Many Sonlight families have been using the Piano Wizard Academy for several weeks now. And we’ve gotten overwhelmingly positive feedback in personal emails, phone calls and the Sonlight Forums.

Now I want to open it up to all Piano Wizard users to hear what you have to say.

So what do you think? If you’ve used the Piano Wizard Academy, is it a good fit for you? Please share why or why not. Your reviews will help other customers make an informed decision.

Here is just a little of the feedback customers have already sent us:

“Again, I thank Sonlight for showing me this product. My husband and I are really enjoying the beaming look on my daughter’s face as she masters each new song, gets a score of 90% or higher, gets a new star in her songbook, and begs to continue her music lesson!

“With 4 children (so far) that will use the program, spending $125 per child to get them started on their musical journey was well worth it. When we reach the next level (whether it takes each child 2 years, 1 year, or less), we’ll evaluate where to go from there.

“I know this program gets us only so far, but at least now we’re able to get STARTED.”

—samantha_r_l, Dec. 2009

Looking forward to more reviews!

Thanks,
Tim

If you’ve been hemming and hawing over the Piano Wizard Academy and thought the opportunity had passed … you can still get it in time for Christmas!

Chris at Piano Wizard has decided to upgrade Sonlighters to expedited shipping at no extra cost.

Order by 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Wednesday, Dec. 23 and receive your Piano Wizard Academy in time for Christmas (if you’re in the lower 48 United States). You’ll pay no additional charge for expedited shipping.

This bonus offer will disappear after Wednesday, so spread the word.

We’re starting to hear back from Sonlight families using the Piano Wizard Academy. Here’s a story that came in today:

“We have ordered the Piano Wizard Academy, and have started with our oldest (we have a 6, 3, 2, and 9 week old). As a musician myself, I wanted my kids to learn to read music. The problem with having 4 children ages 6 and younger is that time is so scarce. I am enjoying watching my daughter really enjoy herself learning. Granted, we are only beginning, but I don’t ever remember BEGGING my mom to let me practice, which is what I’m getting from my daughter. This was exactly what I was looking for, something she can do with guidance from me, yet without it disrupting our family life to the point of chaos for my children to be exposed to piano lessons. Well done, Chris. We love it!”

Have a simply wonderful Christmas week.

-Anne Marie

As you might have seen, Sonlight announced an innovative music education system a few weeks ago. Since then, Sonlighters have shown great enthusiasm about the Piano Wizard Academy. They’ve also been asking some very good questions.

In case you’re also curious about the Piano Wizard Academy, here are answers to some of the most common questions I’ve heard:


What exactly is the Piano Wizard Academy?

It’s a complete piano learning system designed to simply and intuitively teach you and your children how to play the piano. It requires no previous experience and it makes the process fun. At the core is an engaging computer game that slowly and naturally progresses toward basic and advanced piano learning concepts. You also get unique tools to help you become your children’s music coach … even if you’re not particularly musical yourself.


What do I get in this package?

You get a complete system that lets you teach your children how to play the piano. Click here for a short video overview of the system. The Piano Wizard Academy Sonlight exclusive package includes:

1. Professional USB Keyboard with cable
2. Award-Winning Piano Wizard software (a revolutionary 4-step game to get your kids playing and reading music naturally)
3. Piano Wizard Academy quickstart DVD (to help you get set up and started)
4. 200 ready-to-play songs loaded into your software
5. 50 video lessons in 10 DVDs that:
   • Guide you through every phase
   • Are geared toward parents, non-musical educators and piano teachers
   • Teach you to be your children’s “music coach”
   • Contain the equivalent of a full year of college curriculum (but are created for kids and adults of all ages)
6. 6 months worth of monthly coaching teleseminars with the creators of Piano Wizard Academy
7. 50 songs in sheet music (5 books of 10 each) that coordinate with the software and video lessons
8. Star stickers to help you celebrate every time your children learn a new song!
9. Bonus Christian worship music CD (includes over 100 hymns ready to put into your software for your kids to play)
10. Fingerwork Fluency – a song pack for your software that makes scales, arpeggios and drill work fun.
11. Stickers (washable and removable) to color-coordinate the keys of your keyboard with the computer game
12. A unique collection of thoughts and quotes on music and the spirit (called the Beattie Etudes)
13. Piano Wizard Kid-Safe internet browser

Why is Sonlight recommending this product?

We have noticed a lot of parents looking for a way to teach their children how to play music. The Piano Wizard Academy is the best solution we’ve found so far. We are constantly on the lookout for products that can help Sonlighters in their homeschooling journey; we believe this is one of those products. We like it so much, in fact, that we’ve negotiated for the Music Wizard company to sell a unique Sonlight-exclusive package! Click here to check it out.


Is there a guarantee?

Yes, the Piano Wizard Academy comes with a solid money-back guarantee. Once you open and register your product, take up to 60 days to try it out with your family. If you don’t like it for any reason, simply return it. Piano Wizard will refund your entire purchase price (all you’ll have to pay for is shipping). As Chris from Piano Wizard says, you’d be hard pressed to find a piano teacher with that kind of guarantee.


Why is this a “Sonlight Exclusive” package? What’s so exclusive?

For one, the price. The Music Wizard company agreed to give Sonlighters the best price around for the full Academy. But even more than that …

The creators of the Piano Wizard Academy, Don and Delayna Beattie, possess an amazing amount of music-teaching experience, knowledge and intuition. For the first time ever, they’ve agreed to make this wisdom available through interactive teleseminars. The Sonlight package includes several unique bonuses, but the kicker is that you can join in 6 months’ worth of monthly interactive teleseminars with other Sonlighters using the Piano Wizard Academy. You also have access to Piano Wizard’s forums that Don and Delayna moderate themselves.


