Saxophone, Flute, Clarinet and Recorder lessons

 You may be surprised to find out that taking woodwind lessons has many health benefits!

• Strengthen your breath;
• Improve your posture and strengthen your core muscles;
• Confidence and calmness when under pressure;
• Boost hand-eye coordination   

The saxophone is very accommodating in the early stages of musical development. Within the standard range, notes respond easily, even with the most undeveloped embouchure  (the position of the lips in producing a tone) and breathing technique. The saxophone is not as prone to "squeak" like the clarinet or sound airy and flat like the flute in the beginning. Soon thereafter, however, much attention need be given to the development of good posture, support, relaxation, hand position, breathing, embouchure, articulation, and manual dexterity.

With all of these components functioning independent of one another, it should come as no surprise that taking saxophone lessons demands a great deal of concentration, as is the case with all musical instruments.  Beginners often have difficulty producing the low notes or "bell tones" and the high notes or "palm keys." The extended range or "altissimo register" should not be explored until the player has a firm grasp of proper breathing, embouchure, and tone production. There are three different popular types of saxophone - Alto, Soprano, and Tenor. 

The cost of a saxophone varies and can run in the thousands. Our Oakville sax teacher highly recommends renting a saxophone until the student is very serious about the instrument because good quality saxophones start at the $1,000 range and up.  Please talk to our music co-ordinator about recommended rental facilities for our students.   

Starting children in music as early as possible is integral for a lifetime of learning and loving music.  But sometimes starting them out on an instrument is not always the best first step.   BE CAREFUL!  When children start on an adult sized instrument too soon, when their bodies, hands and arms are not large enough to handle or play the instrument properly, this may cause the child to have a negative and frustrating experience and therefore be negative about music lessons for the rest of his or her life.

There are a couple of options for the aspiring saxophone student;  Our Mini Musicians early childhood music program is specifically designed for children between the ages of 3 - 8.  Please go to the link below to read more about it.  Another option is to start the student in recorder lessons first.  See info below for recorder lessons.

If sax lessons have been agreed upon and approved by our woodwind teacher, It is advised that a younger child begin sax lessons on alto due to its smaller size.  

You may be surprised to find out that taking lessons in Saxophone, Flute, or Clarinet have many health benefits!

• Strengthen your breath;
• Improve your posture and strengthen your core muscles;
• Confidence and calmness when under pressure;
• Boost hand-eye coordination   

Flute lessons are very popular at Addison Music Learning Centre in Oakville.  The hardest part of learning the flute is mastering the mouth position to create the beautiful sound. Some of the advantages of flute are its amazing portability; it is very small as well as lightweight. Flute players are able to find a home in marching bands, school bands, and even orchestras. 

The downsides of flute are that it becomes very complex to play quite quickly. While it is lightweight, it does involve intricate finger work. While it is easier to play flute than some other instruments, it does still involve learning good breathing skills. 

 A student model flute easily costs between $500 up to $1,000 for a new flute and higher quality flutes can run in the thousands.  If you start with a very small child, they will likely need a modified flute that is curved (curved head joint) .  Our Oakville flute teacher highly recommends renting a flute until the student is very serious about the instrument, then investing in a good quality instrument.  Please talk to our music co-ordinator about recommended rental facilities for our students.   

Flute lessons can start as young as 3rd grade since it is the easiest woodwind to learn. However, some schools offer flute lessons to children in grades as young as 5th grade as part of a band program. Most flute teachers believe that children should have basic reading skills and a good attention span before beginning lessons. 

Starting children in music as early as possible is integral for a lifetime of learning and loving music.  But sometimes starting them out on an instrument is not always the best first step.   How can you prepare your child for eventual flute lessons?  Addison Music Learning Centre offers an award winning early childhood music program - Mini Musicians - developed for children between the ages of 3 - 8 years.  Please learn  about it at the link below.   Another option is private recorder lessons.  See info about recorder lessons below.

You may be surprised to find out that taking woodwind lessons has many health benefits!

• Strengthen your breath;
• Improve your posture and strengthen your core muscles;
• Confidence and calmness when under pressure;
• Boost hand-eye coordination    

The mouthpiece of a clarinet is a reed, which vibrates to make a sound, similar to what happens when you blow a blade of grass between your thumbs. All ordinary clarinets are the same size, however alto and E-flat clarinets are different sizes, and only appropriate for advanced players. Clarinet is very easy to start, and you will be able to play tunes in a couple of weeks. The clarinet comes apart and is easily stored in a small case for easy transportation.

There are some downsides to clarinet lessons though, small children are usually unable to hold them very well which makes them hard to use. Additionally it takes a good bit of strength to bite the reed enough to play. Clarinet is also a very popular instrument, which makes it very competitive to earn a place in a band, or orchestra. 

 Clarinets range in price greatly, and a reasonably standard quality clarinet can start at $500 for used and run into the thousands.  Our Oakville clarinet teacher highly recommends renting a clarinet until the student is very serious about the instrument, then investing in a good quality instrument.  Please talk to our music co-ordinator about recommended rental facilities for our students.  

The only other major cost is the reeds, which are very inexpensive at approximately $25 for a box of 10 reeds. 

Children are generally able to start playing clarinet around 9-10 years old, but they to have more arm strength than anything else to hold the instrument. 

Starting children in music as early as possible is integral for a lifetime of learning and loving music.  But sometimes starting them out on an instrument is not always the best first step.   To prepare your aspiring clarinet player for clarinet lessons there are two choices at Addison Music Learning Centre.  First we recommend all children between the ages of 3 - 8 begin music lessons in our early childhood music program - Mini Musicians.  See info at the link below.  Another option for children around 6/7 years and higher is to take private lessons in recorder.  See info about recorder lessons below. 

You may be surprised to find out that taking woodwind lessons has many health benefits!

• Strengthen your breath;
• Improve your posture and strengthen your core muscles;
• Confidence and calmness when under pressure;
• Boost hand-eye coordination   

This is a smaller and lighter version of a clarinet and it has open holes down the front, which makes it much easier for a small child to use. The finger patterns with a recorder are not as complicated which makes it easier to learn. For a woodwind instrument, it makes a great starter instrument since it is so simple to learn.

The cost considerations are minimal with a recorder, a plastic model can be purchased for less than $10 at most music stores, while a good quality wooden model can cost upwards of $100. While there is a large price range, it is still much cheaper than most other woodwind instruments and is not as expensive to replace if it is damaged. From a maintenance perspective, a recorder is very simple to take care of as well.  

Because of its simplicity a child as young as 4 can learn to play the recorder, which is a great basic start. However, before starting recorder classes your child should be able to pay attention for 10-30 minutes at a time. 

In our Early Childhood Music Program, Mini Musicians, recorder is the students major instrument starting at approximately age 4 - 5 years and/or Mini Musicians level 2 or 3.