What will taking piano lessons look like?
Beginner Students will learn the foundations of musicianship necessary to play music expressively, confidently, and with intention. The concepts of reading music notation, posture at the piano, and music theory (pitch, rhythm, key) will be taught. Memorization of music and other performance skills will also be explored. Not all activities will be at the piano. The lesson and practicing at home will be guided, and an assignment sheet will given each week. Depending on the student’s age, a parent may be asked to sit in on the lessons and/or aid the student in practice at home.
Intermediate Students will build upon the fundamentals they have acquired. Application of musical theory will be learned through technique, sight-reading, and quick studies. The lesson plans will be tailored to suit the student’s interests and goals, and pursuit of conservatory examinations is recommended.
Advanced Students will be encouraged to be self-motivated musicians capable of self-regulated practice. They will memorize and perform music from ranging from the Baroque era to contemporary music, and are encouraged to prepare for conservatory examinations and recitals.
What will my child play?
Beginner Students will play music from various method books which include folk songs, simplified classical music, and some original compositions.
Intermediate Students will have a wide variety of options to choose from. Music repertoire will be both a mix of their interests as well as a selection of pieces from the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, and Twentieth-Century time periods.
Advanced Students will learn some of the standards in any pianist’s repertoire. They will pieces such as preludes and fugues from Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, and Schubert sonatas, Chopin nocturnes, and perhaps some neoclassical pieces from Ravel or impressionist pieces from Debussy. They may also explore some compositions from Canadian composers such as Alexina Louie, or Oscar Morawetz.
How much should my child be practicing?
Beginner Students Should be expect to be practicing about 30 minutes a day. A Parent should be able to take some time to assist in their practice, and splitting the practice session into two smaller chunks may be a good idea.
Intermediate Students should plan to practice around 45 minutes a day.
Advanced Students should be prepared to practice around 2 hours per day, depending on their goals with piano and their other workload. More is always better, but don’t overdo it! Split practicing up into hour long blocks.