Rates & Basic Information
Saxophone Lesson Rates:
- $35 per ½ hr
- $50 per 1 hr
- $165 in advance for four weekly 1 hr lessons (students 18 and younger)
- $40 per month saxophone rental
What to expect from your first saxophone lesson:
The first lesson is often a mix of playing and talking. I get to know my student; their age, playing experience, their goals, and what music they listen to. Often the first lesson is used to teach and observe the very basics of saxophone technique. Often we work on posture, achieving a good embouchure, airstream, and basic fundamental exercises that can be applied through daily practice to improve a student’s tone and control on their instrument. At the end of this lesson we often sit down to discuss the importance of consistent practice, keeping a notebook to write down weekly assignments, and discuss any final questions they may have.
Teaching Philosophy:
Music is a process of inspiration and self-discovery. When you listen to new music, especially music that you love, it helps you discover a part of yourself that you may have never known. The discipline involved with learning music adds to this by helping a student think creatively, apply constructive criticism, work well with others, manage time and achieve long term goals.
I teach the fundamentals of the saxophone to all my students, regardless of age or experience. Understanding why and how the saxophone works with the body to create sound is essential to a student’s ability to interpret music. This means teaching embouchure, articulation, posture, airstream, and diaphragmatic breathing to facilitate a good tone. This also means teaching the basics of reading, phrasing and interpreting music to give my students the skills they need to teach themselves.
The first lesson is often a mix of playing and talking. I get to know my student; their age, playing experience, their goals, and what music they listen to. Often the first lesson is used to teach and observe the very basics of saxophone technique. Often we work on posture, achieving a good embouchure, airstream, and basic fundamental exercises that can be applied through daily practice to improve a student’s tone and control on their instrument. At the end of this lesson we often sit down to discuss the importance of consistent practice, keeping a notebook to write down weekly assignments, and discuss any final questions they may have.
Teaching Philosophy:
Music is a process of inspiration and self-discovery. When you listen to new music, especially music that you love, it helps you discover a part of yourself that you may have never known. The discipline involved with learning music adds to this by helping a student think creatively, apply constructive criticism, work well with others, manage time and achieve long term goals.
I teach the fundamentals of the saxophone to all my students, regardless of age or experience. Understanding why and how the saxophone works with the body to create sound is essential to a student’s ability to interpret music. This means teaching embouchure, articulation, posture, airstream, and diaphragmatic breathing to facilitate a good tone. This also means teaching the basics of reading, phrasing and interpreting music to give my students the skills they need to teach themselves.
Lessons Policy
Required saxophone lesson materials:
Required materials for online saxophone lessons:
Payment policy:
Attendance policy:
Cancellations/Scheduling:
Expectations and Behavior:
Holidays:
Additional Materials Policy:
Discontinuing Lessons:
Contact: for lessons, please contact Patrick McCulley at [email protected]. Please provide the name, age, playing experience of the student as well as your name and contact information.
- Playable saxophone (alto or tenor saxophone)
- Band music, Method-book, or other music as recommended by instructor. Please do not forget to bring music to your lesson!
- Three-ring binder or notebook with paper.
- Pencil
- Metronome and tuner
Required materials for online saxophone lessons:
- A computer with a webcam and microphone
- A reliable internet connection
- A exterior microphone capable of clearly capturing a saxophone's sound
Payment policy:
- Payment for advance lessons is due on the first of every group of 4 lessons.
- All lessons in an advance payment period must be completed within 5 weeks of the payment. For example, if the pay period begins on the 1st of the month, all 4 saxophone lessons must be concluded by the 7th of the next month.
- Payment for individual/intermittent lessons or ensemble classes is due at the beginning of each lesson.
- Payment can be made in cash, check (made out to Patrick McCulley), or online (Paypal, venmo, cashapp).
Attendance policy:
- Saxophone lessons will begin and end at their scheduled times, so please do not be late! Students must bring all equipment (saxophone, music, notebook, etc.) to their lesson. Students that repeatedly forget to bring necessary equipment to their lesson may be asked to leave to retrieve it or have their lesson canceled entirely at the student's expense.
