Colleges/Universities for Music?

Opinions on opening up my own music school , please advise?

• Im 32, BA in Elementary Education, minor in music. Parttime NYC school teacher. PLaying piano since age 5. Produced for some hop hop celebrities in the early 2000's. I live with parents and dont have much money , obviously. lol Now i want to open up a music school and teach kids piano . I want to teach kids music productions. Have a nice studio in the garagee to teach piano and more. I was thinking of teaching Handicapped and retarded students also. IF i do get married and have kids one day in the future i would like to put the studio in a garage and live next door. I would put a shingle sign on the lawn, just a small one saying " Music conservatory". My questions are. 1. Do you think i can support my wife and kids doing this if i do have them in the future. 2. Would this be good even thought the economy is bad and people are loosing jobs. Will they have money for lessons. I though because most public schools are shutting down music programs so there WOULD be a need for piano lessons more now then ever and they would come to me. 3. How much should i charge. And how long should the lesson be. 4. Why is my female friend telling me that this is a bad idea and making fun of me that i am a dreamer and this is not a real job and i will be broke. 5 .Should i get a Masters degree in music? what field of music? Seems like you cant do that much with it lol no offense PLease share your knowledge and answer all and give me all the advise possible thanks -----OH AND HERES MY MUSIC RESUME TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK ALSO ABOUT MY BACKGROUND IF IT WOULD WORK FOR ME--THANKS RESUME EDUCATION: Brooklyn College: B.A in Education and Minor in Music CERTIFICATION: NYS Teachers License (pending) EXPERIENCE: NYC Public School Substitute Teacher 2000 -2003 -taught students in the following subjects: Math, English, Reading, and Music ,grades Pk- 8. Math and Reading Teacher, High School 2003-2005 -taught GED algebra and geometry to high school students -taught students English, vocabulary, and phonics skills Music Writer/In House Producer for ***** Productions 1998-2003 -recorded, produced and performed with legendary music celebrities such as ------- -composed, produced, and arranged music on various piano projects SKILLS: (MUSIC BIOGRAPHY) Ability to read and write music notation and theory Engineer, mix , and sequence on most recording gear Wrote and published many articles for KORG synthesizer corporation Able to use current computer music software for MIDI recording Can repair, troubleshoot, and diagnose most keyboards Released an album in Tower Records Recorded several tracks with the British pop girl band -------- Produced records and played for ------ A member of the Internet Movie Data Base http://www.imdb.com

• Answer:

  1. Absolutely, chances are you can make double or even triple what you would as a public school teacher. It will take time and skill to get to that point. 2. Music and art always survive despite the economy, the great depression bore that out quite well... If you are a good teacher, people will pay. If you are a good businessman, ie finance and marketing, you will make very good money. A shingle on the lawn will not do... its going to take a ton more work on the marketing side than that. Special needs students would be a rare specialty. Do you have any background in teaching special needs kids beyond the minimum required for your teaching license? Its not a calkwalk by any means. 3. You should have a business plan, and a knowledge of your competition and what sets you apart. From there, you will know your value, and can set your prices appropriately. Time wise it will depend on the students age/experience/ability to learn. Fixed time frames for individualized instruction are a holdover from public ed... students do not learn as well in that situation... and as a result, you dont make as much money either. 4. Some dreamers do big things, others only succeed after a ton of failures, others are best being content working for someone else. This will be a huge undertaking if its your solve source of income... are you committed and determined enough to make it go.. 100 hour work weeks are not unrealistic at the start, and you wont be paid for most of it. A driven dreamer can make this work, a passive dreamer likely wont. The question is which are you? Question 3, 4, and 5 suggest you are not driven...otoh, your success in music suggests otherwise. It could be you just lack focus, and once turned on will go full bore. 5. A Masters likely wont help much as far as private instruction goes, unless you want to get into the special needs area or music therapy. You need to look at the costs of 2 more yrs of school, and whether your proposed business can justify the cost. I'd recommend you go to work for a music store for a year or two giving lessons as an employee. See how you like teaching, see how the business side operates, and from there make the call. To just jump in, without someone else paying for you to get experience often times doesnt work too well.