Blog Stories

Dear Colleagues, My Problem: For several years now, I have taught a lovely family of two girls.  No matter how hard I try, I cannot get the oldest girl away from note punching individual notes much too slowly.  This results in a never-ending slow and dragging...

After many years of using the same theory series, I decided it was time to make a change to a different series.  I decided on Basics of Keyboard Theory by Julie McIntosh Johnson.  A self published series, it is available for purchase on Amazon.com.  There are 10 books...

It's over so quickly.  In just 2 more lessons, my summer schedule will be over.  One week of vacation this week, followed by one more teaching week, and my studio closes for two weeks prior to the opening of school.  I always take the last two weeks of summer break to...

It takes little time running a piano studio to realize that teachers must nurture not only the student relationship but also the parents.   Not only does that double your contact time, both relationships are very different.  For example, weekly lessons afford the...

On the many blogs available for music teachers, one theme that continues to surface is the issue around summer lessons and the loss of income.  Of course, if you are running a school with group classes, those are dictated by start and stop dates and summers may be...

With the beginning of April, it's time to consider how your studio will handle summer.  If you own your own business, chances are you have tried several approaches over the years.  Generally, teachers lament the loss of income and unsteadiness that summer can bring. ...

It happens to all of us.  Long teaching hours, family demands, church work, personal life errands.  What happened to the practicing you did regularly so long ago?  Realistically, for many of us, diligent daily practice began deteriorating once you were no longer in...

As a young teenager, my first concerto moment was the Bach Concerto in F Minor, movements 1 and 2.  It was a stretch even then and a whole new world of learning pieces with more length.  Add to that my first experience playing with a second piano, and you have a full...

In my last blog entry, I began to outline some of the ways you can be creative and add a "theme," genre, sets or group projects to your recital offerings.  Today I would like to suggest just some ideas for ensembles that can be done in your studio.  When we realize...

In last week's post, I discussed the many possibilities that offering multiple recitals per year can add to the quality and interest in your studio.  This week, I would like to offer just some of the ideas for creative programming.  Expanding your horizons both in...

There's nothing like it--walking back into your home or flat realizing that the year-end recital program is Done and Done.  That was yesterday for me.  I always feel like celebrating.  No one faltered badly.  We had 36 players comprising almost 40 duet teams and...

It's that transitional time--Mid Summer.    If you haven't already, it's time to plan your fall registration and paperwork.  My fall registration is due by June 1st for a July 1st "new year" start (my new year encompasses summer session.)  Every spring I take a look...

One of the greatest predictors of success and progress that is often overlooked is lesson length.  Often studios make no requirements on length of the lesson.  Many times a young child of 6 or 7 years starts at 30 minutes per week but somehow that length never...

I'll bet they are sitting right on your shelf--books you bought at the last conference or even ordered or picked up for yourself that remain unopened and just waiting for you to decide to get motivated and read!  I'm the same way.  With the busy teaching weeks and...

It seems that during the past two years I have had a harder time ordering music and receiving it in a timely fashion.   Last fall the hurricane in North Carolina and other east coast states delayed the delivery of music books and materials by more than a few weeks. ...

Many years ago, How Much Do You Charge was the top question I received when answering an inquiry.  With patience and a clear curriculum outline of my studio teaching, however, I have gradually learned to offer parents an answer that is most revealing of the quality of...

It happens.  Just last Thursday, a student walked in and counted on his dad to put the books in the piano bag, but alas......no books except one.  If yours is a studio like mine where everyone has different repertoire and even the kiddos in method books have different...