Professional musician and
piano teacher Andrew Ridgwick offers private
piano tuition at his home music studio in
Whitley Bay.
For well over
15 years, Andrew Ridgwick has taught students from various demographic backgrounds, covering all ages and abilities.
Driven by
enthusiasm and an inherit
friendly,
patient and
encouraging nature, all piano lessons are individually tailored to suit the student. As well as study,
fun and
inspiration play a key factor in the lessons, keeping the student
interested and
inspired, even when the going gets tough!
Anyone can learn to play the
piano, from young
children through to
grandparents wanting to take up a new interest during retirement. Children can start from the age of
six generally, although some gifted children can begin from the age of
four.
There are no prerequisites for learning to
play the
piano, only a desire to embrace one of the most
rewarding challenges you will ever decide to undertake.
Lessons are held
weekly on a chosen weekday, with a duration of either half or a full hour. A
learning program will be put together for you, which will be gradually worked through week by week at your own pace. Homework will be set which will require daily
practise ideally.
This may start at 15 minutes per
day, rising as your standard progresses.
For children, it is important that parents encourage
regular practise, spending time
listening to their hard work and ensuring that adequate time is set aside during the day for practise to take place. An unorganised and rushed
rehearsal schedule is a slippery slope which ultimately leads to slower progress, boredom and the
piano simply becoming a chore.
Andrew Ridgwick has invested in an
online music tuition system whereby lesson notes, progress charts and audio examples can be posted and reviewed by teacher, pupil and parents alike.
Students are given their own login details which enables them to access their own records on the
internet.
From here, students can review
lesson notes and also hear
audio examples of their study pieces. Andrew Ridgwick will
perform the piece the student is studying and post it as an example
audio file. The student can then
listen to this on the
internet, or download it for use on an
MP3 player. In certain lessons, the student's
performance will also be
recorded and posted to the site. This builds an invaluable
history of the student's progress, which can be
heard at anytime, now and in years to come!
This also gives parents time to ascertain as to whether their child will commit to piano lessons, without the expense of buying a piano. Following this period and for all adults, a piano will need to be purchased, in order to develop a good pianistic technique.
into a well rounded and competent pianist.
universally accepted.
The performance will also be recorded on CD for them to treasure for ever! This is an ideal 'first step' for many students who are thinking about learning to play the piano, but are maybe apprehensive about taking the initial plunge.