WOYO Studios

Lesson Information

FAQs:

What will I learn? What do the lessons cover?
What do you want to learn? Beginners will learn how to begin playing the instrument, as well as learning how to read music. Intermediate and advanced students may focus on more individual goals: learning scales, musicality, playing in tune, perhaps playing jazz, etc.

Parking nearby?
Parking is never a problem around my place. All street parking is legal; and easy to find a spot (especially just north of my guesthouse entrance on Airdrome St). For more info, go to the Directions page.

How long are lessons? How often?
Lessons last either 1/2 hour or 1 hour, depending on interest and age, and meet once per week.  Each student is required to commit to at least one month at a time.

Do I need to practice? How often?
Of course! Practice is the means towards meeting all of your goals. The more time spent in practice, the quicker you will see results. Practicing 30 minutes 3-4 times a week is a good basic goal. Ideally, we should practice everyday. You will improve MUCH faster if you practice every day rather than just a few days a week.

Payments
Advanced payment for each month is required and minimal rescheduling is allowed. Contact me for my current lesson rates. I do offer family discount rates.

Ability levels
I accept all levels of students playing saxophone (soprano, alto, tenor, baritone), flute, and clarinet--beginning to advanced. It is generally best to start a woodwind instrument after 4th grade. Reasons include physical size, mental ability, attention span, and parental involvement. Children often start piano lessons in the 2nd or 3rd grade (and sometimes even earlier). Having an earlier background with piano will provide a valuable introduction to reading music, understanding basic concepts and theories of music, and improving necessary hand-eye coordination. Contact me with any questions.

What do I need to bring to my lesson?
1. Lesson Contract This Contract simply outlines a few guidelines we will follow in structuring our lessons.
2. Instrument
3. Music
4. Lesson plan book (a notebook where I will write down assignments for the following week, concepts to work on, etc.)

5. Metronome (I will have one at the office, but you should have one for practicing at home.)

Do you recommend any instrument brands/music stores to use?
Yes! All instruments are not created equally. In order to find your ideal instrument, we need to take into consideration things like: 1) a price range that your family can afford, 2) your age/ability level, 3) new vs. used instruments, etc. Generally it's best to discuss it in more detail with myself to narrow down your search. Then, whenever possible, you should try playing different instruments to see which ones you like better.

Music
Bring any samples of music that you have already played to your first lesson. We will then decide what music to play after that.

Do I teach classical or jazz lessons?
I am primarily a classical musician, although I enjoy playing and teaching jazz as well. I teach lessons in both styles of music.

Hopefully, each student will enjoy taking lessons and steadily improve through structured, informative sessions. This can only happen with consistent lesson attendance AND consistent practice. Lessons will be fun, but in a structured setting.