What is it Like?

Overhead Piano View

You can clearly see my hands as I demonstrate for you. Much of our lesson may be using this view as we have an exchange of playing and listening.

Virtual Piano

Above my piano is a virtual piano. This piano lights up the keys that I am pressing as well as labeling the note. Students find this very helpful when learning how to play their pieces.

Sheet Music

I keep a digital copy of my students’ music so that I can use it on screen for demonstration and learning. I am able to draw, type, spotlight and more right on the screen with the sheet music. This is an incredible tool for: learning notes on the staff, pointing out patterns, learning how to count rhythms and how to correctly notate music. And what’s great is that we can see the sheet music and the two pianos on the screen at the same time!

music white board

I have several different screens that fall into this category. This allows the student and I to be able to interact on a staff. We are both able to write on the screen. This is a fantastic tool for: learning to identify notes, practicing drawing notes, and getting more familiar with the different octaves on the staff and the piano.

Games

I love to make up fun games especially for younger learners. These may include coloring games on screen. Some games are multiple choice or even listening games for ear training.

Pure Piano Sound

My grand piano sound is directly connected into the audio for superior sound quality. I’m also using a Yeti microphone so that students can easily hear me.

How zoom lessons work

Zoom is a free conference app. It allows us to make a visual conference call where the student and I can see and hear each other.

MATERIALS

what materials you need

You essentially need 2 basic items:

a piano or keyboard
a laptop or tablet with internet

you can improve setup with these 2 extra items:

microphone+headphones or headset
a second camera

how to set up your equipment

There are basically two ways that can work well for your camera placement.

Option 1: set the laptop/tablet on the music stand right in front of you. This is the best view for you to be able to watch my demonstrations and play along. I don’t mind that I cannot see your hands all of the time. I have an excellent EAR, and I know what you are playing. PRO: student can see my hands, keys, screen shares very easily CON: I cannot see student’s hands
Option 2: set your laptop/tablet on a surface to either the right side or left side of the piano so that I can see the student’s hands. This is a great view for me to check that the student is using the proper hand placement, fingers and be able to spot physical areas to work on. PRO: I can see the student’s hands clearly CON: the student has to turn to look at the screen and does not have my keyboard right above theirs for following along easily.

how to pay for lessons

You can choose to buy one lesson at a time before your lesson starts. You also have the option for purchasing several lessons at once for a savings. If you visit the “PRICING/PAYMENT” tab, you will see all the package options. Acceptable forms: any credit or debit card, PayPal, and Venmo.