Who are you?
Hi,
My name is Kevin Matthews. I’m the founder of, and Director of Music at, PLUK. I also run our piano school up in Bristol. I am a composer, music producer, performer and author of piano courses amongst other musical literature.

Where do you teach from?
I hold my online piano lessons from my home just outside of Bristol, on a lovely Welmar piano.

What are the benefits of teaching piano lessons online?
The benefits of teaching the piano online are that I can show very clear points of view that I’d never been able to before in the lessons, face to face. I find that children are actually more focused when holding online piano lessons. The notes that I make are saved to the online calendar and therefore it’s impossible for someone to forget to bring the practice diary. Likewise with the music being forgotten or lost. It’s all online. I can link to any music I want the student to listen to and the parent or student can reference the music later, if we record the sessions. If the student is younger and we send these links, practice notes and videos to their personal email address, then it also gives that piano student a greater feeling of ownership and responsibility. 

Have there been any downsides?
It takes a lesson or so to get setup but it’s not too tricky. I now have some great microphones which help but initially the sound was a little fuzzy my end.

What equipment do you use for the online piano lessons?
I use GoogleMeet. For hardware, I use my smartphone above the piano, a laptop to the left and a tripod where I mount a camera. Although, I’m still juggling with a few other options.

I’m always happy to try new equipment if these will facilitate a better online experience.

Kind regards,

Thanks,

Kevin Matthews