FAQs
- What should the customer know about your pricing (e.g., discounts, fees)?
I offer 30 minute private in-home lessons for $20, 45 minutes for $30 and 60 minutes for $40. The lessons usually take place weekly, unless the student prefers less frequent lessons. The tuition is due at the beginning of each month for the lessons in advance. For example, if 4, 30 minute lessons will take place in one month, $80 will be due at the beginning of that month.
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
Biography: Rachel Clemens was born in Scottsbluff, Nebraska in 1994. She began piano study with Barb Dalgarn in 1999 in Scottsbluff. In 2003, she moved to the studio of Jeanette Kniss also in Scottsbluff, and then in 2007 to the studio of Becky Kugler in Gering, NE. In the fall of 2012, she was accepted into the University of Nebraska at Omaha School of Music, as a student of Dr. James Johnson. Among the awards she has won as a musician are the Nebraska Young Artist Awards (2011) at UNL, the UNO BOCH Festival Orchestra (2011), the Nebraska District Music Festival (consistent Superior Ratings, piano), the NSAA Outstanding Performance Award (2012), and the Scottsbluff High School Outstanding Female Fine Arts Award of 2011-2012. At UNO, she was a recipient of the Susan Thompson Buffet Scholarship. Besides the piano and violin, she also plays flute, guitar, harp, organ, and sings. She studied dance at Tabor Dance Academy for fifteen years. As a violinist, she plays in the Heartland Philharmonic Orchestra, and has studied with Dr. Mary Perkinson of the UNO faculty. Also, she has studied harp with Katie Wychulis, also of the UNO Faculty. She currently studies piano with Anne Madison (OCM). Rachel graduated with her Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance on December 16th, 2016. She hopes to continue her education in the Fall of 2017 in a graduate program for a Master of Piano Performance degree.
- How did you get started doing this type of work?
I have been teaching piano lessons professionally since August 2014, when my first 3 students began. I also have been teaching violin since October 2015. Currently, I have 12 piano students and 1 violin student. Their ages range from 5 years old to 45 years old. Aside from my private studio, I have experience teaching group piano and violin classes for Arts for All, as well as experience teaching violin as an assistant and lead teacher for Omaha Conservatory of Music's String Sprouts program. I have been studying piano for over 17 years. Playing piano has been my greatest passion since I started lessons when I was 4 years old. I never realized how much joy teaching others would bring to my life! Teaching has now become another life passion of mine. My favorite style of music to play is piano repertoire from the Romantic period. My favorite composers are Frederic Chopin and Sergei Rachmaninoff. However, I enjoy playing music from any time period. I have played and performed works by J.S. Bach, L. Van Beethoven, C. Debussy, W. A. Mozart, S. Rachmaninoff, F. Chopin among many others. In my free time I also enjoy playing music from movie soundtracks, contemporary composers, and pop music. My ultimate goal for each of my students is for them to have fun, first and foremost. Whether a student’s goal is to become a concert pianist, or just to learn how to play for their own enjoyment, I want to instill a desire in each student to pursue a lifetime of learning. The wonderful part about being involved in music, is that playing an instrument can be a lifelong hobby. As long as you continue using your skills, you will never forget how to play, just like you never forget how to ride a bike once the muscle memory is there. Music is beneficial to people of any age. A study done at Boston Children’s Hospital using MRI technology has shown that “children with at least two years of private lessons showed enhanced cognitive control, with aids in information retention and behavior regulation.” My hope is that each student learns the discipline necessary for mastering a new skill, to help them in any area of life. I am grateful for the opportunity to teach the art of playing an instrument and the ability to share my greatest passion.