All About Choosing Piano Schools And Teachers
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winniel_tlh:
hi Irene,
My son is currently doing grade 2 piano, & has never taken any exams so far.
Theory is included, & he's doing the 45 mins lesson... but usually, the teacher will stay on for almost an hour.
According to her, she's trying to prepare him for the exam for end of this year, or early nx year (cant remember which), & letting him skip grade 1, & work for grade 2 immediately.
When he first started with her, it's grade 1 book + theory.
Since he has never taken any exams, so I'm not really sure how's the preparation. But, I'm not too concerned abt the piano exam, as I just want him to learn for as long as he can.
He's not very dedicated in learning piano, & I had to remind him to practice etc. But yet, I dont wish for him to give up so soon, since he's still young & may regret it in the future.
So, I'd like to encourage him to just do his best, practice etc... & perhaps around P5, when he's older & more mature (hopefully), & can play more beautiful pieces, then he'll be motivated to do it seriously.
So, there...
Hehe....
I am looking for a piano teacher for my 7 yr o girl. She is currently doing G1. I dont like her currently teacher think that she is too commericallized. -
Dreamaurora:
Hmm, basically I explain to parents all my expectations on the trial lesson first like for example the performance requirement, piano to be purchased, exam expectations etc. I think most parents or students that cannot commit to this automatically don't bother coming back again. I doubt my low fees affect the types of students that come, but at least I think it makes it more attractive for students to be willing to travel to my place since I do not travel. But because of this, my student population grow a lot slower, but at least I can say that all my students currently are of very good quality and I really enjoy teaching them.peanut_butter:
[quote=\"Dreamaurora\"]Yes, need to hold mini in-house ones first before the actual concerts. I have mine once a month in my studio and it really does wonder on the students' overall confidence level and communication skill. They also get a chance to know each other. But on the flip side I think this actually scares off some potential students when I tell them concerts are compulsory (the mini group sessions are not compulsory, but encouraged to attend) :sad:.
No wonder you can still recruit serious students despite your low fee. I do notice the significant difference in my 'performing' and non-performing' students' progress too.
I am curious: When you make it mandatory for concert participations, do you have many students?
For my group sessions not all the students can make it, but I do make it clear that the twice a year concerts are compulsory and I collect an extra lesson worth of fee in advance (to pay the hall rental) to ensure their commitment to the concerts. So for my concerts normally all my students are present sans one or two who really cannot come because of exams or something else.[/quote]
Hi Dreamaurora, just want to have your opinion of my kid's current teacher. She came to teach my 2 kids 6 & 8 (beginner for awhile) in Jan 2011 and want both of them to participate in the Concert which held in Mar 2011. Do you think is that too early? Personally, i think she shld be with them for awhile to know them strenght and weakness first.
I checked with her, \"are you sure my girls are ready?\" She said it is a good exposure to let them play on the grand piano. Seem my kids have no objection, i have no objection too. For that period, sometime the teacher will ask the parents to involve in the lesson to help my kids to remember the fingering. Both my girl have to learn 3 pcs each. One of the pcs was Greenselvee and I know some of the notes my girls have not learnt.
After the concert, i think the teacher is trying to spread her cost amongst her students. Cost: $15 each audience. -
Hi,
MYC Thomson is now having a free trial lesson and $30 vouchers off when you sign up. For more information, please join their page :
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/MYC-Thomson-Music-For-Young-Children/203071749774335
They will open in Mar 2012 and located at Midview City bishan/thomson area beside Ai Tong Pri Sch. -
I assume you meant 2012 since I don't think your girls can time travel
Anyway, it is good that your girls' teacher goes for the extra mile to organise the concert. It is a very good practice that many teachers in Singapore sadly neglect. But in any case, whether your girls are ready or not I cannot tell unless I listen to them play. But what I can tell you is that the experience of playing well for the first public performance is an important one as it can provide tremendous encouragement and motivation to students. Conversely, a terrible and messed up performance would dampen a student's mood and may cause lost of interest. It is never too early to start a student performing. Unless a student have extreme phobia of playing in front of others, there is no reason for a student not to attempt playing in a concert.
Since your girls are beginners, the songs should be easy enough to learn in one or two weeks. The songs will have to be very comfortably played and performance ready at least one month before the concert (or even a few months for the higher grade and diploma pieces) to prevent nervous breakdown or less than optimal performance. Your girls still have plenty of time to learn and polish the notes and I think the March concert date can be a great motivation for them to practice more as it is a good goal to work towards to.
It is a standard practice for students to share the cost of the hall rental which can range from hundreds to thousands for the bigger ones. For me, I collect an advance of one lesson fee for the purpose of the hall rental. Some other teachers may do it differently. A well known teacher who I know request 200$ upfront extra charge every year for this purpose. One of my ex teachers request the performing students to sell tickets to their friends and relatives. -
Hi Jojo, May I enquire where is the performance venue please?
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peanut_butter:
Hi Jojo, May I enquire where is the performance venue please?
Is in NUS, cant remember the name of the classroom.
There isnt any stage just a grand piano and with folded chairs for the audiences and participants to drag it to find to spot to be seated. Free seating.
I brought my niece there, 'cos she happened to be at my hse. Piano teacher noticed it and asked me to pay for her seat:(
Performance was last March and till we have not received neither CD or photo for ther concert which she said she will give. -
Dreamaurora:
The performance was 2011. hmmm She has started my girls to play G1 pcs in July 2011. If my girl is good, why till now she is still playing the same pcs. When i checked with her in Jan 2012 for that, her reason given was that my girl couldnt do sight reading and \"dont know how she was taught by ex-teacher.\" Putting blamed on ex-teacher!!! She has been with my girl for 1 year and now putting blame on ex-teacher? when she signed my girls for concert, she said they were ready. Why now she said \"dont know how she was taught\" It obviously contradicted with her statement in Jan 2011.I assume you meant 2012 since I don't think your girls can time travel
Anyway, it is good that your girls' teacher goes for the extra mile to organise the concert. It is a very good practice that many teachers in Singapore sadly neglect. But in any case, whether your girls are ready or not I cannot tell unless I listen to them play. But what I can tell you is that the experience of playing well for the first public performance is an important one as it can provide tremendous encouragement and motivation to students. Conversely, a terrible and messed up performance would dampen a student's mood and may cause lost of interest. It is never too early to start a student performing. Unless a student have extreme phobia of playing in front of others, there is no reason for a student not to attempt playing in a concert.
Since your girls are beginners, the songs should be easy enough to learn in one or two weeks. The songs will have to be very comfortably played and performance ready at least one month before the concert (or even a few months for the higher grade and diploma pieces) to prevent nervous breakdown or less than optimal performance. Your girls still have plenty of time to learn and polish the notes and I think the March concert date can be a great motivation for them to practice more as it is a good goal to work towards to.
It is a standard practice for students to share the cost of the hall rental which can range from hundreds to thousands for the bigger ones. For me, I collect an advance of one lesson fee for the purpose of the hall rental. Some other teachers may do it differently. A well known teacher who I know request 200$ upfront extra charge every year for this purpose. One of my ex teachers request the performing students to sell tickets to their friends and relatives.
She had organised the concert before i engaged her. So when i engaged her in Jan 2011 it was just handy to add them in. I had done my checked to others and others said the normal fees is $10.
- She is very prompt in asking for fee, after the 4th lesson of the mth she will sms me telling me for the fees is due.
- She tends to change date when coems to school holiday.
- She doesnt allow anyone to cancel class more than 4 times in a year. - If we cancel class due to unforseen circumstance, she will do a make up lesson. So she can have a fixed income every month.
After the concert incident and with the above incidents, i find that she is too commercialised and lack of passion and love for her students which most parents will like to see it.
Parents, put yourself in my shoes and share with me your view, am i too sensitive? Many thanks. -
Jojo,
If you're staying in Pasir Ris, you can try my son's teacher. I think she's not bad
http://pasir-ris-piano-lesson.blogspot. ... ldren.html -
jojo:
The performance was 2011. hmmm She has started my girls to play G1 pcs in July 2011. If my girl is good, why till now she is still playing the same pcs. When i checked with her in Jan 2012 for that, her reason given was that my girl couldnt do sight reading and \"dont know how she was taught by ex-teacher.\" Putting blamed on ex-teacher!!! She has been with my girl for 1 year and now putting blame on ex-teacher? when she signed my girls for concert, she said they were ready. Why now she said \"dont know how she was taught\" It obviously contradicted with her statement in Jan 2011.
It can take a long time (1-2 years) to fix a problem, especially problems associated with the foundation. That include listening, sight-reading and techniques.
It's a common practice to spend 6-9 months on examination preparation.jojo:
When did you do the check? If there is a long gap between now and then, the fee might had been adjusted with the increase in the rental. Property is responsible for much of the inflation in Singapore (according to a finance advisor).She had organised the concert before i engaged her. So when i engaged her in Jan 2011 it was just handy to add them in. I had done my checked to others and others said the normal fees is $10.
jojo:
The schools I work for, issue invoice requesting payment. Some parents do get forgetful when they are busy.- She is very prompt in asking for fee, after the 4th lesson of the mth she will sms me telling me for the fees is due.
jojo:
If you do not like the interruption, discuss with her. Tell her to commit the date in advance or maybe request for no lesson, no fee? I allow my students to rebate their fee if I initiate the leave. It sure hurts my pocket when I need to take MC.- She tends to change date when coems to school holiday.
jojo:
Last year, I gave my student the flexibility to choose their own 'leaves', most took about 9 weeks off. During the holidays, I found my income shrink by 50% when some kids went for a month-tour. Like all working adult, full-time teachers need a predictable and regular flow of cash to survive. We need to pay for rent, parental support, phone bills, insurances, etc. Luckily one of the schools collected the fee quarterly, in advance. I get enough money to tide by. But I adjust my fee policy for this year.- She doesnt allow anyone to cancel class more than 4 times in a year. - If we cancel class due to unforseen circumstance, she will do a make up lesson. So she can have a fixed income every month.
