar to learn more about it. I have always loved music, and I knew how to read music and play the piano a bit, but I didn’t think I was good enough. I thought I had already reached my peak level of mediocrity. I knew I would still play— but likely just for myself. “When I joined the webinar and heard Stephen’s enthusiasm about how he developed a way to reach higher levels of playing, I couldn’t help but become excited too. My husband Paul watched the last half of the webinar with me, and I remember him saying, ‘You really want this, don’t you?’ I actually became a little teary-eyed as I said ‘yes’. I hadn’t even realized how much I wanted more music in my life until then. Paul smiled at me, grabbed his wallet, handed me a card, and said, ‘Here´. Money was tight for us then, but I wanted to take a chance at improving my piano skills one more time. “I had no idea how much that decision to enroll in the Ridley Academy Masterclass program would impact my life. Once I started the program — which was immediately after purchasing — I was hooked! I learned little bits of new information every week, starting with the very first week. I had ‘a-ha’ moments in my second week — the scale patterns being one of the biggest ones, which I never had in my previous years of traditional learning. After about six weeks, my husband said, ‘You’re getting really good! I mean… really good.’ I could feel the difference in my playing and in my confidence. I was starting to improvise more, and I wasn’t relying solely on sheet music anymore. It was like falling in love with the piano and music all over again. “A few months later, Stephen announced on Facebook that he was going to perform his first concert in Canada. I decided I wanted to attend, so I made a mini vacation out of the trip with Paul and my youngest daughter, Bria. It was amazing to see Stephen perform in person. We all loved the concert and the trip. I didn’t know then that it would be the last vacation I would have with Paul, as he passed away one year later from a rare and aggressive cancer. After he passed, I decided to enroll in the Ridley Academy Mentorship program instead of going to grief counseling. I needed something positive in my life again, so it made perfect sense for me to do so. My main objective in the program was to write a song to dedicate to Paul. I had never been able to write a song before, but I felt I might be able to do it with some more guidance from Ridley Academy. I soon understood more about songwriting thanks to Stephen answering my many questions in his Mentorship sessions, as well as my coach Rex explaining more about advanced techniques and chord progressions. “Then, one year after Paul passed, I finished writing my song for him and I posted it on YouTube. It was my first ever original song. “Once I finished that first song, I knew I wanted to write more. It’s magical how the piano can help me express and release my emotions. It’s been more therapeutic than any amount of grief counseling could ever offer, so I know I made the right decision in choosing the Ridley Academy Mentorship program. I’m writing more songs now and I just posted the song I wrote for my daughter Bria on YouTube as well. I love hearing how my songs have touched other people, and that inspires me to continue to write more in the future. “The Ridley Academy staff have been incredibly supportive. I was one of the fortunate students who attended the Nashville Experience earlier this year, so I was able to meet more of the staff in person, along with fellow students. It was an amazing experience that made us all feel like family. It was also where I started to feel good about performing in front of others. I didn’t play my song perfectly, but that didn’t matter because I felt a real connection with everyone else in the room – I could see it in their teary eyes. It was an experience that I can’t fully explain with only words. What I can say is that music will always be in my life — and that my life is better now because it’s there. “Thank you to Stephen and everyone at Ridley Academy for giving me this lifelong gift and for helping to make the world a more beautiful place.”
— Faye Forges, Ridley Academy Student of the Week, 2 October 2026
