Rates:

• 30 minutes: $50 (For children under 7 years only)

• 45 minutes: $90 (For children under 7 years only)

• 60 minutes: $120

  Payment Due Date: 1st of each month

Rate Disclosure:

Beginning January 1, 2025, prices have been raised. Prices are set due to training, experience, true knowledge of the instruments, true understanding of technique well enough to help prevent injury while fostering creativity, planning of progress, planning of repertoire, planning lessons, planning recitals, nurturing of goals, teachers association membership fees (which provides students with a network and resources), business travel expenses, instrument maintenance, purchasing new teaching material, renting recital halls/venues, bookkeeping, administrative work time, and advertising.

New Students!

New students will receive a FREE consultation and 40% off lessons within the first three months. Deals will be included in writing per contract.

Arrival

Allow enough time before your lesson to unpack your violin or cello. Lesson times will not be extended for students who arrive late.

Illness

Please do not come to studio if you are sick (cough, fever, sore throat, etc.). If you feel well enough for a lesson, we can arrange to do an online lesson via FaceTime or Zoom. Otherwise, please let me know as soon as possible and we will cancel the lesson. I would rather all parties involved be healthy than risk exposing more people to that illness.

Student Cancellation/Make-Up

1. Cancellations or rescheduling requests must be made at least 24 hours before the scheduled lesson time. Written notice via text message or email is required.

2. No-shows, or missed lessons without prior notification, are considered forfeited lessons

   and are non-refundable.

3. If two or more lessons are canceled within a 30-day period, the teacher reserves the right

   to terminate the lesson agreement at their discretion.

4. All lessons are scheduled in advance. When a student cannot attend a lesson and provides

   prior notice, there is no rescheduling or cancellation fee.

5. Make-up lessons can be conducted online or credited towards the following month.

Teacher Cancellation/Tardiness

If I must miss a lesson for any reason, I will notify as soon as I know of the conflict. I will do my best to schedule a make-up lesson if this occurs. If I am running late for any reason, I will notify you as soon as possible and make up the full lesson time to you.

Summer Term Policies

Lessons are expected to continue during the summer, as long as the teacher and student are both in town. The summer months are a wonderful chance to make great strides on an instrument, as school is not imposing on a student's time and mental energy. Regular practice is still expected, though conditions where an instrument is not available due to travel are understood. Students are expected to take their instrument with them to practice on long trips if possible.

Summer students will get priority in my fall schedule.

Students are encouraged to participate in summer music programs and camps. The student is expected to consult with the teacher for their expert opinion regarding potential programs to ensure that the best decisions are made for the student's education.

Parent Involvement

Once the instructor is gone it is up the student to do his or her own practicing. Parents are encouraged to be involved in their students practice, as all children/students need help with discipline. Expect to have to remind and encourage your children to practice, and supervision of practice may be required until a routine is begun. Students and parents both need to be accountable for consistent, quality practice.

Quality practicing is without distractions. Practice time should take place in a quiet, well lit, and comfortable area. Practice time should be interruption-free (i.e. no phone calls/texting, no TV, no computer, etc.).

Practice Expectations

Students under 7 years old should begin with the shortest lesson periods, generally taking 30- minute lessons and all other students 7 years old and up taking the 45- and 60-minute lesson periods.

Practice expectations increase with the longer lesson periods.

• Students taking 30-minute lessons should practice 30 minutes/day, 4-5 days/week.

• Students taking 45-minute lessons should practice 45-60 minutes/day, 5-6 days/week.

• Students taking 60-minute lessons should practice 60-120 minutes/day, 6-7 days/week.

  These expectations will help the student be as prepared as possible for each individual lesson as progress is made most quickly by those students who maintain the recommended practicing time.

This also helps with each student’s physical and mental stamina, which will make each lesson more productive, thereby increasing the value of each lesson.

Practice sessions should be no longer than 30 minutes in length for younger students. Older students should use breaks during longer practice sessions, usually taking 5 minutes of rest after every 30 minutes of practice. Fatigue and injuries due to overuse can eventually become a concern if the student does not utilize sufficient practice breaks.This is a frequently asked question?

Recitals

There will be at least one studio recital per year, and all students are highly encouraged to perform. A fee of no more than $50 will be collected before the recital to pay the accompanist for his/her time and to rent the recital space, plus a photographer if a budget allows. Specifics will be provided closer to the recital date.

Required Materials & Equipment

Instruments and additional materials are not included in tuition. Students are responsible for the purchase of their own books, instruments, and other materials needed for the lessons they are receiving. This includes their violin shoulder rest, cello lockstep, rosin, and a cleaning cloth. Violins or cellos can be rented and materials can repurchased locally at Ifshin Violins in El Cerrito, CA or others. Places to purchase methods books and sheet music include Shar Music, Meyer Music, sheetmusicplus.com, eble.com, and jwpepper.com. Some method books are available for free PDF download online, so try a Google search of the book first before purchasing. Materials ordered online are expected within two lessons of when they are assigned. (If they are on backorder, please let me know far enough in advance so that I can arrange to bring a personal copy.) The student also must bring a 3-ring binder, pencil, and spiral notebook (or paper).

If a student is purchasing an instrument or graduating to a larger size instrument, the teacher must be consulted to ensure a proper instrument for the student.

Competition & Auditions

• Advanced students should begin learning new pieces at least 3-4 months before competitions or auditions to ensure they are technically and musically prepared.

• Orchestra audition dates are generally in April, with seating auditions in August, just before the orchestra season begins. There may also be additional auditions in January.

• Competitions usually take place between February-March or October-November.

• Preparation for All-State Orchestra (junior high to high school) begins in July.

Lesson Termination/Withdrawal

To terminate a lesson agreement, a formal written request must be submitted via email or text message 30 days in advance. If a student chooses to terminate lessons without providing 30 days' notice, the total cost of termination will be calculated by prorating lessons for the 30 days following the termination date.

Tardy Policies

There is no grace period for tardiness. Lessons are scheduled for a set duration, regardless of the student's attendance. Students are allotted up to five minutes for packing, unpacking, tuning, etc.

The student will contact the teacher by phone if they expect to be late for a scheduled lesson.

If a student arrives after their scheduled lesson time has begun, the teacher will complete the lesson in the remaining portion of the time slot.

Communication Hours:

I understand that students have busy schedules and may practice late into the night. However, to manage my time effectively, I will only be responding to emails and other messages between 10:00AM and 8:00 PM.