Friday, January 13, 2012

Rates

Rates
Lessons are given on a weekly basis
Lessons in Your Home:
$35 for 30 mins
$45 for 45 mins
$60 for 1 hour

*P.S. : extra $5 will be charged for every 10 miles away from the zip code 92123,the 30 minutes, 45 minutes and 1 hour lesson for time concerned and gas expenses

(For example, if you live like 12 miles away from where i m, i do have to charge $5 extra for gas expenses and time concerned)

The rate above only good for 1 person, for 2 or more people, please asked for rates, thank you.

If you live more than 20 miles from 92123, might charge $10 extra for gas expenses and time concern but the duration of lesson maybe longer, if you could find more students who want to learn piano in your area, the rates will be reduced back to $5 extra for gas expenses and time concerned (only applied to certain area) ;

and if you have financial problems, please let me know also and email me for more information

For families with two children or more, or neighbors or friends want to learn piano, Asked for Discount!


For Guitar Lessons, The rate will be :

Private Lesson will be $60 per hour or $35 per 30 mins
Group Lesson will be held after having 4 students enroll ; time and location will be discussed

Guitar group lessons (Guitar ensemble) & time and location will be discussed >
Ages from 5 to 15
Will audit students and separate in different group
All the music will be arranged to match the abilities of each individual.
All students are required to have a guitar
Enrollment Fee $20.00, one time enrollment fee
and $60 per month ; 4 lesson a month, 1 hour per lesson >


*Rates are subject to change, normally I charge different rates for different families due to their situations, please understand that I am trying to help students to succeed. I understand financial hardship will be one of the reasons that you might be struggle with on taking lessons, please let me know and I will try to lower the rates. Proof is needed.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

How to Practice

1. Play EVERY DAY (if you can), even if it is for just a little but.
If you don't feel like practicing, just play. Play like 5 mins a day will work too!

2. Sit far enough away from the keys, Sit on the edge of the bench; feel free to move your elbow and adjust to the way that you feel very comfortable to move your hand

3. Its ok to mess up when you practice, make sure to practice the hard part first before you play from the beginning all the way to the end.

4. Learn short songs in a variety of styles, learn and try something new.

5. Try to look up the history of the composers, you will learn more about their styles and how they want you to play on the piano

6. Try to play the whole song at a very slow tempo, but make sure you count it
Then you can try to speed up a little bit, just need to make sure you are playing it evenly and at the same speed.

7. Try to write down the notes that you feel very uncomfortable to read, it will help you to get better sight reading skill

8. Listen to the recordings of the song that you are playing, your ear will help you.

9. Dont start with long songs if you are beginner, try some short little song will help you learn better.

10. Try practice before and after lessons

11. Enjoy playing the songs you play well, and keep practicing them!

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Questions

Is your child ready to play piano?
Every child is different, it depends on:
1. Their Interest - some children love music, and it gives them motivation to learn and explore more in music.

2. Learning Skills - if they can read and know alphabet, also understand simple conversation, it will be great for them to learn and read notes and understand simple instructions during lessons.

3. Memorizing Skills - they do need to memorize some materials during every lessons. (Most of them are pretty easy to memorize!) as long as you and your child work on the materials after lessons, then, there should not have any problems.

4. Concentration - they have to focus and concentrate during lessons, without being constantly distracted. Some children might go around the room a little bit during lesson, thats OK! as long as when you asked them to sit still and concentrate, then that will be fine.

5. Calculation - they should be able to count up to 10 and do very simple addition. It is necessary for them to understand the rhythms and different notes values etc. materials.

6. Practice - they should practice maybe 5 to 10 mins a day or maybe 15 mins twice a day etc. in order to have improvement every lessons.Lastly, it depends on what you want and what your children want. There are some successful cases for the children who start around 4 years old; however, some of them only want to have fun and you might not see any improvements Or maybe very slow improvements in every lessons Vs. 6 years old. In my point of view, the earlier the children start playing piano, the better they are in the long run with all the considerations above. Hope it helps for your consideration.

