kham
186 posts
Jan 04, 2021
11:41 AM
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Any suggestions for beginner harmonica lessons per hour? I am not pro but feel I have enough chops to get beginners on the right path.
Any suggestions appreciated.
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Tonyblues
44 posts
Jan 04, 2021
2:33 PM
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Hi Kham, I charge $50 per hour and the way people act around here,(California) it's like I am giving it away way to cheap. I am a beginner sort of but feel like I can help those in need of a good start too so I feel my price is pretty fair. Not a pro price but good bang for buck. Good Luck
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SuperBee
6870 posts
Jan 04, 2021
9:54 PM
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Back in 2012 I was paying a guy $75USD per hour. That was probably close to top dollar at that time. Later I found several other highly credentialed tutors who were available for less eg $40-$50 zone.
That's quite a while back I suppose.
I've had some tuition from several high profile guys. One was $100 but only $70 if you bought in for a block of 4 lessons. I think a lot of teachers are doing that sort of deal.
The other consideration is the half hour option versus the full hour. Probably depends on what the student needs but I personally think a half hour/45 minutes might be more efficient.
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Mirco
650 posts
Jan 05, 2021
11:43 AM
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Over the years, I've taken lessons from a lot of pro-level guys, like Dave Barrett, Dennis Gruenling, Ronnie Shellist, Michael Rubin...
The price for a working professional (who either plays for a living or teaches for a living) tends to be around $75-100 an hour. They often offer discounts for lessons in bulk or if you commit. Dave Barrett, for example, used to mandate that his students take two hours of instruction a month. (Either a two hour block or 2 separate one hour lessons.) Dave was teaching harp for a living, though. He also rented a building to conduct lessons, so he needed to factor that into it.
When I taught lessons, I was charging $50 an hour.
It's a really personal question. You're putting time and effort into this. How much is your time worth?
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Marc Graci
YouTube Channel
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kham
187 posts
Jan 05, 2021
9:37 PM
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Thanks fellas!
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Todd Parrott
1523 posts
Jan 14, 2021
3:42 PM
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My rate is $35 for an hour lesson, with no extra charge if the lesson spills over the hour a little bit, which often happens.
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Gnarly
2953 posts
Jan 14, 2021
3:44 PM
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@Todd affordable!
I should give you money!
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kudzurunner
6678 posts
Jan 14, 2021
6:52 PM
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This is a potentially touchy subject. I'm glad you've raised it.
Back in 2012 or so, Billy Branch was charging $100/hr, and that was the top end, as far as I knew.
I don't do much private teaching, but I did a bit of Skype teaching this past summer at $65/hr. I'm well aware that I could charge more than that, and $75/hr would be entirely fair. I may go there shortly. :)
Todd, you're underpriced! You should go to $50/hr immediately, catch your breath, and proceed.
Dennis was charging $75/hr, I believe, last time I looked.
kham: It's partly a question of what the market will bear. Back in 1986, when a dollar was worth a lot more than it's worth now, I charged $25/hr. I just checked the inflation calculator. (CPI Calculator) That's $58 in today's dollars. I think you're safe to charge $50 as a new teacher, but you could also start a little below that, work with a few students, and then raise your rate for all new students.
I should definitely be charging $75/hr. I think that will be my new rate.
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https://www.amazon.com/Whose-Blues-Facing-Future-Music/dp/1469660369/
Last Edited by kudzurunner on Jan 14, 2021 6:54 PM
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fulleyes
14 posts
Feb 08, 2021
11:37 AM
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I guess I will be learning on my own. $75 to $100 an hour is crazy. The average joe can’t afford that. If you made $100,000 + a year maybe but if you made that you wouldn’t have time from your job to learn harp anyway.What is minimum wage in the U.S now 10 ,$12 an hour?
IMO greed is ruining this world. Sorry but you folks are losing all my respect. Todd Parrot hats off to you for helping the average guy.
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nacoran
10340 posts
Feb 08, 2021
12:14 PM
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Fulleyes... that seems to be well within the normal range for tutoring in general. These guys are top players. They should charge what they can get.
That said, lots of them also have lower cost options- free videos online, tons of people will offer feedback on videos you post if you ask for feedback, pay tier videos, group sessions...
