Terms & Conditions

This page serves to display the terms and conditions between the student and Matthew Siegmund and will outline lesson expectations and policies.

Students and/or parents will sign a copy of these policies upon joining the studio and enrolling in the tuition system.

Payment

$200 a month for weekly, 1-hour lessons

$100 a month for weekly, 30-minute lessons

Payments are due at the first lesson of each month. Amount of lessons a month will depend on the month but will be covered under the monthly rate. Payments will be accepted via cash, check, Zelle, Venmo, or PayPal. Monthly invoices will be sent via email on the first of the month. Every new student will be offered a free 30-minute lesson and one noncommital lesson at $25 for a half-hour or $50 for an hour. After which, students will be expected to follow this tuition-based system. Tuition will be pro-rated if started in the middle of the month.

Parental Involvement

For students under 12 years of age, a parent or guardian will be expected to attend lessons and supervise student’s practice. Older students will be expected to take ownership of lessons and therefore parental attendance will not be required.

Arrival

Please arrive at the scheduled lesson time a few minutes early to assemble the instrument, prepare needed materials, and allow for the most instruction time. The lesson time will not be extended for late arrivals.

Scheduling

Students will have lessons weekly and will use the studio Google Calendar to schedule lessons. Lesson times should be the same week-to-week. If there is a need to reschedule, please notify me 24 hours in advance and the lesson will be rescheduled.

Cancellation Policy

Your lesson is reserved exclusively for you. Canceled lessons will not be refunded unless they were canceled due to a documented illness, a family emergency, or 24-hour notice is given. Time for make-up lessons is limited, and make-up lessons cannot be guaranteed. Each student will be allowed a maximum of three make-up lessons a semester. After three make-up lessons, further canceled lessons will be considered forfeit. Lessons where the student does not show up are considered forfeit after 15 minutes of the start time. This policy is out of consideration to the studio as a whole, to allow students an equal chance to make up lessons when needed. Scheduled make-up lessons will not be rescheduled for any reason. Missed lessons will not be rescheduled for any reason.

Required Materials

Please bring to each lesson your saxophone, extra reeds, practice log, and assigned music with a pencil.

Books to obtain (These are listed in order of importance)

1. Starer, Rhythmic Trainer

2. Graser, The Saxophone Manual

3. Lacour, 50 Progressive Etudes*

4. Voxman, Selected Studies*

5. Ferling, 48 studies*

*these texts will be assigned in the first two lessons and will depend on the student’s mastery and ability on the instrument

Sample Lesson Structure

Starer rhythm exercises

Fundamental exercises

Scales

Etudes

Repertoire

Practice Journal

For lesson time to be effective, daily practice is heavily recommended on the student’s part. Each student will bring a practice journal to log their progress. A detailed practice journal with an entry for each practice session during the week should include:

What was practiced, and how (practice techniques, exercises, etc.)

Scales

Etudes

Repertoire

Duration of activity

Tempos

List/notes of reference recordings

Research and background information on repertoire and studies

Lesson Notes and Lesson Grades

I use Google Drive to keep lesson notes on every student. These notes include what was covered or discussed in the lesson, homework for the next lesson, and a lesson grade. This lesson grade serves to quantify the quality of the lesson. If a student comes prepared and focused, it should be an easy 10/10. I expect every student to check these lesson notes multiple times a week to effectively plan their practice time. Students with an average of 5 or lower for three or more weeks will be subject to dismissal from the studio.

If there are any questions, please contact me at lessons@matthewsiegmund.com