COMMON QUESTIONS
WHERE DO LESSONS TAKE PLACE?
Lessons are provided at my home studio, near Lake Merced, in San Francisco, California. Students will learn on a high quality, regularly maintained grand piano, in a beautiful, spacious, quiet, and sunny room. There is comfortable and ample space for guest seating, and plenty of guest parking.
ARE YOU ABLE TO HELP PREPARE STUDENTS FOR PIANO EXAMS?
Yes. There are many to choose from, but they are not all created equal, and I do have my preference. Please contact me to learn about the different exam systems. Please rest assured that switching from one system to another is easily done, with no consequences whatsoever.
DO YOU OFFER YOUR STUDENTS OPPORTUNITIES TO PERFORM IN PUBLIC, OR ENTER COMPETITIONS?
Yes. I host a few recitals per year, and there are many competitions to choose from.
WHAT AGES DO YOU TEACH?
Most of my students are 6 to 18, but I also enjoy teaching adults.
HOW MAY I PAY FOR TUITION?
Tuition may be payed by check, cash, via PayPal, or Venmo.
HOW EARLY SHOULD MY CHILD START TAKING LESSONS?
This generally depends on the attention span and work ethic of the student, and the commitment of the family. Namely, whether consistent practice at home is possible, whether the parents are able to attend lessons, and whether the parents are able to help with practice at home. In some cases children as young as three can thrive.
DOES MY CHILD HAVE TO LOVE (PRACTICING) PIANO TO SUCCEED?
No, but it can certainly help! Most importantly, "success" is a loose metric that can be difficult to define, and can hold vastly different meanings for each family. I have found that a student's work ethic, their sense of accomplishment, their relationship with their teacher, and their relationship with their parents are all more accurate predictors of success. For example, if the student fears and dreads going to every lesson, they will most likely hate practicing at home. It is also very common for children to go through phases; one might love practicing until the age of eight, only to become jaded until the age of ten, at which point they might begin to love it again...
MY CHILD WON'T BECOME A CONCERT PIANIST, SO WHY FORCE THEM TO PRACTICE?
It can be very difficult to determine who will become concert pianists among those who do not practice.
Children are "forced" to go to school, the point being to educate them. I am sure they would much rather be watching TV and playing games all day! However, concluding that a child is being "forced" to fulfill their obligations speaks of the interplay between parent, child, and teacher. There are many beneficial ways to flip a child's disinclination to do something into a positive, highly constructive experience.
Extracurricular music education sits at a crossroads: is it an activity solely for recreation, or just another academic pursuit? Should it be an opportunity for children to relax and take it easy after school, or an activity to further hone their problem solving and critical thinking skills? Should the focus be on creativity and innovation, perhaps having music serve as an outlet for the child's emotions, or instead on drilling exercises for technical precision? There is no right answer; it depends entirely on the wishes of the family. It may of course be possible for music education to satisfy all of the above conditions, and more... but only with very careful coordination between all parties.