About
Family Piano serves over 400 piano students in the Raleigh area in two studio locations and several after school programs. Our friendly, professional staff of about 20 instructors is well versed in classical, jazz, pop, Latin, theory, and composition. We offer a free trial lesson with no strings attached, and our students are never obligated beyond a month at a time. We have lots of low preussure performance opportunities for students who would like to take advantage of them. And, Family Piano Academy has an incredible online resource that we provide to all of our students with literally thousands of helpful videos and self-checking tests. We look forward to meeting you and helping you on your musical journey!
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
We try to determine how each student learns best (by reading, by viewing, by listening, etc..). Then we try to determine a student's musical interests so that we can tailor our curriculum to help them be prepared to succeed in the musical pursuits dearest to their hearts.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
Several of us have advanced degrees in performance, composition, pedagogy, and education. All of us have several years of experience in music education. Our staff bio page at FamilyPianoAcademy.com lists each of our unique qualifications.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
Yes. Our standard rate is $138 monthly. This is based on a once-weekly, 30-minute private lesson. We also offer different lesson lengths and duet lessons.
How did you get started teaching?
Most of our staff trained to be educators in college, but some of us came to it by happenstance and fell in love with it.
What types of students have you worked with?
Truly all ages and skill levels. At this point, our staff has several hundred combined years of piano teaching experience, so we truly have seen it all :). But, having said that, we cherish each new student and know that they will be different than anyone else we have ever worked with.
Describe a recent event you are fond of.
Recently, a really gifted, but super shy student of ours played in his first public performance. He played extraordinarily well. However, the best thing that happened was that he made a noticeable mistake early in the piece he was performing, and kept right on going. The part of this I'm fond of is that at the end of the performance, he remembered all the good stuff and didn't dwell on that one error. Too often students only remember the mistakes and forget all the positives. I knew his teacher had done a terrific job preparing him for the performance when I saw how he handled the error and the rest of the performance.
What advice would you give a student looking to hire a teacher in your area of expertise?
Ask to take a trial lesson. Don't commit to anything until you've had a chance to see how well you connect with the teacher.
What questions should students think through before talking to teachers about their needs?
Be able to state your musical goals, your musical tastes, and any prior experience you have.