FAQs
​Can I try a private lesson to see if I or my child is ready for them?
Yes! We always offer a free trial lesson for private lessons.
There are no trial lessons for camps, group classes or other special events.
Based on a discussion with you, we will place your student with the instructor we feel is the best fit. We will account for factors like student age, musical level, goals, learning style, and of course, instrument preference.
The very best and most beneficial private lesson relationships last for years so it's very important to us that we help you find the best fit for your student. This means we may change teachers or try more than one before we get the right fit.
Can I do make up class when I miss?
With over 300 students at KAMP, where we have students miss lessons due to illness, schedule conflicts or forgetfulness, it creates a tremendous amount of stress on our admin and teachers to coordinate even with advance notice. Please note that if you miss, our teachers still get paid, so any make up lesson will cost KAMP extra financial strain to accommodate that. Reminder: when our teachers miss your lesson, they will arrange a makeup lesson with you.
If you miss a lesson, we encourage you to sign up for our Enrichment Events/Classes.
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Where is the school located for in-studio classes?
We’re conveniently located just off the I-405 exit 20A at 116th Street. We’re in the beautiful 116 Slater building with parking around the corner on the street. We also have a parking garage around the corner by the Visible Coffee shop, indoor and outdoor parking available.
What if I have a neurodiverse child?
We have teachers who have background to adapt to students who have special needs or neurodiverse.
Teacher Jacob works as an ABA therapist with children ages 3-10 when not at KAMP and enjoys working with challenging kids or kids who have not excelled in other environments.
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What do I need before I start?
You will need to complete the registration process. Start here
You’ll need an instrument. We can help suggest best choices in instruments for beginners to help take the guess work out of it. KAMP also has a few instruments that can be loaned out for trial if you do not already have your own.
For piano students: We strongly recommend that you have a full size 88 key keyboard or acoustic piano. Keyboards with less than 61 keys will not be viable for more than 3 months of piano education. The piano must have weighted keys.
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What can I expect from the first lesson?
Our instructors work to engage the student and create a fun learning atmosphere. Lessons work around the student, not force the student to work around a rigid lesson plan. We focus on making music filled with joy to build a lifetime musical skills and creativity.
What happens next?
The teacher will give a recommended lesson length -- typically 30 minutes for beginners once a week. More advanced students may have either 45 or 60 minute lessons, and as you or your child progress, it’s likely that the lesson time will increase too.
Some of our students who are very advanced also have more lessons in a week to progress quickly, especially when they prepare for recitals or ABRSM testing.
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Please complete your student onboarding process: Start here
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Music lessons are a MULTIPLE YEAR commitment. The most successful students are the ones who want this, can commit to it and have the support at home for this type of learning. If your child is young, it's best for them to explore, sometimes trying more than one instrument before they settle on one they like. We suggest that all children consider doing 2-3 years of piano because it lays a solid foundation for a lifelong learning of music.
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Can I cancel my lessons?
Cancellation Policy:
KAMP Music requires a 14 day notice of cancelling or suspending lessons. This is so that we can fill the open slot from our waitlist, but also to give the student/teacher a chance to wrap up their lessons and say goodbye.
To cancel or suspend lessons (pause/stop billing), please fill out this form 14 days in advance: https://www.cognitoforms.com/KAMPMusic1/LessonWithdrawalCancellation
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What musical backgrounds do KAMP teachers have?
We take great pride in the staff we have formed who have very diverse educational backgrounds, performance backgrounds and teaching experiences. Many of our teachers have been here for more than 5 years which is a long time in this field. Three teachers on our staff have Master's Degrees in music. Many of our teachers have more than 10 years of teaching experience.
Collectively, we have over 100 years of teaching experience to offer.
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What more does KAMP Music offer?
If you're only coming to KAMP for your private music lesson, you're missing out!
At KAMP Music, we’re building a musical community one student at a time. That means our teachers will let you know about other opportunities engage in more offerings like our summer camps, group lessons, choirs, musical theater, special music nights including karaoke, and more. We also try to connect students together in ways that form strong bonds within our musical community outside of class.
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Take a look at:
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KAMP Music Gondoliers - YouTube
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Please check on our website or call us anytime to inquire about what more we can do for you.
Enrichment programs
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What if the teacher isn’t the right match for me or my student?
Sometimes it takes a few lessons to develop the teacher student rhythm. If your teacher fit isn’t right at any time, please give us the feedbacks and we will work with you to find the right fit. KAMP wants everyone to have the best experience and that starts with clear student, teacher, and family communication.
KAMP teachers are all on salaries, which is very unusual in the music instruction world. This allows us to work together rather than competing to provide the best experience for each student.
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How much do lessons cost?
Please refer to our enrollment options for details of lesson pricing. Enrollment Options.
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Lessons go year-round, because students thrive on consistency. This also allows us to uphold our mission of providing our teacher with livable wages and consistent jobs. Many other schools lay off their teachers in the summer, often losing some in the process. Please plan on doing summer lessons, even if you're traveling. You can use our Enrichment Classes to makeu up for lessons lost due to travels or other summer commitments.
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We strongly suggest committing to a year of lessons, and require 4 week notice by submitting the Lesson Change Request Form if you wish to pause or stop lessons. It's really hard on teachers and kids when there is an abrupt stop to lessons so we highly discourage parents from doing that.
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Our year is July 1-June 30th each year.
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Why should we take lessons at KAMP and not elsewhere?
KAMP is the only school in Kirkland that is non-profit. This gives us flexibility with value, and also allows us to work towards establishing best industry practices in regards to our teaching staff. Many teachers piece together 3 or more jobs to make a livable salary. They do not have paid time off, no benefits, often working 7 days per week.
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KAMP teachers are on salaries, meaning there is no competition for students and we can match each student with the best teacher for them. We also work strongly as a team, meaning your child may have one teacher for their private lessons, one teacher as a coach for a special event, or a different teacher for a summer camp or theory class.
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We are constantly working to better our teaching. We do cross-staff training, often with teachers taking lessons from our other teachers to improve their skills and specialties.
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Do you offer scholarships?
KAMP Music is a 501 C (3) non-profit. If you need financial aid in attending our programs, please get in touch with us: