Lessons in the Condon Music Studio

Frequently Asked Questions

In band class, students learn teamwork through ensemble playing and get exposed to different kinds of music. A band program's biggest asset is students taking lessons from highly qualified private teachers. When the individuals in the band can play at a high level with beautiful tone, intonation, and musicianship, the band music can also play to those standards. A band director has a huge job to teach 60+ students on 15+ instruments for a <1 hour period. It would be unfair to expect a band director to teach each student individually in such a large class on such a mix of instruments, with a large variety of idiosyncrasies per instrument and per student. Qualified private teachers are key!

In band class, students learn teamwork through ensemble playing and get exposed to different kinds of music. A band program's biggest asset is students taking lessons from highly qualified private teachers. When the individuals in the band can play at a high level with beautiful tone, intonation, and musicianship, the band music can also play to those standards. A band director has a huge job to teach 60+ students on 15+ instruments for a <1 hour period. It would be unfair to expect a band director to teach each student individually in such a large class on such a mix of instruments, with a large variety of idiosyncrasies per instrument and per student. Qualified private teachers are key!

Within one lesson, we need time to warm up, assess and correct assignments, and teach new skills. Thirty-minute lessons work well for beginners to build a base for learning. Once a student has a foundation, an intensive hour is needed to properly build upon those foundational skills to develop advanced musicianship!

In a one-hour lesson, I break it down so that students will have the best use of their lesson time. It takes about 15-20 minutes to warm up properly and learn to improve tone through tone studies. We then spend another 15-20 minutes working on scales and scales patterns (the foundation for all music, i.e. band and solo music) and technique studies. We then spend the remainder of the lesson on etudes, difficult parts of band music, and solo repertoire to learn musicality, interpretation, and theory of music. Within the lessons, I make a point to teach the students how to practice, not just play through, the music at home, how much time they should spend on each item, and what the goals are for each item. I believe that it is important as a teacher to teach the students practice techniques for home practice to ensure efficient progress and use of time.

Within one lesson, we need time to warm up, assess and correct assignments, and teach new skills. Thirty-minute lessons work well for beginners to build a base for learning. Once a student has a foundation, an intensive hour is needed to properly build upon those foundational skills to develop advanced musicianship!

In a one-hour lesson, I break it down so that students will have the best use of their lesson time. It takes about 15-20 minutes to warm up properly and learn to improve tone through tone studies. We then spend another 15-20 minutes working on scales and scales patterns (the foundation for all music, i.e. band and solo music) and technique studies. We then spend the remainder of the lesson on etudes, difficult parts of band music, and solo repertoire to learn musicality, interpretation, and theory of music. Within the lessons, I make a point to teach the students how to practice, not just play through, the music at home, how much time they should spend on each item, and what the goals are for each item. I believe that it is important as a teacher to teach the students practice techniques for home practice to ensure efficient progress and use of time.

Students that start taking lessons earlier develop good habits from the start and get past the frustrating beginning stages of playing more quickly. Students that start taking lessons later spend more time unlearning bad habits and relearning basics properly in order to make the gains they desire. Many of my best students have started as young as elementary school or first year of band.

Students that start taking lessons earlier develop good habits from the start and get past the frustrating beginning stages of playing more quickly. Students that start taking lessons later spend more time unlearning bad habits and relearning basics properly in order to make the gains they desire. Many of my best students have started as young as elementary school or first year of band.

A good book will tell you which buttons to press down and the rhythms will tell you when. However, a book doesn't give you feedback on tone, hand position, posture, breathing, musicality, phrasing, and everything that makes making music a form of human expression. A great teacher can quickly identify problems and instruct the students how to correct them. A great teacher is going to help a student move past the frustrating beginning stages of playing more quickly than a book, helping the learning process become more rewarding.

A good book will tell you which buttons to press down and the rhythms will tell you when. However, a book doesn't give you feedback on tone, hand position, posture, breathing, musicality, phrasing, and everything that makes making music a form of human expression. A great teacher can quickly identify problems and instruct the students how to correct them. A great teacher is going to help a student move past the frustrating beginning stages of playing more quickly than a book, helping the learning process become more rewarding.

You should learn what a great sound is through listening to recordings, but only a qualified and experienced private teacher can tell you exactly what to do with your mouth, lips, jaw, tongue, throat, posture, etc. to get you to make your best sound. Everyone has their own voice on an instrument and everyone's voice can be developed into something beautiful!

You should learn what a great sound is through listening to recordings, but only a qualified and experienced private teacher can tell you exactly what to do with your mouth, lips, jaw, tongue, throat, posture, etc. to get you to make your best sound. Everyone has their own voice on an instrument and everyone's voice can be developed into something beautiful!

It is important to find a teacher with an expertise in teaching that instrument and will challenge the student to be his/her best. An effective teacher will quickly identify problems and teach the student how to fix them. An effective teacher will insist upon the basics being learned first and teach the student to build upon them. An effective teacher will insist upon only the best from each student and will not allow mediocrity.

It is important to find a teacher with an expertise in teaching that instrument and will challenge the student to be his/her best. An effective teacher will quickly identify problems and teach the student how to fix them. An effective teacher will insist upon the basics being learned first and teach the student to build upon them. An effective teacher will insist upon only the best from each student and will not allow mediocrity.

In lessons, primary attention should always be given to the foundations such as posture, hand/finger position, breathing, tone, and scales so that they can be built upon with etudes and repertoire. Learning foundational skills will make all music you play much easier, from band music, to solo music, to audition music! This means you will be able to play more types of music!

In lessons, primary attention should always be given to the foundations such as posture, hand/finger position, breathing, tone, and scales so that they can be built upon with etudes and repertoire. Learning foundational skills will make all music you play much easier, from band music, to solo music, to audition music! This means you will be able to play more types of music!

For a teacher to be "good enough", please consider this — When a student takes math, english, science, we want them to have expert teachers that have been trained to teach in that area at a high level. Even if a student doesn't plan to become an engineer, writer, or scientist, we want the best trained teachers! But why? Because a great teacher is effective and efficient! That means that the students are able to improve quickly, minimizing frustration. A frustrated student that is not improving is frequently turned off of the subject due to lasting frustration. Conversely, a student that makes quick progress feels more enjoyment and satisfaction and is more likely to be encouraged by the progress to go farther. A cousin/sister/friend/uncle who has played the instrument at a high school level does not have the expertise to effectively and efficiently teach a student. Qualified professionals are key to successful band programs and musicians!

For a teacher to be "good enough", please consider this — When a student takes math, english, science, we want them to have expert teachers that have been trained to teach in that area at a high level. Even if a student doesn't plan to become an engineer, writer, or scientist, we want the best trained teachers! But why? Because a great teacher is effective and efficient! That means that the students are able to improve quickly, minimizing frustration. A frustrated student that is not improving is frequently turned off of the subject due to lasting frustration. Conversely, a student that makes quick progress feels more enjoyment and satisfaction and is more likely to be encouraged by the progress to go farther. A cousin/sister/friend/uncle who has played the instrument at a high school level does not have the expertise to effectively and efficiently teach a student. Qualified professionals are key to successful band programs and musicians!

If you have a curiosity for music, want to improve quickly, have a positive attitude and are willing to try new things, and are ready to commit to regular practicing (at least 5 days per week at 30 min/day for jr high or 1 hr/day for high school and above), please inquire about openings in the studio!
Contact Me

If you have a curiosity for music, want to improve quickly, have a positive attitude and are willing to try new things, and are ready to commit to regular practicing (at least 5 days per week at 30 min/day for jr high or 1 hr/day for high school and above), please inquire about openings in the studio!
Contact Me