If the teacher does not limit the makeup lessons to 4 (which I think is very generous), the quantity can snowball out of control. Think about that. If she had 30 students requesting 4 hours of make up lessons each, and the students could only do the lessons either during the holidays, weekends or evenings, she will be overloaded. She cannot have a life outside teaching. Speaking from experience, most families has the tendency to apply for leave at around the same time. Namely, exam periods, school holidays and flu seasons.
I think your teacher could be more tactical at explaining.
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jojo:
It is quite hard to comment on this as I am just hearing your side of story, but I will offer some advices on this.
The performance was 2011. hmmm She has started my girls to play G1 pcs in July 2011. If my girl is good, why till now she is still playing the same pcs. When i checked with her in Jan 2012 for that, her reason given was that my girl couldnt do sight reading and \"dont know how she was taught by ex-teacher.\" Putting blamed on ex-teacher!!! She has been with my girl for 1 year and now putting blame on ex-teacher? when she signed my girls for concert, she said they were ready. Why now she said \"dont know how she was taught\" It obviously contradicted with her statement in Jan 2011.Dreamaurora:
I assume you meant 2012 since I don't think your girls can time travel
Anyway, it is good that your girls' teacher goes for the extra mile to organise the concert. It is a very good practice that many teachers in Singapore sadly neglect. But in any case, whether your girls are ready or not I cannot tell unless I listen to them play. But what I can tell you is that the experience of playing well for the first public performance is an important one as it can provide tremendous encouragement and motivation to students. Conversely, a terrible and messed up performance would dampen a student's mood and may cause lost of interest. It is never too early to start a student performing. Unless a student have extreme phobia of playing in front of others, there is no reason for a student not to attempt playing in a concert.
Since your girls are beginners, the songs should be easy enough to learn in one or two weeks. The songs will have to be very comfortably played and performance ready at least one month before the concert (or even a few months for the higher grade and diploma pieces) to prevent nervous breakdown or less than optimal performance. Your girls still have plenty of time to learn and polish the notes and I think the March concert date can be a great motivation for them to practice more as it is a good goal to work towards to.
It is a standard practice for students to share the cost of the hall rental which can range from hundreds to thousands for the bigger ones. For me, I collect an advance of one lesson fee for the purpose of the hall rental. Some other teachers may do it differently. A well known teacher who I know request 200$ upfront extra charge every year for this purpose. One of my ex teachers request the performing students to sell tickets to their friends and relatives.
She had organised the concert before i engaged her. So when i engaged her in Jan 2011 it was just handy to add them in. I had done my checked to others and others said the normal fees is $10.
- She is very prompt in asking for fee, after the 4th lesson of the mth she will sms me telling me for the fees is due.
- She tends to change date when coems to school holiday.
- She doesnt allow anyone to cancel class more than 4 times in a year. - If we cancel class due to unforseen circumstance, she will do a make up lesson. So she can have a fixed income every month.
After the concert incident and with the above incidents, i find that she is too commercialised and lack of passion and love for her students which most parents will like to see it.
Parents, put yourself in my shoes and share with me your view, am i too sensitive? Many thanks.
For exam preparation, good teachers normally will start the exam pieces around 9 months before (or more for higher grades). By end of registration for the exam which is around mid next month, at least she should be able to play 2/3 of the requirement up to exam standard so the remaining time can be spent to polish up and bring the standard to merit or distinction level. From what I see, it is perfectly fine for your girls to be still working on these pieces. But of course if she keep going through these pieces every lesson all the time until exam date is very unhealthy. So hopefully the teacher also supplement the learning with additional pieces and duets. The moment the exam pieces are ready, student need just to play through them every day and once in lessons while they work on additional pieces or pieces from next grade (for hardworking ones).
From professional point of view, it is not right to put blame on ex teacher, even if the blame really lies with the ex teacher. There is no such thing such as a perfect student or teacher, and each student who transfers to me all have their own shares of problems. A teacher's job is to analyse these weaknesses carefully and put a plan to address them. So you may want to ask the girls' teacher. If let's say sight reading is weak, what is she doing to address this?
As for the lesson admin, personally I allow a student to have make up as many as they want as long they inform me within sufficient time if they cannot make it to lesson. The only time they forfeit the fee is when they MIA (lesson time set aside for them but noone turn up). Fee collection it's fine for her to remind you, it's standard bookeeping practice for many teachers.
As for whether your girls' teacher is trully passionate, it is only you who can find it out. You can ask yourself a few things. Do your girls look forward to lessons and smile in them? Do they enjoy performing and interacting with other students? I understand your frustation, but do voice out your concerns to the teacher first and see what she has to say.
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