Accompanist Guidelines

As part of the Peabody Preparatory’s commitment to providing the finest education for our students, we provide pianists to rehearse and perform at Peabody with our students on a limited basis.

The less advanced students may not need any more rehearsal time than that which is offered by the school. However, as a student advances, it will be necessary to hire accompanists directly, at the student’s own cost, to supplement the rehearsal time provided by the Preparatory.

Rehearsal Schedule

The Preparatory has scheduled rehearsal hours for each accompanist. The hours per week increase as the studio recitals draw near. There are no rehearsals during Master Class or Recital week.

Sign-up Procedure

Each Preparatory Violin or Viola student may sign-up to rehearse with an accompanist up to 2 times per month. The length of the rehearsal is determined by the student’s level of playing.

Rehearsals take place at the Downtown and Towson campuses only, and are scheduled by calling the office of the campus at which you would like to do the rehearsal. The sign-up period begins on the 15^th of the month for the following month (Ex: sign-up for November starts October 15^th).

· Downtown: 410-234-4630

· Towson: 410-825-3911

You may not call to sign-up for a rehearsal on the day of the rehearsal.

On the days of rehearsals, students may sign up on the accompanist schedule sheet when there are empty slots left. This does not count as part of the student’s monthly sign-up time.

· Towson: the sign-up sheets are posted on the String Bulletin Board in the lobby, and students may add their names prior to 7pm on Thursday.

· Downtown: the sign-up sheets are posted on the doors of the accompanists’ rooms on the first floor (Leakin Hall), and students may add their names prior to the beginning of the rehearsal session they wish to sign-up for.

If no one has signed up by the beginning of the rehearsal session downtown, or prior to 7pm in Towson, then the pianist may leave.

Piano Scores

The accompanists are provided with copies of the Suzuki Books 1-5 and Fun with Solos. For pieces that are not included in these materials, the students must provide their own music to the pianist. The students should always, ahead of time, give the accompanist a copy of the music that he can take away and practice. When you schedule a rehearsal, place a copy of the music in the accompanist’s mailbox. However, remember to bring another copy to any performance.

Who Is My Pianist?

The faculty members are generally matched with one or two pianists who will accompany their studio for the year. These pianists will be scheduled to play for the Studio Master Classes and the Studio Recitals. Rehearsals with the assigned pianist are recommended, although rehearsals with any pianist are useful.

What If The Scheduled Rehearsal Times Don’t Work For Me?

The Preparatory cannot pay for rehearsals outside of the scheduled times. These times are made available to benefit our students, and we realize that not every student will be able to take full advantage of this service. If you cannot attend these rehearsals, or if the slots are full, you must make arrangements yourself to rehearse and pay a pianist. Students at the Intermediate and Advanced levels will probably need more time than what the school provides to adequately prepare repertoire. The students/parents are responsible for making arrangements at the advice of their private teacher.

Andrea Picard Boecker, Accompanist Coordinator andrea.picard@peabody.jhu.edu