COVID-19 crisis helping SA music school expand its reach

The COVID-19 lockdown, which started on 27 March, has plunged the South African economy into chaos, with businesses cutting jobs and many of them halting their operations until things get back to 'normal'. The music industry was maimed off the bat when restrictions on public gatherings were some of the first measures instated to help ameliorate the spread of the virus. This forced performing musicians into their bedrooms and event organisers began remodelling their business models for the online space, although many have detested the virtual medium as lacking soul and vividness, especially for performances.

Master Music, which straddles the music and education industries, has seen on opportunity during the crisis to expand its operations online and ensure survival. When it was obvious what the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic would be, the company quickly transitioned online with the buy-in of most of its clients, which has effectively opened its services beyond the geographical constraints of South Africa.

Launched by Stewart Hull in 2014, Master Music began offering music tuition in Johannesburg and rapidly grew its reach in other major South African cities such as Pretoria and Cape Town by dispatching music teachers to the homes of students of all ages. The company offers tuition on popular musical instruments like the piano, guitar, drums, violin and saxophone, as well as music theory. It has also partnered with instrument rental outlets, which makes it easier for students to start taking lessons before having to buy their own expensive instruments.

Music In Africa had a brief chat with Hull about his business amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

MUSIC IN AFRICA: What differentiates Master Music from other services in the music education market?

STEWART HULL: Master Music’s philosophy is to provide tuition that is convenient and tailored to the specific needs of each of our students, growing with the student’s interests and talent while keeping in place clear structure and guided instruction. We believe the balance of a student’s passion and discipline is the key to mastering their instrument.

Our teachers are carefully picked, giving us a range of teaching styles, backgrounds and experience to offer our students. We encourage our teachers to expose our students to opportunities for performance and collaboration with other students and musicians – an important part of anyone’s development as a musician. We teach students of just about any age, and start with students at any playing level.

How has the COVID-19 lockdown affected the daily operations of your business?

Like many businesses globally, the situation we face has presented Master Music and our teachers with one of our biggest challenges yet, which is not being able to travel to clients’ homes, and at the same time, a golden opportunity for innovation. We moved all of our classes online. Fortunately, we had been planning online lessons for some time and the crisis forced us to finally make the leap and quickly adapt to the sudden change.

Today’s video conferencing software allows us to connect with our students and provide the same standard of music lessons remotely. Master Music is excited to begin growth into new markets outside of South Africa.

What has been the biggest challenge with your new business model?

Most of our students have continued their lessons with us, with the exception of many young children deciding not continue until home lessons are available again. Once the student has become comfortable with the online set-up, the lesson runs just about as smoothly as it does face-to-face. Currently, it is quite challenging to teach young children on the online platforms we use. We hope to solve this problem soon by improving on the technologies we use.

Additionally, we hope to overcome the current challenge of allowing the student to play along with the teacher in an online lesson. Our teachers are quickly learning how to handle the differences in approach. The only obstacle keeping them back is clients who do not have instruments at the moment. Unfortunately, as delivery or collection of non-essential goods is prohibited, new students without an instrument are unable to get rentals. We offer music theory lessons to such students as an alternative option.

What benefits have you seen since taking your business online?

The pandemic has given us the opportunity to market ourselves to wider audiences and the international market, as well as provide quality music education beyond SA’s borders. We have also been able to provide more work opportunities for our music teachers. In addition, we’ve kept both our students and teachers happy by keeping our rates the same.

This is just the beginning of our new journey in providing quality online education. We are excited to continue improving the standard of our service as we expand our reach internationally. Master Music is growing, so we are always in need of more teachers. We will also be offering lessons in different languages in the near future.

Do you think now is the ideal time to learn music?

Challenging and troubling times are very often a source of inspiration for people to express themselves and to make big life changes. Isolation provides a great opportunity to learn, grow and express oneself artistically.

More information about music lessons and teaching opportunities can be found on Master Music's official website.