studio Tag

piano ribbonIt’s a New Year, and maybe you have students at your studio who are ready to start fresh and get into a consistent practice routine. Or maybe, YOU are hoping to light a fire underneath your students in anticipation of spring recitals, competitions, festivals or masterclasses.

Performances alone may be enough to motivate some students; for other kids, the reality of blundering through a piece in front of a group of people doesn’t phase them, and they’ll continue forward with lackluster practice habits.

charityEach December, I like for my students to participate in some type of performance for charity. This year, we held our second annual “Piano Play-a-thon“, where students put together a program of up to five minutes, solicited sponsors to donate money to a local organization, and performed their pieces at a casual recital. This year, we raised almost $1,000 for a local non-profit who provides in-home services for families of children with special needs and had the chance to perform at a fantastic coffee shop. I love being able to rally some community support and bring attention to one of the many fantastic charities and the work they are doing in our area.

I think there are so many ways that we can use our studios to give back to our communities. Not only is performing a great way to motivate students to work hard, but charity events teach them the ways they can use their gifts to serve others. As a bonus, you’ll also be reaching members of your community with your studio’s name and services!

music workshopAs a piano teacher, the bulk of my job is offering weekly lessons to my students. But if I stopped at that, I wouldn’t be setting my studio apart in my community or creating a wholistic learning experience for students of my studio.

Yes, learning technique, repertoire and theory on a weekly basis is of the utmost important. But I also need to provide my students with opportunities to perform, compete, create and engage with other music students and music professionals and in doing so, expose them to a variety of things within my scope. This creates well-rounded, motivated students and lets my students, their families and the community know that I am an active and thriving studio.

Here are some suggestions for things we can offer to our students that go above and beyond weekly lessons:

By Julia Kossuth One of my favorite aspects of working at the Studios of Sarah Strout is the wealth of talent and knowledge that all the teachers possess! What a fantastic resource from which to draw players for gigs, information about events, and exchange teaching experiences and tips. Another wonderful opportunity our studio presents is the chance to collaborate with other teachers! This is so important...

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By Wayne Estes   I think one of the fun things about practicing and performing these days is recording yourself. After all of the work you put into a piece it is nice to capture it and have a recording for posterity and to send off to grandma and cousins via an email. And it’s nice to capture yourself during your practice session to listen to yourself...

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