About the Piano Instructor ~ Jennifer Scott ~

Jennifer Scott currently teaches private piano lessons in her home in the West End of Richmond, Virginia. She received a Bachelor of Music degree (piano and music industry concentration) from James Madison University in 1998. Jennifer is a former first place winner of the Katharine Benchoff Performance Award (Shenandoah Valley Music Festival – 1994). Between 2002 and 2006, she served as accompanist for the Third Presbyterian Church Children’s Choir. Having fourteen years of classical training and three years of jazz study, Scott continues to maintain a repertoire for solo performance.

Currently, Jennifer's professional music affiliations are as follows:

• MTNA - Music Teachers National Association
• RMTA - Richmond Music Teachers Association
• ~~~~ 1st Vice President - Programs
• ~~~~ Chairman, Central District Auditions
• RMSC - Richmond Music Study Club

PIANO LESSONS

· Piano Lessons are broken into three (3) semesters: Fall (Sept to mid-December), Spring (Jan to mid-June), and Summer (mid-June to August)

· Individual piano lessons will be held on a weekly basis for one-half hour, forty-five minutes, or one hour (as decided upon by instructor and parent / student). The one-hour lesson is provided only if teacher schedule permits.

· Students should arrive on time and be prepared with all music materials.

· Lessons consist of a balance between piano performance, sight reading, theory training, and student achievements.

· Repertoire will be selected that is appropriate to the student’s level of proficiency.

· Parents are encouraged to drop the students off on time and pick them up promptly after the lesson. Parents are also welcome to observe lessons so they may assist with piano practice at home.

LESSON PREPARATION

· Students are expected to have prepared their lessons each week. Daily practice is encouraged to make lesson time more beneficial to the student.

· Recommended daily lesson practice is 20-30 minutes per day. This practice schedule should increase as the student’s level of musical ability increases.

· Parents are encouraged to participate in a student’s practice schedule by listening and motivating the student.

PIANO COMMITMENT

· Piano Time Slot: Once you have signed up for piano lessons at a certain time slot during the fall and spring semester, you keep that time slot for both semesters of that particular year. For summer schedule, see Summer Lessons within studio policy.

· Piano Commitment: Once a student has reserved a time for piano lessons, it is requested that they stay with that commitment for the full semester. If a student decides to stop piano lessons at the end of a semester, a 30-day notice must be given to instructor.

ATTENDANCE

· Attendance is expected at all scheduled lessons. If for some reason a student cannot attend, parents must call instructor at least 24 hours in advance.

· There will be no makeup lessons if a student misses a lesson. Tuition has been adjusted accordingly to include missed lessons during the year.

· Only in extraordinary circumstances and upon advance notice will a makeup lesson be considered (for example: religious holiday, family death). Makeup lessons will not be considered for school/personal or extra-curricular activities.

· Only lessons missed due to snow will be rescheduled at instructor’s earliest convenience.

· Teacher/Family Sick Day: Teacher reserves the right to one sick day per semester (one in Fall semester and one in Spring semester). In this case of sickness, no makeup lesson will be given.

· The Piano Studio is open during teacher workdays at school.

· The Piano Studio is closed during the following times:

o December Holiday: Approximately the last 2 weeks in December

o Henrico County Public School Spring Break Week

o Other Holidays: July 4^th, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Week (Tues-Thurs lessons), Christmas / New Years Holiday, Memorial Day

TUITION

· A one-time registration fee is required when a student first signs up for lessons.

· Monthly tuition is due in advance on the first lesson of each month.

· Tuition is divided into equal monthly installments based on the number of lesson weeks provided across fall and spring semester. (See Summer Lessons in next section).

· Tuition is already pre-adjusted to account for student absence, such as sickness, during the year. No other adjustment to tuition is allowed.

· A tuition bill will be provided to each student once a month and will include the next month’s tuition and any music purchased for the student.

· If a student is sick or misses the first lesson of the month, the tuition is still due the first week of the month. Therefore, the tuition check should either be dropped off or mailed to instructor’s home.

· A $10.00 late fee will be assessed if tuition is not received by due date (first lesson of each month).

