TC190: Inspiring and Motivating Teens with Jerald Simon

motivating teens for piano - Jerald Simon

Learn about inspiring and motivating teen piano students in this podcast episode.

Jerald Simon of Music Motivation joins us in a rebroadcast of one of our favourite shows from last year. One of the interesting points Jerald shares in this conversation is a story about one of his students coming in for a lesson and literally saying he didn’t want to touch the piano keys! 

We talk about how and why he started composing music for his teenage students and the awesome outcomes he achieved from doing so. Teaching isn’t just about being rigid to help the students learn their chords, notes, etc. It’s more about inspiring and motivating your teens to play and make the music their own.

Transcript of the Show

If you’d like to download a PDF transcript of this episode, please click below.

In this episode, you’ll learn about motivating teens in piano:

  • [03:46] Jerald’s background and studio.
  • [04:36] The types of classes he teaches in his studio.
  • [05:43] Teaching a transfer student who hates piano.
  • [14:49] Hooking students to learn piano.
  • [18:56] Finding music that connects with your students.
  • [21:15] Tips for teachers to have their students take ownership of their cool songs.
  • [23:44] Using backing tracks during lessons.
  • [25:45] Boosting students’ self-esteem in piano recitals.
  • [27:59] Jerald’s compositions and YouTube videos.
  • [30:21] Starting spot in teaching students to play.
  • [32:48] Top tips for motivating teenagers.

Links Mentioned

About our Guest

motivating teens for piano - Jerald Simon author image

Jerald Simon is the founder of Music Motivation, a company that provides music instruction through workshops, seminars, concerts and performances in the field of music and motivation. He is a composer, author, poet, music mentor, and piano teacher primarily focusing his piano teaching on music theory, improvisation, composition and arranging.

Thank you for tuning in!

In conclusion, there are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, and I’m grateful that you’ve chosen mine. Whether you’re at the gym, on the bike or in the car, I know that you and your students will get lots out of what you learn in the long run.

Just make sure you try out some of the ideas before they get lost in the business of your next lessons!

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