Composer
Educator
Performer
Private Lessons
Lesson Rates
WEEKLY:
$40 for 30 minutes
$55 for 45 minutes
$65 for 60 minutes
INTERMITTENT (biweekly, monthly, or other):
$45 for 30 minutes
$60 for 45 minutes
$75 for 60 minutes
Frequently Asked Questions
What kinds of lessons can I take?
Max offers lessons for fiddle/violin, viola, mandolin, composition, songwriting, music theory, and more!
What styles can I learn?
While the classical approach to violin and viola is all well and good (and certainly an option if it’s of interest to you), Max is also fluent in several traditional folk styles, including American old-time, bluegrass, Irish, Scottish, and klezmer. If you are interested in these genres, your lessons could tend more towards learning rollicking dance tunes by ear, getting the hang of stylistic ornamentation, and improvising blazing fiddle solos. Lessons could also focus on transcribing pop or rock songs for the violin, or even writing your own music! Music lessons are about the music that is meaningful and exciting to you, and helping you express your artistic side; they shouldn’t feel like going down a checklist of violin pieces that you’re Supposed To Learn.
So what IS the difference between a fiddle and a violin, anyway?
Generally, nothing! While there are some folk styles that use a fiddle that’s physically different (like the Norwegian hardanger), most fiddle music is played on an instrument identical to the violin (and, of course, violists and cellists can fiddle, too!) In some styles, including old-time, we’ll occasionally tune our strings to different pitches than they do in “standard” tuning to create big, resonant drones – want to learn how?
I don’t know any music theory – can I still take composition lessons?
ABSOLUTELY! Music theory is not a prerequisite for writing music; anyone can compose! Lessons in composition or songwriting are a great way to explore your own creativity and personal voice, and they make a great supplement to instrumental lessons as well! (And if you want to learn music theory, that’s always an option too!)
Am I too young/too old to start lessons?
You are NEVER too old to start taking music lessons – no matter what you’ve been told, it’s never “too late” to pick up a musical instrument. For the pragmatic reasons of focus around screens, as well as the necessity of physically adjusting the student’s posture and/or hands, Zoom lessons on violin or viola are not recommended for pure beginner students under the age of 12, though younger students with previous experience on the instrument will be successful.
Why Zoom lessons? Why not in-person?
Max does offer a limited number of in-person lessons. However, while Zoom lessons are certainly a different experience to in-person lessons, it’s important to understand that they are not inherently lesser; rather, they each simply have their own pros and cons. Zoom lessons offer a number of advantages not shared by in-person lessons: the ability to screen-share, annotate, and save scores and notation software windows (particularly valuable in composition lessons), the ability to record examples, practice guides, and backing tracks directly in-lesson, and (perhaps most importantly) the ability to receive the same quality instruction no matter where the student resides, with no commute.