Thursday, July 18, 2024 by Frances Philpot | Uncategorized

Here are next year’s Key Dates for your diary, so you have the information at your fingertips!

  Friday, June 14, 2024 by Frances Philpot | Uncategorized

You may be considering piano lessons for your child next year or further in the future. Whatever instrument s/he might be interested in playing, please read on! 

Underpinning any instrumental learning are the general musicianship skills which form a firm foundation of understanding and create a springboard for rapid progress as physical coordination matures. This is ideally developed from Reception age upwards, initially in group musicianship sessions before moving onto individual lessons as children mature. This is where Ready to Play comes in!

Ready to Play – pre-piano Musicianship group lessons        Sign up for Ready to Play here

When? Tuesdays 3.45-4.30pm at Glenesk

Who are they suitable for? Complete beginners in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2, who are considering playing any instrument, especially the piano, in the future. These will start to build the foundations for future musical learning.

What is the time commitment and cost? One term at a time, ideally continuing through each term as a group or moving on to individual piano lessons. £144 per 12 week term plus £15.50 for the book.

What materials do you use? Activities will be based on working through the Ready to Play series, introducing many ‘pre-piano’ musical skills through fun singing activities and hands-on games. Ideally you will have a piano or keyboard, or a plan to acquire one, but it is not essential at this stage. The underlying skills will also apply to any instrument taken up in the future. Activities include chime bars etc as well as piano.

Please note that there is currently a waiting list for individual Saturday lessons.

Individual piano lessons                Sign up for Individual piano lessons here 

When? Saturdays or weekday afternoons during school-time, rotated for a slightly different time each week so children do not come out of the same lesson each time. 

Who are they suitable for? Year 2 children upwards, and younger children, depending on aptitude and maturity.  They will have completed at least one term of Ready to Play sessions, and have an adult who is prepared to help them play in between lessons – you will need a piano with touch sensitive, full sized keys at home. Please contact me if you would like advice. 

What is the commitment and cost? This is a long-term investment of time and effort from children and parents. To take full advantage of this, there is an expectation that children will have an adult’s support to complete challenges and practise pieces and exercises, at least 4 to 5 times a week.  With this hard work comes the pleasure of a whole new musical world for exploration. As well as the individual lessons, £342 for a typical 11 week term also includes regular pupil concerts, workshops and a subscription to the amazing Supersonics Piano app, accessed from home. Books are invoiced as a separate item, so please allow £40 – 50 per year to build up a music library to dip into.

What materials do you use? Once general musicianship skills are embedded, we tend to use the Piano Safari series, which provides a solid grounding in all aspects of playing the piano.  Experience has shown this is an excellent method, provided there is parental support to complete practice at home.

Wednesday, January 15, 2025 by Frances Philpot | Uncategorized

Spring 2025

Play for the composer June Armstrong 

This term, I am excited to announce that in addition to our usual method books, we will all be aiming to learn at least one piece by the composer June Armstrong. I will be talking to the children about it at the workshops on January 25^th, (thanks to those who have already signed up!) but even before then, you could start to listen to some of her compositions with your child to see which ones may appeal.

Her books are packed full of beautifully evocative sound worlds which really latch on to the imagination. You will see from the above link that there is a wide range to choose from, from complete beginner to advanced players. If you choose a piece from Alphabet, I can print it for you as I have the studio licence. Otherwise, please feel free to buy your own copy from the website, or let me know which you would like me to order for you, to benefit from a bulk order discount.

For those who would like the full experience, there is even the option of recording a performance to send to June Armstrong herself – and she will issue a certificate with personalised comments and suggestions for taking the playing a step further. So, in many ways, it is like a virtual music festival! See the title link for entry details and deadline.

Any particularly good performances will be featured on her website, alongside artwork and poetry inspired by the music…

I do hope you will encourage your budding performer to practise with the goal of a super recorded performance by the middle of March!

Listen to the pieces using these YouTube links:

Alphabet

Safari

Puffin island

Invoices for second half of Spring term

Good news! Rates for the rest of the academic year remain the same after all. Confusion arose due to a glitch in the settings of the new Cognita room hire software (relating to the 20% VAT charge), which was finally sorted this week. So, invoices for the second half of the term will be with you in the next week or so. If you wish to automate your payment, there are options to add payment details via the mymusicstaff portal, with Autopay, Google Pay and Direct debit all now supported to make payment more streamlined.