Growing firm teaches 'Simply Music' tactic
Sacramento Business Journal
October 2, 1998
By Kelly Johnson, Staff Writer
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The founder of a quickly expanding Sacramento-based music instruction company expects to revolutionize the way people learn to play the piano.
In his Simply Music program, Neil Moore and his instructors teach students by immersing them in playing. Usually students learn to read music first.
Because of its unusual method, Moore believes Simply Music is going to take off. He's adding studios, might create an infomercial to sell a self-teaching program, and is looking for investors to pay for further growth.
Moore has a studio in midtown Sacramento and another in Fair Oaks, which he opened Sept. 21. The next one opens in a few weeks in a piano store in Roseville. Moore expects to open three more free-standing studios by the end of the year in Carmichael, Folsom and Elk Grove, and yet another in Davis early next year.
Moore, a native Australian who launched Simply Music in January, has believers and critics.
Teachers, students and parents of the students praise his methods, saying they make learning the piano easier and more fun. His fans expect his business to be a huge success.
"Absolutely," said Rio Linda resident Lisa Roome, whose daughters Heather, 11, and Heidi, 13 take lessons from Simply Music. Their ability and enjoyment of the piano have surged since they switched from traditional lessons, Roome said.
"There is a real hunger for this," added Leslie Hacia, a Simply Music teacher. People want a faster, easier way to learn. This method is "much more natural," she said, comparing it to a baby learning to speak before learning to read or write.
"We envision a world where everybody can play music. Not just a privileged few," Hacia said.
Others say the Simply Music way is bound to fail. Learning by rote is no way to learn, said Theresa Keene, a Sacramentan who has taught piano for 30 years. Students must start by learning the foundation - reading music. "I'm a traditional teacher," she noted.
Several major California music teachers' associations also firmly believe in the traditional methods.
Moore expects revenue of $250,000 by the end of this first year, and quadruple that amount two years later. He doesn't know where he will be after that. He freely offers that he doesn't have a corporate background and that he'll need to surround himself with people who do.
Moore started Simply Music with $250,000 from teaching revenue and personal funds. This first round of expansion is being funded with $100,000 from a private Australian investor, he said.
Spreading the word is "the real challenge he has right now," said Simply Music teacher, Hacia.
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