About
LIMITED INTRODUCTORY DISCOUNT. Just In time for the Holidays! See below.
Music improves our lives and make us happier, more connected, and able to think more rationally and creatively. It activates almost all the brain's processing centers, plus the emotional centers in the amygdala and hippocampus, and more. It challenges us, makes us smarter, helps us better solve problems, and connects us to one another and to the world. Music helps us enjoy life more fully. It makes us better people.
I believe musicians and music students have a common goal: to play beautiful music beautifully, in whatever styles we attempt. From your very first lesson, I'll help you navigate the large body of Western music literature from many countries, eras, and styles, from Classical to Pop to Rock and (to a point) Jazz. You/your child will learn the best techniques and practices handed down to us by the great composers, pedagogues, and performers, past and present. My students learn not just technique, but also music theory, form, style, history, and ear training. That way they can play well in many different styles.
You should hire me because, whatever your musical goals, I tailor your or your child's lessons, assignments, and selection of music to each individual's learning style and strategies. I teach in the way each student learns best, from the youngest to the less-young students, ages 3 to 80+. (3-86yo students are within my experience so far.)
Plus, I love teaching. It is more rewarding than anything I've done or imagined doing. I always try to teach with patience, empathy, and joy, while teaching you how to practice effectively, make consistent and meaningful progress, and have fun doing it!
To do all that it takes the trained "ear" and individual expertise, evaluation, advice, and counseling of a sensitive and astute teacher. The presence of a trained "third ear" enhances and changes how we hear. This element can’t be acquired solely from online videos and randomly selected methods and books.
My experience and training have taught me that many approaches to teaching and learning can lead to the same results: excellence in playing, good musicianship, a solid knowledge of music theory, history, and literature, self-discipline, and experiencing joy. So, I don't push everyone into one favorite method. Instead, I develop individualized programs depending upon age, goals, experience, learning styles/strategies, strengths, and needs, using whatever method (of many) best fits and "speaks" to each student. I choose from several different method series and books and create tailored individual assignments and resources, as needed.
As my student, you or your child can trust me to:
1. Have a good “ear" and excellent musical sensibilities
2. Have a thorough knowledge of music history, theory, form, and style.
3. Evaluate your playing and guide your musical and technical development with clear and meaningful instructions.
4. Assure you make constant improvement without developing playing injuries.
5. Know the correct techniques for playing anything with ease and without tension.
6. Teach you how to practice effectively and efficiently.
7. Develop the right plan for progress and choose the right pieces and exercises to ensure you'll enjoy practice and become the best musician you can be at every step.
8. Teach you how to perform (if you desire to).
9. Keep up with and incorporate the latest brain science on music, learning, memory, performance, and more. And,
10. Present all the above constructively, with patience, humor, and joy.
[NOTE: I teach six (6) days a week from my home. I'm phasing out travel and no longer teach online. If you're contacting me from Las Vegas, Moriarty, Socorro, Los Lunas, Belen, Corrales, Rio Rancho, Bernalillo, Placitas, Los Ranchos, the West Side, Los Ranchos, The Communities, or elsewhere out of the Metroplex, be sure you consider travel time. I have students from these areas because having THE RIGHT teacher is always worth the travel.
I guarantee you will always get more than your money's worth. So please consider me as your teacher and I promise you won't be disappointed!
Through December 2024 I'm offering a 15% Discount off your first two months of lessons, if begun before January 1, 2025. This allows students to experience what taking lessons and my teaching are all about. At the end of two months, you can opt to buy blocks of lessons, but only twice. Then, lesson fees will revert to my ongoing rates. You'll be able to switch to a different lesson length, if desired. The student must agree to take the full two months of lessons and not miss any lessons, except perhaps in the rare case of a bona fide emergency or consequential and unavoidable conflict. Because I can always make up missed lessons (if only by tacking extra time onto subsequent lessons) you aren't credited if you cannot make up a missed lesson except for long-term emergencies or life changes. I will always makeup any lesson I miss.
RATES ARE ANNUALLY AVERAGED SO YOU PAY THE SAME AMOUNT EACH MONTH. You aren't charged for 5 holidays so 47-week averaging effectively lowers the stated rate 5%.
ONGOING RATES:
30min = $41.25 45min = $51.75 60min = $63.25
30 min = $169.67/mo ($39.15/lsn effective rate)
45 min = $218.15/mo ($50.34/lsn effective rate)
60 min = $266.62/mo ($61.53/lsn effective rate)
[Annually averaged, includes tax, billed monthly in advance of the next month & due before the 1st. Late fees attach after the 3rd.]
