Preferred student age ranges are unique to each teacher but we generally teach private lessons to all ages 5 and up. We have group class opportunities for very young children.

Yes, we take adult students. Preferred student age ranges are unique to each teacher but we generally teach all ages 5 and up.

Each prospective Membership Program student is entitled to one free Trial Lesson. If you want additional Trial Lessons they must be purchased individually as Lesson Singles.

Your trial lesson is your opportunity to meet the teacher and ask any questions you may have. You’ll get a feel for the teacher’s teaching style and you can see if it’s a good fit. Your teacher will make suggestions about acquiring an instrument if you don’t already have one and they may ask you to purchase books for your future lessons.

If you already have some experience playing your instrument, please bring any books or pieces you have previously worked on. If you have an instrument you may bring it. (However, please don’t try to bring a keyboard… We have pianos in every room!) If you don’t have an instrument yet, that’s okay. We have a number of instruments that are available for use during Trial Lessons.

The Student Portal is an extremely useful tool that helps us stay organized.

In the student portal you can:

-View your upcoming lessons

-View any upcoming recital assignments

-You can self-cancel and rebook private lessons

-Update your student information

-See your upcoming and past invoices

-View and update your payment method

-Leave comments for your teacher (but please, no lesson scheduling through teachers- you may either self-book through the portal or call/text us at (864) 844-8120)

Our Membership Program tuition is a flat monthly fee. There are three, four, or five lessons depending on the month. Our year-long calendar allows for 36 lessons per school year, even with holiday closures. See our Calendar for all holiday closures.

The best way to cancel a lesson is through the student portal which you can access here. Lessons canceled with 24 hours notice will receive a makeup credit that you can self-book with any of our teachers within 30 days. If you need help you can always call or text us.

Yes, our sibling discount is 10% and it can be used for Membership Program enrollments. It is automatically applied to sibling accounts which you can view in the Student Portal. You may also request a sibling discount for a single student enrolled in more than one Membership Program.

You can see all our holiday closures by viewing our Calendar or logging into the Student Portal.

If there is only one teacher in the lesson area then a parent must stay during the lesson. Parents can wait in the lesson room or in the designated waiting area. If there are multiple teachers in the lesson area then a parent may step outside and come back in when the lesson is over. Teachers are NOT responsible for children outside the assigned lesson time. Teachers may request that parents stay in the lesson area at all times.

We do not supply at-home instruments or books. Your teacher will recommend books for you to purchase. You may view our SOC Local Picks page for information about local instrument dealers.

Your teacher is going to be the best person to answer this question. However, here are some general guidelines.

Generally, for all ages:

-It is better to practice a little bit every day throughout the week, rather than a lot one day.

-Our student recitals are designed to be welcoming to everyone and one of the biggest reasons they are important is because they provide a goal to work toward.

-Listening to excellent music recordings is very important. The more quality musical exposure the student has, the better. The genre doesn’t necessarily matter. Bonus points if you can see great musicians live in concert. There are many regional opportunities for this, and many offer discounted student tickets.

-Sing and dance at home in your kitchen like no-one is watching. Be silly and train yourself that it’s okay to make different sounds and movements. Uninhibited freedom of expression is one of the most useful tools in the learning of any art form.

Young child beginner: sessions of about 10 minutes

The very young child won’t need a long practice session. But they will need guidance from their parent/guardian. Please do not expect very young children to practice correctly on their own at home. It’s helpful to establish a regular routine for practicing, at the same time and in the same place every day. Make practicing like brushing your teeth and give them reasons why we do it: it’s good for our brain, it helps us with math in school, we can make friends when we play with others, etc. Allow your child to name their instrument and teach them to treat it with care. It’s their new friend!

Older child beginner: about 30 minutes

Older children can usually be trusted to practice on their own at home but it’s very subjective to the individual. Even with older children it’s STILL up to the parent/guardian to establish a practice routine from the beginning because the initial excitement and motivation may wear off! This is for kids all the way up through high school! Here is where PracticeSpaceApp can be really useful because it’s designed to be easily accessed by kids and to motivate them to practice. It relays lesson notes written specifically for them by their teacher and they can check off the tasks as the are completed.

Adult beginner: between 30-60 minutes

One of the biggest considerations with adult students is the prevention of injuries. Yes, you can get injured playing a musical instrument. That is why private lessons are so important. They allow you an opportunity to play for a professional who can adjust your posture and technique in real time. Thoughtful practice is the most effective. A practice session should never consist of simply running through songs but rather isolating trouble areas. Your teacher is there to help you deconstruct and then reconstruct your pieces, and will provide you with practice techniques accordingly.

We highly encourage participation in all our recitals and other events. Participation encourages students to practice, which increases their long-term musical enjoyment. We assume that every student enrolled in our Membership Program is participating in all recitals and events, unless requested otherwise. You can find all information concerning recitals and events here.

You can view your time slot by logging into the student portal.

You can easily cancel your Membership at any time by filling out the Membership Cancellation Form. We kindly ask that you submit your cancellation request before the 15th of the month to avoid charges for the following month.

If you are unsatisfied with your experience in any way please call Caitlin at (864) 844-8120 (ext. 0). Any comments or complaints given will remain confidential. All situations will be handled on a case-by-case basis.

Lesson Singles are now available for purchase. You can purchase those here. Please note that only students enrolled in our Membership Program are eligible for recital participation.

It is helpful to record your lesson. This is easy to do with a smart phone voice memo app. Please just let your teacher know that you plan to record before doing so.

It’s also helpful to come in with a piece you are already familiar with/working on and specific questions about technique as it applies that that piece. The purpose of Lesson Singles is to help students polish something they are ALREADY doing. Not necessarily to learn from scratch.