the Price of Music Lessons

I took a class about intended inflections in music and how to convey feeling in written music that goes beyond what's written on paper. The teacher covered terms associated with music as well as time signatures and staff usage that indicate what the musician was feeling. We went over terms that are rarely used in modern composition as well as the history of commonly used musical terms. The class was mostly about the history of conveying emotion through music, but we got pointers on composing our own music and how to deliver the idea to the performers through term usage and manipulation of time signature and key.

The class was a fantastic value for $30. Most classes that I have been to that were this long (4 hours in the morning WITH SNACKS) were at least $75, but usually closer to $150. Luckily since I knew about the class ahead of time and my private instructor is a friend of the instructor I was able to volunteer to help with handout distribution and was able to go for only $30.

The class itself was wonderful. The four hour block was an ample amount of time to cover the history, have some hands on training, and brainstorm with other class members. The teacher was fantastic and had several assistants who were just as insightful and helpful during the group activities as the teacher herself. Being a 50 attendee class, I got a lot of individual help and the group activities provided a LOT of insight into possibilities for conveying emotion through music.

If possible, volunteer to help. I received a $120 discount on my entry fee just because I handed out flyers. Look for related classes, as there is sometimes an overall discount if you sign up for several courses together. Look for other community programs that offer classes for cheaper than University prices.