Online cello lessons are happening more than ever due to COVID. But the great secret is not so much that people are using this technology at an increasing rate to learn cello online. The secret is that this format has a lot of benefits for teaching music lessons. Beethoven at home has hundreds of professionals waiting to help you whether you need beginner lessons, advanced cello lessons or you just want to learn to play your favorite popular songs or video game music. We offer nearly every instrument lessons including piano, voice, violin, wind instruments and percussion. Live online lessons are up to 5 times more productive than merely watching videos and attempting to learn independently. If you can already play by ear a little bit then working with a trained teacher will bring that talent into better focus for you.

What benefits do online cello lessons offer?

Choice of teacher: Online cello lessons offer more flexibility in choice of teacher. Where before we would be limited by what teachers where in our neighbourhood or city, we can now explore music teachers from all over the country and the world.

There are also certain cognitive benefits to music learning online. The format forces a sort of concentration and listening that is hard to beat. Actually students and parents roften report increased attention span and retention of what has been learned.

You might have had a negative experience with online learning in groups. This is understandable. Online sessions with 30 some odd learners are less than ideal. However in the case of individual instruction the negatives are minimal and the positives are measurable.

What is the best method or software for online lessons?

Online cello lessons, often referred to as zoom cello lessons, are best managed on the Zoom conferencing service. Zoom is a software you download to your computer that uses your internet browser to hold a video call. There is no free trial it is simply free. There are paid plans but they are not needed for teacher or student unless you want to have group sessions longer than 40 minutes.

There are other platforms available like skype or facetime but they do not have the correct audio fidelity to do a good job of a music lesson. They may in fact work just fine for certain instruments but the reality is that the echo-cancellation of the software can turn a trumpet for example into an electric guitar. The advanced settings of the audio menu in Zoom will show you the best way to set up a zoom call for a music lesson.

It's very important to make sure you have a good trial run from the outset. Your goal is to learn to play in your lessons not to be learning how to set up the machine. Here's an easy tutorial. (zoom music lesson set up presentation)

Music teachers will appreciate the waiting room like functionality of the Zoom application. Students arrive and are put in a virtual waiting room just like in a real office. As a teacher you can even pop in to your virtual waiting room and send a message to a waiting student that you'll be another five minutes.

A special note about beginner lessons for children. If your child is younger your participation will be more important than ever. This is not new, young children with parents that are involved in their learning to play are more successful always. This experience can be very enriching to a parent child relationship and sometimes the parent winds up becoming a student and a teacher all at once.

What kind of equipment do I need?

The majority of students will be fine with a laptop or a tablet and a nice pair of headphones to start their online learning. Smartphones are a possibility but the small size of screen is less than ideal. Phones can be useful as a second camera to show certain different angles of for example cello fingering or hand position.

Music teachers can invest in better and/or additional cameras or microphones but there's no reason we can't start with the basics.

If you really want the very best rig possible here are my recommendations. Again this is not at all necessary and perhaps a good investment for the busy online teacher or the student that just loves gear:

• You want perhaps a better camera or a second camera and a stereo mic. Here is a link to a 4k camera with a built in stereo mic that will give you very professional result in your video lessons. The manufacturer is also called Zoom but there is no connection between the 2 companies.
• You also might want a workable tablet and writing surface. I recommend an iPad pro or the regular version with an Apple pencil stylus and the app goodnotes. This is helpful for drawing and writing on staff paper or sheet music while teaching music theory or marking up a score. The ability to read music and draw is a great advantage to be able to have.
• You will need a great set of headphones to use the best features in the Zoom software. They should be slim enough to allow you to play or sing without distraction.

Simply select a teacher from Beethoven at Home and Book an interview. Your teacher will contact you shortly to begin your lessons.

HOW TO START ONLINE CELLO LESSONS

A simple explanation of our process

1

Choose

Choose a cello teacher that’s just right for you.

2

Book an Interview

Get in touch with your cello teacher on the phone or by text or by email. Ask questions and try to determine if this is the right teacher student relationship. Feel free to set a time for your first cello lesson.

3

Try It Out

Use the first two lessons to see if things are working the way you’d like. Cancel at anytime or ask to have another teacher assigned.

4

Enjoy!

We have students that have enjoyed learning with us for over a decade. Whether you are a parent looking for the right teacher to start a young child on the right path or an adult looking to play for pleasure and enjoyment we have the right teacher for you.