Private lessons

One to one, on top of the orchestra.

The orchestra teaches a child how to play with other people. A private lesson is where individual technique gets built, at whatever pace that particular child needs. Most students who move up quickly here are doing both.

What a lesson adds

The part an ensemble cannot do for you.

In an ensemble the music gets adapted to the players in the room, which is what lets a beginner and an advanced player sit in the same orchestra. A private lesson works the other way around. It’s the one hour that belongs entirely to your child, and it’s where a bow hold or an awkward shift finally gets fixed instead of worked around.

Technique

Posture, tone, intonation, and the physical habits that decide how far a player can eventually go.

Repertoire

Solo pieces chosen for that student, including audition and competition preparation.

COS also runs the Instrumental Technique Advancement Program, a separate group class focused on technique.

About ITAP

What they can play

Lessons on any of these.

Beginners and advanced players are both taken. The lesson is arranged directly with the teacher for that instrument.

How it fits

Scheduled with your teacher, not slotted into the block.

Ensemble and musicianship classes run to a fixed Saturday timetable. Private lessons are arranged directly between the family and the teacher, so the lesson can sit either side of your child’s other classes and you don’t make a second trip.