Newsletter

Sound House News, June 2026

WELCOME

Please take a moment to read this month’s Sound House Newsletter. I send these emails to make sure that we’re on the same page and that you never miss out on fun (often free) extracurricular opportunities. 

For your reference, the most recent newsletter is always available at SoundHouseVA.com/Newsletter.

SCHEDULING

The studio will be closed on Thursday, June 25th. My sister-in-law is flying up from Florida for the weekend, and I want to be present as much as possible. We’re trying to help her move back up to Virginia by the end of the year. I’ve already sent a separate email to Thursday students who will be impacted by this closure. To be clear, when I close the studio, I do not charge clients who cannot reschedule. 

I plan to teach as scheduled the rest of the month. If you’re planning to miss a lesson, email me as soon as you can. When I know well in advance, I’m often able to offer alternate dates and times so that my students can stay consistent with lessons. 

For your reference, the full studio calendar is always available at SoundHouseVA.com/Calendar. On mobile, click the top right corner of the calendar to select the “Schedule” or “Week” views; the default “month” view is impossible to read on a phone. 

SOUND HOUSE SHOWCASE

I’m so proud of what we presented at the 5th Annual Sound House Showcase on May 23 at the Warrenton Community Center! Even on a rainy day, 135 of our friends and family showed up to watch and listen to the musicians. 

Congratulations to everyone who braved the stage! Here’s a list of the musicians who performed, in alphabetical order by first name: Addison Murphy, Anna Snyder, Ashley Sandloin, Brooklynn Bushore, Caleb Farnsworth, Damian Martin, Ethan Danko, Fiona Ayers, Garrett Garrett, Homer Perez Romero, Jamie Christian, Josh Godowsky, Kai Marcano-Hunter, Madelyn Reed, Melody Larue Harlan, Olivia Sandloin, Rosalie Schiller, Sophia Jasso Manrique, Travis Sandloin, and Wes Garrett. 

Special thanks to Caroline Nesbit, Joseph Godowsky, Stacia Stribling, Maria Harlan, Reason Mills, and Travis Sandloin for sending donations to be put toward venue rental. And extra special thanks to the following volunteers for helping me run the show: 

  • Damian Martin, did a bit of everything as my right hand man
  • Bec Westmoreland, ran the mixer
  • Ashley Sandloin, managed the stage and provided water and snacks for the musicians
  • Melody Harlan, introduced performers
  • Stacia and Aubree Stribling, put out chairs and welcomed guests
  • Wes Garrett and his band, helped put out chairs
  • Josh Godowsky, brought his drum set
  • Elizabeth and Devon Ayers, directed parking
  • Lindsey Murphy, put away chairs, swept building, collected trash
  • Ivan Jasso, put away chairs

I hope I’m not forgetting anyone who helped! I’m sure plenty of you did little things to make the event go smoothly, and I thank you for pitching in to make our free community event special. 

Damian took some pictures and videos. You’re welcome to check them out here. Next year, I’m going to be looking for a designated media volunteer – someone to take pictures and short videos throughout the show. 

I’m also thinking of doing our next big showcase in late February or early March of 2027 to avoid all of the end-of-school scheduling chaos, especially now that I can afford to rent a suitable indoor space. If that’s what I end up doing, you’ll be able to read about it in the January 2027 newsletter.

THE IMPORTANCE OF PRACTICE

This is just a quick reminder that consistently practicing at home has just as much impact on a student’s progress as consistently coming in for lessons. During lessons, I teach students how to practice. I’m walking them through exercises, songs, and ideas that they can (and should) explore on their own during daily study time. Practices can be as short as 15 minutes or longer than an hour, but I’d opt for shorter, more frequent practices instead of longer, infrequent practices. Our Studio Notes documents serve as a thorough guide of what to study during practice sessions. I also encourage my students to experiment with material beyond what we’ve covered if they’ve prepared for their next lesson and are hungry for more. If you need help developing practice habits, please reach out to me; I have tips! 

BOOKKEEPING

Attendance: Our goal this year is to achieve a 94% attendance rate. Rates so far this year: January = 93.46%, February = 92.50%, March = 93.28%, and April = 95.65%. In May, we achieved an attendance rate of 96.19% or 101 lessons attended out of 105 scheduled. 

Payment reminder: Please pay for all scheduled lessons at the beginning of the month. June is a bit tricky with five Mondays, four Tuesdays (studio was closed on June 2), four Wednesdays, four Thursdays (but only 3 for weekly students who choose not to reschedule 6/25), and two Fridays. If you think that you may have a payment carrying over from a previous month, please check your Studio Notes document or send me an email requesting clarification.

Payment policy information is always available at SoundHouseVA.com/Policies and all payment methods are available at SoundHouseVA.com/Pay.