All San Jose, CA area students in grades 4-12 are invited to join us to learn to play a musical instrument. The lessons are free, but students must be committed to attending every week and practicing at home.
I am updating this page in May in preparation for our Fall, 2021 program -- things could change before then. It is possible that we will return to in-person in the fall, but for now we'll plan on starting in a virtual format to begin the year. Please review our rules/requirements for our regular, in-person program before signing up your student to attend our classes.
In addition, virtual Free Music School will have the following expectations:
* As always, all registered students will be required to attend on time, every time with all of their supplies (instrument, stand, music).
* All students will need to have their cameras on, with their faces showing, for the entire class period.
* Students will stay on mute unless asked for a response from the instructor. Students will need to know how to mute/un-mute in a timely manner to fully participate in our program.
* Some assessments will take place during class and students will be asked to un-mute and play certain exercises. Students will also be asked to make short audio recordings to show their progress to the instructor. Information will be given to students on how to use the platform (flipgrid, etc.), but students must practice at home and submit recordings to the instructor.
Please make sure that your student is willing and able to follow these expectations before signing up for our Fall 2021 session.
We are a group of volunteer "Music Mentors" who meet once a week, on Friday afternoons, to teach students in grades 4-12 how to play a musical instrument. All beginning students will learn the basics of music playing a recorder. Once they master the basics they will be eligible to play: flute, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, euphonium, tuba or saxophone. (students will be able to choose which one they want to learn to play.)
Please see our Program Details page for more information.
Please note: we do not offer classes on drums, guitar or piano. We are not offering virtual strings (violin) at this time.
If you're early, you're on time!
Here is our Fall Class Schedule:
Beginning: 4-4:30 pm
Intermediate 1: 4:30 - 5pm
Intermediate 2: 5-5:30 pm
Advanced: 5:30-6pm.
Yes! Parents provide the instrument, book and music stand (all available at local music stores) and we provide the lessons, free of charge. We do not collect or charge any participation or performance fees. We like to say: The price of admission is commitment! Please see our "Program Expectations" page to see what our idea of commitment looks like.
Please fill out our form!
We will have our Fall orientation on Friday, September 10 at 4pm. Please fill our our registration form to attend this meeting. We will not be accepting new students after this registration event.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc4030I4gZnjQ1u2sksnCxJcRFKuJpcBTcRfunJalArg8Fhlw/viewform
Please see our "Program Details" page for more information about the registration event.
Adults: Do you play a musical instrument and want to volunteer 2-hours a week to share the joy of music with students? Please see our "Volunteer" page.
Please see our "Donate" page to donate a musical instrument, sheet music, etc. Please note: we are unable to accept pianos or piano sheet music at this time due to space limitations.
If you would like to make a financial donation to our program, please contact us: freemusicschool@yahoo.com
All beginning students will need to purchase a recorder ($5-$10) -- buy it anywhere.
and this book:
Yamaha Recorder Student. https://www.wwbw.com/Alfred-Yamaha-Recorder-Student-Book-902172-902172000000000.wwbw?rNtt=Yamaha%20recorder%20book&index=3
Our band students use the "Standards of Excellence" book 1 by B. Pearson. Choose book 1 for your instrument. Note, this is the trumpet example, you need to purchase the one for your instrument!!!
They will also need to rent or buy a band instrument. Please do not rent or buy an instrument until you have completed the beginning class.
All students will need a portable music stand, like this one:
https://www.wwbw.com/Musicians-Gear-Folding-Music-Stand-451034-451034000001000.wwbw
For our more advanced students, I really enjoy the "ear training" games at this website. You do not have to register to use it. Theta Music Trainer:
https://trainer.thetamusic.com/en/content/music-training-games
http://www.virtualbandpractice.com I've created a website with some of the songs we practice in class listed. You can click on the links and play along. This page is also one of the pages of this site. A work in progress.
Another fun website I found to learn about music: classicsforkids.com