Conversations with Kirstin Weston

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kirstin Weston.

Hi Kirstin, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’ve always loved the piano, and I started formal piano lessons when I was 5 years old. I had the opportunity to start teaching piano when I was 15 and my younger brother needed lessons. I slowly added students over the years, and when I was 20 and in my senior year at UCLA, my friend Maureen Messenger wanted to retire, and she gave me all her students and let me teach in her home.

She was so generous in giving me her students, allowing me to use her home to teach, and mentoring me along the way. I was so grateful to her, and I wanted to find a way to pass on her guidance and kindness. Several years later, once I was teaching in my own home and I had built up my studio so that I had a waitlist, I decided I wanted to pass on what she did for me, and I started adding on teachers. I started out with friends and people I knew from school, and then eventually expanded to our staff we have now, which is 10 teachers, one of whom manages the studio with me.

My husband Ryan Weston is a marketer, and he built a custom website for me about seven years ago, and that really helped grow the studio through digital marketing, which has been a wonderful way to get students who are very interested in learning piano.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I have always loved teaching and sharing that love with others through the studio, but there have definitely been large bumps in the road. 2020 was probably one of the most challenging times in the studio. My husband and I had recently had our first baby in January 2020, and then my second day back from maternity leave, there were the shut downs.

I had to rapidly switch to online lessons for all of my students, as well as all of the students with my employees. I also had to create training videos for everyone on how to effectively teach online, and I was balancing all of this on little sleep as a new mother. Even though it was such a difficult season in the studio, all of the teachers and students all worked together to creatively approach lessons online. We all explored the best video conferencing apps, the best settings, the best devices to use, how to engage students, and most importantly how to still feel connected, despite not being able to see each other in person. It ended up being a very collaborative and unifying time in the end, and I learned so much about online teaching that I use today for my students who prefer that option.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
At KW Music Studios, we specialize in private piano lessons that not only encourage excellence in each of our students, but also inspire them as individuals. The one on one setting of a piano lesson creates a wonderful, mentor-student setting, and often, after a student has taken lessons from me for years, I can encourage them in their lives outside of piano if it comes up in the lesson. It’s such a blessing to be able to guide my students from the time they start (around 5 years old) to when they graduate high school, not only in piano but also in their lives.

We do also offer lessons in voice, violin, ukulele, and viola, and we want to encourage students to reach their full potential, whatever that is for each student, and to help them all to love and appreciate music all their lives.

We also love teaching in the comfort of a home-either the teacher’s home or the students’ home, so that students can feel comfortable and relaxed when they learn. It’s also wonderful to shape the home environment with classical music and fill it with learning, just like it was done in the days of famous composers such as J.S. Bach, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Frédéric Chopin.

What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I’ve seen a rise in comfort with online lessons, especially for some of my older students who now live too far to drive to my home or when a student is not feeling well enough for an in-person lesson. It’s a positive thing that came out of the 2020 era, and it adds to the flexibility that can be offered in the private music teaching sector. I think there will be more online lessons continuing to be offered, and there will always be a place for traditional in-person, one on one lessons.

Pricing:

• Starter Plan In Student’s Home: $199/month
• Starter Plan In Teacher’s Home: $149/month
• Booster Plan In Student’s Home: $279/month
• Booster Plan In Teacher’s Home: $217/month
• Royal Plan In Student’s Home: $369/month

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kwmusicstudios.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kwmusicstudios?igsh=MTA4NHdza212ZHBwaw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kirstinwestonpiano?mibextid=wwXIfr
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/public-profile/settings?trk=d_flagship3_profile_self_view_public_profile
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@kwmusicstudios2138?si=VbGmEq6CXEBv58Lx
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/kw-music-studios-piano-lessons-aliso-viejo-3?osq=Kw+Music+Studios

Image Credits
Kourtney Garcia Photos