We enter the Holiday Season of 2009 with energy and optimism as we look back at the accomplishments of the year and look forward to growth in 2010. You’ll find lots of news and information in this issue about Yamaha Music School students’ activities, new school openings, teacher milestones, new courses, and articles directed toward teachers and administrators on the subject of retention and advancement. Congratulations to Valerie Narumi, a student at Harmony Music World in Fullerton, CA. Valerie was honored by President Barack Obama with a Golden Volunteer Award in recognition of her outstanding volunteer service. You can read about how Valerie earned this prestigious award in this issue of Harmony. Schools around the country are now graduating their first students from the New Junior Music Course. This means many are preparing to implement the new Fundamental Skills Survey. If you are among those planning to offer the new FSS in the coming months, be sure to read the article in this issue to confirm the updates to contents, materials and preparation. Be sure to see the article on page two about the Regional JOCs that were conducted this past summer in three cities. Thirty students from 20 schools performed their original compositions to enthusiastic audiences. Planning is well under way for next year’s JOC activities which will feature, for the first time, on-line performances by selected students as well as the 2010 Yamaha National JOC Concert in Boston in October. Many more local and regional prizes will be awarded and students will be selected to be featured in an on-line JOC website as well as the National Concert. The application deadline for those who would like to receive comments on their compo- sitions is February 1, 2010. We welcome three new schools into the YMES network this fall: Coldwater Music School in Litchfield Park, Arizona (a suburb of Phoenix); Serom Music, in West Windsor, New Jersey; and The Piano Warehouse in San Marcos, California. Friendly reminder to school administrators: the deadline to update at least one classroom of YMES student instruments is January 31, 2010. Many schools are now in the process of ordering the new keyboards. If you’d like information about the keyboards or how to order, please call the Music Education office at 714-522-9206. Finally, we welcome signs that the most severe economic recession in decades is coming to an end. As economic growth resumes, we anticipate a new influx of students eager to learn music. Just as important as new student enrollment are the retention and advancement of current stu- dents. You’ll find two articles, one in Harmony and one in Teacher’s Toolbox, devoted to this very important subject. Retention and advancement are of vital importance if our schools are to remain vibrant into the future. We encourage you to explore new ways to keep your students happily involved in lessons so that music will remain an integral part of their lives. YMES Student Composer/Performers Treat Audiences in Three Cities to Lively JOC Performances . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2010 JOC Call for Entries. . . . . . . . . . . . 3 School News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Improving Student Retention: Strategies from the Field Pt. 1 . . . . . . . . 5 YMES Students Score First Place in California MTA Composer Contest . . . . 6 New Junior Extension Course to Launch in 2010 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 President Obama Honors YMES Student . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Events Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 FALL 2009 • VOLUME 18 Yamaha Music Education System – Creating Music For Tomorrow Intermezzo Mike Morrell, Music Education Department Manager
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Transcript
We enter the Holiday Season of 2009 with energy and optimism as
we look back at the accomplishments of the year and look forward to
growth in 2010. You’ll find lots of news and information in this issue
about Yamaha Music School students’ activities, new school openings,
teacher milestones, new courses, and articles directed toward teachers
and administrators on the subject of retention and advancement.
Congratulations to Valerie Narumi, a student at Harmony Music
World in Fullerton, CA. Valerie was honored by President Barack Obama with a Golden Volunteer
Award in recognition of her outstanding volunteer service. You can read about how Valerie earned
this prestigious award in this issue of Harmony.
Schools around the country are now graduating their first students from the New Junior
Music Course. This means many are preparing to implement the new Fundamental Skills Survey.
If you are among those planning to offer the new FSS in the coming months, be sure to read the
article in this issue to confirm the updates to contents, materials and preparation.
Be sure to see the article on page two about the Regional JOCs that were conducted this past
summer in three cities. Thirty students from 20 schools performed their original compositions to
enthusiastic audiences. Planning is well under way for next year’s JOC activities which will feature,
for the first time, on-line performances by selected students as well as the 2010 Yamaha
National JOC Concert in Boston in October. Many more local and regional prizes will be awarded
and students will be selected to be featured in an on-line JOC website as well as the National
Concert. The application deadline for those who would like to receive comments on their compo-
sitions is February 1, 2010.
We welcome three new schools into the YMES network this fall: Coldwater Music School
in Litchfield Park, Arizona (a suburb of Phoenix); Serom Music, in West Windsor, New Jersey;
and The Piano Warehouse in San Marcos, California.
Friendly reminder to school administrators: the deadline to update at least one classroom of
YMES student instruments is January 31, 2010. Many schools are now in the process of ordering
the new keyboards. If you’d like information about the keyboards or how to order, please call the
Music Education office at 714-522-9206.
