Melodia Music Studio Policy
"Life is like a piano; what you get get out of it depends on how you play it." -Tom Lehrer, American musician, singer-songwriter, satirist, and mathematician
Hello! We are so excited for the opportunity to teach you and/or your child. Music has been a beautiful part of our lives for many years, and it is a privilege to be able to pass this gift on.
Philosophy
We want our students to be as well-rounded as possible, in terms of skill as well as genre. We work on note reading and musical theory at the same time in addition to incorporating ear training. We are a big advocate of chord theory, which essentially helps train the student to recognize patterns in any style of music and learn and potentially memorize it faster in addition to knowing how to play and improvise. Furthermore, we have my students work on pieces from a variety of genres and styles in order to have a taste of the many types of music they can perform on piano and understand various rhythms and structures. Beyond reading music, students also work on composition and improvisation.
Materials
Books are purchased by the student.
Payment
Monthly tuition for fall and spring (September to May) is:
30-minute lessons $99 a month
45-minute lessons $148 a month
60-minute lessons $198 a month
60-minute group lessons $148 a month
Summer tuition (June to August) is billed per lesson:
30-minute lessons $26 a lesson
45-minute lessons $39 a lesson
60-minute lessons $52 a lesson
60-minute group lessons $39 a lesson
There is a $14 registration fee per student at the start of each semester.
Tuition is due on the 1st every month unless another arrangement needs to be made which the student can discuss with the teacher. If tuition is not paid, lessons will be discontinued until it is received. Tuition is paid online through automatic invoicing. Payments made online carry a 1% convenience charge. Autopay can be set up in the student portal. There is a $10 late fee for payments not made before the 1st of the month without prior notice of other arrangements.
There is a 5% discount for semester tuition paid in full by check or cash at the start of the semester. Tuition is prorated for new students beginning after the first week of the month.
Online Platform
In the studio we use the student portal (under a tab on my website) to My Music Staff for: viewing assignments and lesson notes, paying tuition, logging practice, and viewing scheduled lessons and studio announcements. Each adult student or parent will have login access to the platform.
Scheduling
Like sports practices or a university course, monthly tuition reserves a student’s given lesson time on that day every week whether they can attend a certain week or not. If you are unable to attend a lesson, you are invited to have an asynchronous class. To do this, you just need to send a video of the student playing their songs before the start of the scheduled lesson time. Then during that time your teacher will watch the video and send a response with commentary and demonstration of the song(s). A worksheet will also be sent that corresponds to the game that would have been played which the student can complete on their own and then go over the following week.
If the student cannot record their songs beforehand, the teacher can still make a video demonstrating the songs last being worked on with some reminders of notes, rhythm, and other areas to watch out for in their continued practice until the next class. All that is needed for this, is advance notice and a request for a review video. Your lesson time is your lesson time alone, so the teacher can use that time regardless of whether a student is present to review songs and go over music theory.
If the student arrives late, the teacher is unable to account for the time missed. Any “no show” lessons are forfeit. If the teacher has to cancel lessons for any reason, the lesson will be discounted from the next month’s tuition. There is no refund of tuition, but credits may be applied with advance notice. Notice of discontinuation of lessons is requested two weeks in advance.
Illness
If the student has been throwing up or stayed home from work or school for any illness related reason within the past 24 hours, must notify me before an in-person class. If an in-person student arrives to a class and the teacher finds that the student has been sick or home from school that day, they reserve the right to end that lesson. Mildly sick students are invited to have an online lesson.
Lessons
Lessons are weekly with weeks off for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and spring break. Standard lesson length is generally:
*30 minutes for children age 4-6
*45 minutes for children ages 7 and up at the beginning to early intermediate level
*60 minutes for children at the intermediate to advanced level and adults
If finances are a concern, lessons can be kept at 45 minutes instead of 60.
Online lessons are given through Zoom where I will add the student as a contact. I will call the student directly at their lesson time.
In-person lessons are subject to being given online in the event of travel or illness.
Discounts
If a student/parents refers someone who signs up for lessons, that student will receive one lesson free (discounted off of monthly tuition).
Any student or parent who leaves a Facebook, Yelp, or Google review will receive a $10 discount to tuition.
Semester tuition paid in full will be given a 5% discount.
Practice
My expectation is that students practice a minimum of five days a week for a duration appropriate to their age level, which I will indicate to the student and parent where applicable. For students who consistently do not practice their pieces and are not prepared for the lesson, I will speak with them and their parent where applicable to discuss bringing their practice to an acceptable level or potentially discontinuing lessons as it is impossible to progress in piano without practice.
Incentive program: students of all ages can earn tickets for the monthly practice drawing. For each day the student enters on the student portal or plays on Piano Maestro, they earn one ticket. On the last day of the month I will draw one name and that student will receive a $10 gift certificate through email to SheetMusicPlus.com.
Parental Presence
Provided that their presence is not disruptive for some reason, I welcome parents sitting in on lessons (either in-person or online) and actually prefer that they do! When the parent hears the lesson, they are able to get a sense for what their student is working on and what things we cover in a lesson.
Parents are required to be present for online lessons with students age 4 to 6.
Media Release
Photos of students and video and audio recordings of student projects and performances may be posted online and used by the instructor for promotional and workshop materials. Identifying information will be excluded or limited to first names only. Parents wishing to exempt their students from any published media may do so simply by letting me know.
Recital
There are three performances opportunities a year - one per semester (summer, fall, and spring). As most of my students are online, these are in the form of an online submission which I will upload to a recital playlist on the studio YouTube channel. In-person students are invited to perform on the semesterly day and time specified in my in-home studio. These performances will be filmed and also uploaded to the recital playlist.
