At CDMS, we offer private music lessons as opposed to group lessons. Learning music is a little different than learning dance, and our year-end performances have goals specific to music students which private lessons are tailored to. Here are some of the biggest reasons why we offer private lessons:
Learning to play an instrument involves a lot of technical, physical aspects of playing the guitar, piano, or singing. Obviously, every voice is different, so voice students benefit greatly from having private lessons where music is chosen specifically to highlight the best features of their vocal range or style. But even for piano and guitar students, dexterity can vary widely, even between beginners of the same age. Having a private lesson allows our students to move at their own pace, without falling behind or waiting for others to catch up.
The ability to read music is one of the most important, valuable skills that learning an instrument imparts. But learning to read music is like learning a whole new language! For that reason, it’s helpful for students to be able to move at their own pace, asking questions frequently, with the Instructor intently focused on one student’s ability. It’s much easier to detect what the student is comprehending, or in some cases, not comprehending, and address those concerns immediately.
Performances at music recitals are typically solos, and private lessons are the perfect place to get a solo piece ready for the recitals. Parents typically like to hear their child play music on their own, and if the performance is a group of several people singing together or playing together, it’s much harder to hear one child’s performance. Sometimes Instructors will accompany their students to add more to the performance, but they work hard to make it easy for parents to hear the student’s part over all other parts.
Our Instructors love working one-on-one with music students, helping to bring out each
child’s individual talent and style. While we do offer some group classes, such as our Music Intensive Workshops and group make-up classes, we feel solid in our belief that private lessons are the most beneficial for learning an instrument.