- Off The Wall School Of Music

Do you teach adults?

Absolutely! We teach anyone aged 4 to 104. If you're ready to learn, we're here to teach you music.

Do you offer lessons in a student's home?

No, all lessons take place at our Wallingford school. Occasionally, lessons may be held elsewhere based on the program, but we don't offer in-home lessons.

How old does my child need to be to start lessons?

We recommend these minimum ages:

Piano: 5 years (4 with select teachers; email us to inquire)
Violin, Viola, Cello: 7 years
Guitar, Bass, Ukulele: 7 years
Drums: 7 years
Voice: 7 years

How do your lessons work? Are they boring?

Boring isn’t in our vocabulary!

Our teachers make learning fun and exciting, guiding you to play music you love at your skill level. Plus, you’ll have weekly assignments to practice at home for steady progress.

What if I'm unhappy with my lesson?

We offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

If you're ever unhappy with any part of your lesson, please contact our office and we'll make it right.

Do you offer regular progress reports so I know how my child is doing?

Yes! Teachers provide quarterly progress reports during these weeks:

Last week of March
First week of June
Last week of September
Second week of December

The last 5 minutes of the lesson will be used to complete and review the report with you.

I don’t own a piano, how will I practice?

Rent a keyboard from us for $10/month (ask about availability). Or, book practice time at the school for $10/hour.

If you'd like to book a session, you can do so here.

Piano is percussion?

Yes! Sound is made when tiny hammers inside the piano strike the strings. Think of it as a doubly percussive instrument—finger drums activating hammer drums!

Can I stop by and tour the school?

We offer tours by appointment only. You can schedule a free lesson to visit, meet a teacher, and see how our lessons work.

If you would like to check out the school, sign up for a free lesson online and come on in!

Where are you located?

We're located in the Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle, WA. Here's our address and contact information.

Where do I park?

We don’t have a dedicated parking lot, but there is plenty of street parking around the school.

We've created this parking guide, which highlights the streets around the school that often have the most street parking options available:

Do you offer any classes in addition to private lessons?

We do offer Rock Band Classes and Garage Band classes. Classes are available according to demand and by request only.

How does the free practice time for the first-month work?

We offer 1 hour of free practice time for every lesson you take during your first month. Simply let us know, and we'll help you schedule the practice session. Although you'll be practicing on your own, we'll ensure the room is available and assist with setting up the equipment.

Do you have a summer camp?

Yes! We run weekly camps throughout the summer. Scheduling and availability is based on demand.

Classes run from Monday through Friday, 9 am - 2 pm, and have a final performance on Friday for friends and family.

Students with No Experience?

Students with No Experience are welcome to sign-up but we highly recommend they take a free lesson with us in advance and begin lessons to prepare for camp as soon as possible.

How do you handle COVID-19?

We offer both online lessons and in-person lessons. If you are showing signs or symptoms of COVID-19 we recommend that you switch to an online lesson or reschedule your lesson. Please contact us as soon as possible. Our official cancellation policy is 48 hours. Click here to view safety and equipment tips

How do I schedule a lesson?

You can easily schedule your lesson with us in one of the following ways:

Schedule online in the Student Portal
Contact us via email or by phone (206-407-9610) and we'll coordinate it for you. Please provide us with the following details:
- Preferred days / dates / time
- The instrument you're learning
- Preferred teacher, if applicable
Request a recurring lesson to set up a regular session with your teacher each week

Can I reschedule my lesson?

Yes, you can reschedule your lesson if you cancel outside the 48-hour window. Simply choose an available time, and you can book a new lesson.

You can reschedule your appointment in one of the following ways in one of the following ways:

Online via the Student Portal - You can cancel the initial lesson in your portal and use the credit to book into another slot
Send us an email with the date of the session you'd like to reschedule and a few preferred days/times that will work for you
Call or text us at 206-407-9610

If you have a regular recurring lesson and you need to cancel more than one occurrence, please send us an email with the date range you need to cancel. Please note that we cannot hold recurring lesson spots open for longer than 3 weeks.

How do I set up a recurring lesson, or change an existing one?

Students who have a recurring lesson each week make much more progress toward their goals!

If you'd like to reserve the same lesson time and instructor each week, please check availability on the Student Portal. If you're unable to find an open recurring spot that works for your schedule, please fill out this form and let us know your availability. Our office will work with you to schedule a regular lesson that meets your needs.

What if the time I want isn’t available?

Our most popular times are Monday through Friday, 4 pm - 6 pm, and these slots tend to fill quite quickly.

If your preferred lesson time is taken, we will put you on a waitlist and let you know if that slot becomes available. Until that time, we encourage you to schedule single lessons online.

I would like to schedule multiple students and would like them at the same time, is that possible?

We work hard to make schedules more convenient for families and siblings and try to schedule you within the same half-hour or hour. This largely depends on the time and day that you prefer, and the availability of teachers.

Please send us an email to let us know your needs and we'll work with you to find the most convenient recurring lessons for your family.

I have a recurring slot and am planning an extended vacation. Can I keep my spot?

