| If
you've been searching for a good piano
teacher and you just can't find the
right one you're not alone. It's a common problem, often exagurated
by the fact that few piano teachers, a very small percentage,
actually have the necessary skills
to take your piano playing where you want it to go. In this
article I'd like to focus on some of the reasons for this
and what you can do to get the right information
to find the right piano teacher.
The other day I met up with a former student
of mine from a few years back. I've not done any private teaching
since then and I wanted to find out how she was doing. "I'm
up to 4 gigs a month," she said. Not bad for a professional
doctor turned part time musician. I can't help but feel proud
when students have that kind of success. Anyway, she also
told me a little story about how, while searching for a new
piano teacher, she was referred to a pro pianist
in another city about 40 minutes from where she lives. In
her city there just isn't anyone that could help her, except
me of course but, I just don't have the time anymore to give
private piano lessons.
Her story was very familiar. She talked about
arriving on time for her piano lesson whilte her teacher was
late. She talked about having the lesson on a crappy upright
in a tiny practice room at the local college. She even mentioned
having to move to another room because they got kicked out
do due a conflict with a student who had booked to room to
practice. She also told me that she quit
after only one piano lesson.
Unfortunately, this type of situation has become,
more often than not, the norm when it comes to finding a good
piano teacher. Now, I'm not saying that this person wasn't
a good piano teacher, far from it. (Although, my former student
did say that it wasn't worth the money she paid.) I'm simply
saying that more often than not,
these are make shift lessons with professional pianists that
have little or no experience in teaching, have no professional
practice space of their own and have little regard for the
truly authentic piano students who are seriously looking to
improve their playing. Why do they do it? For the money, of
course.
There are a number of issues here that many
people who seek out piano
lessons will discover. The first and most obvious problem
is the lack of good piano teachers in your
area. It's likely that you'll find some pro players
but, finding one that can actually teach is going to be difficult.
Being a good piano teacher is much more than just showing
and explaining. It's about getting the student involved and
excited about their playing. It's about giving the right information,
in the right order, and with
the right amount of energy.
Then, you have to think of the time
commitment it will take to actually drive to your lesson,
do the lesson and get back home. In the case of this former
student, she recounted that it was an all afternoon affair.
Now, I really don't know howbmany people would put up with
that for very long, do you?
And, of course you must also think of what it
will cost. The average price for a lesson with a professional
starts at around $100 an hour. Once you add in gas money and
a snack you're out about $130 every lesson. That's a serious
commitment. No wonder there are so few people who actually
succeed in music.
The Solution To Finding a Piano
Teacher
So, what is the solution to all this? Well,
if you're like me, it doesn't matter what it costs and how
far you have to go. You just do it because you absolutely
need the information to get better. Master piano teachers
are indeed rare, especially the ones who have pro experience
but, they do exist.
I remember once paying $250 for a one hour piano
lesson in New York from jazz great Kenny Barron. And even
then, he couldn't really explain technically what he was doing.
It was a great lesson but mostly on a feeling level, not a
technical one. Factor in the trip to New York, hotel room
and food and I was out about $2,000 bucks for a one hour lesson.
That's a bit ridiculous don't you think?
Well, at least New York was cool.
But, for those of you who are already good players
and don't have the money nor the inclination to travel to
New York, what then?
That's exactly why I, and many others, started
teaching online
piano lessons. It's not the perfect solution but, it sure
beats the alternative by a mile. Now, there are a lot of online
piano teachers out there so let's quickly examine how
you can make the right choice.
First, you need to find a professional piano
player. Why a pro? Because, they know more that just teachers,
things like; how to perform, how to make money at playing
and mostly how to avoid the mistakes they made. Avoiding mistakes
is, to me at least, the most valuable information. It's all
about how not to make poor choices.
Then, you need a piano
teacher who knows how to teach. Don't take it for granted
that pro players know how to teach. Most don't. I have plently
of personal experience and horror stories to prove that point.
You should look for a piano teacher
that has a method, proven results and is highly reccommended
by other students and peers.
The most important aspect of a good piano teacher
is; someone that can motivate you and quickly get you from
where you are now to where you want to go. That takes a teacher
with the heart and soul to deliver exactly what you need to
keep you in the game and get you to progress fast.
In terms of online piano teachers my highest
reccommendation is to research who you're
taking the lessons from. If you dig deep you'll uncover
a lot about who you'll spend you're hard earned money on.
Use the internet to your advantage. Do a search for their
name. Find out if they perform and where. Find out how many
websites are reccommending them. Read the forums and listen
to others who've taken their courses.
Why am I advising you to do research and not
just sell you my online
piano courses? Because, I know deep down that it's unlikely
that you'll find anyone like me who'll deliever everything
I've just stated obove but, I want you to at least try.
As far as I'm concerned, aside from being a
professional pianist for the last 25 years, I know how to
teach and train. I'm actually a certified
trainer and often train hundreds of people at a time.
But, don't take my word for it. Do your research
on me. Search "Paul Tobey" on the internet and find
out for yourself. Then, download my first piano
lesson for free and see if that fits your needs. These
are lessons designed around you, the intermediate to emerging
professional.
Musicially Yours,
Paul Tobey
PS: Whether you believe that online
piano lessons can help you or not is not really the point.
Smart people would at least signup for and download the first
lesson for Free. At least that way you'll be able to make
an informed decision about whether I'm a good piano teacher
or not. Then, after studying the video and the method, if
you still think there's a better way, I encourage you to explore
it with the utmost commitment. Best
of luck with your music...the world needs it.
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