SUMMER LESSONS

· Summer lessons are provided during the months of mid-June through August.

· Summer lessons are encouraged to help with the continued learning process with piano. It makes for a smooth transition back into fall lessons.

· For your convenience during the summer months, I allow parents and students to select a program for piano lessons:

o 4 Week Summer Lesson Program (4 lessons within the summer)

o 6 Week Summer Lesson Program (6 lessons within the summer)

o 8 Week Summer Lesson Program (8 lessons within the summer). This program allows for 2-3 weeks of no piano during summer.

· Once you select your summer program, instructor will work with each student on the days and time for lessons, trying to be flexible to vacations and time away for summer break.

· For the 4 and 6 Week Summer Lesson Program, tuition must be made in full at the first week in July.

· For the 8 Week Summer Lessons Program, tuition will be split into 2 equal installments (payable at the first week in July and first week in August of current year).

· Any lessons missed as part of a student’s summer program will not be carried over into the next semester.

GROUP LESSONS

· Group lessons will be provided twice a year (once in the fall term and once in the spring term)

· Group lessons are a free service offered to all piano students and will usually be held on either a Saturday or Sunday.

· Group lessons give students the opportunity to play in front of other students and to improve their performance skills.

· The experience allows each student to express their “best practice” in piano performance, sight reading, theory training, and it will help to increase their confidence and self-esteem.

RECITALS

· A Studio Recital will be held once a year, at the end of the Spring Semester. All students are expected to participate.

· Friends and family are welcome to attend. Small children are welcome, but with parental supervision.

· Cameras and video equipment may be utilized.

· Families should arrive at least 15 minutes before recital begins.

· Church dress is expected at recitals. This means dress slacks/shirt for boys; nice dress or dress slacks and shirt for girls.

PERFORMANCE EVENTS

· Instructor may plan an additional performance event for the students during the calendar year.

· An example of this type of performance event is playing at a sponsored student recital or a special evaluation event.

ADDITIONAL SERVICES

These additional services will be provided to students:

· Free one-hour introductory meeting for new students and parents. This meeting allows the instructor to provide an overview of the studio policies and procedures and hear the student perform on the piano.

· Lesson preparation will be made by instructor that targets the specific needs of each individual student (classical performance, jazz studies, theory, sight reading).

· Group lessons are a free service offered to all students.

· Special audio recordings of student music may be provided in lessons. All audio recordings are saved so students can listen and evaluate their progress in their music.

· Free accessibility to a piano magazine ~ “Clavier”. Students may check out this magazine for one week.

· A repertoire sheet will be provided yearly to each individual student.

Teaching Philosophy

Teaching Philosophy

For all parents and students interested in music and playing the piano ~

Ever since I was a young child, I have loved listening to music and playing the piano ~ everything from Disney tunes, rock music, jazz and blues, and especially the “classics” ~ from Beethoven and Chopin to Gershwin and Liszt. It has been the source of my strength and something that always brings such joy to my heart! Just knowing how playing the piano brings so much happiness into my life, it has become my dream to share this happiness in my teaching with all my students. Thus, I opened my piano studio and started teaching children and adults.

The one thing about me is that I’ll always have a smile on my face when I teach and love to share the joy of playing the piano with others. I love to motivate students and help them to enjoy the music that they play. I recognize that every student is different ~ some want to learn classical music and perform in competitions or festivals while others just want to be able to play the piano for fun and enjoyment for their families. Because everyone has their own needs and desires, I really work to cater towards each individual student and help them achieve their goals and dreams in music.

It makes me so happy to know how so many of my students look forward to their lessons. I work diligently each day to prepare and plan out all of my lessons. The lessons are a blend of piano performance, theory, ear training, sight reading, and “flashcard fun”. I also try to incorporate some additional knowledge about the composers and different styles / periods of music. I always try to make the lessons very pleasant, and I work hard to teach them all the skills they need to successfully read music and perform on the piano.

My ultimate teaching goal is to enable my students to find their own, unique strength in music and help them develop and enhance their natural abilities! I want each of my students to just learn to love the music that they create and to feel proud of their accomplishments! I am proud of all of them!

~ Jennifer Scott ~