Do I / your children need to practice everyday?
It depends.
Some children love playing piano, especially when they learn the song that they want. Motivation is very important, for some children, they do not want to learn playing piano or maybe they are very lazy and do not feel like practice everyday , thats OK! However, we have to give them some attention or maybe rewards for them to keep practicing in order to see the results. They do not need to practice everyday, they can practice 15 to 20 mins twice a day or maybe 5 to 10 mins everyday for the beginner. Never force them to practice! Try to give them reinforcement, it will help them to build their own motivation.

Practice Makes Perfect!

Do I / your children need to have a piano or keyboard to start?
YES
It is very important for you or your children to have a piano or keyboard to practice.
What should I get? Piano or Keyboard?For long run and be professional, Piano will be the ideal instrument to get! If you prefer to compose and to make your own music; Or you do not have that much of money or place to put a piano at home, Keyboard will be better for you! For children under 6, or you are not very sure if they or you really want to learn piano, Keyboard will be a great deal! Yet, piano gives the best sounds and "fingers' feelings" (the weight keys); it also gives you the best training for the ears. (It will help you to play music by ears.) I would recommend Piano for the primary instruments to use.

What kinds of keyboard should I get?
It will be great to have a piano instead!
If you decide to buy a keyboard, pick the one with the "weight" keys, 88 keys with pedal. It is really important on what you are going to get.


About Piano Tuning
I can provide different professional piano tuning and maintenance technician name and their rate for you to choose


Am I too old to learn piano?
NO, you are never too old to learn piano! Its a lifetime experience and you should enjoy the sounds and music!
Am I too old to learn piano? >


For more questions, Please feel free to email at: rachel_piano@yahoo.com

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Rachel's Piano or Guitar Lessons

In Home Piano or Keyboard or Guitar Lessons

Call today 619 838 4305
Offering Affordable and Convenient music lessons throughout San Diego area. Also in two different resident studio location (Mission Valley or Serra Mesa location).

*All Ages and Levels are welcome
*Flexible Schedule
*No Contract or Registration Fees
*Help Apply and Prepare for ABRSM exams, auditions, competitions and scholarships etc.
*Professional, Patient, Fun and Friendly

~If you do not have a piano or keyboard at home, I will bring mine for your first lesson and recommend some piano or keyboard for you to purchase!
*There will be extra cost for bringing my keyboard to your home for lessons due to liability.

Classical, Blues, Country, Ethnic/World, Hip Hop/R&B, Jazz, Musical Theater, New Age, Other (Not Listed), Rock/Pop,

or whatever you want to learn, all are welcome
Please Feel Free to Call 619 838 4305 or
Email: rachel_piano@yahoo.com
Rachel

http://www.wix.com/joanyirachel/rachelpiano


Piano Lessons in San Diego area:

Carmel Valley, Del Mar, Mira Mesa, Clairemont Mesa, Serra Mesa, Linda Vista, La Jolla, La Mesa, El Cajon, Chula Vista, College Area, University, Downtown, Old Town, Mission Valley, Fashion Valley, Point Loma, Pacific Beach, Ocean Beach, Mission Beach, Mission Bay, Rancho Bernardo, Carmel Mountain, Balboa, Spring Valley, National City, Santee, Mission Hill, Miramar, Scripps Poway, University Height


Also Offering Guitar Lessons (Private or Group Lessons)
Students will gain an appreciation and knowledge of classical technique and theory, while also applying these techniques to popular music
All ages are welcome
Location TBD
Now also Gathering students for guitar group lessons (Guitar ensemble)
Ages from 5 to 15
All the music will be arranged to match the abilities of each individual.
All students are required to have a guitar
Enrollment Fee $30.00, one time enrollment fee
and $60 per month < 4 lesson a month, 1 hour per lesson >
Playing music from classical to pop music
For group guitar ensemble will be performed at public libraries, schools or churches < depends on the number of the participants>

