There is one space remaining on our Music Aptitude Test group workshop on 24 July in East Dulwich. We will plan another session in August, please email to enquire as we have not yet fixed a date.
To help Year 4, 5 and 6 musicians prepare for the upcoming Music Scholarships for 2019 state secondary admissions. The session will focus on Music Aptitude Test training that is the first round of the selective music intake process. There will be a maximum of 5 participants per session. We have one space remaining for the workshop on 24 July.
We recommend completing at least 1 test before attending this session. You will be asked for a breakdown of your marks when you book the session.
The group will complete 1 test on arrival that will be marked and then one or two specific areas will be targeted for extra practice. As most students find the texture question the most difficult, we always work on this section. Additionally we ask you to bring your instrument if possible and we will listen to your audition piece(s) and give advice on performance as well as prep the interview questions with you. We have a piano available for your use as well as an accompanist so please both music parts if accompanied.
Nb. This is an Archive Post containing out of date information.
We are delighted that you are considering starting piano lessons at the SE22 Piano School. We have a fantastic team of teachers that offer you a weekly lesson plus lots of amazing performance opportunities, recitals and school trips. Before you start lessons, please read through this information to decide if we are the right piano school for you.
Our Philosophy: We are the premier private piano teaching studio in South London and we seek to collaborate with pianists to help them develop a passion for music on their lifelong journey of learning the piano. We are looking for dedicated, enthusiastic pianists that want to learn because they are intrigued and inspired by the piano. Graded exams are optional and we do not teach a rigid curriculum where our students only study graded exam pieces and nothing else. We teach the solid foundation of good piano technique, playing with expression and sensitivity and finding the music that resonates with you. We can also assist with Music Scholarship preparation.
Do you have enough time to practise?
Learning piano requires enough time to practise, ideally every day, but at least three times a week when starting. There will often be one page of theory homework too. If you are very, very busy with lots of extra-curricular activities, you may find it hard to fit enough time to practise. Without a regular schedule for practising, it will be difficult to make progress as the piano requires lots of time and patience. If it was easy, everyone would be able to do it! Students that wish to start graded exams must be able to demonstrate and effective practising schedule before the teacher will consider starting the exam system. Exams are optional and there is no requirement to follow this system.
Do you have an instrument?
In order to practise, you will need a piano! Here is our recommended starter digital piano pack. You can view our other options for Digital Pianos for Beginners.
Can you commit to a minimum of a full academic year of lessons?
After the half-term trial, all students are enrolled for the remainder of the academic year. Learning for an academic year allows you to participate in all the great events and performance opportunities that we offer to our students. It also gives you the chance to start working towards some graded exams if you’d like to do that. In line with other private schools in the area, one term’s written notice is required to terminate lessons. If you know that you will be moving house soon or that you are travelling a long way to get to lessons and you are looking around for a teacher nearer to your home, then we advise looking for a more convenient short-term option. We are only able to enrol students that are able to commit to lessons over the full academic year. You may choose to discontinue lessons after the half-term trial without any notice period, but if you would like to continue, you will register for the remainder of the academic year. You may also find it more convenient to learn at school so please investigate that option before engaging one of our tutors. We use the Incorporated Society of Musicians to enforce the notice period on our behalf.
Please pay your bill on time! With nearly 100 students on the register, we require all students to take note of the half-termly payment dates and set up a bank transfer so that the payment arrives on time (5pm on the day of the deadline). As I’m sure you can appreciate, chasing late payments takes up a considerable amount of time and causes a delay to our bookkeeping process so have a look at the timetable below and ensure you meet the payment deadlines. Late payment of your invoice after the 2nd occurrence may result in forfeiture of your lesson time. Repeated late payment of bills may result in termination of lessons. Please be mindful that we have a waiting list for prime time slots and will not continue to hold a space open for students that cause excessive admin to the school. We use the Incorporated Society of Musicians to collect late payments.
Terms and Conditions for Piano Lessons
We give you a copy of the terms and conditions and a timetable when you first enquire by email about starting lessons. You then return a signed copy to your teacher at the first lesson and keep one copy for your records. This is your agreement with the SE22 Piano School Ltd. We ask you to read it carefully before signing and returning to us. The document is located here: [View Registration Form
Are you available at the same time each week?
Your weekly lesson time is your dedicated slot in a very busy teaching timetable at our music studio. If you cannot attend, we are unable to swap, reschedule or refund your lesson so please ensure you only pick a time that is convenient for you on a regular basis. Our teachers only teach on specific days of the week and their students come one after the other so there are no spare slots in their schedule to fit in other students. Some of the teachers travel a long way across London to give you the lesson so they cannot incur additional travel time and expense coming on a day that they are not scheduled to teach any other students. Additionally, the amount of admin caused when lesson reschedules are requested caused an unnecessary burden on the Head Teacher and emails requesting a swap will be referred to the following link: [More Information]
Books for Young Beginners
Please order these books online and bring to your first lesson. Also bring an A5 notebook for your teacher to write down your weekly homework.
