Virtual Piano Lessons

 

 

Skype, FaceTime or Zoom lessons can be highly productive in helping a student solve problems and play pain-free. It also allows the teacher to help students locally, in the US or internationally. Because there are some limitations to virtual learning, a combination of virtual and in-person lessons is the ideal, as is possible.

If you’d like to schedule a virtual lesson, email: Beth@BethGrace.com

Navigating Online Lessons

  • If using Skype or Facetime, before the first lesson, the student and teacher must add each other as Contacts in Skype or Facetime. If using Zoom, a meeting time needs to be set up.
  • Familiarize yourself with how to use your preferred platform (Skype, Facetime, Zoom) on your equipment. Schedule a trial call with a friend to ensure your set-up is correct and to avoid spending valuable lesson time trouble-shooting technical issues.
  • Both the teacher and the student need to allow extra time to set up so the lesson can begin punctually and then return the Studio to normal after the lesson.
  • Check the time difference, if applicable.  To keep things simple when communicating about a lesson, please refer to the time discussed in Kansas (Central) time.  Entering the lesson time in an electronic calendar such as iCal with the teacher’s time zone is a foolproof way of calculating the local time and keeping up with any changes due to daylight savings time etc.
  • Make sure to have the latest version of Skype/Facetime/Zoom.  If one party has a different version, there can be incompatibility issues with cameras freezing and crashing.  On occasion, this may require a complete IOS update (if using a Mac), so please take care of this ahead of time.
  • In advance of the lesson, let your teacher know the repertoire you wish to study at the lesson.  If the teacher does not have the score in her library, scan and email (rather than sending by text message) the selected pages at least 24 hours before the lesson.  Writing in the measure numbers and fingering before scanning will also make the lesson more efficient, so both parties “are on the same page”.
  •  Lesson time is best spent targeting questions on specific issues, rather than playing many pages at a time or performing a piece all the way through.
  • Many students record the online lesson to use for personal study, not as a public upload.
  • If possible, please do not make Skype/Facetime calls from a mobile phone, unless there are technical difficulties.  With such a small screen, it is difficult to see a clear view of the students’ fingers, hand and forearm. To make best use of the lesson, it is best to use a laptop for a good side view and an overhead camera if available.
  • Paypal is a convenient payment method for international students to transfer funds and cheaper than bank transfers.  Allow extra for the fees charged, so that the teacher receives the full specified fee.
  • For US students, Zelle, Paypal (see above) or check is accepted.  Cash is also fine if taking an in-person lesson.

Virtual lessons are a wonderful way to study when distance is a factor.  During the lesson, many questions can be successfully answered and issues can be resolved.   This allows the student to remain motivated and continually improve.

Contact Beth Grace to schedule a virtual lesson.