Finally, we welcome signs that the most severe economic recession in decades is coming to an
end. As economic growth resumes, we anticipate a new influx of students eager to learn music.
Just as important as new student enrollment are the retention and advancement of current stu-
dents. You’ll find two articles, one in Harmony and one in Teacher’s Toolbox, devoted to this very
important subject. Retention and advancement are of vital importance if our schools are to
remain vibrant into the future. We encourage you to explore new ways to keep your students
happily involved in lessons so that music will remain an integral part of their lives.
Y a m a h a M u s i c E d u c a t i o n S y s t e m – C r e a t i n g M u s i c F o r T o m o r r o w
I n t e rme z zo
Mike Morrell, Music EducationDepartment Manager
22
YMES Student Composer/Perfor Audiences in Three Cities to Live This year, Yamaha received 163 composi-
tions from 15 music schools around
the country. In lieu of a national concert,
28 students were selected to perform in
three regional concerts held in Teaneck,
New Jersey; Tempe, Arizona; and La Mirada,
California. In addition, 20 students received
an Honorable Mention in recognition of their
compositions and performances.
Each concert included a demonstration
of improvisation. Valerie Narumi (West),
Christian Nguyen (South) and guest artist
and JOC alumna Laurie Kono-Merchant
(East) spontaneously expanded on a motif
provided by an audience member at their
respective locations. This popular segment
delightfully illustrated to the audiences one
aspect of the YMES curriculum and gave
insight into how students begin composing.
Following each concert, students were
awarded certificates of excellence in perform-
ance and composition, then everyone in
attendance was invited to a reception.
The Eastern Regional JOC, held on
Sunday, May 3 at Fairleigh Dickinson
University’s Wilson Hall, featured new
works by eight talented students from
Bergen YMS, Fredericksburg YMS, Heid
Music and Keyboard Music Works. In
addition to her improvisation, guest artist
Laurie Kono-Merchant played “Alborada del
Gracioso” from “Miroirs” by Maurice Ravel.
The Southern Regional JOC took
place on Sunday, June 14th at Arizona State
University’s brand new Katzin Hall. Host
school East Valley Yamaha Music School
undertook the task of organizing this
concert, which was attended by two full
houses (guests were admitted to dress
rehearsal as well as the actual concert itself).
Nine students performed, representing four
schools: A1 YMS, Irvine YMC, Jensen’s YMS
and East Valley YMS.
The Western Regional JOC was held
on Sunday, June 14th at Biola University’s
Crowell Hall Auditorium. Six host schools
coordinated and showcased 11 performers
Eastern Concert Performers (L to R, Top Photo)Calvin Lu (age 9), Bergen YMS; Maria Tjilos (11), Keyboard Music Works; Angela Lacuesta (12),Bergen YMS; Ben Brosche (15), Fredericksburg YMS; Paula Motsenbocker (13), Fredericksburg YMS;Sarah Kunstman (13), Heid Music; Isaac Quinones (10), Heid Music; Emily Tu (14), Bergen YMSThank You Teachers: Donna Dahm, John Girvin, Elin Havrilla, Felicia Ruffman, Christine Smith
Southern Concert Performers (L to R)Caroline Huang (age 9), A-1 YMS; Renata Vallecillo (9), East Valley YMS; Yuta Okamoto (12),Irvine YMC; David Ryan Fong (14), Jensen’s YMS; Gabrielle Dotson (13), East Valley YMS; Christian Nguyen (12), East Valley YMS; Timothy Bi (10), East Valley YMS; Karalyn Schubring(10), East Valley YMS; Gabriel Dotson (15), East Valley YMS Thank You Teachers: Su-Shing Chiu, Vanja Nikolovski Gjumar, Heidi Grimes, Lois Jensen, Stacy Wang, Tomoko Yonemaru
Serom Music Opens its Doors Jensen’s YMSReceives Awardfrom Nickelodeon
John Girvin, co-ownerof Serom Music, is aYMES teacher andSpecialist known toYamaha Music Campattendees. At left, theNew Jersey school islocated in the middle of a community devot-ed to the arts, in ashopping center withmany child-centeredbusinesses.
5
By Jim Keenan, Director of YMS Boston
When music teachers and administra-
tors hear one of these phrases from
parents, we get an uneasy feeling. Instinct
and experience tell us these words are usually
early warning signs about a student or fami-
ly’s lack of understanding of our program,
low level of commitment, or inability to
“stick to it.” Although not much research
has been done to examine music student
retention, there are a few studies that sup-
port these initial warning signs.
