Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Teachers Forum Policy for Book Purchasing

How do you handle it?

I have a parent who will not buy four piano books for his daughter, simply by ignoring my multiple requests and sending his daughter with an old book that belonged to her brother. Seriously, kind of frustrating.

Do you have your parents buy books for their children or do you include a materials fee and buy the books for them as included in that fee? Do you buy the books and charge them for it?

One teacher I had for my kids charged peanuts for her lessons but had the kids buy 7 books from her. That kinda felt icky.

You should let the parent know why it is better to get the books you want to use. Some parents need more "education" than others.

If they flat-out refuse to buy more books, then you can always use the hand-me-down books and scribble all over it and make it look more worthless than it already is.

Or you can just tell them specific pages to print from imslp.

What would you have preferred?

All the books I ever used as a student were bought for me by my teachers and added on to the monthly rates my parents paid for me. No if's, no but's. The cost of the books were printed on the books, or had the store's price labels stuck on them, so there was no arguing about their prices (this was before the internet).

These days, I'd have thought that if you bought the books at the cheapest Amazon prices, the parents can't accuse you of short-changing them. You can tell them you relieved them of the time & effort they would otherwise have spent to buy the books themselves - gratis........

Yeah, that's kind of how I feel bennevis.. except my situation is that I bought books at the local music store, but they are more expensive than Amazon, so I feel kind of bad if I ask them to pay for them.

When I had a piano teacher, she sent me home with a list, and my mom had to buy the books at the music store. There was no thought that it was optional O_o

Seems to me that one needs to have a discussion about this with the parents before lessons commence, to avoid this sort of dilemma.

I always procure music for my early-level students, and no parent has ever balked for a child. Adult students usually like a new book or two also. However, I try not to make anyone spend too much, too often. I often absorb some of costs myself, selling materials at a discount.

Regarding the OP, I'd be surprised if a young student really needs four books all at once.

sheet music plus has an 8% rebate policy for teachers. I haven't compared the prices to Amazon, etc. but would the rebate compensate so that you don't need to absorb costs? I honestly would not expect my teacher to provide materials at a discount.... she already doesn't get paid enough for what I gain.

If the parents nickel and dime you over an 8% discount for books, it's time to fire them.

If you buy the books at a local music store instead of Amazon etc, you help the local store stay in business.

This is all weird to me, because long ago, when I used method books, we always got a teacher's discount.

I simply passed the savings along to my students. Never any complaints.

That was something like 30 years ago.

Today I print out all my music on an as needs basis and charge a bit for paper an ink...

I just tell the parents that they are expected to buy books and let them know they can buy them on amazon. I usually text them pictures of hte books so they know what to get. It's really never been a problem.

If a student is a transfer(wreck), I'll usually try to use whatever books they were working out of except if they are really bad. Then I have them buy new ones once that level is done. I am always shocked how bad some of them are, though.

Peter -- Yes, it looks like there are a lot of things that need to take place in that first lesson! I wish publishers did All-in-one for kids like they do for adults, but if you count Lesson, Technic, Theory, and a Recital sort of book, that's already four books.

dogperson-- I didn't know about any rebate policy. Thanks for the info. I do buy my books at the local music store, because I like them but it is a tad more expensive than Amazon.

Gary-- where do you print all your music from? probably a big question.

Morodiene-- She only has one book, a Bastien primer lesson book (with all the note names written in by her older brother, mind you), and I'd really like her to have something else too to supplement that.

If you're nice, you can ask the kid to white out the finger numbers. If you're in a foul mood, a black sharpie will do the trick.

A printer. All my music is done in Finale. I print out on an as needs basis.

You obviously are not dealing with some of the idiots I deal with - I'm talking about parents.

It can take them weeks to get anything done. By the time they get what I ask for it's almost too late. And I swear it is getting worse now every year.

I was taught on an all-in-one series of primers that take beginners from zero skills & knowledge to being able to read and play. It even includes teacher accompaniments right from the first lesson ('piece') which ingrain an excellent sense of rhythm - and ensure he plays everything in strict time - in the beginner. From my own experience as a 10 yr old beginner, that was a big attraction that made me practice what I'd learnt properly, so that I could then hear how 'my pieces' would sound with rich chords and/or dancing bass line in my next lesson.

Sure, everything is taught step by step and slowly, with a lot of 'revision' along the way, but that is how things get fixed in the brain, and imprinted forever. (Incidentally, that was also how I learnt the Western alphabet and English, starting at nine). Not by jumping ahead, and running before one can stand, for the sake of instant gratification, as in so many 'fashionable' beginner primers that I see these days. And I don't just mean the ones designed for adults.

Maybe I've been lucky. I used to buy them for students, and if I happen to have extra books, I may sell them to the student for list price (no tax). But as long as they can get them on amazon I think many have amazon prime or order from them all the time anyways, so that is convenient.

If they had to go to a store, forget about it.