I get it though. It prices a lot of people out. I think it's just that the demand outstrips the supply, and the guys who do give a lot away for free find that the way they can share the most is by making a video about it and putting it up online.
Take Adam for instance... his Learn Blues Harmonica 101 video has over half a million views on it. 30 minute video. I'm not sure how much scripting he does, but I know with the one video I tried to make for 10 minutes it took me a couple hours (and I still didn't get a result I was happy with.)
But lets assume he's got a system down and he can do a 30 minute video in 2 hours, including editing, and he can help half a million people with it... or he can spend 1 hour giving someone a one on one lesson. If his goal is to 'give it all away' then he gets much better value doing the video. I've had people ask specific music theory questions by IM before, and generally, unless it's a real short answer, I ask them to ask in a general thread because some of those questions take half an hour to answer and if I'm going to take the time to answer it I'd rather a bunch of people get useful information out of it... same with giving comments on a video... if there is something that someone asks a question about I'd rather be able to answer it to a bunch of people so I can help more people at once (particularly since I'm not getting paid to do it).
There is a lot of free information out there though. What I suggest is soaking up all the free information you can get, and then, when you have specific questions ask on the forums... post videos... and then use teachers if and when you can afford it.
On the teacher side... I know there are some sites that have multiple instructors but I haven't really investigated them. Money is always tight. It might be a situation where there is a spot for sort of a college TA system, where an instructor taught up some TAs to handle general classes with some supervision of a general course of instruction. The TAs could charge less, but would be less skilled but would be roughly supervised.
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Nate
Facebook
Thread Organizer (A list of all sorts of useful threads)
First Post- May 8, 2009
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rogonzab
1142 posts
Feb 08, 2021
2:00 PM
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I think that if you are a beginner your first year may be free. The amount of quality material for beginners on Youtube huge.
When do you need private lessons? Always.
I had been playing for 10 years, recorded two albums and this year, if I can get the money, I want to take some private lessons. I had taken private lesson with awesome players several times before, ant every time it was worth it.
$75 for an hours is a lot of money, but only if you think that you are paying only for that hours. In a private lesson, a good teacher will give musical ideas that you are going to work for years.
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Sorry for any misspell, english is not my first language.
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dougharps
2240 posts
Feb 08, 2021
8:08 PM
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I agree with rogonzab regarding the beginner material available now on the internet. It is great!
When I was starting out I only had the Tony Glover book, recordings, and no access to teachers for years. It took me a very long time and lots of work to make any progress, and I picked up some habits that hindered my progress. With the materials available now from the internet, Winslow Yerxa's harp books or other books, you can learn much better on your own than back in the '70s.
However, there is a lot to be said for learning from good players who know their stuff, know how to teach, and can help you correct bad habits.
I played too hard for 30 years and blew out a lot of harps. I could have saved a lot of money if there had been a teacher or coach to set me straight early on.
I attended my first workshops at a SPAH in 2008 and followed up with many more SPAHs, 2 Hill Country Harmonicas, 3 Harmonica Collectives, and many HarmoniColleges in Huntington, WV. They all had good instructors and I always learned something. I learned a lot from the pro instructors and players at these events and it was less costly than ongoing high priced lessons. There is also something to be said for hanging out with other harp fanatics on the path.
The periodic workshop approach to learning gave me time to consider the material presented and work on those areas I chose. Remember, I had played a long time before any instruction. Group workshops are a solid way to go, I really like them, but they can't compare to individual instruction with a good teacher.
I started attending workshops after playing for 37 years and still had a lot to learn. I still do! A good teacher could speed learning up a lot, especially for a beginner or intermediate player.
When you seek out a pro instructor you are not just paying for just the time you interact. It is a relatively high hourly rate. Actually, you are paying for the knowledge that they have in guiding your progress.
It is like the story about the boiler engineer who knows just where to tap to fix the problem. The bill is not for the time it takes to tap on the pipe, it is for the engineers expertise and ability to analyze the problem
I still may seek out an individual instructor at some point if I believe it would help me move forward in my chosen direction with harp. But weekly lessons at that rate are very expensive.
