Way back in March 2020 we jumped on the virtual lesson bandwagon without skipping a beat. Who would have imagined that 18 months later, about 20% of our students are still learning to play their musical instruments in Zoom each week, while others are benefitting from the last minute option to stay home when necessary and still take their lesson.

I’m a ‘bright side’ type of person. Don’t get me wrong, there’s lots of reasons for me to complain about virtual music classes....and as challenging as teaching and learning online has been for a lot of us, I can’t deny that Zoom lessons have had a positive impact on our school community.

Our students can maintain their relationship with us from anywhere in the world. A few of our students have decided to keep a good thing going at our school, even from miles away. I’m pleased to feature 3 outstanding humans who may have moved from Windsor, but not from taking music lessons with our little local school.

My online student Fallon graduated grade 12 this past Summer, informing me she’d be going off to Mississauga for university in the Fall. Proud of her achievements and excited for her new life stage, I thought for sure she’d soon be saying goodbye to her time learning the piano with me! I asked her one day in August... “So, will this month be the last month for your lessons?” She told me she was eager to continue learning online with me, all the way from Mississauga! I’m so pleased and honoured to still meet with her weekly in Zoom.

Iffat, who studied voice online, was our first-ever non-local student early on during the pandemic. When her family moved to Barrie from Windsor, she kept up with her lessons at South Windsor School of Music. Iffat participated in voice festivals and competitions in the GTA while her teacher guided her out of our school here in Windsor. We love to see it!

Amandeep learns violin with us. A new mom, she is planning a trip back to India with her baby to visit family this winter. A few weeks ago Aman came into my office after her lesson and told me about her travel plans. Expecting to place her lessons on hold, I was amazed when she asked if she could still learn online all the way from Punjab! I asked, “But what about the time change!?” She had already figured it out, she was going to be able to still keep her current booking.

We strive to make lasting and meaningful connections with our students and online learning has been just one more tool for us to connect with you. We truly enjoy our time with our students just as much as they enjoy their time with us, whether we’re in the same room, a few blocks away from each other or on the other side of the world!