I would appreciate the input from the teachers on board. I bought my 11 year old daughter a keyboard for Christmas a year ago. She was playing "Canon in D" and Mozart w/out ever taking a lesson. We started taking lesson last March, and bought a Piano in May. She has progresses extremely rapidily, and can play very very well.I think her teacher is doing fine with all this, but she has never had a student like this before. Obviously her playing ability is significantly beyond her ability to read music. I am trying not to push her too much, but I wonder if I she being finding a teacher who has significant experince dealing with such inate talent? Should I be pushing her teacher to teach something differnt or take a particular approach. Should I just sit back and see what happens?

I'm not a piano teacher, but I would offer a couple thing.

Have you discussed with the teacher what approach she uses/suggests?

If your daughter is playing well, then what's the problem?

One red flag from your post might be your daughter's reading. If she truly is having trouble with this, she might actually be behind other students her age.

Best of luck, and I'm sure some of the teachers will have valuable advice.

I am a teacher. I am also the parent of an extremely talented musician. And I will tell you the hardest thing for a teacher is when a parent announces that his/her kid has an amazing talent. This is not to negate anything you've said, only to warn you. Teachers hear this far more often than you might think, and it is true so rarely that we get accustomed to thinking it isn't! The issue becomes, How do we stay tactful yet truthful?

I'm curious if you have any musical background yourself. When you say "Canon in D" for example, are you talking about picking out the notes of the theme one at a time, or two-hands, ten fingers, playing four parts? There is a difference between picking out a tune, and playing complicated music. (No offense intended - just trying to make sure I understand what you are saying.)

My suggestion is to seek out objective evaluation. Let you child participate in competitions (start with festivals - they are gentler.) You could set up an evaluation with a local university teacher - someone with the skills to evaluate, but without the need to make you happy, so they can be honest. Your child may well be advanced in certain areas, but behind in others. (It isn't that unusual to have a student with a good ear and poor sight-reading abilities, or vice-versa.) The evaluator might be able to recommend an appropriate teacher.

I do know from experience that I had a hard time expressing my concerns about my own kid to certain teachers -- could almost hear the eyes rolling, so violently did they move! In fact, the best interactions we had were when son's teacher contacted another teacher on his behalf. Removing us from the equation made it less subjective.

If your child does have an unusual talent, then I agree that working with a teacher who has never worked with this before probably isn't a good idea.

I'll disagree with this statement. Just because the teacher hasn't dealt with the situation before doesn't mean he/she is incapable of dealing with it. The opportunity simply may not have presented itself before.

If all parents thought that way, no teacher would ever gain the experience!

She was playing all ten fingers, all parts. I played an instrument through college, so I have been around a lot of musicians, and I have never seen anything like it. In regards to the teacher, I have kept my mouth shut on what I think, and have just let her teacher speak to me about it.

Then I'd agree that she does sound very talented, and it's also telling that it is the teacher approaching you, rather than vice versa.

Minniemay is right that teachers have to gain experience somewhere, but I'd rather it be with someone else's child and not mine. On the other hand, if this teacher seems excited about your daughter, and is motivated to seek out opportunities such as evaluations, master classes, or supplemental lessons, then it might be a very good fit -- better, even, than a teacher who teaches a dozen prodigies, and is a bit bored by them. It would be nice if your teacher has a mentor that can help her.

I can only speak from my own experience, so your mileage may vary. In dealing with our son, we had the opportunity to work with some amazing, supportive, generous people. They were able to motivate and teach him, and they were able to instruct us clueless parents as well. (Son's primary instrument is not piano, and one we had no experience with. We also were not familiar with most of what accompanies the pursuit of an orchestral career. We had teachers guiding us about selection of instrument, finding appropriate schools and summer programs, and so on.)

Several times we encountered teachers who seemed more interested in cutting him down. In hindsight, I wonder if it was their way of trying to tell us that they were capable and knew much more than he did, but at the time it almost seemed like they were going out of their way to discourage him. He did study with one of those teachers for a short time, until we realized he was losing his joy and pulled him out.

Kids are all different, so you have to know what motivates your daughter. My kid would have quit if he listened week after week to everything he was doing wrong. He tends to believe what teachers tell him, and if the message he receives is "you're not good enough" he would give up. Having teachers who were excited about his progress, and praised his efforts was very important. Later on, he felt he needed a bit more critical teacher. He did have a sample lesson with someone who spent an hour telling him what he was doing wrong. He came out and said that, on second thought, he would prefer a teacher who could balance criticism with a little praise.

So I think you need to ensure that your daughter remains excited and motivated, but is also given the opportunity to hone her skills. It would be best if you could work in tandem with the current teacher. Ask her if she has any suggestions about how best to proceed. Maybe she's already been thinking about it and has a plan. If she has trouble coming up with anything, perhaps you could ask if she has any colleagues who would be willing to see your daughter for an evaluation and recommendations.

Piano Dad IV,

As talented as your daughter is, she still needs to learn to read music. She has started at age 10 and has plenty of work to do (compared to others who started at age 5). I would sit tight and trust the teacher. Listen to what some of the other students can play...to inspire your confidence in the teacher's judgment. Your role in her develpment is to see that she practices daily, get her to lessons and of course communicate concerns to the teacher. As long as your daughter is behind in reading, then that's where the focus should be in my opinion.

A teacher gaining experience isn't necessarily doing a bad job! That was my point. Just because they haven't done it before doesn't mean they can't do it and do it well.

Amen!!

I was teaching these two sisters last year, and their mother kept on asking me about my college degrees. It's like my credentials don't speak for themselves. Needless to say, they are no longer taking lessons from me.

PianoDad IV,

I'm joining in late in the game here, but if the OP is available:

I'd like to ask what music this girl has taught herself?

(Particularly the Canon or Mozart you mentioned, but I'd be interested in knowing exactly what she owns as her music.)

What were the method books or the theory or basic notation studied?

Where did she start in books and materials?

Who bought this music for her?

Has someone been helping her or advising?

How old is she now?

How frequently has she been working at her piano?

I think it's as important to know how she started, who helped, what music has she used, and then, to be able to watch and listen to a video of her present work would be very helpful. I'm not hoping for that here. But it would bring us all as teachers up to date about what you are writing about. 1) A live example or 2) a written history of music that has been used would be next best.

The fact that you say she does not read music very well is also something needs to be addressed for the future.

Can you provide any more input?

And, if you wanted specific guidance as to what's available in your area you would have to give us some clue as to where you are located.

Lastly, what are the goals the girl has for herself?

What are your goals for her?

Betty Patnude

Piano Dad,

How exciting to have your daughter discover a talent and love for the piano! I agree with several of the above posts. Her teacher may be absolutely fine for her, but I would make sure she is getting a well rounded diet of music reading, theory, and technique. If your daughter taught herself, I'm guessing her technique may need some work. I would make sure that sight reading is a huge part of lessons.

I have a student right now who is very talented, and I was a little nervous about taking her on. Her previous teacher had so many talented students that this girl was slipping between the cracks. The teacher also seriously lacked organizational skills, so her education was a little hit or miss. So far, it is going exceptionally well - the girl is flourishing and I am really enjoying this opportunity to teach her. I have the commitment and interest in doing a really good job, so it's working well.

That said, I know I won't have this student forever, and I would want her to eventually go to someone who who has more experience teaching very advanced students, when she gets there. There might be a time when it may seem natural to switch, if that seems like it would help her.