Simpedia

Robin Keehn, Washington

It sounds like you are facing some challenges with each of these students.

My belief is that at the heart of these issues is the question you have to ask your students, “Do you trust me to be your coach? Are you willing to trust me with learning a new way of learning? If you are, and I can depend on you to follow my instructions completely, then I can teach you to play the piano with expression, to have a huge repertoire, to be able to figure things out for yourself (self generate) and to leave every lesson feeling affirmed. If you are not willing to trust me and trust the method, that is no problem, but I need to know that now. We just will not be able to continue this relationship because I have students waiting who WILL trust me and who WILL follow my instructions.”

Okay, so that may be a little too much for you to say…I know that you are a new teacher and you probably want to grow your studio. First, you don’t have the long-term experience that makes you feel confident about everything you just said and second, you might not have students lining up for lessons yet.

Personally, this has been “my year” for coming to terms with the fact that I really don’t want every student. I don’t want students who don’t trust me and push me into corners. I would rather not deal with adult students who have vast experience and choose not to follow my instructions. I have one new adult student right now who lied about her experience and after her very first lesson watched all of the videos and learned the Level 1 songs. I don’t want to work with her. Already she has claimed territory and showed me that she is going to call the shots. If I keep her as a student I will spend the rest of our time together REACTING to her and not teaching her. She will always keep me off balance by doing things I asked her not to do and by not doing things that I expect her to do.

So, Leslie, I don’t have an answer for you exactly. You will have to decide what you are willing to accept as a new teacher. Each of these students is claiming territory from you. The new one who says she doesn’t want to deal with the videos, the one who didn’t share the truth with you about the amount of experience and isn’t happy with the current level of pieces, and the guy who brought in his own music–they are telling YOU how their lessons should go.

There is so much to learn as a new teacher. Simply Music is so much more than teaching piano but the personal and professional rewards are amazing. You just have to decide what kind of studio you want to have and what kind of students you want to have. It has taken me over 6 years but I finally know that I only want the students who want to learn and will trust me as their coach. I would take 5 of those coachable students over 50 of the others!

Terah W., Kansas

I am fairly new to SM, too, but as I have been talking to previous students who have all transitioned to SM for some time about the changeover, I thought I would share a couple of thoughts.

One effective conversation–especially with the students who were also starting to read fairly well when we made the switch was that one comes into a room that has more than one door from many different directions or entrances, depending on the door, and still ends up in the same room.

Another one is that if you are baking a cake, all the ingredients end up in the cake even if you change up the order you put them in. SM is simply a better entrance into the room we call music. The analogy can be expounded upon in that you have chosen the method represented by the door marked “Simply Music” because you believe it to be superior. (And we all agree:)

Ultimately, of course, it is their decision to come or go if you choose to adhere to this Better method, but I am pretty sure as with multiplication tables, it takes much repeating of ongoing info about SM until they have given it enough time to produce results. “Out of the box” thinking is hard on practically everyone at some point (tho the exit SM creates from traditional is ‘way past due!!!) but sometimes realization comes with repetition. I mean, how many times do you listen to training materials before you think you have all the info down?

There are probably other issues to consider here as well, but I will leave that as my offering and look forward to seeing other responses on the Forums by other teachers. I hope this helps.

Kevin M., California

Hi Leslie,

Firstly, whenever I do an FIS I am always asking the questions Who’s had lessons before? Who is still playing? Is there anyone here who is a teacher? Whether I’m doing an FIS in a group or one-on-one setting.

In the Foundation and relationship conversations we establish the basic agreements of following the program. These conversations done on the very first lessons will not only allow you to get the information you need on your students abilities, you’ll also be able to address any concerns and or questions as well as get the agreements on following the program. Then if the student pulls you aside later and asks the questions you’ve outlined you’ll be able to review the conversations and agreements you have in place as well as address any concerns your students are bringing up. This way you won’t surprised later and your students will feel comfortable there is a plan in place.

Of course having said that, there are times students will bring up concerns. I have a few suggestions for these current questions. The first student may need some coaching on watching the videos the day of the lesson. Often times in a group lesson if I have a student who is complaining about the videos not working for them I’ll bring them up to the piano and the rest of the class will come up as well to observe. I’ll pull up the video and lets say she said she watched the video but it didn’t help with Dreams come true. I find in observing the student watching the video usually the student is not pausing enough, or following each step till it’s really learned, putting the patterns into their fingers , etc. This does not take as much time as you might think and almost always many others in the class get a benefit and learn they can also watch the video more efficiently. The complaining student can no longer use the video as an excuse.