The SE22 Piano School is now registering students to start piano lessons in the new school year. See our web site for details of latest vacancies: http://www.se22piano.co.uk/vacancies/
Lorraine Liyanage LRSM, CT ABRSM, ATCL, B.Sc Head Teacher Lorraine founded the SE22 Piano School in 2007 and teaches piano and harpsichord to both adults and children. Lorraine holds a piano performance diploma from Trinity College of Music (ATCL) and teaching and harpsichord performance diplomas from the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (CT ABRSM & LRSM). Lorraine maintains a busy performing career as a harpsichordist in the UK and abroad. She is the pianist in residence at Lassco Brunswick House and performs regularly as a pianist for weddings and events at local venues such as The Old Library at Dulwich College. She also teaches piano at Harris Primary East Dulwich. Lorraine performs at Bell House in Dulwich Village on September 14th.
She also offers individual training and resources for Music Aptitude Test entry to local state schools such as Prendergast and Haberdashers’. She has recently appeared on the SESussed blog featuring local entrepreneurs.
Alexandra Kremakova M.Mus Associate Piano Teacher
Alexandra joined the SE22 Piano School team in 2016 and teaches young beginners and intermediate-level students on Monday, Tuesday and Saturday at our piano studio in East Dulwich.
She completed her Bachelors of Music at the National Music Academy in Sofia Bulgaria. Alexandra started playing the piano at the age of 5. During her music studies she has received numerous awards in competitions in Bulgaria and the UK including the Trinity Laban Soloist Competition and the Trinity Laban ‘Alfred Kitchin’ competition for performance of works of Frederyk Chopin.
Julia studied violin and piano at the Purcell School of Music on a full scholarship funded by the Government’s Music and Dance Scheme. She then continued her studies at the Royal College of Music. She has appeared extensively as a soloist, orchestral player and chamber musician in the UK.
Julia joined the SE22 Piano School in 2017 and is DBS checked.
Oliver Hamilton B. Mus, MA Associate Piano Teacher
Oliver studied Music at Manchester University, studying Piano under Manola Hatfield before completing an MA at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. He has worked as a teacher and accompanist for young pianists and uses his training as an actor to inspire performance from a young age. He also writes music for theatre productions.
Oliver is joined our piano studio in East Dulwich in February 2018 and teaches on Thursday. He is available for home visits and is DBS checked.
Cecilia de Benedictis B. Mus Associate Piano Teacher
Cecilia started playing the piano aged 4 and attended the Royal College of Music Junior Department followed by a music degree from the University of Bristol. She teaches the harp, piano and music theory and can also play the organ. Cecilia regularly performs at weddings and functions and teaches beginners both at home and at her own home in East Dulwich.
She is available for home visit piano lessons in East Dulwich, Peckham, Forest Hill, Sydenham, Brockley, Nunhead and other nearby postcodes. Enhanced DBS check May 2018.
Charmian Kingston BCM Associate Piano Teacher
Charmian studied piano at Southern Cross University in Australia, and graduated with a Bachelor of Contemporary Music in 2009. She spent the next five years touring and performing with various Australian recording artists as a session piano player and backing vocalist. In 2012, Charmian began teaching piano at a primary school in Sydney and remained there until 2018, when she relocated to London. Charmian also composes, records, and performs her own electronic music.
DBS check pending July 2018.
All of our teachers are DBS checked.
Claire Harris DipABRSM, M.Mus Associate Piano Teacher
Update:Claire Harris leaves the SE22 Piano School in July 2018 and moves to Toronto where she will take up a position of Assistant Musical Director for an opera company. We will all miss Claire immensely and wish her the very best of luck in her new career and life in Canada!
Claire has been teaching at the SE22 Piano School since 2011 and teaches piano and theory up to Diploma level. Claire started learning the piano at the age of four and has a classical training, gaining a Diploma from the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM) in 2005.
Claire graduated with first class honours in 2009 from the New Zealand School of Music and holds a Master’s Degree in Collaborative Piano from the Royal College of Music. Claire is the official accompanist for the Dulwich Music Festival. Claire also regularly accompanies students for ABRSM & Trinity exams at many London exam centres. Claire is DBS checked.
There is one space remaining on our Music Aptitude Test group workshop on 24 July in East Dulwich. We will plan another session in August, please email to enquire as we have not yet fixed a date.
We are delighted that you are considering starting piano lessons at the SE22 Piano School. We have a fantastic 
Lorraine Liyanage LRSM, CT ABRSM, ATCL, B.Sc
Julia Liang B.Mus
Oliver Hamilton B. Mus, MA
Charmian Kingston BCM
laire Harris DipABRSM, M.Mus