+++LIMITED INTRODUCTORY DISCOUNT RATE (-15%)+++
30 min = $144.21/mo ($33.29/lsn effective rate)
45 min = $185.43/mo ($42.79/lsn effective rate)
60 min = $226.88/mo ($52.36/lsn effective rate)
Must sign up before Jan. 1, 2025. Student must agree to take two full months of lessons and not miss any lessons (except for bona fide emergency or consequential and unavoidable conflict, but not for last minute choices, e.g. "I decided to go to the mountains today.") [Annually averaged, includes tax, billed monthly in advance of the next month & due before the 1st. Late fees attach after the 3rd.]
Or,
LIMITED LESSON BLOCK DISCOUNT (-17%)
(Available only after 2-mo. Introductory Discount and only 2 times)
6 lessons at ongoing rates for price of 5:
30min = $195.75 ($32.63/lsn effective rate)
45min = $251.70 ($41.95/lsn effective rate)
60min = $307.65 ($51.28/lsn effective rate)
[Annually averaged, includes tax, billed monthly in advance of the next month & due before the 1st. Late fees attach after the 3rd.]
BUDDY LESSONS (where two students overlap individual private lessons in the middle to create a mini-class for music theory, ear training, note reading, rhythm drills, and more, at a reduced rate):
30 min = $143/mo (children only) * 45 min = $183/mo * 60 min = $224/mo
NOTE: After my own extensive research, I find that my basic rates are the average rates in Albuquerque and this region for a Master's degreed teacher with over two decades of teaching experience, and three more decades of lessons and playing experience on two instruments, in various orchestras, cities, and states. I am not a concert artist. Concert artist/teachers charge on average $140/hour in Albuquerque. Lessons.com rates average only lessons.com teachers.
Thank you for your interest and trust in me to become your teacher. Please reply to my response so I can contact you and answer your questions or reply with a definite no if you aren't interested. I look forward to working with you!
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
2. If they've had lessons or been playing already, I ask for a demonstration and a list of things they've worked on and/or performed.
3. If they read music, I ask them to sightread something a few levels below their level of playing and reading.
4. I begin putting together an individualized plan the first week or weeks for scale, chord, inversion, cadence, and/or arpeggio assignments, in whole or in part based on skill level. I will provide starter copies until they can order music.
5. I explain/demonstrate/have them execute, then assign short daily technical exercises.
6. Then, I provide basic points on how to practice efficiently and effectively. I also cover how to plan and structure practice, and provide a general outline.
7. I sometimes assign certain video series or readings about posture, movement, and the body related to playing the instrument. I also discuss relaxation and injury prevention, calling attention to the usual tension points.
8. If there’s time, I discuss and provide information about how the brain remembers music, the actions necessary to make music on the instrument, and how to train the mind and body so that mindless repetition (usually fraught with errors) is eliminated, which simplifies learning and saves countless hours of practice time.
This process is shortened and modified for children.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
chose NAU specifically to study violin with the highly regarded pedagogue Dr. Louise Scott, a former student of Galamian, Gingold, and Miriam Fried. I also received extensive teacher training under Dr. Scott in the well-known Suzuki program at NAU.
I taught Suzuki violin private lessons and group classes in the Suzuki program, as well as at the University Preparatory School to students ages 3 to 50, and taught 4-5 taught traditional piano students at home.
I also served as music librarian for FSO and the NAU Orchestra.
As the Graduate Accompanist, I accompanied vocal, brass, and string students each semester, practiced with them, attended their weekly lessons, rehearsals, and master classes, and later performed in all their recitals.
I've studied violin privately for seven (7) years with my late sister Kim Brimberry, Newt Gilbeau, Kathie Jarrett, Norma Lewis Davidson, Joseph Kim, and Dr. Louise Scott.
I studied piano privately for 11 years with Irma Greve Kluck, Dr. George Robert, Dr. Gregory Allen, Dr. Steven Hall, Ronald Grinage, and Dr. Dave Scott.
In addition to school and college orchestras, I've played in various local and regional orchestras, including The Wire Choir in Odessa, Texas, Albuquerque Youth Symphony, Flagstaff Symphony Orchestra, Roswell Symphony Orchestra, and Lakeland Symphony Orchestra (Florida).
