List of Clinics Offered
    Your Next-Gen Private Music Studio - What Does the Future Hold?

        Fortunately, the future of private music studio teaching is that music teachers will always be needed. Each generation of parents are trying to create well-rounded children, and music education is quite often a large part of that equation. As for the adult students, there are always those who look back on their days as young students fondly and will forever want their second chance at playing.


        Many factors will dictate whether your private music studio will be successful. Where you’re located in the country, how saturated the market is, and what instruments are needed will be different in each area. Some parts of the country are so competitive that it will always be necessary to figure out how you can be better than the others and more attractive to future students. Other places may warrant traveling to teach, teaching more than one instrument, and greater flexibility.


    Can a Private Music Studio Teacher Really Earn $100,000 a Year?

        A lot of people hear the term “musician” and think of a struggling performer who can barely make ends meet. But being a “professional musician” who is well trained and experienced actually has quite a lot of options to make a great living.


        In fact, most musicians have so many career choices they don’t stick to just one area. They either do several at a time or their career moves in different directions as they continue to grow musically. If your training and practice is solid, you can create a professional career for yourself just like other vocations. 

    Your Next-Gen Private Music Studio - Tips to Get the Word Out

        Have business cards ready at all times and leave them at music stores, libraries, religious institutions, and anywhere you visit frequently.  Put scan codes on your business card, develop and distribute a brochure about your private music studio, sign up for digital broker sites, market yourself daily on social media sites, create your own web site and lots more!

    Teach Full-Time School and Supplement with a Side Studio Gig Musicians can do it all!!

        Yes, you can teach full-time at school and still teach for extra income on the side.  Will you travel to teach?  Does your school district allow for you to teach your own students privately? 


        1. Location, location, location 

        2. Travel to teach 

        3. School district rules 

        4. Should you teach your own school students? 

        5. Pricing 

        6. Teach at a private music studio school 

        7. Summers/holidays 

        8. Teach more than lessons 

        9. Classes/group lessons 

        10. Start a musical organization or camp 

        11. Master classes and the auditions at the Classes/group

        12. Preparing for an audition

    Don’t Worry When it’s Tax Time in Your Private Music Studio

        Often creative minds get into trouble when they’re not drawn to the business and finance world. Making music and sharing their love is what demands most of their attention, but the real world comes knocking - studio costs, travel expenses, and the dreaded taxes.  Do you declare all the monies that you make?  Do you need an accountant?

         

        If you want to run a successful business (even in a creative industry) you must have your dollars and cents in order. Need some guidance when it comes to tax write-offs for musicians? We’ve got you covered!

    Your Next-Gen Private Music Studio -- Who’s the Adult Here?

        Adult music students can take many forms. You may encounter the retiree who is fulfilling a lifelong dream, a stay at home mom whose kids are finally school age and has the time to practice, or a workaholic who needs a creative outlet to burn off steam.

         

        Regardless of their reasons, adults can be a joy to teach. They are intelligent and know how to learn. They can pick up on concepts quickly and will progress at a rapid pace. After many years of working, they’re probably eager to learn something new!

         

        On the other hand, teaching adults can also have its own set of challenges. They can have unrealistically high expectations and may think this is going to be easy. If their son/ daughter can do it, why can’t they? Try to remind them on a regular basis that everything takes time, students need to practice regardless of age, and all the hard work it will be worth it.

    As Easy As ABC: How Private Music Teachers Can Save Music Education

        Private music teachers are determined to turn up the volume when it comes to increasing accessibility and availability to music education. Traditional music education programs are either losing funding or music programs are frequently on the chopping block in public schools. But this problem is solvable. If we think more deeply about the profession we proudly call music education, we see the ways in which private music teachers can seamlessly bridge the gap and save music education. 

         

        The research is clear that students of all ages and ability levels can benefit from music education. Music education has been closely associated with enhanced language skills, increased cognitive ability, a boost in creative thinking, and strengthened problem-solving skills. 

         

        Music education can not just survive but thrive with the help of private music teachers.

    Should you travel to teach

        In this day and age, there are many teaching options for your Private Music Studio. Whether it’s seeing students in your home, a studio setting, or virtually, there are many pros and cons to each scenario.  People will typically pay more money for you to come to them. It’s a big time saver on their part, and if they have multiple children’s schedules to manage, they don’t have to worry about things like childcare and dinnertime. A perk to traveling to piano students’ homes (as an example), is that the lesson happens on the same instrument they practice on, which can ease confusion when they’re practicing. Plus, you're saving the parents' (who both work) time and money.

    Don’t teach all summer - you need a break too

        ▪️Set your summer session in advance 

        ▪️Six lessons minimum 

        ▪️No make-ups in the summer 

        ▪️Summer months are June, July & August or mid-May to mid-August 

        ▪️Take off an entire month or offer certain weeks and days 

        ▪️Longer lessons only 

        ▪️Studio must be air-conditioned 

        ▪️Multi-teacher studios 

        ▪️New student for the summer only 


        Studio teachers should not teach all summer. Don’t forget to give yourself a vacation. Do you teach summer students only, for six weeks in the summer, one month in the summer, certain days, or make a separate schedule? What are your best options?

