Piano with Rhonda C.

TAKELESSONS What Can Students Expect From Piano Lessons We are going to HAVE FUN! I will be customizing your lessons to your needs, your skill level, your age, and most importantly, what you would like to learn on the Piano. I will be including the basic fundamentals (for example, scales and arpeggios as warmup exercises when you practice) keeping them fun, not grueling or boring. Students interested in learning piano will be instructed in the basic principles of the piano such as proper finger placement and how to sit at the piano. We will focus on both note reading as well as ear training (learning to play by ear) which opens up a whole new level when playing any instrument. Of course we will focus on the strengths of each student as everyone will vary in these areas. Some are stronger in note reading, whereas others are skilled and even gifted in playing by ear. My ultimate goal is for each student to have fun and enjoy this wonderful instrument. I will help you sight read music (new songs) which is extremely useful should you join a group or accompany others and they suddenly place a piece of music in front of you and would like you to play it. Sight reading helps you to play songs you've never seen or had a chance to practice ahead of time. Of course the most important is learning the genre of music (songs) you like. We can discuss the areas you are most interested in before signing up to see if we are a good fit in this area. Before moving on to Lesson Details, should you sign up for piano lessons, I want you to know that the above mentioned is not in concrete. I will never force a student of mine to do something they absolutely do not want to do. I will encourage you to try it, but once you've come to the conclusion you have no desire for certain areas, we will focus on what it is you desire to learn and feel most comfortable at learning. Concerning very young children, we may not be as flexible as they do not have the ability to discern what they want or need quite yet. As they progress, and I can see where their strengths and weaknesses lie, we can discuss what will be best for them to progress without having difficulties, which could be discouraging and lead to quitting early on. NEW! Starting on 9/1/2021: I have decided to offer all new students an "indefinite discount" for not only back-to-school students, but for all ages. To be a bit of a financial help, I've lowered my current prices to give a long term discount. A 30 minute lesson is usually $28.00. With the discount, it will be $23. A 45 minute lesson is usually $39, with the discount, it will be $34. A 60 minute lesson is usually $50, with the discount, it will be $45. *** Lesson Details *** Listed here are the basics you will need to get off to a great start at your first lesson and future lessons. These are required items to learn properly, as well as for me to teach you adequately. Without these tools, we will struggle as both teacher and student, which is not what either of us would want. Please be sure to order these items as soon as possible once you've committed to lessons. If these items have not arrived before the lesson, I do have material we can and will use, so again, don't fret over this. As you will see, I am flexible and want this to be fun, not frustrating for you. 1. Proper size Piano When I say proper size, I am referring to how many keys (the black and white keys) a piano has. The smaller the keyboard, the more difficult it will be to learn this instrument. I do not recommend, nor will I start any student, of any age, on a keyboard with less than 66 keys. 88 keys is best, as this is a full keyboard. As far as the piano being an electronic keyboard or an acoustic piano, this is not a concern as one can learn easily on either one. 2. Lesson Books. Once you are signed up and paid, I will send you an email with the books you'll need to order. I like to start with lesson books that are great for all ages. They will be relatively easy, thus making learning how to play the piano fun, not grueling. As you progress through the first series of lesson books, I will send you an email with next series of books to be able to continue with lessons, if you so desire. *If you have a particular book you would like to work out of, please send me the name of the book so I can review it (and purchase if need be) so I can help you with it. *** Studio Equipment *** I have a dedicated area of my home where I keep all my instruments as well as having high quality audio equipment, a computer with high speed internet, and excellent lighting. As a side note, this is my home in which I also have a business raising Bernese Mountain Dogs. They may come and go in the background, but I can assure you that if they appear to be a distraction in any manner, especially for younger children, I will make sure they are placed appropriately so as to remove this form of distraction before the lesson begins. *** Students Equipment *** Before starting the first lesson, I do expect the student to have a piano and lesson book(s) as mentioned above in "Lesson Details". You must have access to a computer with a good internet that will not drop or freeze in a Zoom lesson. Having an external microphone is helpful in being able to hear both the instrument and your voice, but not a requirement unless the mic on your device does not work properly. When using an external mic, it may require you to use headphones depending on how it is set up. *Note: I do not recommend viewing lessons from a smart phone or iPad. There are multiple reasons they are not conducive for zoom lessons. If this is the only method available when first starting lessons, this is understandable, but try your best to transition to a laptop. An iPad is better than a smartphone, but unless you have a high speed internet, there can be issues at times with iPads as well as with a smart phone. ***Steps to Prepare your Computer*** There are some important steps you as the student (or parent of a child/children) can take to prepare your computer to work efficiently for online lessons. I will list them here for you, as well as send them in an email along with the lesson books you will need to purchase. If you run into problems with any of the steps, try to find someone (friend, family member, neighbor) who may have a good working knowledge of computers to help you. If you have no one, I am willing to talk you through it over the phone, which could be a bit of a challenge, but worth trying! 1. Clear history, cookies, cache prior to each lesson. 2. Download zoom occasionally to ensure you are using the most recent/updated version. 3. Make sure others in the household are not online (on other devices) during your lesson. 4. Close all programs running in the background. 5. Stop or delete any unnecessary apps that may be running in the background. 6. Try to avoid using an iPad or a smartphone for lessons, if at all possible. Thank You for viewing my profile. Please feel free to ask me questions through TakeLessons. I will do my very best to answer each and every one to the best of my abilities. To Your Success! Rhonda