Hello everyone, and welcome to my website! I hope this will answer any questions you may have about piano lessons, policies, the calendar, group week, Guild dates and more. Please email me if you have any further questions.
February 8, 2010
Here's a picture from the Siegel-Hoffman competition on January 30 that featured two students from our studio. At left is Dr. Scott Beard, fourth from left is Heather Price (winner of the Haydn second movement!) and at far right is Elizabeth Buscher.
Congratulations to all participants!
January 3, 2010
Happy New Year! Here's an inspiring quote from Moliere:
Also known by his stage name - Moliere
Also known by his stage name - Moliere
(1622 - 1673)
occur only because of the neglect to learn music.
Does not war result from the lack of unison among men?
Thus, were all men to learn music, would not this be
the means of agreement between them and of seeing
universal peace reign all over the world?"
July 22, 2009
Dear Parents & Students,
Summer is half over already! I hope you have enjoyed the lovely weather and are having some fun experiences. I'm looking forward to seeing you all at lessons again which will begin on Tuesday, September 8, the day after Labor Day.
I have updated the tuition, policies and enrollment forms for the 2009-2010 year. You will notice a slight change in monthly tuition and an increase in the per family registration fee to $40.
The reason for the increased registration fee is to make sure my costs are covered for preparation time, supplies, etc. Each student I take on requires an investment of my time and effort even outside of the lesson time, as I'm sure you know. Also, I am currently working on a Certificate in Piano Pedagogy, requiring additional time and expense.
The registration fee is per family, so in effect it is a family discount for those with more than one child taking lessons.
I would like to make an emphasis on motivation and practicing this year. Enclosed is a student practicing contract to be signed by both student and parent. At the first lesson of the year, I would like to interview both the parent and the student to go over this and other items such as a newly structured assignment notebook and goals for the year. Please let me know if you cannot attend the first lesson, and we can arrange to meet another time.
I will be away August 16 - 23. Please be sure to return the enclosed registration forms and fee, as well as the first month's tuition, by August 24. At that time I will make up the lesson schedule.
I'm looking forward to a fun year for everyone!
Sincerely,
Ruth Raubertas
May 16, 2009
Congratulations, everyone, on a wonderful Guild performance! I am so happy that this year we had 100% participation, and five of our students performed a 10 piece program! You can be proud of all your hard work...you have accomplished a large task and improved your piano skills as a result.
This coming week will be the last week of lessons. The following week I will be traveling to the Philadelphia area to judge for the Guild. I will return on May 29, but feel free to email me any time.
Our end-of-year recital will be held on Tuesday, June 2 at 7 p.m. at St. Peters Lutheran Church in Shepherdstown. Please let me know if you would like to bring something for the refreshment table. I will provide the cake.
Also, please let me know if you are interested in summer lessons. I would prefer students to commit to the number of lessons you want and then prepay (no refunds unless I cancel lessons). I will be taking time off but will let you know when.
Thanks for all your hard work!
March 20, 2009 Welcome to Spring! There are some changes and announcements listed below. GUILD AUDITIONS will be held at Shepherd University on Wednesday, May 13, from noon to 6:30 p.m. Please let me know what times you would prefer. I am making a change in the calendar for April - after spring break the week of April 13, I would like to hold group classes the week of April 20. Otherwise, there will be no more group classes. If you prefer a private lesson that week or if you need a makeup lesson, let me know. There will be no group lessons in May. I will be going to Boston April 2 through April 6, so I will be contacting the Thursday, Friday and Monday students to reschedule. I will not be participating in the EPMTA Spring Adjudication at Shepherd. However, if any students are interested in playing in the April 26 EPMTA recital, let me know. February 19, 2009 It is time to think about Guild auditions which will be May 11-13. If you have time preferences on those days, let me know. I will assume each student will play four pieces unless you tell me otherwise. Students playing 10 pieces 5 years in a row are recognized in the Guild Notes magazine. Fees are as follows: $25 for a 4 to 6 piece program ($29 for Annika - IC level) $27 for a 7 to 9 piece program ($31 for IC level) $29 for a 10 piece program ($33 for IC level) If you can get those to me soon then I can send in the forms and hopefully get an early pick on audition times. Some other upcoming dates (which earn trophy points for MTNA - held at Shepherd University) are: Technic and Theory testing March 14 (9:45 to noon or so) Spring Adjudication April 4 (a.m. and early p.m) Spring Recital April 26 (2:00, 3:15 and 4:30) I will be helping with the theory testing but I may or may not be present at the other events. Please let me know if you are interested. |
January 6, 2009
Happy New Year to all! I hope you like the new website and can find your way around - if not, let me know.
Please note in the calendar that Guild week has been changed to May 11-13, so I will not give regular lessons that week. Instead, I WILL give regular lessons the week of May 18, and the last day of lessons will be May 22.
Thanks,
Ruth
p.s. The site was designed and developed by my daughter Clara Raubertas who owns her own web development business in Cambridge, Massachusetts. If you need help with any aspects of a website, you can contact her at www.clararaubertas.net.
August 5, 2008
Dear Parents & Students,
I hope you are all having an enjoyable summer! We are mostly staying home working in the garden and enjoying some family visits. We will be traveling to Vermont the last week in August after which I plan to take another week off before piano lessons start up again. Therefore, lessons will not begin until Monday, September 8. I recommend that you include the first month's tuition along with your registration fee and reply form to avoid the late fee which will be charged after the 10th of the month.
This year I am making several changes that will affect studio policies and tuition. I wish to make tuition more equitable in regards to charging everyone the same rate for group lessons (in the past students with 45 or 60 minute lessons were paying more than their fair share for group lessons). Although I am increasing my hourly rate from $36 to $40, it will mainly affect students who are taking a half hour lesson. (However, please note I am no longer combining siblings for a 45 or 60 minute lesson – see below). An explanation of tuition charges is included on the tuition/policy page.
In regards to cancellations and makeup lessons, in general, if a student or parent cancels a lesson, I will not guarantee a makeup lesson and will not issue credits or refunds for missed lessons. In the case of illness or inclement weather, I will do what I can to see if a makeup lesson is possible. If I need to cancel your lesson I will make it up or offer a credit.
In addition, I will no longer combine 2 siblings for a 45 minute lesson. A lesson under a half hour is really only feasible for children 5 and under with short attention spans. Older children should have at least a half hour lesson. Lesson fees are now per student. Remember, your tuition covers not only the lesson time but also group classes, recitals, and guild applications as well as continuing education and professional dues and expenses as I prepare to work with each student.
This year there will be 6 group lesson weeks scheduled throughout the year during which there are no regular lessons. Please consult the enclosed calendar to find out when the group weeks are. They are not on the same week every month, and there will be no group lessons in December, April and May.
To help you out, this year I am setting up a website with the help of my daughter who does web design and development. If you forget anything, or lose your piano lesson calendar, it will all be on the website!!
You should have received your letter and reply form in the mail (let me know if you need one). Please return the form postmarked by August 28 to reserve your place for the year, as well as the "Pianists of Note!" form along with a photo.
I look forward to hearing from you and seeing everyone again!