As piano teachers, we may know a lot about teaching piano, but we are often at a loss when it comes to business plans, accounting, marketing, making money, budgeting and other financial issues. This page is dedicated to teaching you how to make a living teaching piano.
A Personal Invitation to An Exciting Conference
Well, it’s official! I’ll be speaking at this year’s summer SMU Institute for piano teachers! I’m privileged to be amongst some very distinguished presenters and look forward presenting with them and meeting you! But, let me tell you a few inside thoughts on this conference and then you can read a personal invitation from Sam Holland. I was told about this conference by Richard Rejino several years ago, but I got the impression that it was more for teachers with students who were also performing at the conference....
read moreCan’t Teach Without: A Certain Subscription
This is the first post in the new series: “What I Can’t Teach Without.” While there are many great gadgets and gizmos that I can’t teach without (my recommendations forthcoming), those gadgets would be nothing without solid pedagogy behind them. Since I am a number of years out of my pedagogy degree and since I can’t always go to the national conferences, I depend on certain things to give me fresh ideas based on solid pedagogy. When I checked my mail just last week, I opened my latest Clavier Companion and was...
read moreWhat I Can’t Teach Without
These days, I know that teachers are feeling the crunch of the difficult financial times. With all the wonderful piano teaching blogs available, it’s easy to have a million studio ideas, but not know what is most worthy of our time, energy, and money in accomplishing our teaching goals. So, I’ve decided to examine my own studio and teaching and report on the essential tools that I feel I must have to be a good teacher. I’m going to be starting a new series of posts entitled, “What I Can’t Teach...
read moreAdding a Lab to Your Lessons #5 – The Pros and Cons
by Leila Viss The fifth and final article in this “Adding a Lab to Your Lessons” series will provide a list of pros and cons to adding a lab to your piano lessons (see article 1, article 2, article 3, and article 4). Yes, in all honesty, there are cons to adding a lab to your lesson. Read to the end however, for some testimonials of students and parents that value this unique addition to a music studio. Top ten reasons why you might RE-CONSIDER adding a lab to your lesson You must be willing to… Manage not only repertoire,...
read moreAdding a Lab to Your Lessons #4 – Making the Assignments Work
by Leila Viss The possible materials available for your lab are almost endless. The lists provided in past articles (Article 1, Article 2, Article 3) are meant to help you sift through your options (not to overwhelm!). However, once you invest in sites and/or software, it can be difficult to assign appropriate activities to your students. Thankfully, there are resources that can help. In addition, only your imagination will limit the possible ways to use lab time. Resources for Correlating Lab Assignments to your Lesson...
read moreAdding a Lab to Your Lessons #3–More Advice
by Leila Viss So you say, “I’m all in with this lab idea, but I could use more advice.” Here is more information about software you can use and other assignments you can give. With the basic equipment and online music games mentioned in the last article you have the tools to implement a sufficient lab with your lessons. (You may also want to review the first article about why a lab is a great idea.) However, there are many more options to consider as you feel the urge to develop beyond the basics. Keep in mind that all the...
read moreAdding a Lab to Your Lessons #2-If Yes, Then What?
by Leila Viss The fact that you are reading this second article in this series means that the idea of a lab plus a lesson has sparked your interest. Read Article #1 to understand why you should consider adding a lab to your lessons. The following will provide answers to the questions you may have regarding equipment, scheduling and resources for setting up a successful lab. How do I SCHEDULE students with this new format? Essentially, two students will be scheduled on the hour. Instead of one arriving at 3:30 and then another at 4:00pm,...
read moreAdding a Lab to Your Lessons #1 – Why?
This is the first in a series of articles written by Leila Viss that will focus on adding a new technological addition to your teaching studio. The series will attempt to answer questions of those who have never considered this format before. The articles will also include ideas for those who already successfully use technology to enhance daily teaching. Questions, comments and suggestions in the comments section are greatly appreciated! “Why NOT Add a Lab to Your Lesson?” Fact: Our studios are filled with Millennials–the...
read moreMarketing Piano Lessons to Adult Students
I’ve asked Leila Viss to share some tips on marketing piano lessons to adult students. Leila teaches students ages 6-86 in an independent piano studio which features a tech-savvy lab. She seeks to create innovative teaching methods and successful practice strategies to encourage the average player of any age to stick to the bench for life. She holds a Masters Degree in Piano Performance and Pedagogy from the University of Denver and has presented at local, state and national conferences. She adjudicates at local, state, regional and...
read moreGreat Q & A for Business Issues on Facebook
The National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy hosted a wonderful Q & A with Kristin Yost and Kathleen Theisen on Facebook today. Kristin and Kathleen presented a number of fantastic sessions on the business of piano teaching at NCKP this last summer and this even was a follow up to those sessions. There were a number of great questions and of course some very good answers. Here are some of the questions: How do I maintain the same ‘feel’ of ‘credibility’ as an independent teacher teaching in my home as opposed to...
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