PIANO LESSONS IN HECKMONDWIKE
AN INTUITIVE LEARNING EXPERIENCE
FOR BOTH CHILDREN & ADULTS
OVERVIEW
PIANO LESSONS THAT OFFER . . .
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A solid foundation of the basics and beyond for those who want to learn from scratch
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Support, guidance & inspiration for those who already play and want to develop further
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Structured practice sessions for productive learning
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An open, creative and exploratory approach to encourage a lifelong love of playing the piano
MORE DETAILS BELOW. . .
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DARREN THORNTON
Piano Teacher
MAKING IT ABOUT YOU
My teaching style is different for every individual. Each pupil has a different personality, different interests, and a different way of learning. As a tutor, I aim to cater for this to provide the most engaging learning experience for the pupil.
I feel that it is important to allow my pupils the freedom to progress naturally, at their own pace, and to follow their own interests. As a private tutor, I am not bound by a syllabus or school league tables, which makes the explorative aspect of music making much broader, richer, and more rewarding in the long term!
TEACHING MATERIAL
For children and adult beginners, I use my own tuition book which lays out the basics of playing and reading music in an intuitive process. It gets them up-and-running quickly, so that they can draw on the advantages that reading music will bring to piano playing.
This opens the door for them to start exploring the huge and varied piano repertoire, and forms a solid foundation to continue building their skills.
For those who already play, I provide specially selected music to help build on existing skills, as well as working on music that they may bring along themselves.
Overall, by working through a wide variety of pieces, the better your understanding of piano playing will be. Your skills and musical knowledge will naturally develop, and your playing experience will continue to be rewarding and engaging.
MY APPROACH TO TEACHING
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LESSON PRICES
STARTING AT
£13.75
PER HALF HOUR
(PAID MONTHLY AS A BLOCK OF £55)
AND THE FIRST LESSON IS
FREE
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The first time we meet (either in person or via video call for online lessons) is a free trial, and lasts up to 30 minutes.
This is intended to be a planning lesson. It is an opportunity to discuss what your goals are, and what sort of lesson style you would like... i.e. would you like a relaxed approach so you can progress at your own pace, or, would you like me to set targets and keep you accountable for your progress?
If you play already, I will hear you play something that you are comfortable with. If you are a beginner, I will explain some of the basics for you to take away and think about before your first paid lesson.
We then officially begin the following week.
FREE LESSON
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Lessons last either 30 minutes or 1 hour.
I'd suggest 30 minute lessons for beginners (whether they are children or adults), and 1 hour for intermediate to advanced pupils. Ultimately it is up to you of course.
I would also advise taking lessons on a weekly basis, as this helps keep you on-track and moving forward, as well as being more engaged with your playing.
LESSON STRUCTURE
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Over 25 years teaching children & adults
Classically trained in both performance and
musicological research
Degree - BMus Hons
Masters Degree - Historical Musicology
MY EXPERIENCE
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AS MUSICIAN & PIANO TEACHER
BACKGROUND
I studied music at The University of Huddersfield where I developed a deep interest in piano performance, historical performance practice, and piano pedagogy.
I've since focussed these interests toward teaching the piano as well as continuing to research techniques on effective long term learning.
My research on this is put to work in an ongoing series of piano tuition books for the beginner and intermediate standards.
PHILOSOPHY ON MUSIC EDUCATION
I'm an advocate for music to be taught and experienced as a broad, rich, explorative journey, both for children and adults. By encouraging independent and creative thought, problem solving and curiosity, it is my hope that developing a love of playing the piano in all its forms will remain with a pupil throughout their whole lives.
MY WRITING
Reading music is not difficult... as long as the learning of it is presented in an intuitive way.
Today, the number of piano tuition books on the market is colossal. After using some of them with my beginner pupils, I was surprised that learning to read piano music was presented as such a narrow and clumsy process. Upon noticing that some aspects caused the learner to struggle with reading, I decided to tackle this by writing my own tuition book.
The first book starts out as a practical guide on how to recognise basic note patterns, and then turns them into clusters of finger movements. Individual note names are presented initially as anchor points for different hand positions on the keyboard. By keeping the learner's mind engaged with regular positional changes, combined with pattern recognition, reading music doesn't become the challenge that many teachers today seem to see it as being.
This results in a beginner being quickly up-and-running with the basics, so they can then draw on the advantages that reading music can bring. It opens the door to start exploring the huge and varied piano repertoire, and forms a solid foundation to progress further.
I'm really looking forward to hearing from you. If you'd like to get in contact & discuss getting started, or have any questions for me before you decide to go ahead, please send me an email:
OR GIVE ME A CALL ON:
07724686073
Hope to speak soon!
CONTACT ME
ADDRESS:
Darren Thornton,
6 Cawley Lane,
Heckmondwike,
West Yorkshire,
WF16 0BG