Piano Teaching Q&A: Stopping Lessons

November 1, 2010 Jennifer Boster

Each week we will be featuring questions asked by our readers, and will do our best to answer them and to give some ideas 🙂

A few weeks ago, we received an email from a fellow piano teacher which stated the following:

How does everyone else deal w/ students who drop? I just came home yesterday to a voice mail from a mom of 2 of my students. Out of the blue, after 4 years of lessons, they’ve decided to go with a different teacher. For whatever their reasons, my feelings are hurt that after all this time invested, I just get a message. I’ve also been dropped by email. I know that no one likes confrontation, but geez!. Thanks!

In response, firstly I’d like to offer my condolences for such insensitive and impersonal behavior! Like you said, I think sometimes we want to avoid confrontation by any means possible, but don’t realize that by trying not to “come off as mean” we end up coming off even MORE mean than before!

I haven’t been teaching for as long as many of you, and we’ve moved around so much that I always ended up being the one who left my students, before they even had a chance to leave me! However, I’d like to offer some thoughts and suggestions on the matter. My current studio is comprised entirely of transfer students, and I can share with you some suggestions I gave those parents who were about to leave their current teacher in order to have their children study with me.

Of course it hurts that after 4 (or however many) years of invested time, emotion, and talent, a student chooses to leave our studio. I think the important thing to remember is that there is a wide array of reasons why a family may choose to study with someone else – we don’t know everything about their circumstances. It could be that their financial situation has suddenly changed and they can no longer afford piano lessons. It could be that the student has a conflicting schedule and has chosen the other activity (sports, ballet, etc) over piano. Those are just 2 of the many possible reasons for leaving. If this were happening to me, I would convince myself that it was definitely one of those two things – but that’s just how I am! 🙂

Now, to tackle the more uncomfortable possibilities… It might be that their learning style was not matching up as optimally with your teaching style – and that is okay. One might immediately say “Yeah, but then why did they study with me for FOUR YEARS? Wouldn’t this have come up sooner?!” Possibly, possibly not. Students change – we all know how much personalities change as students get older! The last (and most uncomfortable) possibility is that the mother found a teacher that was a better fit for her children. However, the important thing to remember about that sentence is the last part – FOR HER CHILDREN. It doesn’t mean that you are a bad teacher or a “lesser teacher” than someone else. And this is assuming she’s even leaving you FOR SOMEONE ELSE – it might be that she just chose to remove her children from lessons altogether!

I am totally the “Every Cloud has Silver Lining” sort of person, and so what I would do is this:

1. Call the mom and ask why. I know it might sound gutsy – because it is – but you have a right to know, at least as it concerns you. Why? Because you want to know how you can improve yourself. I wouldn’t call her and demand “Why did your children drop out of my studio?! TEL ME NOW!” Nothing like that! But call her and kindly ask if there was anything in the way you ran your studio that prompted her to remove her children from your studio. Explain to her (and this, I think, would be the most important part) that you aren’t trying to be nosy, but as a professional teacher, you want to know how you can improve your services to your students. This phone call will be very revealing, and if you’re a sensitive person, brace yourself, because you don’t know what the response will be. However, whatever the reason is, know that it will help you be a better piano teacher.

If the mom doesn’t respond to your phone call or email (I’d do both), then perhaps try contacting her via both mediums one week later, and then leave it at that. If you choose to not contact the mother, or if you never hear back from her, then I would do some self-evaluation. Do a Studio Evaluation, as I like to call it – scrutinize every aspect of your studio, think of a master teacher (such as Leon Fleisher, Nelita True, etc) and ask yourself “Would his/her studio handle it this way?” and model your studio after that. This way, you are ensuring that you have the most professional studio possible.

These are just my thoughts and theories – I would absolutely love to hear feedback. If you completely disagree, please let me know – we can all improve!

Technology and Theory

April 30, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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Jenny Bay, what an awesome post! I completely agreed with everything you said! I just came back from a workshop devoted entirely to using technology in the studio to teach theory – so I thought I’d share what I learned!

The presenter had a very extensive computer lab (which I hope to one day attain!), and he went through each of the programs that he uses for his students, the pro’s and con’s, and which ones he felt were “absolute musts” for the studio:

1. Space Flight Music Notes Flash Cards. This one is AWESOME! I just downloaded it yesterday, actually, and the best part is – it only costs $5! Yes! If you go to ShareSoftware24.com and type in “Space Flight Music Notes Flash Cards”, the program will come up. Best of all, you can download the treble clef FOR FREE! If you want the full range (treble and bass clef), that’s when you pay the $5. It is TOTALLY worth it – the presenter was saying how his students absolutely LOVE this game, and they WANT to play it, even when they don’t need to! It works just like music note flash cards – except MUCH more fun. There’s a little space ship that zaps alien enemies, and if you get the correct note, your space ship will zap the enemy – but if you get enough notes wrong, the alien enemies will eventually overtake your ship! I’m addicted to it already! And the best part is – THE STUDENT IS LEARNING THE NOTES!

