Music lessons Advice Needed

[SequinsandStilettos]

Morning.
So music lessons are an eye-watering £8.00 for fifteen minutes!
This would be weekly. They do not need the instrument at home.
Bass guitar, electric guitar or drum kit.
My kid isn't grabby and ask for/gets bugger all in the grand scheme of things. I could afford it if I swallow my pride and cash a cheque from her grandfather or if I do some agency work on top of what I do.
But

Will they learn much at all in a quarter of an hour?
How will they make progress without practising at home?
Would it be reasonable to ask for a trial lesson?
Would there be recriminations of they gave it up later or do you think there will be written commitment/entered into agreement?
Are there any sponsors/bursaries in the UK that might help?
If they gave up that instrument if did not take to it, does that close down all others?I
Did you learn an instrument? Regrets? Positives?

Cheers in advance

Bump

How old is your child?

I'd say that apart from a very, very young child a 15 minute lesson is a waste of money and if they are not going to be practising at home on their own instrument then you might as well flush your £8 down the toilet (unless like I did they have a school willing to let them use their instrument/practice rooms several times a week.

If they can’t practice at home I’d say that it’s a waste of time and money. Any music teacher that tells you otherwise is a fraud.
A free trial - you can ask but they can also say no!
15 mins is pretty short my girls do 20 as a minimum. most lessons are 30. I pay £18 for 30 minutes 1-1. That’s reasonable for round here. Their school charges £30 for half an hour!
You shouldn’t have issues stopping lessons unless you sing an agreement that states otherwise. Giving up on 1 instrument has no impact on trying another.
Don’t know about funding. Would think it’s unlikely for the scenario you are describing bursaries are normally for those who excel at something and need support to progress?🤷🏼‍♀️

£8 is about standard, or cheap, for 15 minutes (i think my DPs used to pay £15 for 30 minutes a decade ago). But 15 minutes isn't long at all to get out the instrument, learn anything, and put it away. Is it at school? Private lessons normal to have a trial lesson, sometimes at a reduced rate, school no idea. Also not sure on the different instruments, you'd have to ask the teacher about that. If they change their mind about an instrument and you haven't bought it yet then there's nothing stopping them learning another one elsewhere anyway.
If dc want to do it and you can (or grandfather can, he might be glad to help!), I would recommend learning an instrument. They might be good at it, they might have a lot of fun, it will help with their academic progress. I'd avoid drums though in case they take to it and you have to buy a drumkit for the house!

Will they learn much at all in a quarter of an hour? Not much

How will they make progress without practising at home? No

Would it be reasonable to ask for a trial lesson? Perfectly reasonable

Would there be recriminations of they gave it up later or do you think there will be written commitment/entered into agreement? There may be a notice period.

Are there any sponsors/bursaries in the UK that might help? Some schools or music services subsidise lessons.

If they gave up that instrument if did not take to it, does that close down all others? No. My son did 1 year of violin aged 10, gave it up then did 2 years of guitar. When he moved school aged 14 he asked for piano lessons and gave up guitar. He starts at conservatoire next week.

Did you learn an instrument? Regrets? Positives? Yes. My husband also teaches. No regrets, positives are a lifelong love of music, ensembles and seeing my son have a purpose in life.

And yeah like pp said you won't get a bursury on beginner lessons, I guess in some cases might be covered by pupil premium if your dc gets fsm? But could be talking out of my arse there. But there are significant bursarys available if they end up really good and want to go on to junior conservatoire or music school or summer camps etc, and some schemes for buying a better quality instrument if the kid out grows the beginner one

If they can’t practice at home then it’s a total waste of time from the get go. it could be £8 or 80p, you’d be pissing it up the wall either way.

And yes, I do play all the instruments mentioned in the OP.

as one with an experience of these things I would say that is the kid has not got facilities to practice at home it is a complete waste of money. If the people who are offering the lessons are advising you that is okay they are completely unprofessional and should be avoided anyway

as one with an experience of these things I would say that is the kid has not got facilities to practice at home it is a complete waste of money. If the people who are offering the lessons are advising you that is okay they are completely unprofessional and should be avoided anyway

15 minutes is fairly standard for beginners. I learnt several instruments as a child/teen and they were generally all 15 minutes to start with. Important for wind/brass instruments until you get used to blowing for longer stretches of time. String instruments, it can take time to get used to holding the violin/viola so starting with a shorter time is usual.

I moved onto 30-minute lessons when I started working towards grade 5 in various instruments.

But you do really need an instrument at home to practice. Your local music service may have one that can be hired for a small amount.

£8 for 15 minutes is only £32/hour. Seems fairly standard for any kind of private tutoring, perhaps even on the lower end, depending on where you are.

I started learning music aged 7, play several instruments. I met my husband and made some very good friends through music playing. It can give you opportunities, like travelling with youth orchestras. I would recommend learning an instrument, but sadly, it is often an expensive process beyond the reach of many.

I disagree that it's a waste of time if they don't practice at home. It depends what you want from it. I did classical music as a competitive sport but I no longer play anything. I have a loft full of instruments though. My 7 year old has 20 minutes of (online) piano/aural every week and is benefiting greatly from it. It keeps her attention and she makes progress fast enough that she doesn't need to practice to make it worth while. We are working on instilling self motivation and occasionally she wil practice on her own. It's a long term thing though.

I think you do get more out of it as an older child if you practice. It doesn't mean you get nothing if you don't. It should be a goal in my opinion.

My kid gets taught french one a week and manages to progress without practising at home. Same with sports in gym class. Music lessons come with a lot of cultural baggage. "We're paying for this. You had better work hard!" It's the antithesis of what we know about engaging kids in sports.

They will of course get something from it but if it’s money you can not really afford I wouldn’t suggest it to be a good option.
Some schools will subside music lesson through school with pupil premium money.

I would normally say no music lessons are wasted but 15 minutes is really short. I know £8 is a lot of money but the musicians union rate is £40 an hour so it is below standard rate. Is it for an individual or group? If that's individual, maybe you could share it with another child so both get 30 minutes, that would be more productive. There are some grants available, some for people on low income, others for those children who are fairly advanced. I hope you can sort something out as music is a joy and learning an instrument should be available to everyone. If he wants to learn a brass instrument there may be a brass band in the area who does free lessons for kids?

Are the instruments you've stated those your child is specifically interested in or those they have been offered by school? I work with our local music partnership and there are a lot of smaller more traditional instruments that they will provide to beginners to take home and practice for free initially. They also offer significant discounts to families who qualify for free school meals (not sure if this applies to you). We also have a local charity that run bands/orchestras and offer music lesson bursaries to people who may not qualify for the music partnership discount but are still on low incomes.

A 15min lesson is quite standard for beginners in our area (although some pay for 15mins but have a 30 min lesson shared with another person at a similar level). However, that usually assumes they are practising at home quite a lot so the lesson is just about learning new things. It's very likely that as they progress you will be advised that they need a longer lesson.

I've seen the benefits of children playing music but would suggest you speak to your school or music centre about what instrument might be best for your child and what financial help might be available.