I've been fortunate enough to perform with orchestras in at least seven (7) states, at Disneyland, in magnificent concert halls in Vienna, Budapest, Prague, and at various venues in New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Florida, and Kansas. I've given several private solo recitals on piano, violin, or both. I also soloed and accompanied vocalists and other musicians in a Pops Concert series for 2 years and later served as the Church Pianist for First Presbyterian Church in Ruidoso.
Do you have a standard pricing system for your lessons? If so, please share the details here.
I bill monthly based on a 47-week year, averaged annually. This way, you pay the same amount each month and you don't pay for five [5] vacation weeks, whether you take those weeks off or not. You receive make-up credits for up to three (3) additional holiday absences. Additional absences are credited case-by-case.
You are BILLED IN ADVANCE of each month.
Payment is due before the 1st of each month or late fees apply.
These totals vary with local taxes:
How did you get started teaching?
Mom used an interdisciplinary Humanities approach, incorporating the arts, history, and the classics into her lessons, and I can't help but do the same in my teaching. She taught me that the arts and humanities are necessary to better understand our amazing world and that education is the foundation of reason, achievement, and life fulfillment. She is ever my inspiration.
What types of students have you worked with?
Some of my former students have gone on to study music in college and/or developed careers in music theater, as church musicians, in orchestras, and as professional studio musicians. Others have become living room aficionados who play for friends, family, and personal enjoyment.
Describe a recent event you are fond of.
Then there was this amazing audience member/conductor in a kilt: https://bit.ly/4at9FXF
What advice would you give a student looking to hire a teacher in your area of expertise?
"If you are not willing to learn, no one can help you. If you are determined to learn, no one can stop you." ~ Zig Zigler
Also, consider that not every "teacher" on YouTube is qualified or capable. Too many give terrible advice and instruction and demonstrate truly awful techniques that will impede and even harm you in the end. It can take ten times more time to "unlearn" a bad technique than learning it. There are some excellent online teachers and series, but there are still no quick shortcuts. Remember that they cannot HEAR you. That's pretty important.
Hire a well-trained teacher who inspires and motivates you to do your best, who effectively communicates concepts and demonstrates actions, and who cares about your artistic and personal development. They will take the time you need while keeping to a plan of progress and teach you the inner discipline it takes to consistently progress, pursue advanced studies if that's your desire, and continue playing without injury for a lifetime.
Whether you dedicate yourself to becoming a professional performer, a part-time amateur, or a living room player, you are committing to study for a period of years, so choose someone you think you can get along with once a week for at least a year -- or several years. Pick someone you can trust with your thoughts and insecurities, whom you like and respect, who will be honest with you and push you to do your very best. And choose someone with a good sense of humor! Learning and playing music brings great joy. Plus, we need to laugh as much as we can.
"When the student is ready, the teacher will appear. When the student is truly ready...the teacher will disappear." -- Tao Te Ching
What questions should students think through before talking to teachers about their needs?
What is the approximate length of your child's focused attention span?
What sparked their interest in music and the piano or violin?
What types of music do they already like/dislike?
What is their learning style?
Do they want to read books? Are they a good reader?
Will you have the time to help them through this journey, attend lessons, structure daily uninterrupted practice time, and assist them with practice if needed?
Can you expose them to live music occasionally, especially Classical music?
What music or pieces instantly grab and hold their attention?
Is your entire family willing to respect their need for quiet, uninterrupted practice?
When are they most alert and receptive, and can you schedule lessons and practice at those times?
Can you provide them with an instrument in good shape and maintain it with tunings or strings, repairs, and more?
Can they practice six days a week, uninterrupted?
For adult students, all of the above and:
How do you think you learn best? Why?
How would you describe your learning strategies?
For all students:
Which styles, periods of music, or composers do you like the most? e.g., 1930s popular music, Beethoven symphonies, 70s Rock, Bach and Baroque, Bebop, early 20th C. bluegrass, Romantic music, hip hop, film scores, etc.
What about that particular type of music do you like the most?
What/who are your specific favorite songs, instruments, pieces, composers, and performers? Why?
Which pieces/songs do you want to learn to play eventually?
Do you like to read books? Are you a good reader? An okay reader?
Do you like math, history, science, tech, film, art, bird watching, anthropology, or law?
What and who inspires you?
What will be most challenging or interfere the most with your practicing consistently?
What made you pick this instrument?
Do/did you like school? What is/was your favorite subject in school?
Who is/was your favorite teacher, and why?
Will you agree to practice every day? How will you ensure that you can do this daily, every week? Will you need help from family or friends?
What are your musical goals?
Who do you know who is also taking music lessons?
What are your life goals?
What motivates you?