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CONTACT DETAILS | Office Ph: 0411 465 332
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Roxanne: 0411 465 332 |
Stephen: 0433 260 789 |
| |  |  |  |  |  |  | | Cubase | GuitarPro | Finale | BluesPiano | Musition | BandInABox |
Frequently Asked Questions
Where are you located?
ScoopFX Music Tuition is an independent Australian music school, located in the North West Sydney suburb of Cherrybrook.
We are conveniently placed for students in the Castle Hill, Baulkham Hills, Pennant Hills, Cherrybrook, Glenhaven, Thornleigh, Beecroft, Cheltanham, Kellyville, Bella Vista, Beaumont Hills, Stanhope Gardens, Glenwood, Kings Park, Acacia Gardens, Rouse Hill, Lalor Park, Blacktown, Kings Langley and Winston Hills area.
Many students, however, come to us from further afield, some even from outside Sydney, from country New South Wales.
As a matter of fact, Roxanne conducts singing lessons with students online as well. She coaches vocal students via phone lessons, which can be very useful for the distance-challenged student.
What subjects do you teach?
The principal areas are vocal lessons, piano lessons, acoustic and electric guitar and bass guitar lessons, as well as songwriting as a separate subject and/or incorporated into another course. We're also proud to say that we have accreditation from the New South Wales Music Teachers' Association in all these subjects, which means that the body which oversees the standards of teaching related to these subjects recognises that we teach with the highest level of professionalism.
We also work extensively with HSC students. Year 11 and 12 students often seek out our services to complement their curriculum studies in music theory, practical voice, piano, guitar, bass and composition.
One of our piano students, who was required to perform a piece by an Australian composer, which had been composed within the past 25 years. She chose "Between Five Bells" by Peter Sculthorpe. This is a technically demanding piece which, at first listen, seems quite atonal. However, as difficult as it was for her to master, the piece ultimately became a source of great motivation and achievement, both in its final performance and the resulting mark derived from it.
Vocal students, who started with Roxanne at 14, or younger, often decide to take music in the HSC, knowing they have her expertise to guide them through the gruelling Year 12 exam.
Stephen particularly enjoys awakening and guiding the composer in those students who have chosen Music for the HSC, which involves a composition, be it classical, pop, jazz or rock in style. This is the part we like the most. Giving students a kick-start, then watching the often unexpected developments.
How do you approach singing lessons with a new student?
Each student's style of producing sound is analysed during the first lesson and a schedule is designed to help improve the singer's strength of delivery, vocal depth and, if necessary, pitch and diction.
Vocal exercises, which are the foundation of a singer's daily routine, are introduced via the double CD of vocal exercises which Roxanne's students swear by.
These methods are then combined with Roxanne's innate ability to find the weaknesses in the student's singing style or vocal ability, and devise a schedule to ensure greatest improvement in their overall vocal sound.
Quite a few students come to lessons in the hope of defeating the "sore throat" syndrome which plagues many vocalists. We specialise in dealing with this problem, and can guarantee that, if you come to see Roxanne with this problem, she will deliver the key to beating the problem, as well as provide the method to sing as loudly and as long as you desire, without damaging your vocal chords.
That's quite a promise, isn't it?
Well, having been a professional singer, performing in and around Australia, as well as internationally, Roxanne has learnt the fundamental methods of producing a strong vocal delivery night after night, without hurting those valuable vocal chords. She enjoys passing this information on to her students, and has seen the turnaround results in many students, including heavy metal and thrash-style singers who have been amazed by how well her method works.
What style of singer do you have as students?
As many styles of singer as there are styles of music have come to Roxanne to find help. Internationally famous pop singers, rock singers, country, jazz and operatic singers, karaoke contest singers, gifted amateurs and seasoned professionals. All have walked through the door and come back for more.
How do you approach piano lessons?
As is the case with vocal lessons, each student is introduced to a schedule of practice, via scales and Hanon exercises, to ensure development of strength and independence of the fingers. Regardless of the type of music the student wishes to pursue, it's important to have the ability to play the notes the way you like to and there is only one way to achieve this, and that is by constantly practising both scales and the pieces you're currently working on.
Coupled with the exercise regime are the pieces of interest to each student. We have beginners through intermediate and beyond, learning jazz chordings, piano bar classics, blues styles through to modern hip hop keyboard stylings. Students are learning from the AMEB syllabus, as well as the Piano For Leisure courses. Stephen specialises in transposing songs, whatever the genre into a notated document which the student can understand and practise, whether it be a comprehensive all-notes version of an obscure song found on YouTube, a chordal breakdown of a Beethoven piece, or an easy version of a pop song. We cater to the student's needs.
How do you approach guitar and bass lessons?
Again, the combination of learning the basics and applying them to particular songs which the student wants to learn, are the fundamental methods by which we teach guitar and bass. For beginners, all the open chords need to be learnt and mastered. Coupled with the physical nature of string-based instrument playing, we concentrate on the theory behind the chords and lead lines. Students learn classical guitar pieces alongside modern songs.
Stephen uses Cubase, the sequencing program, as well as Band-In-A-Box and Guitar Pro to sequence and transcribe, in both notation and TAB form, songs which will challenge the student's current ability to play.
The bottom line with learning an instrument is that the power lies in the hands of the student. However much they practise and develop the muscle memory so important to guitar and bass chords and lines, will define their movement forward, and the teacher's main job is to be aware of where each student is at, in the development, with an eye to introducing the next idea which will propel them forward toward their goal of mastering their instrument.
What other abilities do you bring to your lessons?
Glad you asked that. Both Roxanne and Stephen perform professionally in night clubs, clubs and hotels in and around Sydney. They are able to bring the knowledge and experience associated with live performance to their tuition classes. This is especially valuable to vocal students who are looking to, or are already, performing live on stage. What better way to learn about how to project yourself on stage than from teachers who actually do that right now, and have been doing that for years?
Theoretical knowledge is a useful thing, but what you learn when performing onstage are invaluable lessons dealing with timing, audience interaction, repertoire etc. ScoopFX Music Tuition students are able to mine this information during their voice, piano, guitar, bass and songwriting lessons.
What about songwriting? How do teach songwriting?
Songwriting is a creative endeavour. You can help to unlock the innate creativity in an individual by introducing them to a number of factors which govern a creative exercise. Take painting, for example. You can't teach a person to be Picasso, but you can show them what mixing yellow and red will produce.
Similarly with songwriting lessons, we teach the concepts and formulas which lay behind songs, studying how a songwriter may adhere to, or break rules associated with lyric writing or musical composition, to achieve their masterpiece. The popular song is an ever-changing thing, an aural refection of the times in which we live, but there are basic formulas which remain unchanged and can be found underlying songs by Schubert, Jerome Kern through Cole Porter to Elton John, Amanda Palmer and the myriad styles of music such as trance, hip hop and bluegrass.
What we do is talk about and provide insight into these formulas, while dealing with specific song ideas the student has, so that it becomes more than just theoretical ideas, but can be used at that moment with a song you're working on right now.
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