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Hi all

So I have a friend from abroad coming to stay with me for a month starting in late July. She's in a conservatory and very talented, which is great -- but I live in an apartment building with no soundproofing, and her usual 6-8+ hours of daily practice just won't work here. Anyone local, might you have suggestions for somewhere cheap we could get access to practice? Some university or church space perhaps? I'm in Park Slope, Brooklyn, but NYC, Queens, etc would all work.

I know practice spaces are listed online, but realistically, there's no way we can afford to pay the $15-$20/hour that seems to be the going rate -- that could be as much as $160/day at the top end (that said, most days I wouldn't expect more than 3-4 hours). Does anyone here have ideas? I know being enrolled at an institution would help. . .

Thanks so much!

Tom

If it is for a summer month, why not try to rent a teaching studio? Students are more scarce in the summer and maybe she can work out a deal, or even a concert in trade?

why not just try to cut back a little practice time? most pianists recommend 4 hrs of hard practice anyway. there are other ways of practice besides actual playing the music (silent practice e.g.)

Thanks for the responses. Lilylady -- sounds good in theory, but I'm not sure how one would go about finding an opportunity for something like that?

shy -- well, she has some competitions etc coming up and has to learn a ton of new material, so I have doubts about being able to convince her to cut back much. . .

It seems odd that a conservatory student with upcoming competitions and a "ton of new material" to learn would set themselves up in such a situation. Two suggestions:

1) Rent a digital piano for the month and practice with headphones.

2) Ask her teacher for any contacts in the numerous music schools in the area, and see if something can be arranged that way.

I don't think anything available to the public will be affordable given her requirements.

Try Greenwich House Music School. I don't know what the current rates are. It used to require a one-time sort of membership in the neighborhood of 25-50 $, but after that, a low rate per hour. If she is piling on the hours, maybe that'd work.

Did you know there is a conservatory in Brooklyn? Also a music school around the corner from the Brooklyn Academy of Music, on the side street. Maybe check into those too.

Too bad she just missed the "Play me, I'm yours" pianos...free! (Just kidding.)

Thanks Realplayer. Greenwich House Music School would have been great, but for some reason their room rental program is shut down for August.

Euler -- thanks. She's from Eastern Europe so I doubt her teacher has any contacts here. (And that also answers your other question -- it's not an ideal situation, but who knows when she'll next have an opportunity to spend a month in the States, let alone NY).

As per what Euler said, in such a situation the person should be very ready to accept compromises about practicing and about her music in general. Whatever you can help her arrange, great -- but I don't think you need to feel too bad about what you can't.