By: Renee Bordner
​NWE Music Studio Director

I hope this finds you succeeding in your 2021 New Year Resolutions. If you did not make any resolutions or if you need to start over, NOW is the time!  You still have the rest of the year to make it your own.  

It was this time last year that we started to hear mutterings about a new rapidly spreading and deadly virus.  At that time, we did not know that this virus was going to change our world and day to day living.  As we approach the one year anniversary of the pandemic restrictions placed upon us, I want to take a moment to thank all of you.  I always knew that our Note-worthy Experiences Music Studio was special and different.  Supportive and encouraging have been how I have described our students and parents for fourteen years.  Team players have been how I always described our instructors.  Throughout this year, our students, parents and instructors have locked arms and reunited to support each other and bring more music into the world.  The support of our students who have been isolated due to remote academic learning, hybrid learning, limited extracurricular activities, and remote careers has been incredible.  The support of our instructors who have not been able to perform has been amazing.  Together we are all stronger blasting through the beginning of 2021.

In 2021, we have many exciting new year resolutions too!  Our resolutions include continuing many of our events with online twists and some new ones also!  Please check the newsletters often as we have a major outdoor event planned that is not like anything we have ever done before. We expect all of our students to participate in a day of music and celebrations in a covid safe environment.

As always, please feel free to reach out to me at any time with your questions and concerns about our lessons and events.

Musically yours,

Renee

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By: Renee Bordner
​NWE Music Studio Director

​As the studio owner, as a piano teacher and as a mom I am often asked when is a good time for someone to start music lessons.  I am often asked if a child is too young or a senior citizen is too old.  I am happy to address this question here but if you have additional questions, please contact me directly.  I am happy to discuss your specific situation and help guide you in deciding what is best.

For me, the answer is very simple. If someone is excited and interested in learning then that is the perfect time or age to learn.  Students are never too old!  Sometimes students are too young for private one on one lessons and may be more appropriate for a group music and movement setting.  I do suggest starting very young students off with shorter lessons and an instructor who specializes in working with beginner students.

We do not have set semesters and required numbers of lessons for students for these very reasons.  Not all students' needs and interests fit neatly into semesters and lesson packages. I feel it is best for a student to start lessons when they are ready and interested even if it is in the middle of an academic grading period.

Another question I am often asked is how long of a lesson should my student have.  I typically recommend a half hour lesson for a beginner student and then increase the lesson time after a student shows signs of readiness.  To me signs of readiness include when a student says things like, "But wait I want to show you this!", when a student is still asking more questions that are relevant to the lesson even after the lesson is over or when a student simply does not have enough material to practice throughout the week.  In our Frequently Asked Questions section of our website, you can also see our team's recommendations on lengths of lessons.  http://www.note-worthyexperiences.com/faqs.html  these recommendations are truly recommendations and not set rules for our students. I always suggest discussing increasing lesson lengths with your instructor to weigh the benefits and discuss expectations.  

I am also always happy to discuss lesson plans, lesson readiness and goals for students at any time.  Feel free to reach out to me to chat further. 

By: Renee Bordner
​NWE Music Studio Director

​My friend, Christina Granahan, wrote this piece about how creativity accesses all three centers of intelligence. Please take the time to read her article ​https://christinagranahan.com/category/blog/. By now, all of us have heard that listening to music is "good for you" and "therapeutic". Reading Christina's article may help you understand how and why music benefits us humans. Feel free to send us your thoughts on the article and tell us how music affects you.

By: Renee Bordner
​NWE Music Studio Director

By: Renee Bordner
​NWE Music Studio Director

Happy October!

Hopefully this month brings your family some autumn fun and modified Halloween traditions!  We hope that your family has settled into a consistent routine.  The back to school season is one of setting new goals for many.  Our team is committed to helping your students succeed with their music even in this pandemic.  Please connect with your instructor to discuss these goals and methods to achieve the goals.  Your instructor and I can help with setting up a solid practice routine that meets the needs of your family.  Now is a great time to create a map of what your student would like to participate in for the rest of the school year! 

We are offering many opportunities this year, including a composing competition, our annual Winter Holiday Recitals, our annual scholarship competition, Piano Guild Auditions, Royal Conservatory Exams, and our Honors and Senior Recital.  We plan to schedule some informal assisted living facility and Sudbury Housing Authority Recitals and to resume attending youth open mic nights at two local venues.  We will continue to celebrate our students who achieve their Practice Club status as well.  All of these events and programs are optional and our team is committed to guiding our students to be successful at them.  Feel free to contact us at any time for more information.  We will also post more information in our monthly newsletters.