- If a student shows up to a lesson without their saxophone and is unable to go home to get it and return before the lesson's end time the lesson will be cancelled and the cost of the lesson deducted from the student's advance payment.
- If the lesson begins late by a fault of mine, the lesson may be extended in compensation, or rescheduled entirely.
- In order to qualify for the discounted weekly lesson rate, the student must commit to lessons on a weekly basis, with a minimum of three lessons per month.
- I will allow for scheduled absences, for vacations, holidays and special events.
Cancellations/Scheduling:
- Saxophone lessons may be rescheduled with more than 24-hour notice. Lessons must also be cancelled with more than 24hrs notice. Students will be responsible for payment for missed lessons without sufficient notice. Payment for missed lessons will be deducted from the advance payment for that month.
- In case of emergency or illness, the lesson may be canceled, but please try to give me as much notice as possible.
- I will honor a rescheduled lesson up to one month after the absence, but the lesson will be scheduled in addition to our regularly scheduled weekly lesson.
- If you are anticipating taking a vacation or any other planned absence, I am happy to accommodate but please let me know in advance so we do not have to deal with rescheduling!
- If a student is late to a saxophone lesson by more than 15min , I reserve the right to cancel the remainder of the lesson at the student’s expense.
- You will not be charged for lessons that I cannot attend due to my performance schedule or other conflicts on my part, and you will be informed of these occasions well in advance.
- In case I am ill, you will receive notice as soon as possible that lessons are cancelled for the day. You will not be charged for the lesson, and credit for the lesson will roll over to the next month.
Expectations and Behavior:
- Students are expected to practice regularly and consistently, as per their teacher's instructions.
- Students are expected to practice their assignments each week with the goal of improvement for the next week.
- In the event that a student cannot remember the specifics of their assignment or if they have questions they can contact me for details during the week at [email protected].
- Students are expected to come to lessons and conduct themselves with good behavior. Students are expected to try the methods that I suggest to overcome the challenges we face as we work to improve on the saxophone. Students who are purposefully distracting, that refuse to try, or refuse put in effort to improve during our lesson time will be asked to permanently leave my saxophone studio.
Holidays:
- There will be no lessons on the day of, day before, or the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas.
- I am willing to be flexible in observance of other holidays, but please be sure to inform me in advance.
- I often take the week following our biannual student recitals off, you will receive advance notice of this.
Additional Materials Policy:
- If Patrick purchases additional materials, such as music books, the student will be expected to pay the full amount at the lesson at which the materials are received.
Discontinuing Lessons:
- Students must give 30 days' notice to discontinue saxophone lessons for any reason. If a student chooses to discontinue lessons without 30 days' notice, the full month's fee will still be required.
Contact: for lessons, please contact Patrick McCulley at [email protected]. Please provide the name, age, playing experience of the student as well as your name and contact information.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where are you located?
I teach with the Portland Music Collective out of St. Paul Lutheran Church. The collective is located at 3880 SE Brooklyn St. Portland, Oregon.
I teach with the Portland Music Collective out of St. Paul Lutheran Church. The collective is located at 3880 SE Brooklyn St. Portland, Oregon.
How do I contact you if I would like to take lessons?
Please email me at [email protected] if you would like to take or have any questions about saxophone lessons.
Do you teach lessons online?
I do teach lessons online. Currently, I am teaching most of my lessons in person, but anyone who would like to can take online lessons with me. Anyone who takes online lessons with me will need access to a computer with a built-in camera or webcam, a reliable internet connection, and a microphone. I am more than willing to work with any student that needs advice on what kind of microphone to purchase in order to start taking lessons. While we can use your computer's built-in microphone to have the lesson, most computer mics are built to pick up the sound of the human voice but aren't designed to handle the dynamic range of most musical instruments.
Are you currently accepting new students?
Yes, I am. I am almost always have a couple open slots in my teaching schedule and the only question is whether or not our schedules match up. All you need to do is email me at [email protected] and inquire about my schedule.
Do you teach beginners?
Yes, I do. I am currently accepting beginning saxophonists of any age or ability level. Please email me if you have any questions about what to do.
Should I rent or buy a saxophone?
