Joyful Noise Piano Studio

All in-person lessons are taught at Charity Baptist Church (4079 Battleground Avenue). Parents/guardians and siblings are kindly asked to wait in their vehicle during the student’s lesson to minimize distractions since there is no indoor waiting area available. Siblings may be taken to the playground during the student’s lesson as long as an adult is present. The pastor requests that no food or drink is brought into the playground area.

Students are asked to be respectful of the property and equipment used in lessons. Banging or pulling the keys, forcefully stomping on the pedals, hitting the piano, tipping the piano bench, throwing lesson materials, etc. is not allowed or tolerated. The same applies to all equipment, furniture, decorations, or materials owned by the teacher or Charity Baptist Church. Students are also asked to avoid using foul language in the building and during lessons. Repeated failure to adhere to the above rules may result in termination of lessons at the teacher’s discretion.

Security – The church has taken various measures to ensure security of the property and safety of individuals on the property. The teacher will open the gate before the first lesson and close it after the last lesson of each day. If the gate is closed when you arrive, please contact the teacher. Active security cameras are located at all entrances to all church-owned buildings, as well as inside the classroom. The downstairs entrance will remain unlocked during lessons as long as a parent/guardian is parked outside. For the safety of both the teacher and students, however, the door will be locked in the event the parent/guardian leaves during the student’s lesson.

Due to back-to-back scheduling, all students are asked to please be considerate of the students before and after their specified lesson slot. Students may arrive early but are asked to wait outside until their scheduled lesson time so as not to interrupt other students’ lessons or the teacher’s scheduled breaks. The teacher will usually arrive 10-15 minutes before the first lesson of the day; still, please wait until the student’s scheduled lesson time to allow the teacher time to prepare. Likewise, students must be picked up on time at the end of their scheduled slot.

Regular practice between lessons is necessary to make steady progress in any instrument. The ideal amount of practice for beginners is 30 minutes per day, five days a week (the teacher may specify otherwise depending on the student’s age and level). This practice time should be spent on the material assigned by the teacher each week. Students cannot expect to see consistent progress with minimal or no practice between weekly lessons. The teacher will guide students to the best of her ability during lessons, but each student is ultimately responsible for the rate of his/her own progress.

All students must have a full-sized (88-key) piano, either acoustic or digital, with a working damper pedal for home practice. If a student must use a smaller keyboard due to budget or space, no less than 61 keys is recommended. Students are responsible for all personal lesson books and materials and are expected to bring all necessary materials to each lesson. Students should attempt to keep lesson materials organized and in good condition (Books taken care of, sheet music stored in sheet protectors within a binder notebook, all materials stored in a bookbag or similarly organized to avoid losing materials). The teacher cannot guarantee that copies of a student’s music will be available in the event of forgotten books. If a student arrives without their lesson books, the lesson may be ended early if a copy of the student’s music is not available.

Tuition for the 2025-2026 school year is $60 per month for half-hour lessons and $120 per month for full-hour lessons per student. The student will need to purchase personal lesson books in addition to tuition (usually $10-12 for beginner books).

Tuition is charged at a flat monthly rate due by the 1^st of each month. Tuition not paid by the 1st will incur a $5 late fee for each week past the due date. If payment has still not been received by the end of the month, the student’s lessons will be postponed until all previous charges have been accounted for.

Invoices will be sent one week before tuition is due. Payments may be made by cash, check, or electronic transfer (Venmo, PayPal, or Cash App). Rates are set on an assumed 40 lessons taken per year based on the average student attendance in previous years. Note: The teacher reserves the right to adjust rates at the beginning of each new school year (September 1).

A predetermined holiday schedule is considered in the tuition rate. The holidays on which lessons will not be held are as follows:

New Years (full week off)

Spring Break (student’s choice)

Memorial Day (Monday only)

Independence Day (July 4th only)

Labor Day (Monday only)

Thanksgiving (Wednesday-Friday off)

Christmas (full week off)

Please notify the teacher as soon as possible if you will need to cancel a lesson due to a conflict in schedule. If possible, please give at least a 24-hour notice of cancellation so the teacher can plan accordingly.

Students who miss four consecutive lessons may forfeit their time slot. Students who wish to hold their lesson slot for more than a month of absence must prepay for the next planned month of lessons. While not required, it is highly recommended that students continue lessons through the summer months to prevent loss of progress, especially for children and/or beginners. Students who do choose to take off the summer are not guaranteed the same lesson slot in the fall unless the next month of lessons is prepaid.

Students may request to reschedule a lesson if the request is made a minimum of 24 hours before the student’s usual lesson time. In the event of a last-minute cancellation due to sickness or an emergency, the teacher may offer to reschedule. If a lesson must be cancelled due to adverse weather or if the student is sick but feels well enough to play, the lesson may be taken via Zoom at the student’s usual lesson time.

The teacher will attempt to schedule the makeup lesson within four weeks of the missed lesson. If the student cannot find the time to reschedule within four weeks, they will forfeit the makeup lesson. Note: Makeup lessons will not be scheduled outside of regular teaching hours and therefore cannot be guaranteed, but the teacher will try to accommodate makeup requests made with a 24-hour notice if scheduling allows.

If a student wishes to terminate lessons, please notify the teacher before the 1^st of the upcoming month. Students are not required to finish the current month of lessons after requesting discontinuation, but refunds will not be issued for the remainder of the month’s lessons once tuition has been paid. Please note also that students may be removed from the schedule at the teacher’s discretion for any of the following reasons: unpaid tuition, excessive absences, difficult or inappropriate behavior, and unwillingness to participate in lesson activities.