The first, most important priority for any new student is to CONNECT and ENGAGE, then provide a VICTORY for them, immediately.
It’s essential students feel really thrilled with their achievements. It’s imperative that they walk out of their first few lessons HAPPY and full of CONFIDENCE in what they have managed to achieve in such a small amount of time. We want them going home showing off their new found skills and other people being impressed with their ability to PLAY the piano so quickly.
We then have some CURRENCY to use when perhaps in the future they are not feeling like practising, or just want to go and play tennis instead!
Let’s face it children need to be taught what a long term commitment is as this knowledge will translate to other areas of their lives.
It’s important they remember what it was like to feel on top of the world about learning a musical instrument. How much they ENJOY playing a song and how it really is worth putting some time and effort into obtaining such a wonderful outcome.
It’s also fundamental that they realise how much enjoyment they bring to others by sharing their music. Parents will often tell me what an absolute pleasure it is to have piano music wafting through the house. We are NOT talking about Twinkle Twinkle Little Star here. Our students are ripping through amazing sounding blues pieces, sensitively playing arrangements and sections of Brahms Lullaby, Beethoven’s Fur Elise and Mozart’s Sonata in C. Mostly within the first 18 months of lessons!
Not to mention gospel, accompaniment and Jazz.
How do we get these results so quickly? Well, it’s all about teaching students to PLAY music before we teach them to read music. This is the natural way we all learn language (and music is just another language!). We speak before anyone ever expects us to formally read and write.
Email joanne@rhythmandtunes.com.au with your best contact number and I will be in touch!