Parents & Pupils

If you are thinking about learning to play an instrument, or have already started, here is a checklist of some key things to consider:

• Check what your child’s school has to offer. Our teachers visit 88 schools every week in the city. If your child’s school does not offer the instrument you want your child to learn, ask them to speak to us and maybe we can send a teacher to do it!
• Wolverhampton schools buy time from the Music Service to visit their school. Schools set their own charges for lessons. Typically this is around £10 a lesson, usually in a group setting for around 20-30 mins. Music Service teaching is offered in small groups which means the school can recover enough money to pay for the services. Some schools add money from their own budgets to help reduce the cost of lessons for families.
• Schools working in partnership with us means that learning a musical instrument can be a lot cheaper than a private lesson outside of school. Typically private teachers charge c £25 for a 30 min lesson. We also provide the free long term loan of a musical instrument which can be a significant initial barrier for families.
• Choosing the right instrument – Not every instrument suits everybody. Which one interests your child most? What does your school offer? Is it the right size or shape for you? Can you produce a sound on it?
• Practising – To get the most out of learning an instrument, it needs to be practised often (much more than just once a week!!) to gain all the skills needed to really enjoy everything playing an instrument has to offer.
• Joining a group – Once you have the basic skills you may want to join a group. Playing together is the most rewarding and exciting part of playing an instrument. Ask at your school and take a look a look at our Music Groups. These are provided free of charge and you can often join our first group when you know only 5 notes!
• Setting Goals – You will need to set goals and targets when learning an instrument. Our teachers will help you do this so that you always have something to aim for. This could be making a recording, preparing for a concert, or even taking an exam.
• Taking Exams – You may want to challenge yourself further by preparing for an exam. They are an excellent way of helping to learn and hone the right skills. The higher grades can also help you get into university! These public examinations cost extra.