Piano teacher
I am about to discontinue my son’s piano lessons with his current teacher. I want to make sure I am making the right decision and search for advice in this community.
My son followed with a Suzuki piano teacher since he was 4 years in 2019.
They spent 3 years on book One (online during Covid 19).
Since the beginning of 2022 my son started book Two. After the teacher taught my son the first 6 pieces, she asked him to review these pieces again and again in every lesson, and has never gone beyond it. This continued for more than a year until this summer. It became so boring even for me who was asked to take notes during the lessons. At certain point I stopped taking notes as I knew exactly what she would ask my son to do.
You can imagine what happened: my son lost gradually his interest / motivation with piano. Daily practice became such a stressful thing for all of us. The teacher seemed unhappy with me as she considered that it was my responsibility to ensure my son’s daily practice. Yet repeating the same thing over 2 years is tedious even for adults. My son believed that he played those pieces pretty even well with his eyes closed, yet it was never to the teacher’s satisfaction. He interpreted that he was not good enough so that he was asked to repeat over and over again. I could clearly see that instead of building my son’s confidence, these piano lessons are eroding it, not to mention any enjoyment for a little boy.
When I finally broke the silence and asked the teacher to teach my son some new piece (Arabesque by Friedrich Burgmuller), to my biggest surprise I realized that the teacher did not know this piece and she could not site read it either. I was shocked and had the idea of discontinuing the lessons with her.
Before I reply to her email for the coming fall session of piano lessons, I would like to know if it is the moment to make a change for my son’s piano study.
Thank you!
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Wow, I am sorry to hear all that...does your son perhaps have a friend that has a teacher that works well...I would definitely change course.
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Also, where are you located perhaps someone here has a connection to your area.
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It seems this teacher is incompetent. How did you find her?
(by that I mean: how did you hear about her such that you decided to start lessons with her?)
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Harriet Kaplan this time I will be more careful in finding a new one.
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I would say definitely find another teacher asap. The worst thing to do is to destroy a child’s interest. My daughter is a violist and we stayed way too long with one teacher. Her college teacher told her you shouldn’t stay more than five years with any one teacher. He had a lot of things to correct for my daughter. She is now a professional musician in Austin on Viola/violin with a Masters degree, so it turned out well, but she could’ve been ruined musically.
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I would trust your gut as a mother. Many different teachers with different approaches and personalities can be found, it is not a one size fits all. As a teacher I expect to be able to play beyond the level of my students, even if the piece itself is unknown to me. Usually the teacher will tell you it is time to look for the next level of instruction, in my opinion you can do so without needing to give a huge explanation.
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Sounds like you need a new teacher. I recommend looking for a reputable music school in your area and selecting a teacher there. Private instruction is too uneven and unpredictable, and a teacher can make or break a student, especially at this earlier stage.
I’m an adult student, but mix with all ages of my teachers’ students. Each student has a new repertoire every six months, at least. They play in my teacher’s class recitals, school performances and local competitions. There is much to work towards at all times.
If you happen to live in the Seattle area, I’m describing the Chopin Academy of Music.
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For your son's well-being, switch teachers. The big clue that he needs to change teachers is his boredom and losing self esteem. You don't owe her an explanation, but I'd love to quote Monte Python and tell her exactly what to do.
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I strongly recommend that you stop the lessons with this teacher. Best way to find a new teacher is by personal referral, a trial lesson should not be a problem. Kuddos to your son that he put up with this for so long...
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Most important: is your son interested in learning the piano? Were lessons originally his idea or yours? Does he "play around" on the piano aside from his pieces -- i.e., does he sight-read other music he likes, does he try to pick out tunes or pieces he has heard, does he show any interest in another instrument, does he listen to music on his own? Does your son watch videos on ToneBase and try to learn on his own? What I'm trying to understand is whether _he_ has the interest and love of music it takes to make it worthwhile to take lessons. We can view music lessons in a utilitarian way (i.e., it's "good for" developing coordination, mathematical skills, whatever), but unless someone loves music, they will never have the passion it takes to sustain real effort.
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Additional input re: piano teacher qualifications. All teachers at my school have a Master’s degree in piano pedagogy. And many have a PhD in piano performance. That’s a sign of high quality education.
While I have studied piano for decades and went to Manhattan School of Music college eons ago, I’m not qualified to teach piano. -
Yes!.!! Music should not be boring to the student. A good teacher will keep a student's interest and will press forward to make progress. New information about music should be introduced at each lesson.
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It sounds sadly familiar to me. Wish my mother had your intuition when I was younger. Very good idea!
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Run! Piano should be fun. Get your child a new teacher as quick as possible. Pieces don't have to be perfect, when they get boring it is time to move on. Of course technique is important but you can learn something new with every new piece.
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I study with Maestra Joyce Crawford.
I think you will be impressed. You need to change teachers as soon as possible, before your boy loses complete interest.
