New Website

Welcome back, students! What a beautiful, sunny, first day of lessons we had. This is just a reminder that we have launched our new website at www.lessonsintheloft.com

Thank you to Eric for designing the site. There are still some things to be added, but we hope you will check it out. There will be a link to this blog, as we will still use it in conjunction with the new Facebook page to update you on recent photos and news.

Fall Registration

We've been working on the lesson schedule for 2016-2017, and some of you have already contacted us to confirm your time. Current students/parents, if you haven't already done so, please call (705-542-3047) or email (ericandhannah-lee@gmail.com) to register for this year. We do have slots available for new students as well. Students of all ages are welcome. PIANO, FLUTE, GUITAR & DRUM lessons are all offered at Lessons in the Loft. We're looking forward to another great year of music!

Better Late than Never?

The blog has been a bit neglected lately, and some updates are in order...

On May 29th, we had our year-end recital at a new venue. Thank you to the Island Free Methodist church for their warm hospitality! Our student number has grown and it was lovely to be able to spread out in the large sanctuary and have so much space on the stage for our instruments. Congrats to all students for showing so much courage and heart in your performances.

2016 Lessons in the Loft piano, guitar and drum students

A special congratulations to Helen Lawrence and Alyssa Stevens who both achieved Honours results in their Grade Four Royal Conservatory of Music exams in June. Well done, girls! Hours of dedicated, technical practice goes into exam preparation, and we wish to acknowledge and recognize you for that.

Soon we will be getting in touch to plan out the Fall 2016 lesson schedule. We're looking forward to another great year of lessons. Until then, enjoy the rest of your summer!

Looking Back on Leap Day

It's been far too long, and it's time for a loft update! February was our winter recital month, and this year we decided to host a string of house concerts. The students came in groups of eight to ten, along with a parent or two, and we enjoyed some lovely, informal performances. It was a nice change from holding it at a large venue, and a good opportunity for the beginners to perform for a smaller, less-intimidating group. Based on the positive feedback from students and parents, I think we will try it again next year.

Upcoming events for our young musicians include the Sault Ste Marie music festival in April, and preparations for our spring recital which will be at the end of May. Keep checking in for an official date, time and location!

A belated welcome to Jonathan Norbo, who started piano lessons with Hannah-Lee in January.

New Students

We would like to welcome our new piano students, Colin and Simon Ableson. They had their first lessons today, and are already identifying their finger numbers and playing some tunes on the black keys. Great job, boys!

October Fun

We hope that everyone had a fabulous Thanksgiving weekend! This week at the loft we started pulling out some Halloween music and activities. There's nothing like a rhythmic song about pumpkins, or an eerie, ghostly melody to set the tone for this fun time of year.

A warm welcome to our newest piano students, Julia Campbell and Reuben Lawrence!

It's never too late to register. Give us a call to set up a lesson time: 705-542-3047

Fall at the Loft

What a warm but fun first week of lessons we have had! We enjoyed greeting both familiar and new faces arriving at the loft to start a new school year. A big welcome to our new students, Ellie Harten (piano), and Leah Norfolk (drums). We still have lesson slots available for piano, guitar, drums and flute. Students of all ages and levels are welcome. Call to set up a time: 705-542-3047

Fall Registration

Hello musical friends! You might be dragging your feet a little (like us) about school being just around the corner, and that's okay. It means we've all had a great summer, and we're not quite ready for it to end. We are excited about all the fun music we're going to play together this year, and it's time to start scheduling lessons so we can make that happen. Official registration of old and new students will start next week. Your old time slot will be held for you, and we'll make adjustments as needed before we start scheduling new students. We'll be in touch soon! Feel free to call any time for even earlier registration: 705-542-3047
Lessons start the second week of school...September 14th - 18th! See you soon.

RCM Exam Results

Congratulations to Katja Karhi and Kaija Karhi who both successfully passed their Royal Conservatory of Music Level Four piano exams. Kaija's mark fell within the "Honours" category! This is a great accomplishment for both students; a reflection of their hours of practice and love of their instrument. Well done!

Spring Recital 2015

Our Spring Recital was a great success. Thank you to all the students and parents for your dedication this year. Please see our article and photos in the North Channel Current. Happy Summer!

Spring Recital Preparations

We have just a few more days until our 2015 Spring Recital. It will be at the Laird Hall on Sunday, May 31st, at 6:00 PM. Students, keep practicing and reviewing those pieces. Here are a few more reminders:

1) Dress your best and arrive ahead of time with your music, so you can be calm and ready to play.
2) Remember your stage manners. Take your time with your performance...set up the bench comfortably, sit with good posture, and bow after your piece.
3) Be a good audience for the other students. Listen attentively and applaud after each performance. Tell someone else they did a good job (after the recital).
4) Have fun! This is our celebration of a year of hard work and enjoyment of creating music. Remember that everyone is there to support and celebrate with you.

Congratulations on another great year with us at Lessons in the Loft! See you on Sunday.

