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Published: Saturday, 07 December 2024 at 10:00 AM

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So you’ve chosen to study music after leaving school… Read on to discover Seth Parker Woods’s advice on finding the right teacher at music college…

• New to studying a musical instrument? Here’s how to choose the right teacher for beginners

The right teacher at music college… Always choose the teacher over the institution

My core advice for any young musician looking for a good teacher or music school is: don’t go for the institution, go for the teacher. Your teacher becomes your liaison, your advocate, the person who’ll know you almost better than anyone. At times, your teacher may be more like a therapist, or life coach. They are such a crucial figure in your musical development.

• What instrument should I learn? Here are five questions to ask yourself before you commit

Do their playing style and personality match your own?

So, how to choose the right teacher? I think it’s important to look for a style of playing, a personality and a way of teaching that matches your own. You also want someone who has experience of where you want to get to in music.

• 5 music teachers who changed the face of western classical music

For example, you may want to find a teacher with huge experience of performing chamber music, or orchestral music, or as a soloist – or a blend of all of these. I wanted the experience of being able to play as a soloist, whether in recital or with an orchestra, so I needed a teacher who could give me that perspective and could reflect back to me the career that I was planning on.

• Curtis Institute of Music: the American music school that creates the world’s top performers

The right teacher at music college… Make sure to arrange a meeting before committing

Then, once you’ve selected a few likely candidates, meet with them. In years gone by, this was difficult – if, say, you were based in New York and your teacher in Germany – but now, Zoom and other virtual conferencing has made this so much easier. So, arrange a meeting – not just to meet them as people, but also to see whether their teaching and playing styles are a good fit for you.

• The Juilliard School: when it was founded, who it’s named after and some of its most famous alumni

Don’t force yourself into studying with someone whom your gut tells you isn’t quite right, because you’ll be spending a lot of time together! Both musically and interpersonally, you’ve got to have the right synergy.