Lesson costs ?

[The Hat]

I maybe wildly out here, but I was under the impression that most tutors charge between £20 and £30 with the norm being 20 to 25 an hour.
However what would justify a teacher charging £40 an hour for a beginner type lesson ? No amount of who they've played with or done sessions with make no difference to me especially as it was just in the guys back room.
I like it to mountaineering, you can be the worlds best mountaineer and have climb everything there is to climb, but it don't mean it makes you a good teacher.
Thoughts ?

[Jellyfish]

Depends what you're after in terms of lessons. I'd pay £40 an hour (I hope my teacher isn't reading this... ) if I was getting exactly what I wanted. Luckily, I pay £25 an hour and get exactly what I want; someone to bounce questions off, music recommendations, in-depth theory etc.

If you just want to be playing as soon as possible, £40 is quite steep I believe. But bear in mind that if you pay £40 an hour for someone who is going to help you excel faster than a teacher who charges £25 an hour, then it would definitely be worth it wouldn't it? Of course if this teacher you talk of is someone you're considering, you might want to try at least a couple of lessons if you can afford it. Then you won't know what you're missing.

[TRBboy]

I pay £25 for a really top-notch teacher, I think £40 is too much and would certainly put me off. Mind you, if the teacher was banging on about who they've played with, etc, it would probably put me off anyway...... they're usually the types that are just out to rip people off and massage their ego.

[The Hat]

I've tried the guy, and if I'm honest, it wasn't worth £40 or even close . I have a superb guitar teacher who charges £20 for an hour and he's way better than the £40 guy

[timmo]

I pay £20 an hour, but if you pay for 5 in advance, you get 6. Is he any good? Dunno, first teacher i have had, but i am better at playing than i was 3 weeks ago

[LeftyBiskit]

20 quid an hour seems to be the norm,
the guy i go to,who incidentally is a member on here has a really patient disposition,and puts you at ease-
there is another guy on here as well who i have met when i went round to his place to buy something is another I'd recommend.

[SpaceChick]

I think £20 is about right.

I think these people who "show off" about who they've played with you should be wary of.... Where's the proof? And how many times have they played with them? Gosh anyone could play with someone Famous once.... It's whether they keep getting asked back that's more important.

My first bass teacher 'claimed' he'd played with Sir Paul McCartney and Adele. I seriously doubt this as he was pants

My wonderful teacher now NEVER shows off about what he's done, although I am quite convinced there would be some fabulous stories!! He is both an awesome player and an incredible teacher, he's just very understated and matter of fact.... He lets his playing and teaching do the talking

[louisthebass]

I'm paying £30 an hour (do mine in blocks of 4). Mine are well worth it .

[White Cloud]

Why pay anything...there is a plethora of amazing teachers on youtube for free.

[Chrismanbass]

i've found that people who charge premium prices are generally the guys who have played with this artist or that artist but a word of warning with those guys is that

a) if they get a tour coming in your looking for a new teacher
b ) i've had a few lessons where all they've been are anecdotes and very little playing which is fine but when your paying for their time its a bit of a waste
c) because they're a great musician doesn't mean that they're a great teacher

best to find a teacher who is full time and has a busy teaching schedule imo

Edited April 7, 2013 by Chrismanbass

[Dood]

I would hope that the teacher doing lessons for £40 per hour was highly skilled, had a dedicated teaching studio, a proven track record and a 'well known name' in teaching. There's the desirability factor of being taught by someone who is a 'name' too I guess.

Funnily, and I may be doing myself no favours - I make a point of telling all my students that although I work VERY hard to ensure they get the best lessons I can give, I offer them one piece of advice. Ultimately, we might not work well together. As a student, you might find that you get on well with another teacher better no matter what level they are on. I tell them I am HAPPY if they want to try out other teachers. I never tell new students about my own C.V and it is a cardinal sin to EVER show off in front of a student. Nothing annoys me more than a teacher massaging their ego. Lessons are not about the teacher, but enjoyment and a sense of fulfilment from the student.

Incidentally, I don't charge anywhere near £40 an hour

[Dood]

Teachers charging low is another discussion altogether.

[seashell]

[quote name='TRBboy' timestamp='1365347676' post='2038299']
I pay £25 for a really top-notch teacher, I think £40 is too much and would certainly put me off. Mind you, if the teacher was banging on about who they've played with, etc, it would probably put me off anyway...... they're usually the types that are just out to rip people off and massage their ego.
[/quote]

+1 to all this.
I've been going to the same teacher for 2 years and he's turned into a friend really. It's only in the last year or so I've found out about some of the 'names' he's played with and that's just thru general chit chat after the lesson.

I was quite surprised that the price hasn't gone up in 2 years tbh. But I think that's a sign of the times. People don't have the disposable income for 'luxuries' like music lessons and this tends to keep the prices down. So I wouldn't have thought that anyone charging £ 40/hr would get that many students.

[The Hat]

The £40 an hour guy just used a back room in his house. Nothing special, he went through 4 popular bass riffs that he'd hand written on tab, talked a bit and that was it. £40 my arse !

[Dood]

[quote name='The Hat' timestamp='1365362570' post='2038612']
The £40 an hour guy just used a back room in his house. Nothing special, he went through 4 popular bass riffs that he'd hand written on tab, talked a bit and that was it. £40 my arse !
[/quote]

Really naughty! - Most of my students, if I have time get the 'hang out, reflect and chill' session afterwards, not whilst I am supposed to be teaching them!