Welcome to the studio!
Philosophy
We want our students to be as well-rounded as possible, in terms of skill as well as genre. We work on note reading and musical theory at the same time in addition to incorporating ear training. We are a big advocate of chord theory, which essentially helps train the student to recognize patterns in any style of music and learn and potentially memorize it faster in addition to knowing how to play and improvise. Furthermore, we have my students work on pieces from a variety of genres and styles in order to have a taste of the many types of music they can perform on piano and understand various rhythms and structures. Beyond reading music, students also work on composition and improvisation.
Materials
Books are purchased by the student.
Payment
Monthly tuition for fall and spring (September to May) is:
30-minute lessons $99 a month
45-minute lessons $148 a month
60-minute lessons $198 a month
60-minute group lessons $148 a month
Summer tuition (June to August) is billed per lesson:
30-minute lessons $26 a lesson
45-minute lessons $39 a lesson
60-minute lessons $52 a lesson
60-minute group lessons $39 a lesson
There is a $14 registration fee per student at the start of each semester.
Tuition is due on the 1st every month unless another arrangement needs to be made which the student can discuss with the teacher. If tuition is not paid, lessons will be discontinued until it is received. Tuition is paid online through automatic invoicing. Payments made online carry a 1% convenience charge. Autopay can be set up in the student portal. There is a $10 late fee for payments not made before the 1st of the month without prior notice of other arrangements.
There is a 5% discount for semester tuition paid in full by check or cash at the start of the semester. Tuition is prorated for new students beginning after the first week of the month.
Online Platform
In the studio we use the student portal (under a tab on my website) to My Music Staff for: viewing assignments and lesson notes, paying tuition, logging practice, and viewing scheduled lessons and studio announcements. Each adult student or parent will have login access to the platform.
Scheduling
Like sports practices or a university course, monthly tuition reserves a student’s given lesson time on that day every week whether they can attend a certain week or not. If you are unable to attend a lesson, you are invited to have an asynchronous class. To do this, you just need to send a video of the student playing their songs before the start of the scheduled lesson time. Then during that time your teacher will watch the video and send a response with commentary and demonstration of the song(s). A worksheet will also be sent that corresponds to the game that would have been played which the student can complete on their own and then go over the following week.
If the student cannot record their songs beforehand, the teacher can still make a video demonstrating the songs last being worked on with some reminders of notes, rhythm, and other areas to watch out for in their continued practice until the next class. All that is needed for this, is advance notice and a request for a review video. Your lesson time is your lesson time alone, so the teacher can use that time regardless of whether a student is present to review songs and go over music theory.
If the student arrives late, the teacher is unable to account for the time missed. Any “no show” lessons are forfeit. If the teacher has to cancel lessons for any reason, the lesson will be discounted from the next month’s tuition. There is no refund of tuition, but credits may be applied with advance notice. Notice of discontinuation of lessons is requested two weeks in advance.
Illness
If the student has been throwing up or stayed home from work or school for any illness related reason within the past 24 hours, must notify me before an in-person class. If an in-person student arrives to a class and the teacher finds that the student has been sick or home from school that day, they reserve the right to end that lesson. Mildly sick students are invited to have an online lesson.
Lessons
Lessons are weekly with weeks off for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and spring break. Standard lesson length is generally:
*30 minutes for children age 4-6
*45 minutes for children ages 7 and up at the beginning to early intermediate level
*60 minutes for children at the intermediate to advanced level and adults
If finances are a concern, lessons can be kept at 45 minutes instead of 60.
Online lessons are given through Zoom where I will add the student as a contact. I will call the student directly at their lesson time.
In-person lessons are subject to being given online in the event of travel or illness.
Discounts
If a student/parents refers someone who signs up for lessons, that student will receive one lesson free (discounted off of monthly tuition).
Any student or parent who leaves a Facebook, Yelp, or Google review will receive a $10 discount to tuition.
Semester tuition paid in full will be given a 5% discount.
Practice
My expectation is that students practice a minimum of five days a week for a duration appropriate to their age level, which I will indicate to the student and parent where applicable. For students who consistently do not practice their pieces and are not prepared for the lesson, I will speak with them and their parent where applicable to discuss bringing their practice to an acceptable level or potentially discontinuing lessons as it is impossible to progress in piano without practice.
Incentive program: students of all ages can earn tickets for the monthly practice drawing. For each day the student enters on the student portal or plays on Piano Maestro, they earn one ticket. On the last day of the month I will draw one name and that student will receive a $10 gift certificate through email to SheetMusicPlus.com.
Parental Presence
Provided that their presence is not disruptive for some reason, I welcome parents sitting in on lessons (either in-person or online) and actually prefer that they do! When the parent hears the lesson, they are able to get a sense for what their student is working on and what things we cover in a lesson.
Parents are required to be present for online lessons with students age 4 to 6.
Media Release
Photos of students and video and audio recordings of student projects and performances may be posted online and used by the instructor for promotional and workshop materials. Identifying information will be excluded or limited to first names only. Parents wishing to exempt their students from any published media may do so simply by letting me know.
Recital
There are three performances opportunities a year - one per semester (summer, fall, and spring). As most of my students are online, these are in the form of an online submission which I will upload to a recital playlist on the studio YouTube channel. In-person students are invited to perform on the semesterly day and time specified in my in-home studio. These performances will be filmed and also uploaded to the recital playlist.
Welcome to the studio!