FAQs for Clients

Here are a few of the most common questions we receive from our clients. We hope this helps to explain our policies clearly.

 


—— BILLING ——

WHEN I RECEIVE MY BILL, WHAT MONTH OF LESSONS AM I PAYING FOR?

The bill that you receive is for the current month (e.g., the bill you receive at the beginning of September is for the lessons to take place in September—not the lessons that took place the previous month). If you are ever unsure, there is a column on the invoice labeled “Month of Lessons”—whatever month is listed in that column is the month that you are paying for.

 

DO YOU TAKE CREDIT CARD?

Not at this time, but we’re always making improvements.

 

DO YOU OFFER ANY DISCOUNTS?

We do offer discounts for families taking at least 1.5 hours of lessons per week, as well as families that pay on a quarterly basis.

 

—— HOLIDAYS & CANCELLATIONS ——


WHAT HAPPENS IF I CANCEL A LESSON IN ADVANCE?

If you cancel a lesson with more than 24 hours’ notice, we encourage you to schedule a makeup lesson with your teacher at a time that is mutually convenient. If it is not possible to schedule a makeup lesson, a credit will be issued in the following month. (Please do not alter your invoice.)

 

WHAT HAPPENS IF I HAVE TO UNEXPECTEDLY CANCEL A LESSON?

If you cancel a lesson with less than 24 hours’ notice, that lesson will count as a completed lesson. Your teacher is not required to schedule a makeup, and there will be no credit given.

 

WHAT IF MY TEACHER CANCELS THE LESSON?

If your teacher cancels a lesson for any reason, with or without advance notice, you will get either a makeup lesson or a credit.

 

WHAT HAPPENS IF MY SCHEDULED LESSON FALLS ON A HOLIDAY?

It depends on the holiday. There are some holidays (see below) on which most students tend to cancel their lesson. Since all of our teachers depend on a steady income to pay their bills, there will be no credit given for lessons that fall on the holidays listed below. Your teacher may—but is not required to—offer a makeup, but that is subject to his/her availability. Please bear in mind that, regardless of which day is your lesson day, there will be several months out of each year when you’ll get a fifth lesson. At other studios, this “extra” lesson normally comes with an extra fee, but with LionWhale, it’s free. Here’s our Holiday List:

 

  • New Year’s Day
  • Easter Sunday
  • Memorial Day
  • Independence Day
  • Labor Day
  • Halloween
  • Thanksgiving Day
  • Christmas Eve
  • Christmas Day

 

If your family celebrates a holiday that is not on our holiday list, you will get a makeup lesson or credit for that day as long as you give your teacher notice of the cancellation.

 

—— OTHER QUESTIONS ——

WHAT HAPPENS IN THE SUMMER?

Summertime is business as usual for us. We encourage all students to continue with lessons throughout the summer. We have found that students who take the summer off lose a lot of ground, and the months of September and October end up being used to catch the students up to where they were in May—this is especially true for younger and beginner students. however, we do understand that many families have different schedules during the summer, due to camps, family vacations, etc. Our teachers will be happy to reschedule your time slot for the summer months to accommodate your schedule. Additionally, we have had some luck with students taking longer, biweekly lessons during the summer to maintain their skills while still giving the kids “a break” and allowing for family vacations. If you do decide to take the summer off, we cannot guarantee that your teacher will be able to fit you into his/her schedule in the fall.

 

WHEN ARE RECITALS HELD?

Student recitals are held twice a year, typically in June and December. There will also be at least one faculty recital each year. Performance is an important aspect of learning an instrument, and we encourage all of our students to participate in the recitals. Additionally, we think it is important for students to see that their teachers go home and practice too! Also, it’s nice for parents to see that our teachers can do what they teach. All recitals are offered at no additional cost to our clients.

 

WHEN WILL MY KID BE PLAYING __(insert name of song here)__?

There’s no easy answer to this question. It just depends. Among other things, a student’s age, duration of lessons, frequency of lessons, time spent practicing, and learning style all affect the rate of progress.

One thing is certain, though: your child will be playing advanced music much sooner if he/she makes a habit of practicing. Yes, practicing is sometimes frustrating and often boring, but it’s the only way to get from “Mary Had a Little Lamb” to “Jar of Hearts” or “Bags’ Groove.”

 

We hope that we have cleared up any confusion that you may have had. We have put great amounts of thought and research into our policies and strive to be as fair as we can both to our clients and to our teachers. Again, if you have any additional questions, please contact us.

Thank you,

LIONWHALE MUSIC, LLC