What are your hours of operation?
The
Royal Academy's Administrative Offices are open from
9:00am to 9:00pm
and Lessons typically run from 12:00 P.M. until 9:00 PM, Monday through Friday
with Saturday lessons available from 9:00 AM
to 4:00 PM. We often coordinate schedules to help
accommodate our
parents and students schedule, so you can always call us
to arrange a custom schedule if these times are not
convenient by calling us at 508-755-7373 or 508-792-1221.
Although administration is in from 9:00 AM it is
important to call first as the school is locked during
the hours of 9:00 AM and 1:00 PM.
What if I miss a lesson, do you offer Make-Ups?
The Royal Academy instructors would much rather see that
their students receive a lesson rather than miss one,
however, due to complexities in scheduling, and out of
fairness to our instructors, the Royal Academy offers
a limited number of make-up and rescheduled lessons per year.
Please visit our fees and policies page for more
information.
Do you offer any sort of student evaluations or
progress reports? How do
I know how well my child is doing ?
The Royal Academy is the only music school in
Massachusetts that requires all instructors to
not only give parents a brief verbal summary after each lesson. We
also hand
every parent a written "student lesson report"
after every lesson which highlights what your child's
instructor and your child did in their lesson, how well
your child did, any suggestions the instructor has, and their homework for
the week.
Is the Royal Academy a member of any other major
organizations?
The Royal Academy is a member of
many well known music and education related organizations.
A few of the largest are Members of the National Guild of
Community Schools for the Arts, The Massachusetts
Music Teachers Association. The Music Taeachers National Association,
as well as affiliations with
some of the worlds leading conservatories, Universities and
Music Schools.
Do you offer student recitals or special
performances?
While most schools hold from on average
one to two recitals per year, The Royal Academy offers
over 9 student recitals per year held
in WPI's historic Alden & Spaulding Recital Halls equipped with a
Steinway Model D 9' Concert Grand Piano, Artist
Green Room, fully set stage and lighting. All
recitals are non-mandatory, are free for Royal Academy
students, parents, families and friends and are designed
to be non-competitive. The Royal Academy also offers its
critically acclaimed Professional Artist Series concerts
also held at WPI College. An annual performance series consisting of world renown concert
musicians in recital, all concerts are free to the
public. The Royal
Academy also performs in a number of other venues such
as malls, various music halls, hospitals and outreach
programs.
When just starting out, do I need to purchase a piano, violin or invest in an
expensive instrument?
It is important of course that your child or yourself
has a good reliable instrument to practice on. However,
investing in an instrument can sometimes be the most
costly part of taking music lessons. There are many
alternatives to purchasing an expensive instrument,
especially if you are unsure as to your child's future
in studying music. During the first year of
lessons a child can practice on a keyboard or digital
piano instead of an acoustic piano. Although a piano is
the instrument of choice, it might be wise financially
to go with a keyboard or digital piano the first year or
two. If a keyboard or digital piano is used, you
should make sure that the instrument has at least 61
keys and that it is touch sensitive. These two features
play a large role in your child’s feel and touch of the
instrument. If a keyboard has 61 keys, this will ensure
that the keys are full size (the same size as a piano
key) and will play a role in the intervallic
relationship or distance of keys and will also affect
technique and feel of the instrument. If the
keyboard is touch sensitive, it will at least have some
sort of action or response which will also affect the
feel of the instrument more closely related to that of a
piano. For all other instruments such as
violins, cellos, flutes, etc. These instruments can be
rented very inexpensively through the Royal Academy's
music rental program MusicAmerica by calling
508-755-7373 or 508-792-1221. please feel free to contact
us for information on where to rent or purchase an
instrument.
How often should I get my piano tuned?
It is recommended that a piano be tuned
twice a year and that regular inspection be made by a
qualified piano technician to
avoid possible long term problems. Technician
referrals are available by calling 508-755-7373 or
508-792-1221.
What type of facilities does the Royal Academy offer?
The Royal Academy’s two convenient locations consisting
of a
10 sound proof practice studios at each location, three large chamber/voice studios, The Royal
Academy also offers a beautiful environment to our
parents consisting of antiques and collectibles dating
back as far the 19th century. There are several waiting
areas at the Royal Academy and all studios consist of
open-glass French doors so parents may view their children
anytime while in their lessons. So, cuddle up with a nice book
or a nice magazine in one of our several waiting areas.
When at the Royal Academy, we hope that you find you can
kick back, relax, listen to beautiful music and make
yourself at home.
The last school my child attended made me a little
uncomfortable becasue I could not see into the room
where my child was taking a lesson. I am not comfortable not being able to see my child
when they are in their lesson, is there any way I can
see them or sit in on the lesson?
The Royal
Academy’s two convenient locations consisting of a
10-12 sound proof studio's at each location consist of
open-glass French doors so parents may view their
children anytime while in their lesson, and/or sit
in the lesson whenever they would like to.
What is a good age to start my child for music
lessons?
This is an often debated question. however, it is a fact
that some instruments are more difficult to play than
others at first, so age may vary. Based on our experience
and current studies indicate that the earlier a child is
exposed to music, such as playing an instrument, the
better the future outcome of
progression. The Royal Academy accepts children 4
for piano & strings and 6 for vocal
training.
Can my child be evaluated to determine if they are
ready for private music lessons? The Royal Academy
offers a trial lessons with no obligation to commit
other than to attend the scheduled trial lesson. Each
trial lesson is broken down to $26 per lesson. Once a
trial lesson has been attended, a student must notify
the music office after the lesson if they wish to
register for lessons. In the event the student does not notify the music
office after a trial lesson, unfortunately the time slot
must be made available to other incoming students.
I know nothing about music or choosing an instructor.
Are there any specifications I should look for when
choosing an instructor for my child?
Like all professions there are very
skilled and professional instructors however (unfortunately)
their is no criteria or certification needed to teach
music. When choosing an
instructor you may want to ask for a copy of the
instructors artist biography
to review, it is important to ask about their teaching
experience and the length of time instructing at an
institution or instructing in general. You should look at education first,
followed by experience, be very thorough in the
questions you ask, remember, you are paying for these
lessons and your hard earned money should get you an
experienced and reliable instructor, settle for no less. Along with educational
background, the instructors
personality, presentation of material and the
environment in which they teach, can all make a world of
difference in the whole learning process and music
experience for your child. The Royal Academy’s
instructors are required to hold a minimum of a Bachelor
Degree in Music
with a the majority of our faculty population holding a Masters Degree
in Music and/or conservatory equivalent. We also require a
minimum of 6 years experience teaching. All Royal
Academy faculty bio’s can be viewed on this site or at the Main School located at
on 370 Boston Turnpike Rd., Shrewsbury, at your convenience. Please
call us anytime if you have questions, even if you are
not attending the Royal Academy and are skeptical about
an instructor you are considering on your own, or if you would just like to know what
questions to ask, we would be more than happy to help in
any way we can.
How is the Royal Academy's tuition structured?
The Royal Academy’s tuition policy is structured on a
“month to month” basis. Because we understand you
should feel both comfortable and confident before making
any type of investment, we want you to be able to enjoy
our services without feeling committed to a lengthy 16 week semester. We are confident that we will
earn your trust, knowing that at anytime you can discontinue
our services if you are at all displeased or feel you
are just not ready. We also
structure our tuition on a "month to month" basis to
help make it possible for those students who (at
anytime) are experiencing financial hardship. Our
registration fee of $20 per student is once per year, no more than
$40 per family. Admission to the Royal Academy is rolling so new
incoming students can conveniently be scheduled anytime
through out the year.
