Thanks to Music House, anyone can become a rock star. OK, not a real rock star, but the school will whip any pseudo musician or part-time artist into live performance shape.
Aaron and Katrinka Sizemore started Music House in 2006 to provide individual lessons, group classes and workshops to people who want to learn a new instrument or pick up where they left off in high school. We recently spoke to Sizemore about the organization's beginnings in 2006, how the school has evolved, and how Music House has brought accessible music lessons to community.
The Pitch: You and Katrinka started the Music House in 2006. How has it changed since its start? Do you offer more services, classes?
Aaron Sizemore: We started Music House with about 80 students, pooled from our own teaching studios as well as those of the teachers we brought aboard. The focus was on creating a community — a cultural experience. Get the students immersed in a musical environment composed of fans, peers and role models. That focus hasn’t changed; however, we’ve become much more effective. We now have almost 600 students working their way through our curriculum. These students collaborate in group classes, clubs and ensembles. They perform and attend concerts in our auditorium.
How did you two come up with the concept? Did you see a need in the community or did you just want to build a place where new musicians could flourish?
We saw a major flaw in the traditional approach to private music lessons. These lessons usually occur in a little room in the back of a sheet music store, or maybe in someone’s home. The student shows up to the first lesson with all kinds of exciting dreams about what it will be like to be a musician. And then reality sets in. Daily practice, punctuated only by a 30-minute one-on-one lesson, week after week. This doesn’t work. Music is a communal art form — it’s a language and a culture — and we knew that capitalizing on this basic truth was the key to coming up with a better way. So we created a place where students can collaborate, perform and feel part of something bigger than themselves.
What's each of your backgrounds in music?
At the time that we opened the school, my wife and I were both teaching and gigging — she as an orchestral oboist and me as a jazz guitarist. I gigged pretty much every night and taught during the day. Now, we run the school. That’s all we have time for. Katrinka and I miss performing, but, to be honest, we feel our contributions to Music House have a greater positive impact on people's lives than all our performances combined.
Your business has attracted a ton of great talent for teachers. How did they find you? Or how did you find them?
We were both active, professional musicians when we opened Music House, so we knew a lot of teachers and performers. We basically sat down, made a list of our “dream team” members, and then went after them. It ended up being easier than we thought. Most everyone we approached was excited about what we were trying to do. They really believed in it and wanted to be a part of it. So we got our dream team. Now we receive resumes pretty much every week, which allows us to be extremely selective.
What's the most popular workshop or class?
We offer private lessons, too, but all lesson students have many performance and collaboration opportunities. That’s key. The Band Workshops are an example of this, which are extremely popular. Once students reach a certain point in the curriculum, they are eligible to become part of a band. In addition to their weekly private lessons, they rehearse with their band every week, onstage and coached by our faculty in our auditorium. Then they perform at our Friday Night Concerts, which also feature local professional musicians (upcoming shows include the New South String Quartet and the Barclay Martin Ensemble). Group guitar and piano are also very popular. It’s a fun way for people learn the instrument. Our Friday night Adult Jam club is getting pretty big, too. It’s an informal gathering of our adult students where they are coached through the art of jamming. Some play, some just hang out and socialize. They love it. Our woodwinds and strings programs have really been growing lately.
Can people with zero experience take beginner courses?
Our curriculum starts at square one, so actually, many of our new students are absolute beginners, ages 6 through adult. It’s true that we have some pretty advanced students, but a lot of them started with us as beginners. We have programs for bass, cello, clarinet, drums, guitar, oboe, piano, saxophone, viola, violin, and voice.
The school is sponsoring the open mic at Take Five on Friday, correct? How'd that come about?
We like to support local business, and Take Five is one that we think is particularly cool. I think it was Lori, the owner, who approached us first. She actually sponsors our Friday Night Concert Series, and we, in turn, promote her events whenever we can. We feel a kinship with her because she’s very focused on enhancing the culture of the local community — and she’s a devoted jazz fan.
Do you have any plans for school expansion or opening satellite schools around the area? Future partnerships?
Yes, we sure do. Stay tuned.
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Tonight, Music House (7465 W. 161st St., 913-562-4112) is sponsoring an open-mic night at Take Five Coffee + Bar (5336 W. 151st St., 913-948-5550). 8 p.m. until 10 p.m. Singers, actors, comedians and poets welcome.
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