When people think of piano lessons, many picture a disciplinarian teacher standing overhead, holding a ruler…ready to strike at the first possible mistake. While we’ve (thankfully) moved passed such torture for piano students, surprisingly the content of those very lessons still lingers within the piano education community. One of Merriam Music’s biggest and most obvious differences is that we focus on so much more than just right notes or exam scores. We teach music in a ‘linguistic’ sense, meaning that we teach the grammar, vocabulary, and repertoire of the musical language. Then we combine an unmatched number of performance and ensemble music making opportunities so that those skills get used in a relevant, engaging way.

The point of learning an advanced skill – and music is certainly that – is to use it! Ask yourself this question: “If you were learning a sport such as soccer, but the only time you played was with your coach for 30 minutes a week, and there was no team-mates, no crowd, and no stadium, how long would you do it?” The answer for most people of course is not very long. And we have found the same thing with music. Music is naturally a social activity, but if it is never experienced like this, many people find it hard to find meaning and relevance. After all, you can only get so excited about an exam! more... See more text