The Piano Room
Claire Helene Bevan's private piano teaching studio in Camden, Maine
offering experienced piano instruction and performance opportunities
to students of all abilities, ages 4 and up.
Student Recitals
We were thrilled to present a live Spring studio recital on Sunday, June 12th @ 2 PM at First Universalist, Rockland: click on link to watch.
The piece Claire played at the recital is shared separately here: click on link.
A virtual Spring recital was held on June 13, '21. It was not recorded.
In June 2020, students of The Piano Room collaborated to spread love and cheer
via recordings to Quarry Hill extended care community residents
who have not been able to receive visitors during the quarantine. Listen to the pieces they shared below:
New Students
all ages and abilities welcome
The Piano Room students receive a solid musical foundation
upon which to build a lifetime of music-making.
Students at The Piano Room benefit from a well-balanced program of musical activities designed to strengthen theory and keyboard knowledge while developing creative and performance skills. Lessons are customized to each student’s strengths, goals, and learning style. A recital is offered each spring and students are invited to play anytime at the church where I am Music Director.
I strongly believe my work is only successful if you are enjoying what you are learning. While structure is beneficial, please never hesitate to let me know if there are other topics you want to explore. This is your work — I consider myself to be your resource. Your time commitment outside of lessons is imperative to your success/ progress, which directly impacts your enjoyment. We all reap what we sow, and musical appetite comes with “eating”. Most learning takes place in a student’s application of what is learned at lessons. It’s my job, then, to equip you to be an independent learner and to guide your practice time so it’s most efficient and effective (and fun!).
Contact me today to schedule a complimentary meet-and-greet session, whether in-person or online.
COVID 19 Safety Plan for In-Person Lessons
Effective May 1st, 2022, masking is now optional. I continue to wear a mask and am fully vaccinated.
Students who opt for in-person lessons would need to agree to the following Safety Policy:
1. Students who exhibit symptoms of fever, coughing and shortness of breath need to stay home & arrange for an online lesson/ or video instead.
2. Students must wash or sanitize hands before entering the studio. Bottles of hand sanitizer are in the front entry hall, as well as beside the piano. The hand sanitizer I provide will be CDC approved with at least 60% alcohol. In addition, the bathroom fan vents to the outside, so we will keep the bathroom fan running at all times, and when students are done using the bathroom, we will leave the bathroom door open so the fan will keep conducting air outside.
3. AIR QUALITY: I keep the studio well ventilated with fresh air and I also have a Eureka Air Purifier NEA120 with a true HEPA filter right beside the upright piano where students will be seated — it was recommended by a medical nurse. The true HEPA filter captures 99. 7% of dust and airborne allergens as small as 0. 3 microns such as household dust, model, pet dander, and pollen. It has a UV LED with TiO2 that is supposed to effectively reduce bacteria, virus and mold spores. This is not bullet-proof, of course.
4. Students will be seated at the upright piano, and I will be seated at the grand which is at least 12 feet away.
5. SANITIZATION: There will be a plexiglass covering on the music rack to facilitate sanitizing between students. I will also sanitize the keyboard and chair between each student with EPA-approved emerging viral pathogen products that they claim to be effective against SARS-CoV-2. I will completely sanitize the bathroom and door knobs at the end of each day.
6. BUFFER TIME: a 15-minute buffer time is added in between students, when possible, to allow for proper air exchange.
Claire Helene
My name is pronounced, “Clarolyn”. It's French. I now go by Claire in the U.S.
I teach piano, yes, but I view myself as an educator. We need confident, happy, compassionate, free thinkers to lead the next generation. Music is a powerful communication tool. I share Yo-yo Ma's view that, "We have a bigger purpose. It's never art for art's sake." I also whole-heartedly agree with Felix Mendelssohn who wrote that, “Genuine music (...) fills the soul with a thousand things better than words.” It is my mission to help students encounter this.
I marvel at what students learn from taking piano besides encountering works in different genres. Let me un-pack the substance of what students learn: how to be patient with themselves, how to be in the moment, devotion to a purpose (all art demands it), pattern recognition, grit, active awareness of their beautiful and expansive minds/ aliveness of their souls, depth of focus, relationship between thoughts/goals and outcomes, organization, self-validation, confident internal dialogue, imagination, emotional depth and nuance, strength of character, managing frustration (hard stuff!), overcoming perfectionism, discovering how to listen with mental ears, how to evaluate priorities, self-discipline, accountability, vulnerability, independent thinking, analysis, how to enjoy every note, full-body listening, good posture, breath control, body awareness, etc. and on and on and on. Oh yeah, and all the fun music stuff.