    How IPhones have Revolutionized Private Music Lessons

        Cell phones have likely been the bane of all teachers’ existence since their inception. Kids sneaking them into class and causing a distraction adds a level of difficulty to managing a classroom that didn’t exist years ago. Not to mention the distraction they cause when you’re supposed to be doing something focused like practicing your instrument. Let me just check Facebook for a second… But are they really all bad? The ability to look up information and take videos of your students while you’re teaching can be a great asset. Am I actually suggesting that a cell phone could be a GREAT tool to use during a lesson? 


        Metronome Apps. There are so many great metronome apps with a ton of helpful features. Programable rhythms, customizable screens, syncing, volume control, subdivisions, and polyrhythms are just some of the bells and whistles these apps have. Some are even geared towards specific instruments. 


        Video.  Does a student keep using poor hand position? Record them in action so they can watch it back for easier and faster correction. This can be a real game changer when students are preparing for recitals and auditions. It’s impossible to have complete self-awareness when playing, and watching yourself on video can help correct everything from body position to even tempo.

    The Essential Pages for your Private Music Studio Website

        A website is an essential part of any business owner’s toolkit. Especially private music teachers!  Even if you don’t have a full-fledged studio, there’s still plenty of content to put on your website. Not to mention, it can be a great way to get new students. Websites don’t have to be fancy (although if you want to get fancy, by all means do!). For private music teachers, they should give visitors a sense of who you are, what kind of music you teach, and let prospective students know what to expect when they study with you. It also gives you the opportunity to expand your studio through a store or blog.  Include a gallery, links, information about music events in your area and much more.


        Don’t underestimate the power of a professional website for your private music studio. With so many options today, the cost can be minimal. Creating it should be fun, and the rewards will be great!

HIGHER SAT SCORES
SAT scores of students who study music surpass non-music students. Grades for young musicians were 60 points higher on verbal and 43 points higher on math.&
BETTER ACADEMICS
For every year a student participates in music their SAT score improved.  This shows a string correlation between music and academic success.*
MORE SUCCESS
Students with for or more years of music instruction scored 62 points than students with one semester of music instruction.*
* The College Board, Profile of College-Bound Seniors National Report for 2001.

Teacher Testimonials

"I had students stopping me in the hall to tell me how valuable they found your information.  Your presentations were lively, good humored, inspiring, and information-packed all at once.  Throughout the two sessions, you had the rapt attention of graduate students and undergrads."

Dr. Gerald Fischbach

 "It was great to see you the other week & watch how you teach! I learn so much each time (for me & for my teaching)."

Teresa P.

"...a valuable reference for any teacher that teaches privately, regardless of the size of the studio. The information covered in this book is worthwhile towards improving all teaching situations."

Roberta Warfield

The smartest business move I made this month was to invest in Mimi Butler's teacher mentoring program. Mimi's business savvy, years of experience and natural enthusiasm for her clients made it easy for me to implement new strategies that were immediatelyhelpful in building my music studio business."

Diane R.

Stepping Up To Make a Difference...

In its 10 years, Symphony in C's summer camp for South Jersey middle and high school musicians has provided training to more than 500 students. For two weeks each summer, the whine of violins, the clanging of cymbals, and the sounds of tinny horns have filled the halls of Rutgers-Camden.

But this year, that rehearsal music sounds a little sweeter, and the coordinators and campers are relishing in it a bit more, knowing that the camp, two weeks of intensive training in orchestra and band instruments, almost didn't happen.

"In April, we were looking at each other saying, 'This isn't going to work,' " said Pamela Brant, director of Symphony in C. "Arts have experienced a severe decline in funding opportunities. When the economy tanked, there was less funding available for grant-making, larger companies refocused and decided to give to other areas, and camp was going to be a casualty of that."

The trouble started for the camp when Campbell Soup Co., the primary sponsor for nine years, notified Symphony in C that it would no longer be able to sponsor the camp because of a decision to support initiatives to end hunger and childhood obesity.

Organizers reached out to Cooper University Hospital and L-3 Communications, which came through with gifts but not nearly enough to provide scholarships and busing to all Camden participants, as had been done for the previous nine years.

Mimi Butler, a Haddonfield resident and private music teacher, heard about the camp's financial woes through one of her students. Butler, who had run her own Summer Strings camp for three years and seen it shut down for similar financial reasons, decided to do something.

She recruited friends in the community and formed a committee to save the music. The group met at Ponzio's in Cherry Hill and pooled music and media contacts.

Instead of going after larger corporate donations, the group launched a "Sponsor a Camper" initiative. For $300, you could sponsor two weeks of camp, or you could pay $150 for one week. The group held a fund-raiser at Wamsley Violin in Haddonfield featuring music from former campers.

By May, the group had raised $17,000, well over the $10,000 goal and enough to expand enrollment to 75 students.

 Julia Terruso, Inquirer Staff Writer Posted: August 11, 2013