Making Piano Lessons Fun “These are Sith Notes,” Jim told him. That was all it took. Jim had a young piano student who loved Star Wars. He liked the characters, the stories, the battles, the whole world of it. Piano, on the other hand, did not always hold his attention in quite the same way.
In some homes, music lessons are something that happen in one room, with one student, for thirty minutes at a time. In this house, music seemed to spread. There were five children, which meant there was already plenty of motion, noise, personality, and life before the first note was ever played. A home like that
Finding the One Thing At his first recital, Phoenix Abbo’s 10-year-old violin student stood up and played his entire piece from memory. For any young musician, that is a big deal. For this student, it meant even more, because the road to that performance had not been smooth. Months earlier, Phoenix was still trying to
Chloe Svadlenka now teaches violin students of her own in Dallas, which means there are children who know her only as their teacher. To them, she is the person who walks in with the violin case, listens carefully, gives direction, encourages practice, and helps make the instrument feel a little less intimidating. They probably do
Ukulele Lessons for Shy Beginners When Brian first told me about Joy, I understood the situation right away. Joy was six years old, brand new to ukulele, and very shy. At the first lesson, she was quiet, but she participated enough that Brian felt like there was something to build on. That is pretty normal
Teaching Piano Without Words When Rafael first began teaching Donovan, their lessons were quiet in a way most piano lessons are not. Donovan had recently moved to the United States from France, and he did not speak English. In fact, he barely spoke at all. For a music teacher, that changes almost everything about how
Like Her Favorite Piano and Voice Teacher When Gabriella reconnected with Jess years after taking piano and voice lessons, it was one of those moments that reminds you how long a teacher’s influence can last. Gabriella was no longer the young student showing up for lessons, working on songs, learning technique, and figuring out what
The toughest and smartest student I ever taught was David. He was the only student I ever seriously considered giving up on — and actually tried to. During his second piano lesson, I asked David to hand me his piano book so I could write a note in it for him. Instead, he threw the
Choosing an instrument for your child can feel like a big decision. Most parents want a choice that feels right for who their child is, what will keep them interested, and what will make lessons feel enjoyable from the beginning. Part of what makes this hard is that you are thinking about more than the
A parent once told us something simple after a lesson: “I love when I get those little updates. It helps me feel like I’m part of what’s happening.” Nothing about the lesson had changed. The teacher was doing a great job, the student was progressing, everything was on track. The only difference? Communication. A Small
