Piano lessons · ages 5 to adult · Ann Arbor
Lessons at the
old upright.
$38 for 30 minutes, $52 for 45, weekly in my home studio in Burns Park. The first lesson is free. Spring recital May 16.
Now booking
spring term
Spring openingsPick a keyopen taken yours
Seven weekly slots are open for spring. Pick one to try it with a free lesson.
- 28students this term
- Since 1998teaching piano
- 5 to 74youngest and oldest
- May 16spring recital
Lessons
Once a week, same time, same bench.
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30 minutes
$38a lesson
Ages 5 to 8, and first-year beginners
Finding middle C, reading the first notes, and a sticker for every song learned.
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45 minutes
$52a lesson
Most students, ages 9 and up
Technique, reading, a piece for the recital and one just for fun. Where most students settle.
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60 minutes
$68a lesson
Advanced students and adults
Room for the long pieces, theory, and the songs you always wanted to play.
Paid monthly, four lessons a month. Every student gets a practice notebook, a sticker book for the little ones, the spring recital and the December play-in. Siblings back to back get $5 off each lesson.
The first lesson is free
Thirty minutes to see if it fits.
- 1We say hello
You and your child, or just you, on the bench. Parents are welcome to stay in the armchair by the window.
- 2We find middle C
Then the black keys in twos and threes, and a first song with both hands. Most five-year-olds leave playing it.
- 3I tell you honestly
Whether now is the right time, which lesson length fits, and which slot I’d choose. No pressure, no card.
Meet Ms. Dana
Hi, I’m Dana. Most people call me Ms. Dana.
I learned on my great-aunt Ruth’s upright in Grand Rapids. It had a cracked C-sharp and a candle burn on the lid, and when she passed it came to me. It’s the one in my studio now, tuned every spring and fall.
I studied music here in Ann Arbor and stayed for nineteen years of teaching it in the city’s elementary schools: recorders, choirs, and a lot of kids who were sure they weren’t musical. When I retired from the schools in 2015, I turned my front room into a studio and kept going, one student at a time.
I teach the way I wish I’d been taught: real songs early, theory when it helps, and no one ever made to feel slow. My oldest student is 74. My youngest just learned which hand is which.
Ms. Dana
The Middle C Piano Studio presents
The Spring Recital
Saturday, May 16 · 2 o’clock
The fellowship hall of a church near Burns Park
- Hot Cross Buns, with a duet partTraditionalNora, 6
- Ode to JoyBeethovenEli, 7
- Heart and Soul, four handsCarmichaelMaya & June, 9 and 11
- Minuet in GPetzoldTheo, 10
- Amazing GraceTraditionalWalt, 74
- The EntertainerJoplinRuby, 13
- Prelude in CBachSam, 15
- Twinkle, Twinkle, all 28 of usMozart, nearlyMs. Dana & everyone
Every student plays. Nobody has to memorize. Cookies and lemonade after.
The studio
A front room with a piano in it.
Feet don’t reach yet. That’s what the footstool is for.
The metronome, and the dish of gold stars
Ruby, 13, on her third year
The parents’ armchair, tea included
The porch, and the brass bell to ring
The old upright, tuned every spring and fall
From parents and students
5.0 from 64 families.
“Our son asked to practice. Unprompted. Twice. I don’t know what she does, but please keep doing it.”
Priya · Mom of Eli, 7“I started at 71 because my granddaughter did. Now we play a duet at Thanksgiving.”
Walt · Student since 2024“Ms. Dana remembers every kid’s favorite song and every dog’s name. The recital is the best afternoon of our spring.”
Hannah · Mom of Nora and Ruby
Where
Burns Park, a block from the school.
The studio is the front room of my house. Ring the brass bell on the porch and come in; there’s an armchair, tea and a basket of books for whoever is waiting.
Easy street parking, and a short walk from the elementary school for after-school lessons. The address comes with your booking.
Questions
Parents ask me this a lot.
Do we need a piano at home?
A piano is lovely, but a keyboard with 88 weighted keys and a pedal is all you need for the first few years. I’m happy to look at a listing with you before you buy.
Is five too young?
Not if they know their numbers and can sit for a story. The free trial is the best way to tell, and I’ll say honestly if waiting six months would help.
How much practice?
Ten minutes a day for the little ones, twenty to thirty for older students. Five days a week beats one long Sunday.
What if we miss a lesson?
Tell me 24 hours ahead and we’ll find a makeup the same month. Snow days are always made up.
Do I have to play in the recital?
Everyone is invited, nobody is made to. Most of my most nervous students end up loving it. There are cookies.
How does paying work?
Lessons are paid monthly, four lessons a month, on the first lesson of the month. The trial lesson is free.
Book
Your first lesson is on me.
Pick a day and a time for a free 30-minute trial lesson. If it fits, we keep that slot every week. No card needed for the trial.
- Free trial30 minutes, nothing to pay
- Weekly lessonsFrom $38; the first lesson holds your slot
- Lesson timesMondays to Thursdays after school, Saturday mornings
- 1Service
- 2Day and time
- 3Details
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