LESSON POLICIES: All students/parents must read and sign the lesson agreement before beginning lessons.

Rates as of Sept 1st, 2010:

30 minute lesson: $120 per month for 4 lessons (comes to $30 per lesson).

45 minute lesson: $180 per month for 4 lessons (comes to $45 per lesson).

60 minute lesson: $240 per month for 4 lessons (comes to $60 per lesson).

Rates as of Jan 1st, 2011:

30 minute lesson: $128 per month for 4 lessons (comes to $32 per lesson).

45 minute lesson: $196 per month for 4 lessons (comes to $48 per lesson).

60 minute lesson: $256 per month for 4 lessons (comes to $64 per lesson).

Robbs Music Store has a lesson policy, which all teachers there enforce equally (robbsmusic.com). You pay for a space on the lesson schedule. This space costs either $120 or $150 a month, depending on weather there are 4 or 5 weeks in that month. PAYMENT FOR LESSONS IS NOT BASED ON ATTENDANCE. The last week of each month, I will ask you to pay for the next month to reserve your spot on the schedule. All lessons must be paid in advance. Any student that bounces a check will be demanded to pay cash for all future payments. I am unable to promise make up lessons to students that do not come at their appointed time, even if you contact me in advance. I WILL NO LONGER "RESCHEDULE" MISSED LESSONS. ALL MISSED LESSONS ARE FORFEITED! It's like a day care center or a gym - you pay for a month's membership, and you may come as many times as you please. I commit your lesson time each week for you only, and you must make the same commitment to me. If you call me and ask me to reschedule your lesson, I will not return your call. If you pay in full for the months of September, October, and November, and the first two weeks of December, I will allow you to make up ONE lesson missed during this time. This make up lesson may only be taken on a day and time that is convenient for me.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

1. WHAT KIND OF GUITAR SCHOULD I BUY MY CHILD? I recommend a three-quarters size nylon string guitar, for all students in elementary and middle school, and a full-size nylon string guitar for high school students and adults. Robbs has some JASMINE and FENDER models ranging from $100-$200. Please don't buy a guitar at Sears or Wal-Mart. They simply are toys, and will not stay in tune.

2. WHY NOT A STEEL-STRING GUITAR? WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE? Steel string and nylon string guitars are tuned and played exactly the same way, but nylon strings are easier to push down. This results in less soreness of the fingers. Steel strings tend to make the fingers tender. It's unfortunate that many beginners are discouraged during their first week at home due to tenderness of the fingertips caused by the steel strings. Nylon strings help to minimize this.

3. IS IT OK TO BUY MY CHILD AN ELECTRIC GUITAR, BUT WAIT TO BUY AND AMPLIFER? That's like buying a car, but not getting any gas. All students of electric guitar should play and practice through an amplifier. The amp is as much an instrument that has a tone as the guitar.I recommend that you allow your child to start on an acoustic guitar for the first year, and if they are still playing at the end of the first year, buy them an electric as a reward. I hesitate to start kids on an electric.

4. MY CHILD WANTS TO LEARN ELECTRIC GUITAR, BUT IS ONLY 5 YEARS OLD. IS THAT OK? Electric guitars are solid wood, and are heavy. To properly hold and play an electric guitar, the player must stand up and use a guitar strap. The strap must be adjusted so that the player strums the strings directly in front of the child's belly button. Most young kids complain that the guitar is too heavy, and then they immidiately sit down. This causes the guitar to go directly into their right armpit. If the child learns and practices this way, it will be a huge detriment to the progress of the student. The child will develop bad habits that will take years to untrain. It's best to have the child learn to play the correct way from the beginning, which means learning on acoustic until age 12, and only switching to electric when the child can properly hold the instrument.

5. I HAVE AN OLD FULL SIZE GUITAR. CAN I LET MY 8 YEAR OLD PLAY THAT? Having a student practice on an instrument that is oversized can lead to very bad habits that can't be unlearned easily. I recommend a half size instrument to any child ages 5-10, and a 3/4 size instrument to all students age 11-15.

6. DO I HAVE TO PRACTICE EVERY DAY? Yes. The only way to succeed is through daily practice and weekly lessons.

7. CAN I SIGN UP FOR LESSON ON AN "EVERY-OTHER-WEEK" BASIS? No. Again, you will not succeed at learning to master the guitar.

8. CAN I HAVE A FREE INTRODUCTORY LESSON? There are music instructors in the area who offer a free intro lesson, but before you attend that lesson, ask the teacher where they earned their Masters degree, if they can teach you to read music, if you are the teacher's only student, and how often the teacher actually performs in public. Will the lessons be in the teacher's basement? Has that teacher performed in Carnegie Hall? If all you are looking for is something for free, you should reconsider the committment level it takes to actually learn how to play the instrument. A teacher's job is to evaluate your practice habits at home. It is only during the second lesson that a teacher can evaluate what you've accomplished during your practice week, and tell you how to modify your practice habits. So it is really the SECOND LESSON that you use to evaluate your teacher.

9. IF I'M GOING TO MISS A LESSON, SHOULD I CALL YOU? It would be a courtesy for you to inform me if you're going to be absent, but remember lesson rates are not based on attendance. Feel free to text or email me as well.

10. WILL YOU COME TO MY HOME TO TEACH? Yes. The rate is $256 per month, which comes to $60 per lesson. I teach home lessons on a FULL HOUR basis only, no half-hours. You must pay for every week, regardless of cancellations.

11. I WANT TO QUIT LESSONS. WILL YOU MAIL ME A REFUND CHECK? No. If I've committed a time to you and blocked other students from taking that time, I take that committment seriously. You should too.