Music Studio
Music, cultural expression, and the arts have been a passion throughout my whole life. I have been teaching private music lessons including piano and percussion instruction for 25+ years. My experience includes working with young children to adults in private and group instruction settings. Previous education includes a Bachelor of Music Performance, a Master’s in Teaching English as a Second Language and a Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology. I have performance experience with the St. Cloud Symphony, the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony, the Mid-American Wind Ensemble and various free-lance projects from playing with rock bands to entertaining at private parties and weddings.
My philosophy for teaching focuses on building strong relationships, emphasizing the whole child’s individual abilities to learn, appreciate, and co-create music. We learn to develop healthy technique, foundational to advanced theory, note reading, rhythmic competency, and musical expression. In my studio, we not only learn how to play instruments to the best of our abilities, we also develop important life skills such as self-expression, creativity, and perseverance. My hope for students in my studio is that through music, they are inspired to become life-long music lovers, curious creators, kind in their endeavors, to make the world a better place.
In my free time, in addition to musical activities, I enjoy traveling, baking, crafts, language learning, foreign film, and walks. As a cis female, person of color, anti-racism and LGBTQ+ allyship work are a daily practice that I strongly value for the liberation of all. I live in St. Paul with my partner, Craig, and three cats.
Lessons are available in-person or online via a mutually agreed upon chosen platform: Zoom, Facetime, Google Meet, Skype, or other agreed upon platform. Piano/percussion lessons will be given by the instructor in students’ homes. A parent/guardian must be home at the time of the lesson. To create the best learning environment, a quieter space, free of interruptions is ideal. I recognize this is not always possible, but if you could please let siblings/friends who might be over know that piano lessons are occurring, it would be much appreciated. This helps students be most available to learn. Also, please allow some leeway of approximately 15 minutes/early or late of the schedule lesson time to allow for varying driving conditions.
***Covid-19: As I am high-risk for severe Covid-19 outcomes, well-fitting, high-quality masks (N95, KN95, KF94) covering mouth and nose are required for students and any family members when in the same room. If you don’t have access to one, I can provide you with one. If we have another big Covid-19 surge, lessons will be moved online. If your student or anyone in your household has Covid-19 symptoms, has tested positive, or has been exposed, please email or text me asap. We will either move the lesson online, cancel, or reschedule depending on the situation.***
Payment for the month of lessons is due at the first lesson of each month. A $10 late fee will be added to lesson payments made 1 week past the first of each month. PayPal, Venmo, cash and checks are accepted. I’m searchable on PayPal and Venmo via my email address which is hanson.becky@gmail.com.
Checks can be made out to Becky Hanson. Rates are determined annually and can be discussed prior to starting lessons. Current rates are $40/half hour lesson, $55/45-minute lesson, $75 for an hour lesson.
Regular attendance for lessons is expected to support students’ growth as pianists. As a general policy, there will be no make-ups. If I arrive for a scheduled lesson and you are not home (or don’t answer for online lessons), there is no refund. If you need to cancel, please let me know as soon as possible for scheduling purposes; rescheduling is not guaranteed but is a possibility. Students who are not home during a scheduled lesson time will not be refunded or credited to the next month. However, if you let me know at least by the beginning of the month that a lesson needs to be missed, I will not charge for that lesson. I will honor this once per semester (September-December is fall semester and January-May is spring semester). If you have an unexpected major emergency, once a calendar school year, lessons can be rescheduled.
If I miss a lesson, I will reschedule or credit for the next month. If I have an unexpected major emergency, I ask for the option to not reschedule, once a calendar school year.
Summer lessons are more flexible and scheduled as mutually available dates between families and myself allow.
Lesson discontinuation
A one month written notice at the beginning of the month is expected for student discontinuation of lessons. Remaining lessons will not be refunded.
Instrument care
A keyboard instrument, be it a piano or a keyboard is needed for practice and lessons. A fully-weighted, 88-key piano/digital piano with pedals is ideal, but I am flexible about this as we are all at varying stages with our equipment. If you do have a piano, I recommend getting it tuned annually. If you need the name of a tuner, I can give you a reference.
Materials
Please have piano books, a pencil, and your piano notebook available and ready for lessons. Parents are asked to order piano books online or pick them up at a music store such as Groth Music, Schmitt Music, Music Go Round in Highland Park, or any music store convenient to you. If you want to order music online and have them shipped to your house, I can email you links with this information from Amazon.com or the particular piano sheet music publisher with the books/sheet music you need.
In person music store websites:
Groth music- http://www.grothmusic.com Schmitt music- http://www.schmittmusic.com/ Music Go Round-http://www.musicgoround.com/
Practice suggestions
Regular practice between lessons is strongly suggested to best foster growth and improvement. Practice amounts and strategies vary from person to person. Please talk to me if you have questions.
Recitals
Spring recitals will be offered each year and encouraged for those who are interested. More performing opportunities may be available at other times during the year and will be shared as they come up.
Summer lessons
Summer lessons are available and scheduling possibilities will be announced later in the spring.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask. Many thanks for the opportunity to share music with you!