About the author

Tim Topham

Tim Topham is the founder and director of TopMusic. Tim hosts the popular Integrated Music Teaching Podcast, blogs regularly at staging.topmusic.co and speaks at local and international conferences on topics such as integrated teaching, creativity, business, marketing and entrepreneurship. Tim has been featured in American Music Teacher, The Piano Teacher Magazine, California Music Teacher and EPTA Piano Professional. Tim holds an MBA in Educational Leadership, BMus, DipEd and AMusA.

How I Started My Multi-Teacher Studio

by Tim Topham

Do you ever look at a multi-teacher studio with envy? You dream of walking down a corridor decorated with student artwork and recital photos. You smile as you hear enthusiastic students making music and memories in each room you pass.

01/27/2025 Read more

Managing A Multi-Teacher Studio Doesn’t Have To Be Hard

by Tim Topham

Managing a multi-teacher studio seems like a big deal. You’re in charge of lots of teachers who are teaching lots of students. The success is all down to you. But it doesn’t have to be hard. Table of Contents: Multi-Teacher Studio Owners Succeed If They… There are five qualities of a successful multi-teacher studio owner.

01/21/2025 Read more

Multi-Teacher Studio

by Tim Topham

A multi-teacher studio is the ultimate dream for some teachers. They fantasize about owning a large studio space and the sounds of happy students making music filling the air. For some, this dream is a reality.

01/01/2025 Read more

Teaching Preschoolers

by Tim Topham

Is teaching preschoolers something you’re passionate about? Is it something you’ve been thinking about doing for a while? Or does the thought of it fill you with fear? Preschoolers are often an untapped demographic for piano teachers (and private music teachers in general).

11/18/2024 Read more

When Music Lessons Don’t Go To Plan…Get Creative!

by Tim Topham

“Time to get creative!” You probably have a plan for each lesson. You know the piece your student is working on, their next page in the method book, and the steps to take to help them progress. But what do you do when something doesn’t go to plan? Panic. Get creative!

11/11/2024 Read more

What Music Teachers Can Learn From Chiropractors

by Tim Topham

Creative marketing has many benefits for music teachers. Rather than advertising and onboarding the same way everyone else does, think outside the box. It’ll make you stand out against your competition and act as a glimpse into how you run your studio.

11/04/2024 Read more
 

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Cohort-Based Learning for Music Teachers

by Tim Topham

Cohort-based learning is one of our latest additions to TopMusicPro. The huge success of the pilot of the cohort-based TopMusicCertification in 2023 led to this small but significant change. Self-paced learning is great. It gives you the flexibility to dip in and out when you want. But several challenges come with it.

10/28/2024 Read more

Creativity In Your Studio

by Tim Topham

Do you embrace creativity in your studio? By its very definition, creativity is “…the use of imagination or original ideas to create something; inventiveness”. In musical terms, creating something new generally means generating new musical content. But creativity doesn’t just have to stop at that. We’ve collated all our resources on creativity in your studio.

10/21/2024 Read more

Why Your Teenage Piano Students Aren’t Excited For Their Lessons

by Tim Topham

A huge thank you to Andrea Dow from TeachPianoToday for the original article. Have you ever taught teenage piano students or transfer students who can either These kinds of piano students take a lot of energy to teach.

10/07/2024 Read more

Teaching Teens: 5 Questions You Must Answer

by Tim Topham

Teaching teens can feel overwhelming. It can make you feel like you’re back in high school, trying desperately to impress the popular kids (unless you were one – kudos!) But piano lessons with teenage students don’t have to be like that. Choose one of your teenage students and ask yourself these five questions.

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Studio Plus Announcement

by Tim Topham

We’re delighted to announce the launch of a brand-new top-tier level of TopMusicPro Membership: Studio Plus. This is the first time we’ve offered a new level of membership since we introduced our Lite and Evolution tiers back in April 2020* But what is it? And how will it benefit you?

09/30/2024 Read more

Teaching Teens

by Tim Topham

The thought of teaching teens can be enough to make a piano teacher break out into a cold sweat. Their unpredictable levels of motivation, ever-changing interests, and judgemental looks they give you when you suggest something they don’t like. But when you get past the challenges, teaching teenagers is fun and rewarding.

09/23/2024 Read more