If you’re looking for more information on music lessons you’ve come to the right place. This page will give you more background on what music lessons look like, and what to expect. After reading this you should have a better idea about whether right now is the right time to start lessons for you or your child/children
Lessons with Sarah offers private one-on-one lessons to students ages 4 and up. The most common age group for children to start lessons is 6 to 10, but if a child can sit and/or focus for a half an hour at ages 4 or 5 they are ready for their musical journey to begin. The beauty of musical learning is that it will last you a lifetime, and therefore students who started lessons at a younger age but stopped, or adults looking to pickup a new skill will all benefit from participating in private lessons, and therefore all manner of people are welcome into lessons.
Practice requirements: the big curiosity for new students and parents alike is what work is involved in learning an instrument outside of the 30, 45, or 60 minute weekly class. Home practice is a key component of musical progress and often involves two to six days of dedicated practice days per week. Here at Lessons with Sarah, we will never refuse a student who didn’t practice during the week, but we do like to encourage the connection between musical success – i.e. faster progress through a music book – and practicing assignments at home. Most students will find a comfortable routine within 1-2 months of starting lessons, and most assignments for years 1 to 4 of music study can be completed inside 30 minutes, 3 times a week.
Music books and theory exercises. To encourage life long music lovers, and players, students of all ages are required to purchase some materials before their lessons start, assuming they don’t already have music books from an older sibling or parent lying around the house. The purpose of these method books, listed shortly, is to provide a tried and tested approach to music education. This includes some theory components, but as it’s the 21st century, gone are the days of writing out notes and naming them for hours at a time! Theory with Sarah includes listening activities, interval singing/identifying, improvisation, along side some more traditional note naming exercises. This inclusion of theory reinforces concepts introduced in the Lesson Book portion of the method book series.
Books currently used and recommended by teacher Sarah:
- My First Piano Adventures (Faber) books a, b, c (for the young beginner – ages 4 to 6)
- Piano Adventures (Faber) Lesson Book, Performance Book, Technique Book, and Theory book (primer through to level 5)
- Alfred’s Premier Piano Course (various authors) Lesson Book, Performance Book, Technique Book, and Theory book (primer through to level 6)
- Royal Conservatory of Music Levels prep A to 10 (Frederick Harris Music) Repertoire Book, Technique, Etudes Book, Theory, and 4-Star sight reading and ear training
- Celebrate Piano all-in-one book series (Frederick Harris Music) ages 6 and up
- Adult Piano Adventures (Faber) All-in-one book 1 & 2 for ages 16 and up
- Bastien Piano for Adults (J. Bastien) book 1 & 2 for ages 16 and up