Costra-Giomi (2005), in studying
students who were likely to drop out early
versus students who continued, found that
there were no differences in cognitive or
musical abilities, self-esteem, motor abilities
or demographics. The clearest indicators
were directly related to the lessons: students
who dropped out practiced less and achieved
less in the first six weeks (“no time to prac-
tice”). Pitts, Davidson and McPherson (2000)
found that likely dropouts started music
lessons for non-musical reasons (“we’re here
because of a friend”) and usually declared
early on that their participation was tempo-
rary (“we’ll try it out”). Although these
studies used feedback from the students,
as YMES educators working with a younger
population, we rely more upon the parent’s
statements, attitudes and beliefs. We can
easily translate the typical drop-out indica-
tors outlined in these studies into the things
we commonly hear from parents.
For teachers and administrators, we can
use these early red flags to our advantage
in shaping our approach to enrollment,
support, education and customer service.
The Importance of Retention We all know that improving student
retention can make a difference in the
bottom line. A dedication to continu-
ous improvement can have a powerful
impact. In fact, if you increase your
annual retention rate from 75% –80%,
it will increase the average student’s
“life expectancy”—how long they stay
as a student in your school—from four
to five years. In other words, a 6.7%
improvement increases the customer’s
time with you by 25% percent. Students
who remain longer also generate higher rev-
enues per customer due to add-on selling
(such as private lessons, instrument/book
sales, etc), they cost less to serve, and they
are strong program advocates driving future
business through word-of-mouth.
Over time, increased levels of student
and family dedication can translate into
better teacher compensation, improved
educational quality and results, new class-
room instruments or more exciting concerts
and community events.
It’s critical to view retention as a business
model for success. Many times, our only
focus is on enrolling new students. But
retaining students, while requiring an invest-
ment of time and capital, is cheaper than
recruiting. Schools with the best retention
make the shift from a ‘recruiting only’ mind-
set to a ‘recruiting and retention’ program.
Retention rates impact much more than
the bottom line. It’s difficult to work con-
stantly to attract new students, but it can be
disheartening to see the families you worked
so hard to recruit and teach leave. And while
it is a reality that, from time to time, students
may discontinue, it is our passionate goal to
retain 100%.
Finally, when we lose students, we also
lose some ability to fully realize our mission
to impact the future musical generation.
Start With a Strong Mindset
YMES schools with a long history of good
retention have a strong mindset and high
expectations. Jeannine Krause, from Heid
Yamaha Music School in Appleton, WI,
explains that, “Our general approach to
retention is that we just have an expectation
that our students will remain in our program
for its entirety. Up front, we stress that this is
a five year program (JMC/JXC—we take the
summers off) and the vast majority of our
students do remain for the five years. It is
in the teacher's best interest to have great
retention, and also the school's best interest.”
This approach sends the message about
the importance of long term commitment
and it is communicated over time in direct
and subtle ways. Beverly Griffith, owner
and teacher at Wheaton Yamaha Music
School in Wheaton, IL, writes, “We have
“We don’t have much timeto practice.”
“We’re here because my friendbrings her child to the class.”
“We’ll try it out and see if he likes it.”
Continued on page 6
Improving Student Retention:Strategies from the Field Part
One
Happy students and parents (here from YMS Boston) make retention easy and they are strong advocates for YMES programs.
6
YMES Students Score First Place in California MTAComposer ContestDivision 1: Chloe LiTeacher: Su-Shing Chiu (Irvine YMC)
Division 2: Caroline Huang Teacher: Stacy Wang (A-1 YMS)
Division 3: Danica SilanTeacher: Ana Contreras (Irvine YMC)
Division 5: Matthew NguyenTeacher: Su-Shing Chiu (Irvine YMC)
Young Mozart Award: Phillip MatsuuraTeacher: Satomi Otsubo (Irvine YMC)
viewed student retention as a given for many
years; once students enrolled in our program
they were pretty much sold on its benefits
and rewards, and continued until the end of
the program, and then often stayed for con-
tinuing private piano lessons.”
Shape Expectations from the Beginning Students and parents don’t usually evaluate
the school and program based on its own
merits. They evaluate it relative to their
expectations. This means that we have to
put a high degree of attention and focus
on shaping the experience and expectations
from the very beginning. Everything from
demonstrating a professional image with a
high level of customer service in the first
communications (phone call, e-mail, web-
site) to a clear enrollment process and con-
tinuing support comes together to shape
expectation.
