Guest post by Lucas Carbonneau

Ah, summertime. The season of family vacations, fresh lemonade, and laying by the pool. Though we’re all enjoying the sunshine, music teachers often worry about how to work around their students’ summertime commitments. Music teachers have adapted by offering in-person and online lessons to reach their students anywhere.

Like other people, you’re probably sick and tired of hearing the word “adapt.” Trust us, we are too. But that word captures the ingenuity of music teachers that have developed a flexible hybrid model. This model allows them to have that in-person connection while also accommodating students’ changing schedules.

Despite the growing popularity of online music lessons, there is no one-size-fits-all model. Teaching setups vary depending on the instrument and level of technology, among other things. 

So how do you figure out how to optimize your online lessons?

Do you just buy fancy lighting for Zoom? Do you use every single music-related app? Or do you buy new equipment with more bells and whistles than you can count?

Instead just use Forte!

Taking the plunge into online lessons hasn’t always been easy. Thankfully, there are incredible, free resources that can help you along the way.  

Forte is a free alternative to Zoom that was purpose-built for music teachers. Our mission is to radically expand access to high-quality music education worldwide, and we always put teachers and their students first. Therefore, you can use Forte with your own students for free forever.

Forte uses video conferencing features optimized for music lessons and has audio quality far superior to existing platforms. Forte Pure Audio offers industry-leading live streaming audio quality, allowing you to hear your student’s instruments better than any other video conferencing platform. It features audio quality far superior to other video conferencing platforms, making it possible to teach essential ideas such as tone color, phrasing, intonation, vibrato, articulation, and dynamics online.

The Royal College of Music, Berklee College of Music, and Curtis Institute have used Forte for their own programs. And, Forte runs entirely on your browser, so you can send your personal studio link to your student, and they can begin their lesson with one click.

Start teaching on Forte today and elevate your online lessons!

Have questions?  We are here to listen at [email protected].

Forte is the newest advertiser on Music Educator Resources. We are so grateful for their support in the online music education community! The platform is easy to use as there is nothing to download! Did you catch that it is free? Give it a try this year with your students. Follow Forte on their Facebook page to stay up to date on the latest!