Journal: News & Comment

The other side of the coin

Permalinks to this entry: individual page or in monthly context. For more material from my journal, visit my home page or the archive.

I've been going on and on about shopping for a piano so much that I haven't mentioned the far more important thing my daughter needs if she wants to learn how to play: a good teacher. Fortunately, we found an excellent prospect today.

She's Lorraine Crowe, the local Royal Conservatory of Music representative. She's been teaching for a long time, has a lovely basement studio with five pianos (among other instruments)—as well as a Nintendo-equipped waiting room, a candy jar, and life-size stuffed Mike and Sully characters in the middle of the teaching room—and gets along well with kids.

One of her first questions to my daughter was, "Do you want to take piano lessons, or is it your dad's idea for you to take them?" My daughter answered honestly (that it was her idea), but I'm glad Lorraine asked the question.

Even better, the studio is three blocks from our house. Of course, Lorraine is also booked solid (no surprise), but she may be able to squeeze my little girl in. I hope so—even though she recommended a few other teachers for us to talk to, just so we get an idea of what the marketplace is like.

And I hope my daughter actually has fun playing piano, of course. That's the whole point.

[Read more in my longer article on choosing a digital piano.]

 |