BASIC
PREMIUM*
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Hi, I'm Rob
I've taught private guitar, voice, and stage performance in Seattle since 2003.
I've also been helping music teachers inspire their students and grow their business since 2009.
I love this job, but it was never easy, especially early on.
Before I started teaching guitar in 2003, I was Seattle's Worst Handyman. I'll spare you the details, but let's just say this career suits me better.
Still, during those first few years, my student concerts were typical. They stank.
My students were awkward and nervous. The audience was politely non-entertained. And organizing these shows was so much work. I wasn't sure it was worth it, especially when I started paying venues and accompanists out of pocket.
Over years of trial and error, after performing at some terrible venues (pro tip: a huge, echoey school auditorium is not a good recital space), and surviving some extremely stressful shows, I developed a formula for my recitals that transformed them into fun, inspiring concerts with truly good music. YouTube videos of the Jam have been watched by over 6 million people. And my students love, love, love performing, even the shy ones.
Check out this amazing footage. See what a difference a great venue and great backup band makes? Every parent wants this kind of experience for their child.
Emma performing her original, "Snow Day" in 2009
Introducing
TOTALLY AWESOME RECITALS
I can teach you how I made my student concerts so successful.
It’s a formula. I’ve broken the process down step-by-step, walking you through each of the phases of developing your next recital. There’s no guesswork: Just follow the plan.
By the end of the course, you'll know how to...
Prepare Students for the Stage
Using visualization to prepare students mentally
Teaching stagecraft
Scheduling and running full-band rehearsals
Organize Your Recital
Finding a venue
Keeping track of student, song, and pricing data
Getting great video footage
Debriefing with your team after the recital
Collaborate with Other Teachers
Finding music teachers who complement your skills
Delegating work to your team
Including other teachers' students in your recital
Make Your Concerts TOTALLY AWESOME
Setting the proper tone at the show
Introducing your students with flair
Thanking students, staff, and audience warmly
Creating unity among your team of teachers
who take their business seriously
WHAT THEY SAY
You've been extremely important in the success of my music school.
I spent a lot of money on my education at Berklee College of Music and learned a ton, but one thing they didn't teach was how to start your own music teaching business. You showed me how.
Four years ago, I started with fliers and a website and no students. I now have well over 200 students. I just raised my rates for the first time, and it looks like I'll be making about $10,000 per 8-week session. That just absolutely blows my mind, especially only working 3-8 from home, Monday through Friday.
And more importantly, with that many students, I have made a lot of great relationships with parents and I feel like an important part of my community, and that I'm adding value to these people's lives.
I am very grateful for your guidance.
Sean P. Rogan
You Rock School of Music
Why improve your recitals?
Great recitals
Motivate Students
We all struggle to motivate our students to practice. How do you compete with a young student’s Xbox or soccer games? Or an adult student’s demanding job and family commitments?
The answer is: You give them something more compelling: A chance to perform music they love for an enthusiastic crowd. Here's a rough graph showing how motivated my students are before and after my recitals.
Most of my students slack just like yours do. But when they're preparing for my recitals, they practice like olympic athletes.
true story
Once upon a time, I taught a 6-year-old, Ana, who did not like her guitar lessons.
Right after her mom dropped her off, Ana pretended to be a dog. Have you ever tried teaching music to a dog?
When she got tired of being a dog, she pretended to be tired. Very, very tired. Have you ever tried teaching someone who's asleep?
I knew I needed to get her on stage. I taught how to handle stage fright in between naps. I showed her footage of other kids having fun on stage. "Woof," she said.
Finally, she performed on stage. She was nervous!
Her song wasn't amazing, but audiences go nuts for nervous kids with dimples. She beamed as the crowd cheered.
The next lesson, Ana bounded through my door, announcing the next song she wanted to perform. The narcoleptic dog never returned.
the end
Great recitals
Make Money
Student concerts are an overlooked opportunity.
Here's what great recitals produce...
