Private Webcam Lessons
I can honestly say that I have never heard an autoharp played with the rich, full sound that you have encouraged me to find. I value all those lessons even more now. I feel as though I am on the way at last. I cannot thank you enough. –Ken Sluce, Australia
Webcam lessons are an amazingly great way to study hammered dulcimer and autoharp in Colorado from anywhere in the world. I can see and hear a lot towards helping your playing improve. (The only thing lacking is the kinesthesia, or establishing what playing feels like; for that, consider B&B lessons.) I have access to both Skype and FaceTime.
A 45-minute lesson webcam lesson is $50, payable via PayPal, money order or check, and of course you are welcome to set up a block of lessons for the most benefit (a block of 4 lessons is recommended). I’ll send PayPal information when you request a lesson should you wish to pay that way.
Webcam lessons can be scheduled almost any time of day–or night! Which brings me to time zones: I live in the US Mountain Time Zone, so be sure to state your zone–or the number of hours difference between Colorado and your location–so that we can come up with a suitable time that works well for both of our schedules without being too early or late for either of us. Here are some time zones with their hour differences to help with planning a meeting time:
Central Time (US): Colorado is 1 hour behind
Eastern Time (US): Colorado is 2 hours behind
Pacific Time: (US): Colorado is 1 hour ahead
United Kingdom: Colorado is 7 hours behind
Australia: Colorado is 17 hours behind (Example:
A lesson late on Tuesday morning in Australia occurs Monday afternoon in Colorado)
For international lessons, note that we may experience some fits and starts on the timing of the first lesson.
Webcam lessons encompass the same gamut of topics as in-person lessons: tunes, harmonizations, techniques, playing by ear, contest coaching, aches and pains generated from playing, etc. To make the most of the time, plan ahead what you want to zoom in on. If you are working on any aspect of a tune, I’ll need a .pdf of the music notation (especially when it shows the way you play the tune) the day before your lesson. If you don’t have music notation, I can transcribe a tune from a recording of your playing as well as from YouTube or other recordings. I’ll need time to transcribe in the middle of everything else going on here, so bear in mind that this may delay when we meet. (I will create notation as quickly as possible!)
Set-up for webcam lessons needs to make your entire instrument visible. Visibility is easy for autoharp. For hammered dulcimer, the screen will need to include several inches of space over the strings so that I can see your hands and arms. I may also need to see everything under the dulcimer down to your feet; be sure before we meet that there is ample space for either you/dulcimer or the webcam to create more distance for a larger view if it’s needed. For both instruments, we’ll start with a head-on view, but be prepared to turn 90 degrees either way if I need a look from another angle.
Sound good? Contact me today to schedule a webcam lesson.