Music Instruction Grover Beach, CA - Music Lessons Arroyo Grande Area

Music Instruction Grover Beach, CA - Music Lessons Arroyo Grande Area - Voice Instructors Five Cities Area

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Coastal Dance and Music Academy

• Dance • Music • Theater • Voice •

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These guidelines will help you to have a successful, rewarding experience in learning how to play an instrument.

1.How Young is too Young - Starting at the Right Age

Adults can start any instrument at any time. Their success is based on how willing they are to commit to practicing. We have beginning students in their 60’s and 70’s. For children, starting at the right age is a key element to the success of their lessons. Some people will tell you ‘the sooner the better’ but this attitude can actually backfire and be a negative. If a child is put into lessons too soon they may feel overwhelmed and frustrated and want to stop lessons. The last thing you want to do is turn a child off music just because they had one unpleasant experience, which could have been prevented. Sometimes if the child waits a year to start lessons their progress can be much faster. Children who are older than the suggested earliest starting age usually do very well. The following are guidelines many have found to be successful in determining how young a child can start taking music lessons.

3 - 4 Years Old
If a pre-schooler has a keen desire and wants to start music, a group preschool dance class will give them a good foundation in music basics, which will be helpful in later private or group lessons. At this age, private lessons generally do not work as the child has not yet experienced the formal learning environment of kindergarten or school and learns more effectively through the play oriented preschool environment. At this age it is probably the best to start your child in a creative dance or music lesson, where your child will be introduced to music, tempo, and movement that will help develop rhythm, counting, and coordination in your child.
Piano / Keyboard
At our school, 7 years old is the youngest age that we recommend starting children in piano lessons. At this age they have a longer attention span and can retain material with ease. Children this age also posses the hand size required for the keyboard.
Guitar
7 years old is the earliest we recommend for guitar lessons. Guitar playing requires a fair amount of pressure on the fingertips from pressing on the strings. Children under 7 generally have small hands and may find playing uncomfortable.
Voice Lessons
6 years old is recommended as the youngest age for group vocal lessons. Due to the physical nature of voice lessons (proper breathing techniques, development of the vocal chords and lung capacity), the younger body is generally not yet ready for the rigors of vocal technique. Private voice lessons are not recommended until the age of 13 or 14.
Drums
The youngest age that we start children in our drum program is 7. This normally varies greatly depending on the size of the child because they must be able to reach both the pedals and the cymbals. Fortunately, Coastal Dance and Music Academy offers drum pads so even if your child is on the smaller side, they will still be able to take class!

2.Take Lessons in a Professional Teaching Environment

Learning music is not just a matter of having a qualified teacher, but also having an environment that is focused on music education. In a professional school environment, a student cannot be distracted by TV, pets, ringing phones, siblings, or anything else. With only ½ to one hour of lesson time per week, a professional school environment can produce better results since the only focus at that time is learning music. Students in a school environment are also motivated by hearing peers who are at different levels and by being exposed to a variety of musical instruments. In a music school, the lessons are not just a hobby or sideline for the teacher but a passion and responsibility that is taken very seriously.

3.Making Practicing Easier

As with anything, improving in music takes practice. One of the main problems with music lessons is the drudgery of practicing and the fight between parents and students to practice every day. Here are some ways to make practicing easier:

Time
Set the same time every day to practice so it becomes part of a routine or habit. This works particularly well for children. Generally the earlier in the day the practicing can occur, the less reminding is required by parents to get the child to practice.
Repetition
This is a great method to use when setting practice schedules for beginners. For a young child 20 or 30 minutes seems like an eternity. Repetition is a great alternative to just setting a time frame. For example, practice this piece 4 times every day, and this scale 5 times a day. The child then does not pay attention to the amount of time they are practicing their instrument, but knows if they are on repetition number 3, they are almost finished.
Rewards
This works very will for both children and adult students. Some adults reward themselves with a cappuccino after a successful week of practicing. Parents can encourage children to practice by granting them occasional rewards for successful practicing. Young children can be rewarded with stars and stickers for a successful week of practicing. Praise tends to be the most coveted award. There just is no substitute for a pat on the back for a job well done. Sometimes we all have a week with little practicing, in that case there is always next week.
4.Use Recognized Teaching Materials

There are some excellent materials developed by professional music educators that are made for students in a variety of situations. For example in piano, there are books for very young beginners, and books for adult students that have never played before. There are books that can start you at a level you are comfortable with. These materials have been researched and are continually upgraded and improved to make learning easier. These materials ensure that no important part of learning the instrument can inadvertently be left out. If you have to move to a different part of the country, qualified teachers and institutions will recognize the materials and be able to smoothly continue from where the previous teacher left off.

5.Have Fun!!

Music should be something that you enjoy for a lifetime. So, try not to put unrealistic expectations on yourself or your children to learn too quickly. Everyone learns at a different pace and the key is to be able to enjoy the journey.