*Addendum: Since I made this post, the cost for Space Flight music note flashcards has gone up! It’s now $9.95, and unfortunately, there seems to no longer be a free download option for treble clef only. Thanks for the update, Malinda! It’s still TOTALLY worth it, though.

2. Alright, enough on Space Flight Music Notes. The presenter’s next favorite was MIDIsaurus. I’m sure most of us have heard of this one. The reason our presenter loved it so much was because there are a TON of different activities and exercises to teach each of the components of theory. Also, as a teacher, you can go in and tailor a course of theory lesson plans for EACH of your students – so it’s tailored to what THEY need. Also, just like Space Flight, this one is A LOT of fun for the students – he’s never had ANY student complain about these. He showed us a demo, and I can’t wait to buy it!

You DON’T need a MIDIkeyboard for it (like I thought) – you can do it with just a computer. The only “downside” is that now you have to download MIDIsaurus, and each year, the download expires (it’s on a timer), so you have to purchase the update – which costs $80 per year. But! If you do a computer lab fee, that should cover it. (Because I’m in Idaho, I’m charging $2.00 per month for the lab fee – that’s 50 cents a lesson! Totally affordable, and so far, no parents have complained).

The age range for MIDIsaurus is 4-11, and it’s published by Town4Kids.

3. So what do to with the students who are too old for hatching dinosaur eggs and alien space ships? Use Practica Musica! This one is GREAT for high school and college students because there aren’t any of the “cutesy” little things – but it still can start at the very first level of theory. This program also has excellent rhythm and pitch-and-rhythm exercises, too. It has a one-time cost of $89.99 and it’s published by Ars Nova.

4. Another one that the presenter loved was Pianomouse Preschool. He didn’t get to do a demo on this one, but I’m excited to purchase it when I have preschool-aged students. It’s published by Pianomouse, and it’s for ages 3-6. It costs $19.49 (not bad!)

Here are some other ones that the presenter thought were good, as well as others that he had some reservations about:

MusicAce Maestro, published by Harmonic Vision. This one comes in 2 volumes, and it costs $109.95 total. What he didn’t love about this one is that their order of lessons can be a little…unusual, so as a teacher, he’s found himself having to rearrange the lesson order (which can take a LOT of time). Also, he didn’t like their rhythm exercises because there’s a delay – which can be very confusing, and not effective, in teaching a student rhythm!I was going to buy this program, but now that I went to the workshop, I’ve decided to buy some other programs first.

Theory Games, published by Alfred. This one is for ages 6 and up and costs $18.95. He did say that his students tend to get bored with this one, mainly because it’s the same set of games over and over again – at each level, the games stay the same, it just gets a little harder. It’d make more sense to save up and buy the MIDIsaurus, since there are a LOT more games available and greater depth of coverage.

Children’s Music Journey, published by Adventus, and made for ages 4-10. It costs $66.45. Unfortunately, we didn’t go over this one in the workshop, but the presenter said he loved it, and that he’d consider this one to be one of his staples for the studio.

I hope that was helpful! The presenter went over some other technology-based music tools for the studio, but those weren’t so much for Theory (maybe we’ll have another post on those!) I know now that I want to buy MIDIsaurus and Practica Musica (as well as those Space Flight flash cards I already bought!) to get a good coverage of all the levels and ages for my studio. I’m also very excited to start my computer lab, so I can have the students come 20 minutes early, do their theory on a FUN program, and then we can devote the entire 30 or 45 minutes of our one-on-one lesson time to just technique and repertoire! I’m so excited!

Piano Teaching Q&A: Theory Technology

April 21, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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Hello, again! We’ve finally moved into our new home in Idaho and I’ve already gotten a few student referals (yes!). I went to a workshop for piano teachers this past Friday entitled “Incorporating Technology into your Studio”, and it turns out that technology is a BIG deal here in Idaho (which I love!) Even the elderly teachers who have been teaching for 50 years use MIDIsaurus and other computer-based theory exercises. I love it and I’m going to buy MIDIsaurus and a couple other computer theory programs in the next couple of weeks. But here’s my question:

How should I handle computer lab fees? I originally thought I would charge a $5 computer lab fee per month (keeping in mind the cost of living in Idaho). However, when I went to the workshop on Friday and asked the same question, a lot of the teachers said they tried doing a monthly fee, but a lot of the parents would try to save money and say “Well, what if I just had my son take piano lessons without the computer instruction, so I don’t have to pay the monthly computer lab fee?”

I obviously want to avoid that, because theory and ear-training are such an integral part of piano lessons! So some of the teachers suggested doing a yearly Materials Fee, which covers computer lab costs. I originally had my materials fee set for $25, BEFORE I added my computer lab. I thought maybe it should be $50 for the yearly materials fee, but it sounds like that might be too high for Idaho (I already had to drop my monthly lesson rates by $15, and it’s STILL on the high side!) So what would you do? I’m having some students come for auditions next week, so I need to have this ironed out by the end of this weekend! Thanks!

