Class Experience

Please contact me if you don’t see a time that fits your schedule so that we can coordinate a time that will work.  We may be able to use books you already have or I can provide all music.  Below are examples of what to expect in a lesson, but each lesson is custom to your learner and their experience with piano or violin.

Week 1 ( week of September 20th) Topic Theme: ABC's of Music: Teacher will assess level of musician, talk about good manners during lessons and expectations. For beginners: Introduction to Music Alphabet and Keyboard, Finding Landmark Notes, Beginners: play 3 play reading pieces. Intermediate Students will learn slur vs. tie Learning Games: Music Alphabet or game at the learners level.

Week 2: (week of September 27th)  Topic Theme: Rhythm:  Play 3 learned pieces, learn or review 3 new pieces. Beginners will review music alphabet, keys on piano keyboard and learn basic note rhythms of quarter, half, dotted half and whole notes. Intermediate Students will learn staccato vs. legato Advanced students will learn about Italian musical terms and their abbreviations. 

Week 3: learn 3 new pieces. (Week of October 4th) Topic/Theme: Enharmonic Equivalents Beginners will learn 8th notes Advanced students will learn about sharps and flats.  Intermediate students will learn basic enharmonic equivalents.  Advanced students will learn about all enharmonic equivalents

Week 4:  Learn 3 new pieces (week of October 11th) Topic Theme:  Articulations. Beginners will learn about bar lines and measures, intermediate students will learn about accidentals. advanced students will review naturals and dynamics.


Dr. Suzuki, founder of the Suzuki Method, believed Every Child Can Learn!

More than fifty years ago, Japanese violinist Shinichi Suzuki realized the implications of the fact that children the world over learn to speak their native language with ease. He began to apply the basic principles of language acquisition to the learning of music, and called his method the mother-tongue approach. The ideas of parent responsibility, loving encouragement, constant repetition, etc., are some of the special features of the Suzuki approach.

Children learn words after hearing them spoken hundreds of times by others. Listening to music every day is important, especially listening to pieces in the Suzuki repertoire so the child knows them well!

Repetition
Constant repetition is essential in learning to play an instrument. Children do not learn a word or piece of music and then discard it. They add it to their vocabulary or repertoire, gradually using it in new and more sophisticated ways.

Encouragement
As with language, the child’s effort to learn an instrument should be met with sincere praise and encouragement. Each child learns at his/her own rate, building on small steps so that each one can be mastered. Children are also encouraged to support each other’s efforts, fostering an attitude of generosity and cooperation.

Learning with Other Children
In addition to private lessons students in these private lessons can participate in regular group lessons where we have fun while reviewing Suzuki pieces, learning new music terms and discovering new friends who also love piano!

Each lesson begins with "I am ready to learn" and we end each lesson with "thank you for teaching me."  We learn new pieces is smaller chunks so that students can learn correctly and well.  We review pieces learned in the past in fun and engaging ways.  We may play a game or do a worksheet together that will help prepare you for the next piece in your Suzuki Book. 
I may send other supplemental studio licensed material but learners MUST purchase their own Suzuki Book as providing an electronic copy of this book would be illegal. I may also recommend other supplemental material and would work with the parent to find an affordable solution and provide direct links to those products.  I also love to make YouTube videos for my students.  
 

For these individual private lessons, I work with each learner wherever they are at in the book.  I love teaching piano, and have been giving private and group instruction for over 20 years. I may suggest supplemental material after the first lesson or two, and post those in the classroom.

There will be no eating during this class.  

I will wait 10 minutes for the learner to arrive! 

Please contact me if you don’t see a time that fits your schedule so that we can coordinate a time that will work.