Why should I attend class multiple times per week?
Me at age 7 playing my violin at my grandpa’s house.
As a young child I started playing the violin when I was 6 years old. I wasn’t a serious student and my mom (a non musician) didn’t push me hard so my progress was fairly steady but slow. I was astounded when I got to middle school and there were students playing near the same level as me who had only been playing for 1-2 years. How could this be? The primary difference: frequency of instruction.
These students had been receiving instruction 5 days a week for 45 minutes each day (for approximately 180 days each year). I was getting one 30 minute lesson per week. In my 5 years of lessons before middle school I received approximately 7800 minutes of instruction (130 hours) and these students had received 8100 minutes (135 hours) in one year. Yikes. Additionally, these students had much stronger note reading abilities than me. Double yikes. In some ways I was ahead of my peers in terms of technical skills, but in terms of note reading (critical for orchestra participation) I was quite behind. It took me years to bridge this gap for myself.
The secondary reason that these students had advanced at such a rapid rate: their motor skills were many years more advanced when they started. I started my 6 year old daughter, Zoey, on cello in October. She’s playing well, but her progress is much slower than that of my middle school aged students, but that is understandable because she’s 6. In December I started a 14 year old virtual high school student and this student is catching up to Zoey quickly and will surpass her soon enough. This older student isn’t any smarter; she is just more physically advanced. Zoey is young and still needs me to practice with her daily, but my high school student learns completely by herself without parental involvement. It’s apples and oranges in terms of a teaching and learning experience. I am enjoying working with my daughter on her cello, but older students are my jam.
So, why should you choose 2 days a week? I think the above math speaks for itself, but my personal experience is that beginner students of any age develop their skills on their instrument more quickly with more frequent instruction and feedback. Students who will see their teacher more than once a week are more likely to increase their practice time between classes and have fewer playing posture issues because they receive more frequency of feedback.
Virtual Orchestra school is offering two options at this time: Philharmonic class which is a once weekly class or Symphony Class that meets 2 times weekly.
What is it going to be for your student? Still unsure? Reach out to VOS and we can help you decide on the plan that is right for you.
Visit www.virtualorchestraschool.com for more information.
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Email: virtualorchestraschool@gmail.com