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I teach Suzuki piano and Royal Conservatory Certificate Program. I erroneously accepted three transfer students last year who had supposedly studied previously with a Suzuki teacher. Most of the Suzuki transfers I'd ever had before were just fabulous! But these three didn't know a thing. I was shocked to realize that the most basic concepts had not been taught and that the children were now in Book 2 with no idea of what they were doing. They didn't know what a scale or chord was! They had never even learned their Twinkles!!!
So the question is: Are you sure that your teacher is "really" a Suzuki teacher who has been trained through the Suzuki Association of the Americas? The teachers must meet playing requirements to study at different levels. If they can't play three movements from the Bb Partita by Bach and meet a certain playing standard, they cannot even register to train. To teach at higher levels, they must be able to play a Mozart sonata of difficulty, so it would be highly unlikely that a trained teacher could not play the Burgmuller!
What I discovered after receiving my own Suzuki teacher training is that there are all kinds of teachers out there who say they "are" Suzuki teachers, but they aren't. Suzuki is 90% philosophy, meaning it's HOW you teach concepts. Listening and repetition is required. To graduate out of Book One, a student performs all of the pieces BY MEMORY in a private recital where friends and family celebrate. It is a real accomplishment for a young child to do this and parents are so happy afterwards, even though they had their doubts along the way.
Is your teacher a member of the local and national Suzuki chapters? Who did she train with? Does she regularly attend institutes and camps? Does she take part in events and graduations with other teachers?
Suzuki is usually a good fit for a musical parent, because the parent is expected to observe the lessons carefully so they can be the home teacher during the week. There are so many variables. The best way to access how a teacher is doing is by the students he/she/they have produced. Every child is different, moves at a different rate, and the relationship between the parent and teacher needs to be strong.
That being said, what I discovered after teaching the method for 12 years, is that there are all kinds of holes that need to be filled in order to make it all work. Since I trained with teachers who graduated from Julliard and the Paris Conservatory, I know what traditional teaching is. As I saw what did and didn't work, I have incorporated my own "fixes" to get kids starting to read at the end of Book 1. Sometimes kids take a long time to get through books, but usually it's because the parent is not doing their part of playing the recordings and motivating their child... or the children is actually not interested in learning.
Any teacher who has trained through SAA is "registered" to teach those Books. If your teacher says they have been trained, this should be verifiable by contacting SAA for confirmation.
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Mary Mathews All of this! I have some Suzuki teacher training in cello - it involves much more than simply teaching the pieces in the books. And it helps to know something about traditional teaching as well to be really effective.
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Mary Mathews Your detailed explanation clarifies a lot. How dumb I have been! Guess there is no need to verify. I can tell from the repertoire presented at the yearly class concert. Thank you!
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I am sorry to hear that you and your son have had a frustrating experience. The most misconception is that a lower level teacher can teach beginners. IMO, beginners are the most crucial stage that demands more experience and a good strategy from the teacher.
Yes, you should change the teacher. Ask around for a teacher who has made great progress with students at various levels. You need a teacher who doesn't just depend on the student's talent or the parent's push. You need a teacher who can teach each concept step by step so that the student can be more independent and enjoy music. If the teacher is successful in various levels of students, your son may not need to change the teacher every few years.
Most students lose interest because they can't read notes well or/and lack of the technique. It is crucial to develop these two skills carefully from the beginning.
I wish you the best of luck. If you have more questions, please feel free to post. -
Thank you all for your thoughtful and prompt responses to my query about my son’s piano lessons. I am now very comfortable to respond to the piano teacher’s email regarding the fall session.
To address some of your questions:
- My son showed a great interest in piano from a very young age. When he was 5, after hearing two students play Bach’s Minuet in G major on the violin outside a church, he came home and played the main melody on the piano by ear (after he started piano lessons).
- He takes pride in figuring out all the scales by himself, though he’s never particularly fond of repetitive practice.
- Fortunately, he studied music reading. With my help, he’s completed the first four books of Sight Reading and Ear Training (RCM), and he really enjoyed the challenges they presented.
- I created games to encourage him to take the RCM ear training exercises. He understands the concept of intervals and he has absolute pitch.
- Both my husband and I play piano at home on a daily basis (though we're amateurs), and we genuinely hope that his motivation to practice comes from his pure love for music.
Lastly, I spoke with my son about this decision this afternoon, and he assured me that he loves the piano and doesn’t want to give it up. He would love to start with another piano teacher. As a mom, I feel incredibly lucky to hear that.
Thank you all once again for your insights, advice, and encouragement.
Warm regards,
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Coda I'm so glad to hear that he still loves the piano and has such supportive parents. Good luck to you. I hope he can find a great teacher who can nurture his musical growth.
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I'm so glad to hear that you spoke with your son, and that he still loves the piano after all the terrible teaching! I wish you the best of luck in finding a good teacher. If you're near a university with a music department, you might be able to ask the faculty there for suggestions....
