A RED FLAG

 
Sharon, a jazz saxophone teacher, pitched me a year-long package of music lessons. I don’t have especially “good ears” — as the jazzers says — and I want to improved my ear-training and chord-recognition game.

I was on a Zoom call with Sharon, who was based in Los Angeles. She wanted to talk about my motivation, and I wanted to talk about cost of the lessons. She didn’t want to talk about money. She had a PAC system and an HSP system — these initials stood for something. I don’t know what. She asked what my level of motivation was, on a scale of 1-to-10. She wasn’t happy when I answered “5.”

I said, “What if I’m in a group lesson on Zoom with beginner musicians who don’t know what a C7 chord is? Maybe I should I do a solo course.” I had found Sharon on the internet. (She said to tell you the truth a lot, which annoyed me.)

An hour later she told me the solo course was $1,200, for a year. Sharon continued, “But my assistant, Juliet, in the Philippines, will send you a link to knock it down to $500. And I’m going to be a hardass about that. There will be no access to coaching in the solo course, and the price is good for a week, cool? This isn’t about money, it’s about increasing your motivation.”

Sharon’s bio said she had majored in psychology and music.

Her quick drop from $1,200 to $500 jolted me.

This was a bit of a red flag, no?

I called my son the musico and discussed the matter. He said the whole thing sounded “opaque.” I passed.

[“Sharon” is a pseudonym.]

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Yiddishe Cup plays a free Mother’s Day concert this Sun., May 10, 2-3 pm. Beachwood library branch/ Cuyahoga County Public Library, 25501 Shaker Blvd [corner of Shaker and Richmond]. Beachwood, Ohio. We’ll play “My Yiddishe Momma,” “Natural Woman,” and klezmer!