[timmo]

[quote name='White Cloud' timestamp='1365359149' post='2038531']
Why pay anything...there is a plethora of amazing teachers on youtube for free.
[/quote]
But they are not as good as a teacher.As i have no idea how to play, how do i know which youtube videos are any good.How does a youtube video correct you if you are going wrong.I have paid good money to get the best kit i can afford, so i want to learn to play it properly.I dont think there is a substitute for a good teacher as it gives you structure and explainations for everything you need to know.So, maybe there are good youtube videos, i wouldn`t know, so i wiould rather pay £20 an hour

[The Hat]

Totally agree Timmo .

[Starless]

You Tube? Bass teachers? (shakes head in despair).

Does no-one have the desire or self-confidence to teach themselves? Has bass playing somehow turned into rocket science all of a sudden?

Instant gratification is the obviously the way it is these days. I can't do this, here's some money, make me good.

[seashell]

[quote name='Starless' timestamp='1365371854' post='2038792']
You Tube? Bass teachers? (shakes head in despair).

Does no-one have the desire or self-confidence to teach themselves? Has bass playing opisomehow turned into rocket science all of a sudden?

Instant gratification is the obviously the way it is these days. I can't do this, here's some money, make me good.
[/quote]

Er..no have neither the desire nor the self confidence to teach myself.

Instant gratification, yes in the sense that from lesson one I knew this was going to be an interesing, challenging and joyful experience.

[timmo]

[quote name='Starless' timestamp='1365371854' post='2038792']
You Tube? Bass teachers? (shakes head in despair).

Does no-one have the desire or self-confidence to teach themselves? Has bass playing somehow turned into rocket science all of a sudden?

Instant gratification is the obviously the way it is these days. I can't do this, here's some money, make me good.
[/quote]
So are you saying that guitar lessons is a new phenomona that has only just started? Some people may want to take the youtube route, that is fine.Me personally, i wouldn`t know what a good youtube video is.Some people like myself want to learn from the tried and tested teacher. Others want to teach themselves.How do you teach yourself though, that is the question? So how do you teach yourself to play bass? I wouldn`t know where to start.From a book, which is not really any different to the youtube route, or teacher, as you still have an aid to learning.What other alternatives are there.Do you just pick up a bass and instantly know how to play?
The only aim we have at the end is too play the Bass to a decent standard.Does it really matter how you get there? The way you posted makes you sound very elitist

[SpaceChick]

[quote name='seashell' timestamp='1365373378' post='2038828']


Er..no have neither the desire nor the self confidence to teach myself.

Instant gratification, yes in the sense that from lesson one I knew this was going to be an interesing, challenging and joyful experience.
[/quote]

This!

When I was 9 I had lessons in school in the recorder, and lessons outside school on Spanish classical guitar, at 12 I had lessons inside and out of school on the Oboe.... At 38 it was completely sensible and logical to have bass lessons!!

[Owencf]

My teacher charges £30 per lesson
He is quite busy teaching and running an uni orchestra
I dont have many options in the way of tutors here in Aberdeen so £30 seem better than no structured learning.

[Prunesquallor]

[quote name='SpaceChick' timestamp='1365398535' post='2038929']When I was 9 I had lessons in school in the recorder, and lessons outside school on Spanish classical guitar, at 12 I had lessons inside and out of school on the Oboe.... At 38 it was completely sensible and logical to have bass lessons!![/quote]

Totally!

There's nothing like someone watching you play and saying "Not bad, but if you do it like this you'll find it a lot easier". Instant expert feedback beats Youtube or books every time - although I use those as well. I've started playing in my forties, so I want to learn fast and not pick up bad habits which could take ages to unlearn later.

My instructor charges £20 per hour as well. He's well connected, but doesn't go on about it unless it comes up naturally in conversation. Talking of which, my 45-minute lessons always stretch into an hour and a half because we enjoy a good natter; and, no, he charges for just the 45 minutes. Top bloke!

[Grangur]

I've been going the Youtube/book self-taught route for the past 3 years. I recon that for myself I've gone a good way on this path, but I'm getting now that I need feedback and direction.

I don't know if, because of work, I'll have the time available to play in a band but I do feel I want to move to the next stage; whatever that is?

FWIW my path has been this:[list]
[*]Youtube to get the stance, hand technique, and a small amount of other info.
[*][url="http://www.studybass.com"]www.studybass.com[/url] - has taught me about scales (backed up by books), turn-arounds, 12-bar blues
[*]I've gone half-way through 2-3 books: Crash Course Bass, Walking Bass lines and Blues for Bass.
[*]Latest book is Reading Music for Bass, by Stuart Clayton.
[*][url="http://www.musescore.com"]www.musescore.com[/url] - gets you free software for you to write scores on the PC, so you can transpose tunes and play stuff. Through this I've got to play stuff from "The Star-Spangled Banner" to "Sound of Silence". So now I can sight-read a bit.
[/list]
But the book route is having me think I'm just copying. I don't know if I can join a band because of work commitments. I don't know what my next stage is, or my objective. So at the age of 53 I want to get better, but I'm lacking direction. I'm enquiring about lessons with a teacher now because I hope I'll learn where I want to go.

Or... does anyone here have ideas? Please?

Oh - one more thought.. I know others play the bass line to their collection of CDs or MP3s. I don't see muself doing that very much. I guess I really aspire to playiing like Victor Wooten... so the bar's a bit high I guess.

Edited April 8, 2013 by Grangur

[Prunesquallor]

Grangur, defo look for a good teacher. He or she would be able to see the weak spots in your technique and straighten them out quickly. Chatting one-to-one with him or her would also help you decide on your priorities.

Good luck!