Cheryl began teaching professionally in 1986 at the Holcombe-Lindquist Piano Store in Houston. (Houston old-timers will remember the distinctive "aerial grand piano" pylon sign on the Southwest Freeway across from The Summit (now Lakewood Church).) While at Holcombe-Lindquist, she wrote a six-week adult curriculum for beginning adults ("The ABC Course"). She then started a mobile piano lesson service in Southwest Houston and taught and performed in the Houston area until 1996.

Cheryl's family relocated to the Brenham area in 1999, and Cheryl opened Cheryl's School of Music in 2001, originally at the old St Jude's convent on Park Street (now the home of Teen Challenge (formerly known as Freedom Hill)). At that time Cheryl, her husband Andrew, and Andrew's son John were all teaching piano, guitar, or drums, and John's wife Cheryl (yes, two Cheryl Amelangs...) was handling the administration.

In 2004, the school moved to its current location, Joyce and Cheryl joined forces, and the school was renamed Brenham Music Academy. It has been growing ever since, and presently has a staff of nine teachers.

Over the years, BMA has also been an incubator for fellow musicians and teachers to find their calling and begin their own businesses and careers. John Amelang launched a recording studio in Brenham--Siren Sound Productions--and is still teaching and recording. Marc Nesbitt performs with The Blue Grooves and continues to teach. Brad Shearhart relocated to San Antonio and opened his own music school. Isaac Littlejohn got a performance gig with Disney. Ashley Appel (now Ashley Pontiff) has a degree from Baylor and is working on her masters in music theory. She continues to teach and perform. All of these younger musicians were formerly teachers with BMA, and we are pleased and proud to see them continuing their careers in music.

This year we are adding group lessons to our menu. We believe that music should be social and fun, not just an individual discipline (although we do individual discipline also!). We have created several group opportunities for beginners of all ages to learn to play an instrument together with old or new friends.

Thank you for your interest in BMA, and thank you, Brenham, for 18 awesome years! It just keeps getting better!