Also will be perform in the recital with piano students

For more information
Please call 619 838 4305
Thank you

Testimonials

Melissa K:

Rachel has been our daughter's piano teacher for almost a year.  When we were looking for a piano teacher, we wanted someone who would be patient and engaging because our daughter was only 4 years old.  Rachel does a great job of keeping our daughter's interest and challenging her without frustration.  She communicates with us after each lesson about what our daughter is learning and how we can help her.  Her lessons and methods of teaching are age appropriate and successful as our daughter has shown great progress in under a year. I highly recommend Rachel as a piano teacher. 

Rubina R. :
My 13 year old daughter has been taking piano lessons with Rachel for about 4 years now. We are very happy with Rachel's skills as a teacher. She is patient, understanding, compassionate, encouraging , punctual, affordable and
possesses a genuine eagerness to teach that is very fresh. Being so young herself, she puts other young students very much at ease by being able to come down to their level and showing empathy. She clearly shows a passion and excitement for her work that is much appreciated. She is an amazing source of support and comfort during recitals, when students can be quite nervous.
She is also very helpful and intuitive in meeting a student's specific and personal needs and gives them her all. I highly recommend her as a piano teacher to any child.

Helen L.:
About four years ago, my 5 year old daughter started to play piano.
Rachel is her first piano teacher and now Rachel is still teaching my daughter. Most of my daughter's friends are learning with Russian piano teacher.
But I want to say that Rachel is an excellent piano teacher too. She's young and knows how to teach the kids. My daughter won't feel piano is hard to learn. She got much more interest and encouragement from Rachel. From basic finger posture, classical music to popular songs (my daughter's favorites) and music theory, Rachel is leading my daughter to a higher level. Two years ago my daughter passed ABRSM exam Level 1. Just before Year 2011 Christmas, we got a good news. My daughter pass ABRSM exam Level 3 with distinction!
With Rachel's teaching, my daughter is marching forward! Thank you, Rachel!
Thank you!

My daughter gave herself a wonderful Christmas gift! She pass ABRSM theory exam level 5 with distinction. We appreciate Rachel very much! I still can't believe my daughter made a huge progress with 50 points. Rachel's piano background and experience brought my daughter benefits. She found many resources and practices for my daughter. And she took my daughter's workbook back and reviewed it at home. Rachel likes to teach piano. My daughter likes to learn. Four years passed. My daughter plays piano with fun and confidence. Rachel's teaching method led my daughter to enjoy playing piano. And her kindness and excellent personality are models to my daughter in and out of piano class. Thank you so much, Rachel!



Sarah C.:
Rachel has been teaching my 15 year old piano for about 6 months now. She is very patient and accommodating, working hard to find music that inspires him and not sticking to standard scores.  She is punctual, flexible about lesson times and polite. I really appreciate her.

Nadia S.:
Rachel is a very patient and nice teacher, she loves children, even though she has accents but my kids like her a lot! they learn a lot from her! especially my girl didnt like playing piano before, but now, she loves playing it. thats really surprise me!

Tara:
Rachel is an excellent piano teacher, my daughter and I love her and we both enjoy taking lessons with her! My daughter is having so much fun with the lessons and shows me what she has learned. We cannot wait for the recital! I would strongly recommend her to everyone!

Sunday, January 1, 2012

Policy


*Please email me for the newest policies!

P.S: 
PLEASE DO NOT EMAIL ME to cancel the lesson right before or less than 24 hours before the lesson! I WILL NOT get it in time!
If I am going to or already at your house, I have to charge the full tuition fees! Please respect that!
Therefore, If anything leads you to cancel the lesson, PLEASE CALL OR TEXT and get the reply from me! IF NOT, I will still charge for the lesson!