I get to watch THIS happen. What a privilege. My passion for teaching piano only grows.
Résumé
Excerpts
Calendar
Fall 2021
Begins Tuesday, August 31st through Thursday, November 18th, 2021 (12 weeks)
Tuesday, August 31st
First day of Fall Term 2021
Thursday, November 11 (Veterans Day)
Lessons will take place as usual
THANKSGIVING BREAK
Tuesday through Thursday, Nov. 23 - 25 — no lessons
Winter 2021-22
Begins Tuesday, November 30th through Thursday, February 17th (10 weeks)
Tuesday, November 30th
First day of Winter Term 2021-22
HOLIDAY BREAK
Tuesday, December 21st, 2021 through Monday, January 3rd, 2022 — no lessons
Tuesday, January 4, 2022
Lessons resume
FEBRUARY BREAK
Tuesday through Thursday, February 22-24, 2022— no lessons this week
Spring 2022
Begins Tuesday, March 1st through Sunday, June 12th (13 weeks)
Tuesday, March 1st
First day of Spring Term 2022
APRIL BREAK (school vacation plus an extra week)
Tuesday through Thursday, April 19-28, 2022 — no lessons these two weeks
Friday, June 3rd from 4 to 6:30 PM
Mandatory recital dress rehearsal
Thursday, June 9th
Last day of Spring Term 2022
Sunday, June 12th at 2 PM
Some kind of recital will take place!
Need to Miss?
Missed Lessons
No make-up lessons are offered, but here are a number of creative options.
Please keep in mind that signing up for a lesson slot is committing to be present at the scheduled slot each week. Other activities should be planned/scheduled with piano lessons in mind.
Lessons cancelled by you for planned absences: If you know you will be unable to attend a lesson in person, you can arrange a lesson swap by consulting the *SWAP LIST (please see below). Or, with sufficient notice, we can arrange to have a virtual lesson. If you cannot do a virtual lesson, and you have informed me of your planned absence, I will use your lesson time to make a video lesson for you. Without advance notice, there will be no video lessons given for lessons missed by students due to activity conflicts, family vacations, or illness. Exceptions may be made at the discretion of the instructor.
*SWAP LIST: The Swap List is a copy of the teacher’s schedule with names of students/ and parents, and parents’ email addresses. Inclusion on the swap list is optional; if you prefer that your contact info not be made available, I will not include it on the swap list. You can use the list to try to arrange a swap with another student if you discover a conflict with your lesson time. The instructor is not responsible for arranging swaps for students. If a swap is successfully arranged, the teacher must be notified!
Lessons cancelled by me: When lessons are cancelled by me, I will notify you via text message and email as soon as possible. You will be given a lesson credit. I will keep track of any lessons cancelled by me, and contact you with available make-up lesson options. If there is no opportunity to schedule and use the lesson credit by the end of the studio year, you can choose to pro-rate tuition for the last month of lessons, or use it towards summer lessons. If you do not reply to my attempts to schedule a credited lesson, the credit will be forfeited at the end of the studio year.
Weather
I am always available to teach regardless of the weather. Regardless of school cancellations, I will assume you are coming. However, if you are not confident about the travel conditions, please send me a text or call my cell, so we can arrange for a Zoom lesson instead during your same lesson time. The lesson is forfeited if you decide not to come for other reasons (i.e. you want to go skiing instead).
Click on Swap List button to view current Swap List. You cannot edit this list. Please contact me with any arranged changes. Thank you!
Testimonials
"You are an amazing teacher, and we are so grateful Amelia and Soren are under your tutelage."
~ Lynn Kenoyer Johnson
"Claire Helene is a wonderfully creative piano teacher: the perfect blend of structure, fun and individualized support for our son. High expectations, but achievable bite sized pieces to feel good about his accomplishments with rewards of learning to play music he loves like Star Wars, etc."
~ Dr. Barbara MacDonald, ND, LAc
"Claire Helene Bevan is an exceptional teacher. She pays close attention to detail, is patient and courteous with her students, and she's also an amazing pianist. The first lesson I took with her, she listened to my playing, watching my hand positions, and then kindly and compassionately shared some ideas that would help me improve. I highly recommend her!"
~ Rebecca Fiarman, music teacher
"Thanks so much for all you do! Shawn and I appreciate your gentle way with Mara and your patience with all of our lesson switches!"
~ Dana Fittante
Contact
Please fill out the following form and I will respond as soon as possible. It is helpful to know your level (examples: total beginner, beginner, early intermediate, etc.), last books used, how many years of lessons you've had, special needs, and your goals. Let's get you started!
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