We can only hold spots for 3 weeks. If you are taking a longer vacation, you may lose your spot and have to find a new one upon your return.

I have a very busy schedule, do I have to set a regular time slot every week?

We offer lessons seven days a week and work hard to be flexible enough to accommodate even the busiest of schedules.

When available, we can set up every-other-week lessons, although weekly recurring students are given scheduling priority during our 'primetime' hours of Monday through Friday, 4 pm - 6 pm.

If your schedule changes quite frequently, you may also elect to schedule one-off lessons on a regular basis, but please note that this may result in working with more than one teacher.

Who can schedule practice time at the school?

Any current Off the Wall student may book practice sessions at the school, dependent upon availability.

Practice sessions are a great resource for new students who want to work on their skills but aren't yet ready to invest in their own equipment.

Please note: If you book a practice session online, you must be able to work without supervision. You'll be e-mailed a code to get into the building, but we won't be able to provide any further guidance, assistance or instructional feedback. This service is provided for free to new students for their first month, and at a discounted rate to other students, with the assumption that a member of our staff will not be required to supervise you. If you need additional supervision, please book a regular lesson instead.

How do I sign up for my free lesson?

We offer one free, private 30-minute lesson per family. No experience is necessary!

You can schedule your first lesson online; simply select your instrument of choice and then pick a time that will work for you. Our calendar shows available free lessons for the next 3 weeks. More questions? Just email us!

How do I know which teacher to pick for my free lesson?

First, check out our Teacher Bios to get an overview of which teachers specialize in students of your age, abilities and interests. If you're still not sure, please send us an email or call us at 206-407-9610 and we can help you select the right instructor that will meet your needs.

Do I need to bring anything to my first free lesson?

Just your smiling face and a desire to learn.

If you're taking violin, bass, guitar or ukulele and have your own instrument, please bring it with you. If you do not own one of these kinds of instrument, we do have one available for you to use.

If you're taking a brass or woodwind instrument such as the trumpet or the saxophone, we do have clean mouthpieces at the school that you can use in order to share the instrument with your teacher.

If you decide that you'd like to continue with lessons, we suggest that you rent before buying.

Where do I go for my first free lesson?

If your lesson is at the main school at 4509 Midvale Ave N, you enter the school via the deck stairs on the 45th side of the building. There’s a piano mural you can’t miss! Walk up those stairs and take a seat in our waiting room; your teacher will come get you when your lesson is about to begin.

If your lesson is at the satellite school at 1201 N 46th Street, you enter via the basement door at the bottom of the driveway. Once you enter, you can hang out in the waiting room; your teacher will come get you when your lesson is about to begin. Please consult this parking and directions page.

I loved my free lesson! How do I sign up for more?

After your free lesson, we'll send you an email to find out how it went and to provide instructions on how to signup for more lessons.

Basically, we'll need you to send us an email letting us know that you'd like to continue lessons and how many lessons you anticipate you'll take each month. We'll provide instructions on how to schedule a regularly recurring lesson, setup your billing and then send you your first invoice.

What do I do if I can’t make my free lesson?

We have a 48-hour cancellation policy, and can only offer one free lesson. If you can't make your scheduled free lesson, please do one of the following:

You can cancel 48 hours in advance via the link included in your lesson reminder email.
If you need to cancel with less than 48-hours' notice, please let us know via email or by calling us at 206-407-9610. In the event of an emergency, we will consider making an exception and help you reschedule your free lesson.

How much do lessons cost?

Check out our Pricing & Policies for the most up-to-date lesson fees.

How does billing work?

Off the Wall sends an invoice statement for music lessons on the first of the month using autopay for lessons during the calendar month.
Each month you will see an invoice in the portal for all of your lessons on the schedule for the calendar month.

Invoices are due prior to your first paid appointment. Everyone is set up on autopay and we have you login and add your payment method. We accept payment via credit or debit card in the Student Portal. We do not accept checks.
Any unused reschedule or cancellation credits (Any lessons that you cancel with more than 48 hours of notice will be issued a lesson credit which you can use to schedule a future lesson of the same type) in your portal you can ask the office to apply toward your next invoice.

Credits for canceled lessons:

When you cancel a lesson a reschedule credit is created. You may use that lesson to reschedule or ask the office to apply it toward your next invoice. You will see the invoice on your upcoming invoice as a date in the notes and "Account Credit" - Lesson $ on the invoice payment lines. The total paid will reflect any credits and amount paid by card. You can see how much you actually paid by viewing the charge next to 'credit card'

Credits are manually applied by the office and we do our best to apply them all forward, but sometimes they are missed. We will apply them forward as soon as aware.

Please review our Pricing and Policies for detailed information on how our billing works.
We do charge a late fee of $20 on all past-due invoices, so please keep your card updated.

How do I change the credit card on file?

You can add, edit, or sign-up for AutoPay within the Student Portal.

Can I pay as I go? Do I have to pay in advance?

Yes, you can book and pay for individual lessons. Lessons must be paid prior to attending.

How do I pay my invoice?

We only accept payment via debit or credit card via the Student Portal.

