If your child is interested in music, piano is a fantastic first instrument to learn, even if your child eventually wants to move on to a different instrument. This is because the piano makes the most sense visually, making musical concepts easier to grasp. This is crucial when learning to read notation and understand scales and chords. It also takes relatively little effort to make a sound on a piano, whereas other instruments (guitar, flute, etc) take special technique to make the correct sounds.

The main consideration is whether your child has the time to dedicate to daily practice. Progress greatly depends on consistent practice. 15 minutes a day for small children is a good start if it is consistent, but 30 minutes (or more) a day is even better and should be the goal from level one and up. Short, daily, concentrated practices are more effective than one long practice once a week. If a child is self-motivated enough to practice daily on his own, great! However, be prepared as the parent to be the one to set aside a focused time for your child to practice every day and enforce it as best you can, just as you would make sure they get their homework done for school or make it to their sports practices.

So if your child’s schedule is already loaded with other extracurricular activities, or if you expect all the progress to be made during the once-a-week lesson, taking on music lessons may not be right for him at this time.

My name is Saxony Goethlich. While I am not a professional musician, I have always been passionate about music. I took piano lessons as a child and guitar lessons as a teenager. Classical guitar is currently my main instrument and I try to practice daily, though it can be challenging with little kids around! I host my own recitals for friends and family twice a year to increase my performance experience. I have also served as a regular cantor for Immaculate Conception parish in Butternut for several years.

In addition to music experience, I have plenty of experience teaching, working as a substitute for every grade level at the Butternut School District and teaching catechism classes for middle and high school students at St. Anthony parish in Park Falls for the past 7 years or so.

If you are looking for someone who can teach you or your child basic music theory and take you from a beginner to an intermediate level of playing piano, I would be a good fit for you. Beyond that, I would be happy to meet with you to see if I can still help you improve.

You or your child will learn a wholistic approach to the piano for beginner and intermediate playing, including how to read notation, music theory, and technique. There will also be recital opportunities once or twice a year which other students will attend. It is not mandatory to participate in these but it is highly encouraged!

For small children (5-7) in group lessons, we will work from the Faber My First Piano Adventure books.

For older children (7-13) we use the Bastien New Traditions for the Primer level (one book) before jumping into the Faber Piano Adventures curriculum for everything following. The Piano Adventures uses four books per level which cover these areas: lessons, performance, technique, and theory.

For high school beginners, we will use the Faber Accelerated Piano Adventure books (two levels, four books each).

For adult beginners, we will use the Adult Piano Adventure books (two levels, one book each) from Faber.

Since daily practice is essential for making progress, your child should have access to either an acoustic piano (preferred), a digital piano with weighted keys, or at the very least, an electric keyboard on a stand.

Your child will also need:

• the books that pertain to their piano grade level ($10-$35 per level). I will direct you to where you can purchase them online.

• a clip to hold books open during practice, since most books are not spiral bound and have a tendency to close ($2)

• a multi-colored pen for the writing portions of the books ($1)

• A notebook for the teacher to make notes and record weekly assignments ($2)

• A bag to keep all materials together ($5-10)

Most piano grade levels can be covered in roughly 4-6 months, though this greatly depends on the amount of practice a student puts in at home. Once a level is complete, you will need to purchase the next set of books for the next level.

If you are the parent of a child who is taking lessons, I encourage you to sit in on lessons so you can help answer questions your child may have during daily practice.

If you are an adult beginner who wants to learn for yourself, I recommend the 40-minute lessons.

If you are an adult intermediate or advanced player, I can meet with you to determine if you would benefit from lessons with me.

In addition to the materials list (see the question about materials needed), here is the price list for lessons. (Note: lessons take place once per week)

• Private, 30-minute lessons: $60/month.

• Private, 40-minute lessons: $80/month.

• Group, 40-minute lessons (for ages 5-7 only): $50/month.

I’ll be honest— when I took lessons as a child, it was because my parents wanted me to and not because I wanted to. Therefore, I stopped after a couple years. However, as a teenager and adult, I had a renewed interest in learning instruments and was grateful for the foundation I had from those early lessons. It made getting back into it much easier.

It’s also important to realize that progress may seem slow in the beginning which may lead to frustration. This is because a lot of what is learned at first has to do with building a good foundation in reading musical notation and technique. It’s like learning basic footwork, doing drills, and learning rules before playing actual soccer games. These things may seem boring, but they are necessary for success.

I think you and your child should agree to commit to lessons for a certain amount of time (six months to a year) no matter what. Stick with it for that length of time even if interest wanes and then reassess once that time-frame is up.

As an adult who has committed myself to classical guitar as my primary instrument, I admit that my interest comes and goes, but this is a normal occurrence with any hobby and I try to just muscle through the times of lowered interest to keep progress going. Eventually interest does come back. Maybe it comes back on its own or maybe it takes some inspiration, like hearing new pieces or going to a live concert. Even watching performances online can trigger renewed interest.

You will be allowed two missed lessons per calendar year at a reduced monthly cost. For private 30-minute lessons, subtract $15 for the months in which you miss lessons. For private 40-minute lessons, subtract $20, and for group lessons, subtract $12.

After those two lessons, you will be required to pay the full monthly amount for your lesson plan. The cycle begins again the following January.

For example, you begin private, 30-minute lessons in March ($60/month). You miss a lesson in May, one in July, and one in September. The bill for May and July would be $45 but back to $60 for September. The cycle begins again in January of the next year.

There will be no lessons during the weeks of Thanksgiving and Christmas.

You will not be charged for lessons which I, the teacher, must skip due to vacation, illness, or emergency. I will let you know in advance about the weeks I know I will be unavailable.

For the time being, lessons and recitals will be held at 17152 State Hwy 13, Butternut.