Kimiko Fujita, owner of the Irvine, Aliso
Viejo, and Torrance Yamaha Music Centers,
requires that all students attend a preview
lesson prior to enrolling; no one is allowed
to enroll and just come to the first class. The
preview lesson is necessary to the enrollment
process, providing an opportunity for parent
education. Significantly, this is also a chance
for families to decide not to enroll, saving
time and energy for more qualified families
during the first critical weeks. For families
who wish to skip this crucial first step,
Kimiko says, “If you are registering for the
class just to ‘try,’ then I wouldn’t recom-
mend it. This is a serious education program
that requires a long-term commitment.”
Have a SystemThese three schools pride themselves on
their clear policies and systems for parent
education. After the preview lesson, they:
1.Hold a meeting during the final 10-15 minutes of the first class.
2.Hold a second parent only in-classmeeting in the third month.
3.If challenges are discovered, theschool offers a “practice partner”option (Yamaha graduates travel to the home to assist with practicing).
4.Teachers may offer a 30 minute ‘catch up’ private lesson.
Be Innovative and ImaginativeMany experienced Yamaha administrators
and teachers may recall that, at one time,
Yamaha offered a four-lesson sample called
“Music Land.” Beverly Griffith provides an
updated version of this approach by offering
the first three lessons of Junior Music Course
(JMC) as a “sample” class. This is a prerequi-
site to JMC 1. Although this approach does
not replace the preview lesson, it does allow
families to experience the course before
enrolling for an entire semester.
Beverly adds, “It also helps us weed out
kids who aren’t ready to begin JMC and
identify children with special needs. Parents
pay for the three lessons, then (officially)
start JMC in lesson four. I’d say about 90%
of the kids stay for the class; they see the
DVD and all the great materials in the sam-
ple classes and are hooked. Parents are sold
after they see how the lessons work for their
children and how easy and successful it is.”
This is a win-win all around and has even
more impact during difficult economic times
when most families are very careful about
finances.
Maintain Communication Unlike a pre-school or elementary school
environment where parents have opportuni-
ties for daily interaction, after-school enrich-
ment programs usually see the families for
only one hour per week. It’s critical to main-
tain regular communications to build a sense
of community and belonging.
Many schools use a variety of communi-
cation tools to keep parents informed and
involved. At Heid YMS, which is part of a full
service dealer, the school sends out ‘e-blasts’
Improving Student RetentionContinued from page 5
Continued on page 7
77
RetentionContinued from page 6
(mass e-mails) to alert families about special
events and promotions. Wheaton’s Beverly
Griffith states, “The single most important
thing that I do is keep an open channel of
communication with the parents. This is
their school and we let them know that
we’re so glad that they are a part of our
Yamaha team.”
In part two of this series, we will diagram
and explore a Marketing and Retention Flow
Chart based on a typical academic year that
implements many of these ideas.
Costa-Giomi E. (2005). “‘I do not want to study piano!’Early predictors of student drop out behavior.” Bulletin ofthe Counsel for Research in Music Education, 57-64, 161-162.
Pitts, S., Davidson J., & McPherson, G. (2000). “Modelsof Success and Failure in Instrumental Learning: Casestudies of young players in the first 20 months of learning.”Bulletin of the Counsel for Research in Music Education, 51-69, 146.
Blattberg, R. C., Getz, G., & Thomas, J. S. (2006).Managing Customer Retention. Excerpted from CustomerEquity: Building and Managing Relationships as Valuable Assets.Harvard Business School Press, 2-3, 5-6.
Raisman, Neal A. (2008). The Power of Retention: MoreCustomer Service for Higher Education. The Administrator’sBookshelf, 65-66.
January 1, 2010 Application deadline for February Intro to YMESJanuary 11 Grade Exam January 11-16 Teacher Certification Seminar – Part A January 14-17 NAMM Show – Anaheim, CAJanuary 25 Grade Exam January 25-27 Teacher Certification Seminar – Part B
February 1 Application deadline for TCE (for April Intro to YMES)Application deadline for 2010 JOC entries
February 8 Holiday – YCA offices closedFebruary 15 Holiday – YCA offices closedFebruary TBA Intro to YMES
March 1 Application deadline for April Grade ExamApplication deadline for April Intro to YMES
April 1 Application deadline for TCE (for July Seminar Part A)April 2 Holiday – YCA offices closedApril 9 Grade ExamApril TBA Intro to YMES
May 1 Application deadline for July Teacher Certification SeminarsMay 31 Holiday – YCA offices closed
June 1 Application deadline for July Grade ExamsApplication deadline for August Advanced Courses SeminarApplication deadline for TCE (for August Intro to YMES)
July 12 Grade ExamJuly 12-17 Teacher Certification Seminar - Part AJuly 26 Grade ExamJuly 26-31 Teacher Certification Seminar - Part B