Please remember if you invoice isn't processed within 20 days of your invoice date due to an expired/declined card or no card on file a late fee of $20 will be applied automatically.

I am going to be canceling a lesson this month. Does that mean I only have to pay for the lessons I know I will be attending?

Any cancellations 48 hours or more will automatically issue lesson credits which you can use to schedule future lessons. If you would like these applied toward your invoice please contact the office and we can apply them. If you contact us after the 1st of the month they will be applied toward the next invoice.

What is your cancellation policy?

We require 48 hours’ notice to cancel or reschedule a lesson without forfeiting your lesson.

How do I cancel a single lesson?

If you need to cancel an upcoming lesson, do one of the following:

Cancel via the Student Portal
Contact us via email
Call or text us at 206-407-9610

What happens, billing-wise, when I cancel a lesson with more than 48 hours of notice?

When you cancel a lesson, it puts a lesson credit on your account that you can use to book another, rescheduled lesson in the future.

Within the Student Portal, you'll see your available lesson credits under Credits, and you simply click Use to begin scheduling a new lesson.

Please note that you can only schedule the same exact type of lesson using this credit, a monetary credit can be used toward your invoice or a lesson. We can change the credit type for you.

Credit 411 :

Credits are manually applied by the office and we do our best to apply them all forward, but sometimes they are missed. We will apply them forward as soon as aware.

What happens if the school cancels a lesson in advance?

If the lesson occurs in a month for which you haven't yet paid, it will reduce the next month's invoice by the cost of that lesson. You won't pay for it and, therefore, you won't receive any kind of credit.

If the lesson occurs in a month for which you have paid, it will create a lesson credit on your account and you can use it to book another, rescheduled lesson in the future or we will manually apply it toward your upcoming invoice for you.

Within the Student Portal, you'll see your available lesson credits under Credits, and you simply click Use to begin scheduling a new lesson.

Please note that you can only schedule the same exact type of lesson using this credit, a monetary credit can be used toward your invoice or a lesson. We can change the credit type for you.

What happens if the school cancels a lesson at the last minute, like when a teacher is sick?

Last-minute cancellations by the school will appear on your account as a monetary credit which you may use to apply as a form of payment on your next month's invoice or to book a lesson. Generally we will try to automatically apply it forward for you.

What if I am unable to use my lesson credits because of my schedule, or my teacher's schedule is fully booked?

If you find that you are accruing many lesson credits because you're unable to reschedule lessons, please contact the office to discuss your options.

We can work with you to find a better time that doesn't require a lot of cancellations, proactively cancel lessons for upcoming vacations so that you're not billed for them to begin with, or turn the lesson credits into monetary credits that you can apply toward future invoices. We can apply them forward for you manually as well.

I want to take a break from lessons, how do I do that?

You can hold your lesson time slot for three weeks. If you need more time, then please notify us no later than the 20th of the month for discontinuation effective the following month. If you notify us after billing you will incur a $15 charge that can be reduced from the amount refunded to handle processing fees.

When you are ready to come back, we will work with you to find a convenient time slot.

To discontinue lessons, do one of the following:

Fill out this form
Let us know by email
Give us a call or text us at 206-407-9610

Any credit balances can be refunded, or we can keep them on file for future use.

How do I permanently discontinue lessons?

We are sorry to see you go, but understand that circumstances change and hope to see you back again soon.

If you need to discontinue your lessons indefinitely please notify us later than the 20th of the month for discontinuation effective the following month. If you notify us after billing you will incur a $15 charge that can be reduced from the amount refunded to handle processing fees.

To discontinue lessons indefinitely, you can do one of the following:

Fill out this form
Let us know by email
Give us a call at 206-407-9610

Any credit balances can be refunded, or we can keep them on file for future use.

My child was sick, and we didn’t know that they would be sick 48 hours in advance. Do we still have to pay?

Yes.

We understand that kids get sick and that you can’t predict this, but out of respect for our teachers, their time, and livelihood, we have to charge for any cancellation made with less than 48 hours' notice. If it is possible to reschedule within the same week we will try to do so, and we also offer zoom options with most teachers. We appreciate your understanding.

I told my teacher I wouldn’t be at the next lesson, does that qualify as a notice of cancellation?

No.

While it's nice to let the teacher know that you won't be coming the next time, they're focused solely on teaching and don't handle scheduling.

Please contact the office directly regarding cancellations or rescheduling requests to avoid late cancellation.

What happens if my teacher cannot make a lesson?

We know that it's important for you to keep a consistent lesson schedule and that you can also benefit from learning from different instructors. If your teacher is unable to come in for your scheduled lesson, we will make every effort to find a skilled substitute -- either one of our other regular teachers or someone with whom we've worked in the past.

When we schedule a substitute for your teacher, we will let you know via email so that you'll know what to expect. To ensure that the lesson is positive and successful for you, we will also follow up afterward to get your feedback on the experience.

If we're unable to schedule a substitute, we'll cancel your lesson at no cost to you.

Welcome to the Off the Wall Music Help Desk!

Off the Wall Music FAQ

General Questions

Scheduling Questions

Free Lesson Questions

Billing Questions

Cancellation Questions