Portland Music School Discovers Breakthrough Method For Piano And Guitar Lessons

Portland, OR: The Eliason School of Music In SW Portland in the Multnomah Village area has developed a new way to teach music. Owner, Brian Eliason, states “Some students are good at playing music that they hear and others are good at reading notes, but most students are not strong at both abilities.” As a result, the school experimented and later developed a new approach they call the Complete Instruction Method.

The Complete Instruction Method utilizes the common Suzuki method, which develops the ability to play music by ear and blends it with the Faber method, which focuses on music note reading and theory. Their new teaching method reaches student by pairing interest with progressive skill to create more student motivation.

Eliason School of Music uses this new method for Piano Lessons and Violin Lessons; due to the program’s success they have recently expanded it to include Guitar and Cello lessons. The Complete Instruction Method helps student develop their musical ear, allowing students to learn melodies they enjoy hearing. The school explains, “As an example, holiday melodies are familiar to most of us. Familiarity can help students hear the melody in their head and then begin to play these melodies on their instrument without having seen the actual sheet music. Students trained in the method can also find music online or at the store, look at it and begin to sight read because they also understand the notes. The students become excellent sight readers because they understand the theory and the notes on a deep level and therefore the music becomes easy to play.”

This approach to learning is an exciting breakthrough as it immediately allows students access to music in two comprehensive and complementary ways. Eliason School of Music is able to open the whole world of music up to a student because they can play music they hear as well as music that they read from sheet music using the Complete Instruction Method.

While talking with the owner of the school, Brian, it is clear that his goal is to teach music in a way that will create more opportunities for students who need or want a comprehensive approach to music. The school is offering the innovative curriculum in SW Portland, Oregon. Most young students do not know what they can or will want to do with a musical skill later in life as they are just starting on a path, but the Complete Instruction Method at Eliason School of Music allows students to have more opportunities in the future because they have such a broad music education. Students trained in this innovative method have a multitude of successful music experiences, such as performing concertos, playing in bands, playing in orchestras and even improvising and the writing of their own music. Eliason School of Music notes, “Students feel more connected to their music and even just listening to music becomes a richer experience because students can understand the music on a deeper level.”