Why does the Piano Wizard site look different from Sonlight’s?

Sonlight isn’t actually selling the Piano Wizard Academy. We’re endorsing it because we think it’s a great product. When you head to this page, you’ll see the Music Wizard’s sales letter for the Piano Wizard Academy.


How much is the product?

The Sonlight-exclusive Piano Wizard Academy package costs $497.00.


Doesn’t that seem kind of high?

I agree that it may seem expensive. But if you consider the fact that piano lessons can run into the thousands of dollars (per child!), Piano Wizard is in fact an excellent value. Plus, we’ve made it simple for families to try it without risk in their own homes for 60 days. If you find it’s not for you, simply return it for a refund. I’ve tried this in my own home and found it to be a fun and effective way to teach my kids how to play the piano.


Can I get this in time for Christmas?

Yes, just be sure to order by Dec. 17 in order to receive it on time! (But I don’t know how long supplies will last. Once they’re gone, you won’t be able to buy this before Christmas.)


I hope this helps you make an informed decision about the Piano Wizard Academy for your family!

I have some exciting news that you might find intriguing. After much research and testing, Sonlight has found what we believe to be an excellent way for parents to teach their children music.

And what’s more, the makers of this product have agreed to do a Sonlight-exclusive package. That means you get the best deal around on their complete music-learning system!

Click Here to Check It Out

On this blog, many people have shared frustrations with traditional approaches to music education. So often, these typical methods just don’t fit the schedule, lifestyle or budget of homeschoolers.

So when I heard about this unique music-learning system, I took it home to see if it would work for my family. My kids, my wife and I all loved it! It’s engaging, thorough, effective … and really fun! My 6-year-old son was playing real music in no time, even as he read musical notation (you know, those circles and lines that comprise sheet music) and found his way around the keyboard.

As you might guess, we see a lot of products and services here at Sonlight. But this particular one has WOWED us from top to bottom.

Could this be what you’ve been looking for? Click Here to find out.

The music company that sells this system only has a limited number of these special units in stock for the Christmas season, so if you’re looking for a Christmas gift, act soon to ensure availability.

Click Here to See the Special Offer for Sonlight Customers!

I’ve found this system to be absolutely worth it.

I think you might too.

-Tim

As we continue to explore music together, we have something special for our readers. It’s a free report, entitled “Should Music Be A Birthright?” It shares some interesting thoughts on music education and homeschooling.

Here’s just a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

• The eight simple words Bach said that unlock the secret of the piano
• How a mysterious Italian monk caused the current musical confusion of countless children (and adults)
• The age old problem of the Chinese, and how it relates to musical notation today

To get your copy, enter your name and email address on the right side of this page. You’ll receive a link to the report, as well as all future updates.

After reading the report, please come back to the blog to post your feedback. Feel free to share the report with friends and family.

So … just what did Bach say? Sign up to find out.

Thanks!

-Tim

Judging from responses to the last post, it looks like Anne Marie and I aren’t the only ones interested in music. Thanks for sharing your stories. Keep ‘em coming!

We recently came across an interesting report put out by The Foundation for Universal Music Literacy, called “How Music Can Dramatically Affect Your Child’s Development and Life-Time Success.”

Download it by clicking here.

What do you think? Can music really help your children’s mental development?

-Tim

How have you or your kids learned … or tried to learn music?

Tim and Anne Marie Discuss Their Musical Backgrounds

Welcome to the brand new Sonlight Music blog! I’m Anne Marie Hardy, writing in behalf of myself and my coworker here at Sonlight, Tim Heil. Outside of our work with Sonlight, we both happen to love music. I play piano and violin and teach piano lessons. Tim is an avid drummer who is currently recording an album with his worship band. Considering our interests, you can imagine we like to talk about music.

Knowing this, John and Sarita (Sonlight’s owners) asked us if we’d help them explore the whole realm of music education. Along with them, we’ve begun asking questions like: What does it look like to help kids discover and play music? What are the immediate struggles and rewards? What are the long-term benefits?

And so this blog.

We want to share our perspectives on a number of things, but we want to hear your thoughts too. Honestly, I’m probably more interested in what you’ll have to say than what I may say.

I look forward to us learning from one another!

Before I go any further, however, let me share just a little more about Tim’s and my background:

Music has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. Some of my earliest memories are of my mom sitting with me on the piano bench as I practiced. (And … if I’m right, I wasn’t always eager to sit still and practice. I eventually perfected the skill of half-watching the TV in the living room as I kept playing. If my mom wasn’t in the room, she couldn’t tell I wasn’t concentrating.)

Tim is also a big-time music fan. He’s not classically trained (and probably wouldn’t mind if the world of music theory didn’t exist), but he is quite the talented drummer. He and his wife Lorna are trying to give their two kids music opportunities that they can latch onto and grow with.

Since your interests and ideas will help direct this blog, we’d love to get your input right away. We know that everyone has had such different experiences with music. Please comment on this post and share yours!

• Have you or your children ever tried to learn to play an instrument?
• What motivated you or your children to try to learn? What hopes did you have when your music-lesson journey began?
• What were the biggest challenges and obstacles you faced?
• If you had the ideal tools to overcome these obstacles, would you move forward?
• If you could have help in any area of learning to play, what would you particularly LOVE help with?

We’ll be talking about many aspects of music on this blog, so if the topic piques your interest at all, add this to your RSS feeder or stop by regularly to see what’s happening. Also, please feel free to share this resource with fellow homeschoolers!

In the meantime, be sure to respond with your thoughts and your answers to the above questions in the comments section below. We look forward to exploring the wonderful world of music with you!

-Anne Marie