COVID19 – Student Resource Page

Here are our core messages for the students and teachers of our School of Music:

Our mission is Making Music Matter, in both the good times and the bad! For many of you, the next few weeks will provide an unusual time opportunity to practice your instrument more and deepen your skillset.

If you’re interested in exploring a new instrument, we are happy to sell you one! Our operations are “by appointment” right now, but we are making it easy for you to Shop Local At Home.

Right now, most lessons are being conducted via videochat. It’s not hard and it’s really fun!

• Install the Google Duo App from the Google Play or iTune App Store.  This app works well on all platforms and will work with all teachers.
• Facetime is an iOS-only option with Daniel Gomez and other teachers that have an iPhone.

• You’ll also want to put in your teacher’s contact information into your phone’s Contacts ahead of time (coming in a separate email).
• You can use a smartphone, a tablet, laptop, computer, or pretty much anything with a webcam, microphone, and speakers. Most devices are loud enough to work, but you may want to experiment ahead of time with a bluetooth speaker, headset and/or headphones.
• If you have a tripod, awesome, but otherwise, you can typically prop the device against a stack of books so it’s the right angle. Make sure the device is in the horizontal position and focused on the hands of the player; face is less important. If you want a tripod, we recommend a tripod and mount like this, but there are a bunch of good options. This is not necessary, however.
• Make sure your phone is using wifi and not your cell data. Most home wifi is plenty fast for this, but if you find it’s laggy, it might help to ask the rest of the household to stop doing internet-intensive tasks while the video lesson is happening
• If the video call just doesn’t work, please call your teacher for this particular lesson. If the technology just doesn’t work, please contact us regarding a credit. 

While this is a big change for many of us, it’s actually how many people have been teaching private lessons for years already, to rave reviews.  Imagine being a violin player in South Africa and getting to take lessons with one of the members of the Chicago Symphony! It’s happening! 

We’re optimistic that in the long run, having this experience with video lessons will allow all of us more flexibility in offering make-up lessons and serving you, our students, better, even long after this virus situation has ended.

Click here to view our Company Response to COVID19, as it pertains to all of our customers, with more information in regards to:

• Staffing and Hours
• Plans for Sanitizing
• Free Delivery Options
• More Flexible Rent-to-Own & Finance Options
• Why We’re Continuing to Offer Musical Products & Services

FPC School of Music Policies

Family Piano Co’s School of Music will begin a measured, cautious transition back to in-person lessons beginning June 6th.

In-person lesson slot availability will initially be limited and we thank all our students and families for their continued patience as we prioritize the safety of our students above all else.

FPC plans to proceed with an abundance of caution and will continue to closely monitor the local prevalence of Covid-19 so we can make well-informed decisions about slowly loosening certain safety precautions and continuing to expand the availability of in-person lessons in the upcoming weeks. All precautions taken by Family Piano Co are backed by the science and data. 

All students returning for in-person lessons must agree to follow our safety precautions, including: 

• Washing hands immediately before their lesson time. 
• Temperature check immediately before their lesson time. 
• Mask wearing throughout the entirety of their lesson time.
• Maintaining at least 6 feet of social distancing as often as possible.
• Students who show potential symptoms will have their in-person lesson cancelled and made up as a video lesson. 

These same precautions will be taken by our entire teaching staff. Additional precautions include: 

• Plexiglass separating teacher and student
• Two pianos/keyboards in designated piano lesson rooms to limit shared surface contact
• Extensive sanitization of studios/common surfaces throughout the store. Bleach and alcohol solutions will be used along with UV-C wands and nightly Ozone sanitization treatment.
• Lesson studio doors will be open for increased air flow when practical.

Please note that we initially will close our indoor waiting area to families, to be re-examined in the next few weeks. Weather permitting, we will have outdoor seating available.

Donna will be reaching out to students in the upcoming days and weeks to establish interest for in-person lessons. It is possible that time slots will have to be rescheduled in accordance to reduced capacity guidelines.

In addition, students/families may be asked to disclose if they or anyone they live with has a high risk of exposure (for example, working in a crowded grocery store 8 hours a day) or a high-risk of Covid-19 complications. Disclosure of information is voluntary and will not disqualify any student for in-person lessons, rather it will just be one factor to take into consideration. Conversely, we will disclose to students if their teacher has a high risk of exposure to Covid-19. 

Video lessons will continue as an option for all students throughout this transition and beyond. We thank all of our students and families for their continued understanding and support as we continue to pave the path forward for music education. 

If you have further questions about in-person lessons and our safety precautions, please send Donna an email at [email protected] and she will reach out to you as soon as possible.

Together, we’ll continue to Make Music Matter!