Question: Music Lesson Length?

If you are a new student, you may not know how to choose a lesson length.

If you have already taken music lessons, you may want to learn when to change your lesson length.  Shorter lessons but more frequent might mean more progress.

When establishing lessons for yourself or your child, you want to choose the right lesson length to make the most progress possible.  You begin by establishing a good foundation.  If studying Violin – proper posture, holding the violin and how you draw the bow.  If you are studying Piano, you need to learn how to coordinate your left-hand movements with your right-hand movements.  Proper placement of your fingers on the keyboard is important.

Your concentration

Part of a successful music lesson is learning to play music accurately. And that requires good concentration. If your concentration breaks, you won’t be able to play accurately. If you are not playing accurately and making mistakes, then you are forming bad habits.

If you find yourself unable to concentrate for a 45 minute or 60-minute lesson, then you should consider taking a shorter lesson. Simply put, the longer you can concentrate, the longer a lesson you can benefit from.  Your ability to concentrate is affected by two other factors: your experience and ability, and your teacher.

Your goals

In order to choose the right lesson length, you should know what you want to accomplish. You should have a clear idea of what you want to learn.

Your teacher

A good teacher is an important factor in your lessons. A top rate teacher will be able to help you reach your goals no matter the lesson length.

Tatiana’s job is to give you enough information to push you, but not so much information that you are overwhelmed.  The right amount of information for you does not change based on the lesson length. It’s determined by your concentration, experience, and goals. It takes a skilled teacher, such as Tatiana. to get this right.

The main difference between lesson lengths is the amount of supervised practice time that you have. In a shorter lesson, you will have less time to repeat things with the teacher. In a longer lesson, you will have more.  The question to take a longer or shorter lesson thus becomes one of your comforts. (The exception here is for advanced students who are learning a large amount of music during a lesson. In this case, a longer lesson will be required.)  Most students find they are more comfortable with the pacing in a longer lesson.

Your practice

Without practice, you lessons will not be as effective. You can have the best teacher in the world, but if you don’t practice at home, your progress is going to be slow.  Your practice at home is a necessary component to your success.  Learning to play the violin or piano takes time and effort.  We encourage selfie videos so you can look back at the progress you have made.  Be patient, the results will be great!  You can make excellent progress no matter your age, background or ability.

Your budget

Lastly is your budget.  You can only take a lesson that you can afford. Sometimes students are unable to afford a longer lesson length and have to take a shorter lesson. Don’t be discouraged! As long as you have a solid teacher, you’ll get exactly the things you need to make the most progress. And with that information, you’ll then go home to repeat what you’ve learned and form solid habits.

Summary

Tatiana will work with you and help you establish not only a good foundation on which you will build on but help you determine the length of lessons that will help you achieve your musical goals.