Spring Music Festival

Sydney Withers-Cott with Michel Fournier

This week five of our piano students participated in the 2015 Sault Ste Marie Music Festival at the new Algoma Conservatory of Music location on Huron St. This year's participants were Sydney Withers-Cott, James Schuster, Alyssa Stevens, Kaija Karhi and Katja Karhi. All five young pianists performed well and since the classes were small this year, each of them got to spend a significant amount of time with the adjudicator at the piano for some constructive tips. Concert pianist Michel Fournier of Montreal was the adjudicator this year, and he interacted exceptionally well with the students. It was a positive and productive experience for the students and the teachers who attended.

Katja Karhi performing Barcarole by David Duke

Fourteen Performance Awards of Distinction were awarded in the junior division this year, and two of our very own Lessons in the Loft students were listed as recipients! Congratulations to Alyssa Stevens and James Schuster for being named on the list for their "exceptional performances". We are very proud of you for receiving this honour!

Winter Recital 2015

Congratulations on your great performances at our recent recital, students! For a peak at some photographs and a brief article, visit the North Channel Current, here.

Welcome Back

Happy New Year! 2015 lessons have begun. We'd like to officially welcome new students Rebecca and Rachel Wellwood, Ava and Zoe Meadows, and Max Zimmerman.

Our winter recital will take place on Sunday, February 1st, at 3 PM, at the Laird Township Hall on Pumpkin Point Road. Mark the date on your calendars, and let's get practising!

Piano Origami

One of our piano students, Alyssa Stevens, has been learning how to do origami at her fall 4-H club. She showed up at her lesson yesterday with this amazing creation, complete with tiny sheet music! What a fun addition to the piano studio. Thanks, Alyssa!

A tiny piano, complete with a bench and sheet music!

Fall 2014

We have had a great beginning to lessons in the piano and guitar studios. It's been fun starting with some new students and picking up where we left off with the old ones. A big welcome to Patrick Cameron, a new guitar student, and to James Schuster who has joined us for piano. There are still lesson openings available for both piano and guitar. All ages and levels can be accommodated. Please help us spread the word.

Remember that next week (Sept 22-26) there will be no lessons as we will be rehearsing with our band, the Be Lyrebirds. If you are interested in coming out to hear us play, the benefit concert is on Thursday, September 25th, 7:30 PM at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Sault Ste Marie. It is unfortunate that it's on a school night, but we still hope to have a good turn out from the community. Here is a link to our blog where you can listen to our music for free: Be Lyrebirds

Have a great week off. Keep practising, and we'll see you the following week!

Fall Registration

Greetings, students, both old and new! Lessons will be starting the second week of school. If you were on our roster last year, you will be hearing from us some time this week so we can set up a time for the new year. At this point your old time is reserved for you, unless you want to make a change, which we will be happy to do.

We welcome new students of all ages and levels; adults too! It's never too late to learn an instrument, and it is an enriching, beneficial experience for the mind and body. Give us a call and register today.

705-255-5008

Summer Update

It's been a few weeks, but we're still bursting with pride about our students' fabulous performances at the Lessons in the Loft 2014 Spring Recital. Our new venue, the Laird Township Hall, worked out beautifully this year. One parent commented, "It felt like we were in an old concert hall, and this gave the event a professional vibe." Woohoo! I think we'll be booking the hall again next year. 

Congratulations to all our students. Our recital was the culmination and celebration of a year of dedicated practicing and consistent progress on your instruments. Your family and friends (and teachers) enjoyed the resulting evening immensely.

Lessons in the Loft class of 2014. Photo courtesy of Jane Karhi

I would like to just insert an update here on Alyssa Stevens, who took her RCM Grade Two examination just before the recital. Her evaluation was posted and she achieved First Class Honours yet again this year. Congratulations on a top result, Alyssa!

Happy Summer! See you in September.

This is It!

Well students, we're just a few days away from our spring recital. We're enjoying our final week of lessons with you and looking forward to some great performances this Saturday evening. See you there!

Recital details...in case you lost that second reminder notice (LOL):

Saturday, June 14th

7:00 P.M.

Laird Township Hall

Music Festival 2014

Last week, six of our piano students participated in the Sault Ste Marie Music Festival. Once again it took place at St. Luke's Cathedral, a beautiful church with fabulous acoustics. Students played their prepared pieces for adjudicator Chris Morano of Vancouver, B.C. on the rich-sounding Yamaha grand piano. 

Following their performances, the adjudicator spent one-on-one time with each student, commenting on what they did well and making suggestions for things they can do to improve. Students received certificates and detailed evaluations following their classes/workshops.

William Ambeault spends some time with the adjudicator, Chris Morano

  

This year the Lessons in the Loft participants were William Ambeault, Elizabeth Norbo, Alyssa Stevens, Ella Karhi, Kaija Karhi and Katja Karhi. We were so pleased with all of the students' performances. A special congratulations to Katja Karhi and Elizabeth Norbo, who both won $25.00 Scholarships for their fine playing. We are very proud of them for earning this honour.