What Format of Violin Lesson Should I Use?

In this blog post, I will discuss some of my own ideas of what a person should look for when searching for a violin teacher. This article may be used in searching for an online teacher, an in-person teacher, or even a teacher who has a video course. 

First of all, an in-person teacher for individual one-on-one instruction (called a private teacher) is what I would always recommend first. At the time of this writing (November 2020), this is often not possible given the current pandemic. 

The next best possibility would be online private lessons. If you live in a remote location, cannot drive or take public transportation, then this is a great option. Almost all violin teachers have been forced to at least try this method of teaching due to the 2020 pandemic. If you do go this route, it is best that you both have a stable, wired internet connection whenever possible.

Perhaps just after that, I would probably recommend a program where you can get personalized feedback from a teacher based on submitted video recordings. The feedback could either be in the form of written, audio, or video comments. This is especially helpful for those who have odd hours of availability or live in a remote location.

Finally, a detailed video course progression can help many people. There are many free videos on YouTube, and there are also paid video courses. Usually, a person who is offering a course for a fee will also give a lot of very valuable free content in order to gain a wider audience pool and advertise their name or their paid product. Free videos are a great option for those who can afford a violin but not lessons. 

After you have determined what type of lesson format you would like, you should next decide what traits and qualifications are important to you. This can be based on your current level of playing, your own personality, your tendencies when receiving constructive criticism, and your learning style. 

You should also decide how often you would like to have lessons or receive feedback. For private in-person lessons, this has traditionally been one lesson per week per student. This is usually enough time for the student to work on skills and music introduced during the lesson at their own pace at home. 

For what duration of time do you want your private lessons to be? For adults, I would recommend forty-five minutes or an hour. Anything less than that is usually too short, especially when considering practicalities such as tuning the instrument, discussing repertoire, making notes of assignments (whether by the student or by the teacher). Also, I have noticed that there is a certain amount of momentum that happens after a concept “clicks” with a student. A thirty-minute lesson often does not allow for this momentum to continue. There is the added issue of working on so many aspects of playing the violin. For example, a good teacher should address posture, violin hold, bow hold, playing technique, musicality, and music-reading skills. Thirty minutes per week is just too short to get to all or even most of these things on a regular basis.

These are some of the basic things to have in mind even before searching for a teacher. After you have made the above decisions, then you can decide what to look for in your teacher, which is the topic of my next blog post. 

Check out my free guide to buying or renting a beginner violin. Thank you for reading, and happy practicing!