A New Website for Music Teachers A Tour of a New Membership Site

Here are the details for the membership site:

Access to the membership area is $30 a month. Membership will grant members a 20% discount on all books and teaching materials in the method.

  • Once a membership has been purchased you will receive 20% off all book orders. The first four levels of books are typically $9.95 each.
  • You will have access to 10+ hours of training videos, 5 hours of accompaniment tracks and teacher scores for all the music in the method.
  • There is no minimum – you can cancel the membership anytime.
  • You will be billed $30 per month until you cancel the membership.

If you want to give membership a try – click here to get started.


An in-depth look at the membership site with a video demo:

I’ve always said that there is no better time than now to be teaching kids to play music. The access that students and teachers have to music from all styles, genres and eras makes it nearly impossible for anyone to lose interest in creating something musical. The result may end up sounding like a concert pianist, or it may end up being a kid learning to produce quality dance music on their laptop and becoming a producer. But to have so much music and music-related content at our disposal is a huge benefit to teaching and learning music today.

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For my new method, I had a “manual” that was 130 pages of scores, notes, lesson plans, learning activities, games, etc. I knew there would need to be a substantial support system for teachers because the whole approach was different than most things I’d seen. I wanted to empower teachers to use the method as a step into their own creative prowess and pass that on to their students through their performances and culture within the teaching environment – whether it be private lessons or school classrooms. My gut told me that a written out manual would not be the best way to achieve this for folks.

Aside from the manual, I had recorded over 20 hours of training sessions for teachers at my school in Seattle. There were also hours of accompaniment tracks for each of the songs… I wanted to include these support materials and didn’t want to fragment everything and have these valuable resources separate from the manual.

A couple of weeks ago a light bulb went on in my head and I realized I could build an online database for teachers (don’t ask how I know how to do this). The content could be organized in a way that made it interactive so teachers could find the appropriate information based on their individual needs. It was exciting to think that there could be an elegant way to help teachers grow as they used the method.

I am so glad I didn’t go the route of the manual. Organizing this information and content online gives so much flexibility and power to the teachers. Each teacher will be able to customize the experience based on their situation, personality and needs. Whether you’re a private teacher, group-piano teacher, school teacher or college professor; you can essentially run each class/lesson/lecture straight from the website with no other material.

One of my personal favorite things about this format is that I can always be adding material. So when I’ve finished a jazz module or classical techniques module or pop music module that links the existing material, it will simply be on the site and available to members.

Members can submit questions about the method that I will answer with posts or videos and share on the site.

It’s a fluid thing that will grow and morph without having to reprint and re-release and sell updated “editions”. It will simply be current.

As of the initial launch (which will happen in the next few days), the website includes the following:

  • Latest News Feed – Any updates on the site or content will be here.
  • Table of Contents – Lists all pieces and ensembles in the methods with links to support material.
  • Teaching Materials – Where the magic happens… A way to search training videos, accompaniment tracks, written descriptions of learning activities and more based on the song or ensemble you are teaching or getting ready to teach.
  • Create Lesson Notes – A way for you to log what you assigned a student or class along with notes for yourself to help know what went well and what didn’t.
  • View Prior Lesson Notes – You can search all your prior lesson notes so that when you are prepping for a lesson or class you can review everything you’ve previously done with that lesson or class.
  • Share Media – You can post video links of your students performing so other members can see what you’re doing with the material. Members can share tips, tricks and give examples with these video links.
  • View Shared Media – Browse all the student videos and comments teachers have left so it can help members improve their craft.
  • How to Use This Website – Step by step and detailed instructions on how to get around the site.

This will all grow and evolve as I see what is working or what could work better for folks.

As it stands, based on the training programs I’ve done at my school – there is enough content here to easily keep experienced teachers occupied for a year. It can be as involved as you want it to be as a teacher.

Want to see it in action? Here is a screencast that gives a tour of the website:

The membership will be $30 per month. Members will get a 20% discount on all printed materials they buy for students.

You can sign up and start working through the material by clicking here.

I’m excited to share this with everyone! Below you’ll find an overview listing the details of the site…