I believe that a viable approach is to use a teacher periodically as a coach and schedule one student centered lesson at a time when guidance is most needed. It would be good to know which teachers would support that approach as opposed to weekly lessons. After all, the pro teachers are all trying to make a living and scheduling regular lessons brings regular income!
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Doug S.
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WinslowYerxa
1725 posts
Feb 09, 2021
12:51 PM
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I charge $50/hour, which I know is less than many of my contemporaries and even though I've been teaching for 40 years and have two books in print. But then I've always been fairly conservative in my pricing.
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Harmonica lessons with one of the world's foremost experts
Check out my blog and other goodies at winslowyerxa.com
Harmonica For Dummies, Second Edition with tons of new stuff
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BronzeWailer
2150 posts
Feb 09, 2021
2:13 PM
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I was paying $50/hour in the early 2010s to Jim Conway, one of the top blues harp guys in Australia.
The one-on-one sessions were invaluable, with feedback for me particular shortcomings. He told me straight when I though I was being cool and I wasn't, if something wasn't right he'd say things like, "Not sexy," and also gave me anecdotes about the music industry.
As a student, I was more than happy to pay for precious knowledge like that.
BronzeWailer's YouTube
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kham
201 posts
Feb 09, 2021
3:31 PM
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20 years ago Carlos Del Junco was charging $45 per hour. I also agree about beginner lessons being abundant through youtube. I tell people to not come to me until they clan blow single notes and play simple nursery rhymes. Thanks for all the input everyone!
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Diggsblues
2273 posts
Feb 19, 2021
6:05 AM
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I charge 40 bucks an hour. My housemate charges 80 an I hour for classical guitar lessons. He has a masters degree and is the real deal on classical guitar teaching at the University of Pennsylvania.
I teach diatonic and chromatic and have years of study and gigging experience including playing at Trump Plaza LOL.
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Gnarly
2963 posts
Feb 19, 2021
6:30 AM
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We hope he paid you!
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Diggsblues
2274 posts
Feb 19, 2021
7:30 AM
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Yeah got paid not the best or the worst. Got to eat for free and they had equipment and good tech support. I think I got over two hundred for New years eve. Now it's dust dust in the wind.
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harpy1976
2 posts
Mar 18, 2021
2:31 PM
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I wonder how fulleyes feels about lawyers, doctors, plumbers, electricians etc. Do you lose your respect for them too due to what they charge?
I wish I would have put the money into the lessons I've taken more like 20 years ago. Then maybe I would have saved myself 20 years of frustration and another 2+ years unlearning the bad habits I formed in those 20 years. I don't expect anyone to give me their hard earned secrets for free. If you do, it says a lot more about you than it does about them charging going rates for their profession.
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Old Iowan
2 posts
Mar 20, 2021
3:01 PM
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I'm hoping that teachers are not judged solely on what they charge but rather on their instruction that works well and is understood by the student based on what the student wishes to learn -
I used to teach a craft for many years and had students come from all over the USA and one from England - I did my best to make sure they obtained and understood my instruction and that it met their needs - I tried my hardest to be an educator and just a demonstrator - Just an opinion from an Old Iowan - I sure hope this doesn't offend any one!!
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Gnarly
2974 posts
Mar 21, 2021
7:01 AM
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It’s kind of a running joke for me, since I try to educate everybody about the harmonica for any reason whatsoever.
Hey man, nice rabbit hole . . .
There are several people that I SHOULD be taking lessons from, but then I would have to practice.
It started out as a gig, then turned into a hobby, then the tech thing fell into place. I am not the best player in the world (a YouTube comment mentioned asthmatic goats), but I know enough to teach. No students currently, I moved to a college town (Norman Oklahoma) so I bet there are some likely victims out there, but with the current pandemic, probably not worth pursuing.
Lessons are more expensive than instruments in the harp world, but as someone once put it, “If you think instruction is expensive, try ignorance.”
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boris_plotnikov
1169 posts
Mar 22, 2021
2:47 PM
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There was a time I charged $50 an hour. But then course of Russian ruble fall down and overall crisis don't me allow to raise prices so now I charged $35 per hour, same amount in rubles.
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borisplotnikov.ru
Seydel endorser. LoneWolf Blues Co endorser. Harmonica teacher. My facebook.
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