Online Lessons

all in-person classes and events are now remotely held via Zoom/FaceTime/Skype until further notice. We will contact each student individually to help set up the remote lesson. During this time our regular policies remain in place.
What You Need to Know About Online Lessons:
Why continue lessons remotely when everything is uncertain? In music education, continuity is of utmost importance, particularly for beginner and intermediate students. Musical skills that have been learnt through hard work and practice can be easily forgotten, and that will make it much harder to return later. When times are uncertain, routine is extremely helpful in calming our anxieties. This is especially true for children. Routine can be one of the most powerful things in regulating our anxieties and your child has probably been taking lessons long enough that the regular routine of weekly lessons and daily practice will be a tool in helping them manage their uncertainty. In addition to the weekly lesson with your teacher, daily practice is also a routine that helps children and adults. It occupies their minds and gives them something for which they can set goals and see improvement.
Will remote lessons be like regular lessons? When it comes to learning new skills and receiving guidance in how to practice, it will definitely be similar. But the ways in which the teacher will make these things happen may look different. We are regularly meeting with our teachers (remotely!) to discuss and improve how teach online.
Can remote lessons be as good as in-person lessons? Judging by the number of teachers and platforms that taught online piano lessons before this crisis, the answer is YES! In-person lessons certainly have their advantages, but there is no reason to believe that online lessons can’t be as effective. In fact, remote lessons have some advantages.
Online lessons can improve a students’ level of responsibility and thus increase their progress since the teacher will not be able to write in their book or write down their assignments for them (though they might email them). Requiring them to make their own marks in their books and writing down their own assignments will help the student remember their assignment better and practice more effectively from week to week.

Many teachers are asking students to send videos of their home practice, this provides the possibility of more communication and feedback between the student and the teacher between lessons. As well, students will learn to listen to their performances’ recordings and discover their improvements and shortcomings.
The online lesson allows the teacher to see how the student interacts with their practice environment at home. Teacher can help improve how students are set up to practice and for example how they interact with their at-home piano which can differ greatly in terms of touch, tone, pedal sensitivity, etc.

What application do I need? We recommend using the free application Zoom. It provides a good quality audio and video as well as options to share screen, audio from teacher’s computer, as well white board, and notes. Also the lesson, as well as notes taken can be recorded by the teacher and sent as a link to students for reference. For those who with Apple products, FaceTime is also a very good application.
What else do I need? We recommend for students to set up using a laptop computer or iPads compared to smartphones as the larger screen helps communication and focus with students. Also using headphones or earbuds can help with sound quality.

How do I start my remote lessons? All you need to know is to register for your lesson or if you are new, book a free trial lesson, we will contact you, get the needed contact information, set up the time and day of your lesson, and your teacher will contact you to set it all up.

You can easily and securely pay for your lessons online. All you need is your credit card information, then select one of the lesson packages, complete the payment, and you will receive your receipt in your email. After your payment is complete you can start or continue your lessons. Please make sure you have read our studio policies.

news & events

News

The Royal Academy of Music and Arts (RAMA) offers high quality year-round educational instruction in the Performing and Visual Arts for students of all ages.

Welcome Back to School.

August 22, 2023

Welcome back, Students! Welcome All New Students! I hope you had a wonderful vacation and are ready for an exciting school year ahead! A lot of exciting things are awaiting you all! Best wishes for the new session!                                   […]

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Welcome back to the Spring Semester!

April 14, 2022

Welcome back to the Spring Semester! I hope that this message finds you and your family in good health. Recent developments have been very challenging for our community as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are living in a time of unprecedented uncertainty. I just wanted to say “Thank You” to our students, parents, […]

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Statement Regarding COVID -19

March 17, 2020

As we continue to navigate through the unique challenge regarding COVID-19, we have decided to temporarily close Royal Academy of Music and Arts starting Monday, March 16. All lessons are being postponed and we will reschedule for later dates when viable. This decision was not made lightly, but we ultimately want to ensure the safety […]

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