Also I’d be bringing up practice time and practice scheduling (review of conversations from lesson 1) and get another agreement to follow through with this schedule. Also this might be a great time to review the request verse requirement studio conversation on the Simply Music website.

As for the student who can read Fur Elise, why did she want to take lessons from you in the first place? It usually has to do with either her having gaps in her playing, memorizing, etc.. Or she misunderstood how the Simply Music method was going to help her reach her goals in playing the piano. If you feel you were solid on your FIS, Foundation, and relationship conversations, but there was still a question in the student’s mind, you could ask her why she decided to enroll with you as well as what her expectations were. Can she play Fur Elise without the page? Arrangements and variations can help with students wanting to work at a higher level, or students with prior experience.

I hope this helps to avoid these issues in the future with the earlier conversations, and hopefully I’ve given you some information to help get things moving in the right direction.

Sheri R., California

You got me thinking, Terah and I hope you take this in the spirit intended. I like this analogy a lot except for one thing. The room called “music” for many, including me, after years of traditional lessons, looks very different from the room called “music” after some years immersed in Simply Music. So different doors leading to different rooms. I wonder if we can come up with an even better analogy that we can use when needed to explain this concept in a concise way. Because the room I used to occupy was a bare bones room that I didn’t really want to spend a lot of time in while the room I now occupy is decorated to the hilt and on top of that it keeps changing with the seasons and is full of choices of what to do and where to go! So I think the different ways of getting to that room called “music” really lead to an entirely different kind of room.

Maybe we can use the doors of that old tv show called “Let’s Make a Deal.” All the doors are marked “music room” but only one has the potential to transform that room to include all the goodies on the other side.

Bottom line is that not only is SM a better entrance into the room, it’s a room with a view at a fine resort on an island that is just full of adventure and possibilities–that’s the room we teachers get to luxuriate in and get to bring our students along on the trip!

You are so right about ongoing conversations being important in educating people, which can and do change people’s minds sometimes. And also, not everyone is going to pick the right door even with that and so we just move on to the next person. I always feel bad that I can’t look into a crystal ball with them to show them themselves after a year or two of SM but such is life.

Robin T., Tennessee

One thing that was mentioned at some point at the SYMPOSIUM in California (I think Ray Nelson said it) is that when people come in and say they have experience, you say, “Great! Can you play for me an Esus chord? Can you play for me something of your own composition? Can you read a lead sheet (or accompaniment materials)? Can you play a piece for me and then improvise on that same piece?” This is all “stuff” that is usually left out or overlooked in “traditional” piano lessons. The focus is on READING… so, why shouldn’t they be able to read that? They got what they paid for… but obviously if they are there with you, then they are wanting more or felt like something was missing. Right?

I started playing at the age of 4 (which really is way too young, but my parents insisted). And, I went to a very well known music college thinking I was hot stuff because I could PLAY all of these pieces that were “difficult” or what I was told “MADE ME” a great pianist. In traditional piano, the focus is on the difficulty of the pieces that you can play. And, you know what… I COULD DO IT, so I was REALLY GOOD! I thought….

When I got to college, I was surrounded by all of these AMAZING MUSICIANS. And, I call them musicians because to me the term MUSICIAN changed. I felt like I could PLAY the piano, but they were true musicians because they created their own music, played by ear (or could just sit down with one another and join in with a band), or improvise on what others were playing. It was amazing to me, and if I didn’t have my duffle bag of “difficult” classical music, then I could’t play a note! Additionally, I FAILED my first theory class. I had no idea about the THEORY behind music… but I could site read ANYTHING!

All this to say, you just need to sit down with each of them and ask them what they want… what are they looking for. Do they want more… do they want to be Players or Musicians? I think there is a BIG difference! I have learned more from this program than I did from years of traditional lessons, even at the college level. I can now read lead sheets, transpose, play or accompany others, I know my chords (all of them), I understand JAZZ basics and can play JAZZ (which  was not allowed in my home… that was a bad word!), I am composing my own music and am IMPROVISING on all those difficult classical pieces (my piano teacher said if the composer was dead, you can’t change it…. oh well, one more rule that I’ve broken)!  All of this is from SIMPLY MUSIC. And, that is what you have to offer them… their own MUSICIANSHIP that is theirs and theirs alone!