Tuesday, May 8, 2018 by Dawn Riggett | General

You’re never too old, and rarely too young…..

Most students are ready to start traditional piano lessons around age 5-7. Part of the reason for that typical age range has to do with muscle tone and fine motor skill development in the hands/fingers, and part of it has to do with interest and attention span.

However, some students are ready earlier than others, so here are a few questions that can help determine if a child might be ready for piano lessons.

• Has your child shown interest in the piano? If so, what does do they at a piano – is it mostly banging on the keys, or trying out 1-2 notes at a time in a controlled manner?
• How is their attention span – are they able to focus on a "fine motor skills" task (a craft, Lego, drawing, etc) for at least 10 minutes at a time?
• How is their hand strength - can he press piano keys with at least 3 different fingers on both hands?
• Does your child know the ABC, numbers up to at least 10 and understand basic maths? The basic maths helps with note values, I really do mean basic we are not a maths class!
• How do they deal with frustration? Can they calmly repeat exercises when they don’t succeed the first time or is it meltdown?

High level of parental involvement is essential for 7 and under, even if you have no musical experience. You can help your child to be successful by providing a home instrument, adding regular time at the piano and sitting with your child to assist with practise and homework.

If you have any questions on the suitably of piano lessons for your young one please get in touch with Music and me on musicandmehitchin@gmail.com.

Thursday, March 29, 2018 by Dawn Riggett | General

Did you know there is an international ‘Piano Day’? Well you do now! Piano Day, an annual worldwide event founded by a group of likeminded people, takes place on the 88th day of the year – in 2018 it’s the 29th March – because of the number of keys on the piano. Piano Day is dedicated to everything around the piano: performers, composers, piano builders, tuners, movers and most importantly, the listener.

The aim of the day is to create a platform for piano related projects in order to promote the development of musical dimensions and to continue sharing the centuries-old joy of playing piano. This year Music and me will be joining in by listening (and playing) a few of our favourite piano pieces, with the little one. They are never too young to start their musical education ;).

Music and me provides piano music lessons for children and adults, from my home studio in Hitchin. Lessons are tailored to each individual student, to encourage musical development and creativity, for beginners and improvers. Whether you are looking for lessons for your child or considering starting / re learning the piano for yourself, there is no better time to start then now. Please contact Music and me to start your musical journey today. musicandmehitchin@gmail.com or 07592 751774. 

Monday, March 26, 2018 by Dawn Riggett | General

Welcome to Music and me first blog, very excitingJ. It’s been a lovely morning here in Hitchin, definitely feels that spring has finally arrived. Spring is often associated with new beginnings, this is very apt for me as I am delighted to be launching Music and me today.

Music and me provides piano music lessons for children and adults, from my home studio in Hitchin. Lessons are tailored to each individual student, to encourage musical development and creativity, for beginners and improvers. There are many studies that show the benefits of music from early years and up, I will be sharing these on this blog section for you to read in the future. 

Whether you are looking for lessons for your child or considering starting / re learning the piano for yourself, there is no better time to start then now. Please contact Music and me today to start your musical journey. 

musicandmehitchin@gmail.com or 07592 751774