If you plan on taking lessons I would recommend buying a saxophone. Buying is cheaper than renting in the long run, even if the saxophone is expensive. Inexpensive student model saxophones can be found on craigslist or ebay and I can help you pick one out if you are unsure of which one to get. But if you would like to rent a saxophone so you can be sure that its right for you before committing to buying one, there are plenty of places in the Portland Metro area that you can call.
Where can I rent a saxophone?
I have an alto saxophone that my students can rent if they want to. If you are interested in renting ask me to see if it is still available.
Here are some places in Portland that have rental programs for saxophones:
- Wally's Music (Oregon City)
- Beacock Music (Vancouver)
- Tigard Music (Tigard)
- Eastside Music (Gresham)
- Music Village (Beaverton)
- Manselles Music (Milwaukie)
- Portland Music Company
- Mir Music (Hillsboro)
What are good saxophone brands to buy?
My five recommended saxophone brands are:
- Yanigasawa
- P. Mauriat
- Chateau (great student models)
Can you teach in student's homes?
At the present time I do all my teaching at the Portland Music Collective's studio at St. Paul Lutheran and online. However if circumstances are extreme and the student is unable to travel to me I am willing to consider teaching in a student's home. My travel fee for teaching at a student's home is the same per hour as it is for the lesson.
What should I be looking for in a saxophone teacher?
Regardless of who you choose to be your saxophone instructor, they should have experience and education in their field. The most effective saxophone teacher will be the one who has had a great deal of performance experience (in or outside of school), a thorough education that has allowed them to develop the necessary skills to have a fundamental command of the instrument and effectively teach these fundamentals to others. Anyone who has not had these experiences cannot hope to effectively communicate to a beginner how to overcome the specific challenges that face a person starting out on the saxophone.
Do you teach clarinet lessons?
Yes. Although saxophone is my primary instrument I do give clarinet lessons.
Saxophone Lesson Testimonials
Patrick is an amazing teacher. He has been teaching our son for almost two years. Patrick has a great amount of knowledge of teaching music and, at the same time, he makes the lessons fun for my child. The lessons are built individually, based on the needs and interests of my child. Patrick is very enthusiastic and patient. Our son loves the lessons, and loves his instructor. We were lucky to have found him!
-Irina H.
Patrick was flexible and helpful in finding a regular lesson time for our middle school-aged son, and under Patrick’s guidance he has improved immensely! As an instructor, he has a great feel for when to introduce new music and when to focus on technique. Most importantly, his love for music has been contagious - our younger son even expressed a desire to switch to saxophone after watching Patrick for just a few minutes!
-Brandon and Christina S.
I’ve learned a lot while taking music lessons from Patrick. He was able to quickly identify those areas where my understanding of fundamentals was weak, and quickly helped me improve in the basic skills of playing sax. Each lesson provides an opportunity for me to learn something different about music, as well as about playing sax. Patrick relates well to adult learners. I find Patrick’s “I play-You play” teaching method to be especially effective.
-Robin F.
Patrick is a friendly and understanding teacher. He is a pleasure to learn from, as he brings a sense of enthusiasm to even the most mundane of learning exercises. Our class time was focused and fun, and my excitement for learning my instrument grew with each lesson.
-Dylan C.
-Irina H.
Patrick was flexible and helpful in finding a regular lesson time for our middle school-aged son, and under Patrick’s guidance he has improved immensely! As an instructor, he has a great feel for when to introduce new music and when to focus on technique. Most importantly, his love for music has been contagious - our younger son even expressed a desire to switch to saxophone after watching Patrick for just a few minutes!
-Brandon and Christina S.
I’ve learned a lot while taking music lessons from Patrick. He was able to quickly identify those areas where my understanding of fundamentals was weak, and quickly helped me improve in the basic skills of playing sax. Each lesson provides an opportunity for me to learn something different about music, as well as about playing sax. Patrick relates well to adult learners. I find Patrick’s “I play-You play” teaching method to be especially effective.
-Robin F.
Patrick is a friendly and understanding teacher. He is a pleasure to learn from, as he brings a sense of enthusiasm to even the most mundane of learning exercises. Our class time was focused and fun, and my excitement for learning my instrument grew with each lesson.
-Dylan C.