FAQs
- What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
Yes. I am just completing a three-year dual degree program in violin performance and Dalcroze Eurhythmics pedagogy. I am involved with the Massachusetts Suzuki Association, a community of teachers who share approaches throughout the year and gather at an annual Festival for teacher workshops with master teachers and guests from around the world.
- What questions should customers think through before talking to professionals about their project?
The trickiest thing about the business side of teaching music is flexibility, on the part of the teacher and on the part of the student or student's family. Learning to play an instrument is a physical process; our lives and culture are so influenced by computers and technology, which works at an ever-increasing pace; it is easy to forget that our bodies do not! For very young students, the physical coordination, motor skills, and muscle strength required to play the violin take significant time to develop before the student can actually play on the instrument. For students of any age, consistent practice is required for lasting progress and for progress at a rate that is motivating; our brains and our muscles need it to really learn. For this reason, consistent support from the teacher in the form of regular, committed lessons is important, for all but the most self-motivated students. Teaching music is also my primary source of income; this is my job and my livelihood, so a commitment from my students is important for my own planning, in the same way that an architect or consultant needs to know that they have consistent projects to work on to run their business. We don't have sick days or a salary for our teaching; for this reason, many music teachers have cancellation policies similar to therapists and doctors, who also make their income from appointments: if you cancel after a certain point, you still need to pay for the teacher's time; or, you pay for the month or semester, for the teacher to reserve that time for you in their schedule for the semester/year, with a limited availability of make-up lessons. At the same time, a professional musician's life has a more fluid schedule than a typical salaried 9-to-5. A teacher who is also a performer will occasionally have rehearsals during the week and need to reschedule or cancel a week's lessons. The ability to maintain an active performing schedule has a positive impact on what the teacher can bring to the lessons; if I am teaching you how to reach your audience and play in an ensemble with other musicians, I should be continually adding to my own experience in doing that. It is also very personally fulfilling to perform and the energy it gives me comes back in how I teach you! In short, flexibility and mutual understanding are important to the teacher-student/parent relationship in this profession.