Student Spotlight: Hear From Our Adult Students About Why They Love Music Lessons
A number of our students at the Cunningham Piano Co. Music School are adults. This week, we asked a couple of them why they decided music lessons were something they wanted to take time to do:
A Voice Student Uses Music Lessons to De-stress:
Sheila Haswell, a voice student of Elisabeth Galassini at the Cunningham Piano Co. Music School, says that she "has always wanted to pursue her love of singing and opera but really just made time for it recently." She went on to say that she thinks now was the right time to start. "I really didn't give enough credit to just how much coming to a lesson or taking time out from thinking about work and my house to practice would help me manage my stress." she said. "It would've been nice to access parts of my voice I didn't know I had and sing in a healthy way earlier on, maybe--but I'm an adult making a choice every time I put aside time to practice now. I don't know if I would have been able to approach it the way I do as a teenager--and I wouldn't have appreciated the emotional benefits as a teenager as much, either. There is just something so wonderful in accomplishing things during my practice session, it really is a calming, satisfactory thing. My work stress is much more manageable than it has been in years."
Her teacher Elisabeth agrees. "Sheila is turning into a really wonderful musician, I think, because she sees all the good things music do for her every day, and those benefits encourage her to practice consistently. I remember her talking about stress with work at the beginning of almost every lesson when we started in January and that has subsided quite a bit. I mentioned it in passing, assuming that something had changed professionally for her, and she said 'Well, now that I'm taking time out of my day to dedicate to improving something in myself that I love, I think I'm just less stressed. Work hasn't slowed down.'"
A Piano Student Finally Accomplishes Her Childhood Goal of Taking Lessons:
Cindy Brown, a piano student at Cunningham Piano Co. Music School, was a music mom. She put all six of her children through lessons and music was always a big part of her life, but she never studied piano herself even though it was something that she had wanted to do since she was a little girl. "It was just the right time to do it now." She said. She went on to say: "It takes a lot of thought, but the times I put aside to take my lesson and practice are so peaceful--even though it's a challenge, it's a relaxing challenge, and there's just a joy I get out of it. And so far," she added with a laugh, "my husband isn't getting sick of hearing me play the same song over and over again!"
Hayley Wieland, Cindy's teacher, told us that teaching adults is great for her. "Cindy's love for the instrument is just really great. It's a joy to teach someone that's wanted to play for so long and is now getting to do just that--her appreciation for her lessons is so evident."
We're beyond happy to hear that our students are finding ways to de-stress and find joy, fulfillment, and peace through taking the time for themselves and making music a part of their every day lives. If you or someone you know has always wanted to pursue music, we would love to have them now! Go to our website at stage.cunninghampiano.com/school or call us at 215-991-0847 to register or get more information today!