Piedmont Yoga Studio opened for business on March 15, 1987, in a small room at 4131-A Piedmont Avenue. Its
three founders, Clare Finn, Richard Rosen, and Rodney Yee, were all recent graduates of a teacher training
program at the B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga Institute in San Francisco. Our opening day schedule offered all of 20 classes
taught by eight different teachers, an 8-week series of classes cost $48.
We now have two spacious, light-filled rooms at our present location at 3966 Piedmont Avenue, our current
schedule includes nearly 60 yoga classes taught by over 20 different teachers. But that $48 won’t get you eight
classes any longer; just like the price of gasoline, the price of yoga classes since 1987 has slowly inched upward.
Our fees now vary slightly from teacher to teacher, depending on the class length, day, and time slot, but on
average, expect a fee of around $50 for four classes. By custom, classes are divided into four levels:
These levels are somewhat vaguely defined and not sharply separated, but in general levels 1 and 2 are
appropriate for relatively new students with less than a year of class attendance, or continuing students without a
regular home practice. Level 3 is a transitional level, appropriate for students just beginning a regular home
practice. Level 4 is our highest level, geared to students with a regular home practice. If you have any doubts
about the level of the class you should attend, please call the teacher ahead of time to find out if her/his
approach is suitable for you.
In addition to the usual Hatha and Hatha-based public classes, we offer an assortment of specialty yoga classes:
prenatal yoga, yoga for back care, restorative, gentle, and chair yoga, yoga for seniors and teens, low-fee
community classes and “Yoga for a Cause,” and yoga for Special Needs and Disabilities. And for students who
are not yogically inclined, we offer classes in Pilates mat work and Tai Chi Chuan.
Many of our teachers were trained in-house in one of our Advanced Studies programs. Our overall approach to
yoga is eclectic, drawing on elements from both traditional and modern yoga. We believe that, while yoga can be
taught systematically, it cannot ultimately be contained in any one system. We encourage our teachers to express
their own unique ideas and insights in their classes. All of our teachers are independent contractors, which means
they work for themselves and are not employed by the studio. It also means that they have an opportunity to
make a “living wage”. In other words, your payment to the teacher stays with the teacher.
three founders, Clare Finn, Richard Rosen, and Rodney Yee, were all recent graduates of a teacher training
program at the B.K.S. Iyengar Yoga Institute in San Francisco. Our opening day schedule offered all of 20 classes
taught by eight different teachers, an 8-week series of classes cost $48.
We now have two spacious, light-filled rooms at our present location at 3966 Piedmont Avenue, our current
schedule includes nearly 60 yoga classes taught by over 20 different teachers. But that $48 won’t get you eight
classes any longer; just like the price of gasoline, the price of yoga classes since 1987 has slowly inched upward.
Our fees now vary slightly from teacher to teacher, depending on the class length, day, and time slot, but on
average, expect a fee of around $50 for four classes. By custom, classes are divided into four levels:
- Level 1: New and continuing beginners
- Level 2: Continuing and advanced beginners
- Level 3: Advanced beginners and beginning intermediates
- Level 4: Continuing intermediates
These levels are somewhat vaguely defined and not sharply separated, but in general levels 1 and 2 are
appropriate for relatively new students with less than a year of class attendance, or continuing students without a
regular home practice. Level 3 is a transitional level, appropriate for students just beginning a regular home
practice. Level 4 is our highest level, geared to students with a regular home practice. If you have any doubts
about the level of the class you should attend, please call the teacher ahead of time to find out if her/his
approach is suitable for you.
In addition to the usual Hatha and Hatha-based public classes, we offer an assortment of specialty yoga classes:
prenatal yoga, yoga for back care, restorative, gentle, and chair yoga, yoga for seniors and teens, low-fee
community classes and “Yoga for a Cause,” and yoga for Special Needs and Disabilities. And for students who
are not yogically inclined, we offer classes in Pilates mat work and Tai Chi Chuan.
Many of our teachers were trained in-house in one of our Advanced Studies programs. Our overall approach to
yoga is eclectic, drawing on elements from both traditional and modern yoga. We believe that, while yoga can be
taught systematically, it cannot ultimately be contained in any one system. We encourage our teachers to express
their own unique ideas and insights in their classes. All of our teachers are independent contractors, which means
they work for themselves and are not employed by the studio. It also means that they have an opportunity to
make a “living wage”. In other words, your payment to the teacher stays with the teacher.
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