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24 Jun

5 Ways to Organize Studio Repertoire

by admin
in Facilities
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Organize Music Repertoire

If there’s one thing us studio owners have lots of, it’s this: music. We’re constantly purchasing and collecting songs to use with our students, and I know I’m not the only one who has struggled with the best way to keep my ever-growing repertoire organized.

And after five years of trying to figure it out, I’ve come to realize that there isn’t necessarily one “best” way to keep my music organized. Rather, I rely on five different methods to keep tabs on the resources I use every day.

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22 Jun

Self-help Pedagogy: Part 1

by admin
in Performance, Policies and Procedures, Program Development
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Summer is such a great time to rest and read. For the next three months I will devote my blog to reviewing three small wonderful “self-help pedagogy” books written by Marienne Uszler that have really influenced my teaching.

There are three books in the series: Play it again, Sam…What, Why, and When to Repeat, Time Flies…How to Make the Best Use of Teaching Time and That’s a Good Question…How to Teach by Asking Questions. All three books are very practical and give specific teaching techniques, helpful hints and references for further research. They are short on words and length, but long on ideas and concepts.

Repetition of the same thought or physical action develops into a habit which, when repeated frequently enough, becomes an automatic reflex. – Norman Vincent Peale

Play it Again, Sam… is particularly appropriate for right now in my studio as students are learning new repetoire for the summer. Learning a new piece requires so much repetition. How many times do you have a student repeat a new idea in your studio? What types of repetition do you espouse? At first glance of Uszler’s book, I thought it might contain suggestions to make repetitions more fun using games and so forth. Well, not quite. This is not a quick fix – Uszler’s approach is holistic. It is about teaching concepts that will stick and developing independent learners capable of transferring skills.

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13 Jun

Performance Anxiety in Lessons

by admin
in Performance, Program Development
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When most people think of performance anxiety, they may imagine someone about to go on stage to perform in a recital, or play, or to speak in front of an audience. They have spent hours, weeks, and most likely months getting ready to show the world what they have to offer with all their hard work, and expectations of themselves are high. I’m sure we’re all aware of the possible symptoms of performance anxiety, and have likely experienced some of them to a small or large degree ourselves – dry mouth, pounding heart, shaking hands, cold sweats, and upset stomachs. But what do we do when a student experiences this anxiety each and every week? And not through having a busy performing schedule, but in their lesson? Originally, I was just going to answer that question in this blog, but I’ve decided to make this a little more personal and share why this topic is so important to me.

I would like to discuss with you my own experiences with performance anxiety as a student through my early adult years (not that long ago – maybe 8-10 years ago) and share a few thoughts that would go through my mind each lesson. It’s quite a personal journey, but I have had a few adult students lately with the same sort of thought patterns and having been there, I know what they are going through. Most people don’t suffer anxiety to such a high level, so I thought I would give an insight into how much it can disrupt thought patterns and emotions tied into performing, and different ways of empathising and helping students to overcome it. I have managed to help shift my students’ (with performance anxiety) focus and their understanding of what their lesson is actually for, and I would also like to share that shift with you.

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09 Jun

Summer at the Studio

by cconrad
in Finances, Marketing, Policies and Procedures
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I used to panic when summer hit.  My students all assumed they had the summer off from piano lessons (as that was typical practice where I lived).  While a few students were still interested in taking lessons during the summer, the drastic drop in income always took some adjusting and required me to budget throughout the year in order to accommodate the financial swing.

Six years later, I actually look forward to summer.  While I still don’t teach full-time, I have worked my studio policy and studio offerings in such a way that allow me to spend less time in the studio and enjoy my summer a bit more, while also maintaining an income that is closer to my typical income during the school year.  Here are some of the things I have implemented to help ease the financial stress of the summer months:

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04 Jun

Updates in May 2012

by admin
in Announcements
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With summer here, we hope your studio is off to a great start with enrollments from students, off from school and on summer break. We are working to get automatic recurring billing and make up lessons implemented into the program, based on member feedback. Below are new fixes in May, 2012: When running a Contact List Report for any address field, all of the address fields were...

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