Wishing you and your family the best this Fall!

Studio director Renee Bordner was honored to be asked to contribute to Comeback Momma's blog. Her article goes over the the benefits of learning music from a young age. Read the full article here. 

Dear Note-worthy Experiences Family,

Thank you for your patience in these very uncertain times.  

As a small business owner and a musician, I have been overwhelmed with your support. Thank you.

Our mission today is the same as when we started and that mission is to provide our students with meaningful musical learning opportunities. However, these opportunities are now occurring with social distancing.  

Below are some thoughts on how we can improve our students' musical experiences during the COVID-19 crisis.

Our instructor, Leonardo, suggests calling the practice sessions "rehearsals".

We are discovering that if a lot of people are using the home wifi the more issues we have. I am asking my family to limit their wifi use when I am teaching in hopes to help our lessons go more smoothly (and to encourage them to take a screen break).

If you are using a free version of Zoom, the time limit is 40 minutes. For our students who have lessons longer than 40 minutes, we are able to work around this by having two separate sessions with a 5 minute snack and water break in between.

For younger and beginner students, it is useful if a helper is nearby to help spot incorrect notes, hand position, etc. 

We are trying hard to keep our families up to date through our mass email distribution list (Constant Contact) and social media. Please refer to these sources for updates.

If your family has an Apple product - encourage your child(ren) to try GarageBand.

Please encourage your kids to go back and play their favorite songs.

Encourage your child(ren) to put together family recitals and family sing alongs. Make movies of your children playing to send to those who you are socially distant from.  

Encourage your child(ren) to write music. They can start with a topic, lyrics or just their favorite note combinations and rhythms. Here is a link to free printable staff paper  https://www.printablepaper.net/category/music

If your child(ren) are bored with their same music and would like some fresh fun music to try, check out supplemental library at the bottom of their home page. Many of these books can be ordered on Amazon too. https://pianoadventures.com/  

Did you know that there is an app for your children's Piano Adventures Books?  https://pianoadventures.com/resources/piano-adventures-player-app/ 

This is my favorite link for printing free piano and guitar music at each level.
https://gmajormusictheory.org/Freebies/freebies.html  

This game is highly recommended by several students and our instructor, Kailey
 https://musiclab.chromeexperiments.com/Experiments.  

Our instructor, Maria, suggests http://www.themusicinteractive.com/. It’s GREAT for practicing note reading, and fun too! It has all 4 clefs. Makes “drilling” music notation fun. Only available for Apple devices.

Sheet Music Direct is offering a free for one month promotion (however I hear that you need to pay to be able to print music and it is not free after one month.)
https://www.sheetmusicdirect.com/en-US/  

Stay tuned to our group emails and social media as we have added enrichment classes for our students. We are offering Advanced Theory with Daniel, Songwriting with Kailey (both are good for students in level 1 or up, and fun for kids to do in online groups). We are also offering Practice Hotline Tips with Jay and Audition Prep with Nina.

If your family would like extra lessons with your current instructor, or another instructor, just let us know. All of our instructors have additional scheduling flexibility currently. Unfortunately, all of our instructors' rehearsals and performances have been cancelled. Some events have been cancelled through September.

The vendor that I use for the Practice Club Trophies is currently closed due to COVID-19. When they reopen, I am optimistic that I will be placing a large order of customized trophies for our 100 Consecutive Days of Practice Club Winners. I also will order trophies for our students who complete 200, 300, etc. consecutive days of practice. These students will also be invited to a VIP Ice Cream Party at my home (when we are allowed to socialize again). To make tracking our students' practice easier, you can use this tracking sheet: Download PDF.

We have a FREE music trivia family fun night scheduled for next Thursday! Think Disney name that tune!

Please stay tuned for more information about a FREE Faculty Recital or maybe even Recitals to raise money for a local relief fund.

The April Youth Open Mic Night at Serendipity has been cancelled.

Our Final/Round 2 of the Scholarship Competition will occur with modifications.  

Our Honors & Senior Recital is cancelled.

I have a message out to Piano Guild Headquarters on their status of our 2020 Auditions. I also have a message out to our Judge. Auditions will occur with modifications.

Thank you for your support during these uncertain times!

--

What people are saying about online lessons with Note-worthy:

"I'm surprised how well the technology worked--not just from a logistical point of view, but for delivering a very constructive lesson. I didn't have doubts about the ability to teach, but I thought perhaps on our end it wouldn't feel 'real.' But it certainly did!"

-Jeanette from Natick