Violin lessons are priced at £19 for a 30 minute lesson (1 hour at £38).
Guitar lessons are priced at £18 for a 30 minute lesson (1 hour at £36). I aim to speak with, or meet prospective pupils (and their parents if under 18) prior to lessons commencing. If both parties are happy to arrange an initial lesson, payment for that will be due at the lesson itself, with payment for the remainder of the term (or half term by arrangement) due at the second lesson. Subsequent terms need to be paid for by the first lesson of that term. Testimonials: "I would highly recommend Darren as your children’s violin teacher. He taught my son for over 8 years, with outstanding ABRSM test results all the way from Grade 1 to 8 as well as his lifelong passion for music in every aspect. Darren has boundless enthusiasm for music and for exciting his students on their musical journey. He was able to impart his enthusiasm and love of playing the violin onto my son, who enjoyed taking lessons with him from the very beginning, connecting with his warmth and his consistently positive approach through each lesson. Owing to his excellent teaching, my son was selected to play for Hampshire Youth Orchestra for a number of years, as well as having the opportunity to be the only student violinist to play alongside his teachers for school musicals. We miss Darren’s lessons hugely having stopped after passing Grade 8, however I am glad that Darren is still in touch with us sharing his latest music news and offering continuous guidance on my son’s keenness in music composing. Thank you, Darren." Karen Chen "Darren is a passionate and skilled musician and his love of music comes across when he teaches. I enjoyed my lessons and found myself progressing and playing a variety of classical and folk music which kept my interest and inspired me to play and get better at the violin." Maddie Warburton "Darren Black teaches 3 members of our family the guitar, and has done for approximately 7 years. We have all learnt a great deal from him, he has adapted his teaching style to our different learning strengths and challenges. He is patient and kind with our children, and communicates with us when he feels they are not practising or applying themselves enough. He tries to accommodate requests when we are unable to attend lessons. He is very reliable, always on time, and always ready to help. He has greatly helped our son in his GCSE music preparation." Steve Fisher "Darren has been teaching the violin to my 16 year old son for five years, who when asked to describe him said he is an enthusiastic, friendly, extremely musical and calm teacher. His attention to detail has resulted in some great ABRSM exam results so far." Jo Hartley “I was looking for an experienced violin teacher in order to re-teach me classical violin, having been away from it for a number of years after taking my grade 5 exam. I wanted someone who was also a rounded, performing musician with an understanding of musicality and feel, as well as the mechanics of the instrument. Darren is a fantastic teacher who is able to communicate and demonstrate the techniques that are needed.” Sue O’Donnell “Darren has been an excellent teacher for my daughter for the last two years, ensuring that she has a secure knowledge of her violin techniques, and that she was well prepared and confident before her exams. His calm and positive teaching style has really helped her to make good progress” Kath Collings ”Darren’s infinite patience and ability to adjust the lessons to my son’s mercurial temperament continue to sustain his love of music. Since Darren is a also writer and performing musician, he provides a creative and insightful approach to different types of music, from classical to folk. I have been so inspired by his teaching I have taken up violin lessons myself (after a reprieve of many, many years).” Anna-Marie Hill “I decided to learn to play the violin in my 40s never having played it before. I asked Darren because I was keen to learn folk fiddle rather than classical violin and he taught both. He initially taught me classical to get a good tone and technique, then found a selection of folk music from different traditions. I would highly recommend him for anyone wanting to learn to play the violin or folk music” Carolyn Graham “Caleb does violin with Darren whilst Reuben does guitar and what we like most is the way Darren has tailored the lessons to each. Darren is very comfortable with both of them, his manner is absolutely brilliant. I’m normally very picky but I struggle to think of anything I would improve. He communicates well with us and the children, I’d recommend him highly and both the boys love their lessons” Mark & Tracy Hindess “When Anlan started taking lessons with Darren, I didn’t know what to expect and wasn’t sure whether violin was for her. Darren is a brilliant teacher, always very nice and patient, he made lessons enjoyable and tailored them to meet our needs. My daughter has really enjoyed learning violin from him and has made a big progress since 2 1/2 years ago. I do think we are very lucky to have found him!” Jo Zhou “Darren initially came around to give violin lessons to our teenage daughter. He is a great teacher and a wonderful role model for our three children who now all have lessons and look forward to his visits. I highly recommend him to you.” Joe Stephens “I think Bowen is lucky to learn violin from you. He has been not just given directions but, more importantly, his own space to progress and develop, which has been key to the improvement of his skills. It is also why he can enjoy music more instead of treating the daily practices as boring or repetitive.” Bo Zhu “An inspirational teacher.” Katy Birmingham “I really enjoyed my violin lessons with Darren...he has plenty of patience and knowledge. Fab!” Helen Carson “Darren took me on as a mature self taught fiddle player with bad habits and a deep fear of reading music. A year on, thanks to Darren, I can play music I would never have dreamed of being able to play before and the process has been entirely fun! Learning music shouldn't be like a visit to the dentist, with Darren it's more like visiting a friend.” Frank Somers “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” so they say, but trying telling that to Darren Black! He has managed to get this “old dog” playing the violin and reading music in just two years! Still a long way to go for me but Darren’s patience, encouragement and skill gives me confidence that I will get there.” Barry Christopher |