Pianopolis®
Pianopolis® is Musicopolis’s foundations in innovative piano pedagogy under the direction of Dr. Dina Savvidou. Through one-to-one and group instruction, students develop strong foundational piano technique, the ability and confidence to play in groups, and an appreciation of a wide variety of musical styles. Students from ages 6-12 begin by following the Pianopolis® curriculum and may later choose to prepare for all levels of the ABRSM, Trinity and Rockschool examinations.
Pianopolis® follows our proprietary piano curriculum for students aged 6 to 12, and is continuously developed to incorporate the latest scientific pedagogical research. It emphasizes developing technique, musicality, and interactive music making from an early age.
Interested?
Group Lessons
60 minutes; groups of 2-5 students
Our school has been offering group piano classes for over 10 years with great success. Classes typically include 2-5 children and the course is for two years. After this, students can enroll in an additional year of combo classes, which combine a half-hour individual lesson and a half-hour group lesson. During this year, in which our students transition from group to individual lessons, they may enroll in the ABRSM, Trinity, or Rockschool examination systems. All of our group piano classes are taught in our piano labs, equipped with KAWAI digital pianos and a set of headphones for each student.
Why Group Piano? Click here!
Group Piano History
Group Piano has a history of over 200 years. It appeared in 1815 in Dublin, where piano instruction in a classroom setting was first introduced. Almost immediately, prominent pianists such as Franz Liszt, Frederic Chopin, and Clara Schumann adopted group instruction for their own teaching. By the end of the 19th century group piano had moved to the United Stated, where its popularity quickly spread throughout the country in both public schools and universities. By now, group piano is a standard feature of North American and Asian music instruction and has recently begun making inroads into Europe. Continuous advances in teaching methods and technology led to the formation of the National Group Piano and Piano Pedagogy Forum. Held biannually in the United States, this forum is the world’s premier event for the sharing of latest research and innovation in the field of group piano pedagogy. Musicopolis is proud to have been the first music school to introduce this advanced and effective method to Cyprus.
Research has consistently shown that group piano, when executed by properly trained teachers with the correct equipment, offers students the following benefits that individual lessons do not:
- Enhances student motivation
- Assists in the cultivation of social skills
- Creates fun and interactive learning experience
- Gives numerous performance opportunities
- Promotes challenges amongst peers
- Facilitates the study of ensemble playing (duets, multiple piano ensemble)
- Offers fundamental musicianship skills in a collaborative and playful way
- Encourages practicing at home
- Encourages students to learn from each other
- Allows students to take collective decisions
*source: Christopher Fischer, Teaching Piano in Groups, Oxford University Press, 2010.
For more on the international developments in group piano instruction, you may visit the website of the National Group Piano and Piano Pedagogy Forum.
Group-Individual Combination
30-minute group lesson + 30-minute individual lesson
This option combines the many benefits of group instruction with the individualized attention of the one-to-one lesson. While this option is available for all ages, it is ideally suited for students as they transition from the Pianopolis® program to more advanced one-to-one and ensemble instruction.
Individual Lessons
Available for 30, 45, or 60 minutes
Our school offers piano lessons both in groups and individually starting from age 6.
We provide lessons of 30, 45, 60 or 90 minutes, depending on the student’s age and level. Our teaching philosophy is that the student learns a holistic piano approach through a piano method book series, enriched by music games, music theory instruction, improvisation, and ear training. The method books series we use at Musicopolis include Piano Adventures, My First Piano Adventures, Premier Piano Method, Hal Leonard, Piano Safari, Piano Time, Poco Piano, and Wunderkeys.
The first two years include an introduction to learning and understanding the instrument. From the third year onwards, students may enter the examinations curricula of the ABRSM, Trinity or Rockschool systems. While these examinations are not required, we nevertheless recommend them, especially for students who benefit from having a structured goal for the end of the school year. All students, are expected to perform in the school concerts throughout the year. They can either play solo, in an ensemble or with a group piano.