Loyalty
Students who are having a blast will have better attendance and take lessons with you longer.
Referrals
Students and their parents tell their friends about your amazing shows. Voila! New students, primed to love their lessons from Day 1.
Free Advertising
Students invite their friends to the shows, and share video footage on social media. Friends are blown away. Bam! More new students.
Pay-to-Play
Students will gladly pay for these experiences. You can offer affordable options where students play solo, while premium rock star packages with a professional backing band earn you big money.
You've played countless $100 gigs and made great sacrifices to get to where you are. Why shouldn't you go on the same tropical vacations your students do?
How Much Can You Make?
I currently charge $165/hour for lessons, which is more than triple the going rate for lessons in the Seattle area. How do I justify it? Giving my students performance experiences that they'll tell their grandchildren about.
My 2016 private lesson income
What you'll get
100 PAGE EBOOK
This lovingly crafted ebook contains the majority of the course content, which means you can study wherever you have a phone, tablet, or laptop.
INTRODUCTORY VIDEOS
Each of the four ebook modules starts with a video intended to get you stoked and show you what you’ll learn.
LESSON VIDEOS
Two of the course’s lesons have video demonstrations. Sometimes you just gotta see it in action.
PRIVATE FACEBOOK GROUP
Online courses have one big drawback: You’re often alone. This means you miss out on the encouragement, accountability, and advice you get from your classmates and teacher. I don’t care how disciplined you are: It’s very, very difficult to sustain hard work when you’re alone.
My solution is to provide an online community: A private Facebook group of other music teachers enrolled in Totally Aweseome Recitals. Because it’s private, we’re free to discuss your teaching and your business.
COURSE COMPLETION GUIDE
I believe online courses are most enjoyable and satisfying when they have a finish line. That's why you'll start your Totally Awesome Recitals adventure by planning what you'd like to achieve in the course, using this 10-page Course Completion Guide. You'll evaluate the current state of your student concerts using my fun and easy "Awesomeness Level" rating system, then choose the enhancements you want to make to bump that level up a notch.
You'll evaluate the current state of your student concerts using my fun and easy "Awesomeness Level" rating system, then choose the enhancements you want to make to bump that level up a notch.
TRELLO PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOL
As you probably know, student concert organization can get complicated. It's easy to get overwhelmed juggling emails with your video person, scheduling the setlist around students' soccer games, sending the venue your stage plot, and a multitude of other administrative tasks.
All this stuff is totally manageable if you have an easy way of tracking it. My favorite tool is Trello.
This is the Google Doc spreadsheet my team of teachers uses to organize all our student, song, and pricing data. It's product of a decade of innovations, revisions, and pulling our hair out.
This is the professionally-designed template I use for all my student concerts. It's beautiful, but also generic enough to be used by any music teacher.
Just add your logo to the front, details like the date and location of the show, and your setlist.
Thanks for putting great work out there and for spreading the music gospel the way it ought to be spread - with passion, attention to detail and a sense of humor.
Jim Bowley, Guitar Teacher in Bel Air, MD
What Other Teachers Say
I wrote a guide to running a successful guitar teaching business called Rob's Totally Awesome Guitar Teaching Handbook. Here's some feedback from my readers.
“
I can without doubts or reservations deem this The Bible of beginner-intermediate guitar instruction.
JP Holesworth -
Stratoblogster.com
“
I started teaching in 2009 but with little success. Then I read your eBook and it changed my world tremendously. I was able to get up to 35 regular students a week! I recommend it to everyone I know who wants to teach.
Tommy Bryant -
Guitar Teacher
“
The only reason I am teaching regularly is because of your book. I read it cover to cover. I immediately connected with your story and your writing style. Best $30 I've ever spent.
Bruce Kaechele -
Six Open Strings Guitar Lessons
Guarantee
You have to take enough risks in life, this shouldn't be one of them. Try the course for 30 days, and if you're not completely satisfied, I'll refund your entire purchase, with zero hassle.
Let's Get Started
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