 I prefer expressing myself through music, through the piano. My name is Mariam Gharatian and I'm an assistant professor at the University of Akter. I work as an accompanist with master students and as a research fellow at the department for classical music and music education. I grew up in Armenia and I started to play piano when I was six. I'm very happy that I had this opportunity to study here and develop my pianistic skills and later to be able to work in the same institution. My passion for music is endless. I love exploring different aspects of my personality and I equally enjoy playing solo in chamber ensembles and with symphony orchestras. The best thing to work with my students is the time that I get to work with each of them individually. My priority is to find out which musical aspects could be developed in each student and follow them up closely in the individual rehearsals together and perform together. I think this way of learning for students is really luxury and I think they truly appreciate it. I learn something new each time when I play with my students. I aim to help them to develop their playing to a higher professional level and contribute in their professional careers. The University of Akter gives you lots of freedom. It has given me the opportunity to bring my culture into my PhD project. There are many possibilities here both for students and for lecturers. One gets to collaborate with artistic and musical institutions in Kristiansand such as Schilden and Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra. If you are passionate about what you are doing and continuously working on developing yourself, you can dream big here.