Advertising for Piano Students

March 15, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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I’ve LOVED what everybody else has written so far – what awesome ideas! My thoughts on how to increase your studio size will mostly be a reiteration of what’s already been stated. I especially love this post because, as I’ll be moving to a new area soon myself, I need all the tips I can get!

A few ideas:

1. Like Jonathan suggested, give a lecture-recital (or just a recital) in the area. Put ads for it in the newspaper, in schools, etc – get the word out!

2. Join a local music association. Find out who the leaders of such organizations are in your area, CALL them and become acquainted – introduce yourself and don’t be shy about your accomplishments and what YOU have to offer as a teacher! Then let them know that you’d be interested in contributing to your community by becoming actively involved in their organization, and is there anything you can do at this point to help? (I think this is one of the most effective ones, since you’ll then become acquainted with other teachers who can refer other students to you).

3. Fliers in all the previously-posted locations 😉

4. I read about this one and I’m going to try it when we move: Bake piano-shaped cookies (I already have the cookie-cutter for it!) and visit the local schools in your area – introduce yourself (and give cookies to) the principal, as well as the music teachers in those schools. Alright now, this might be a lot of cookie-baking, but maybe it’ll be worth a shot! I’m excited to try it!

5. As stated before, the *most effective* way to gain more students is by having your current students refer you to others! In one of my undergraduate piano studio teaching classes, I remember our teacher told us a very effective method he uses to motivate student referrals: He tells his students “If you refer at least one student to me, then the first month that the new student starts lessons, YOU get free lessons that month!” Saving money is ALWAYS a motivator for parents, he explains, and you won’t be LOSING money the first month you’re teaching that new student, but you’ll DOUBLE your money the next month (since now you have one more student in your studio). I hope I explained that clearly enough!

why Janina loves to teach piano

March 3, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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I was thinking a lot this past week about why I chose to teach piano for the rest of my life. Since my family is preparing to move to Idaho soon, I’ve been trying to figure out how I’d like to set up my studio in Idaho Falls, including how much I want to charge. To be completely frank, I started to become a little bit obsessed with the money factor: trying to figure out what new accomplishments I could acheive that would allow me to charge more, or what additional teaching certificates I could earn so that I could charge more, etc. Don’t get me wrong – becoming the best, most qualified teacher you can be is a noble goal for all of us, and we should charge what we’re worth! But I think if I earn those credentials just so that I can charge more money…then I think I’m doing it for the wrong reasons. And that’s what came to me on Sunday. I asked myself Why do I want to teach? Is it to earn as much money as possible? No. Where’s the fulfilment in that? The purpose of music is to uplift others, and the purpose of teaching is to help others discover and nurture that gift within themselves – to help them create those uplifting moments for themselves. As cliche as that may sound, to me, that’s the whole purpose of music and music education.

I thought about how truly blessed we are, as pianists and piano teachers, to have this gift that so many others wish they themselves had – and that, having been so greatly blessed, it’s our duty to pass that gift on to those around us. We are so lucky to be in a profession that doesn’t require us to ever “retire” – we can teach while we’re still in our 80’s, and we’ll still be needed by others! We’ll be able to contribute meaningfully to society all the days of our lives – what a blessing!

I love that we, as teachers, will never know the extent of our influence on future generations – like Jenny said, we don’t realize how much our students look up to us. We are an example to them – and not just musically. I think that’s the biggest reason why I love to teach piano – because I’m helping others. I’m helping them develop greater self-esteem while also helping them develop a whole new aspect of themselves. When I think of my piano teacher back home, my heart fills with love and gratitude for all that she taught me – not just notes and theory and technique, but she helped me get through my challenging teenage years, and she shaped the rest of my life. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t have pursued my bachelor’s and master’s degrees in piano and I wouldn’t be teaching piano myself. And that’s what I want to give to all of my students, in return. I whole-heartedly believe that teaching music is the most rewarding of all careers – not just for the students, but for the teacher as well! So here’s to teaching!

Contributor Bio: Janina Herbert

February 17, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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name:
Janina Herbert

she is from:
Connecticut

she is:
Mediterranean; happy; awesome

she attended:
Brigham Young University where she got her bachelor of music degree in piano performance, studying with Dr. Richard Anderson and Dr. Jeffrey Shumway

currently:
working on her Masters in Piano Performance, studying with Dr. Irene Peery-Fox

her studio:
she has taught for five years in Connecticut, LA and Utah; soon relocating to Idaho Falls to set up her studio there

she loves:
her husband Matt and son Aaron; chocolate in any form

she recently:
won an international piano competition in China!

read more:
read her more complete resume here

her posts:
click here to read all of Janina’s articles on this blog!