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Anne onlineTeaching and advising via Skype is a double-edged sword. Five years ago, I was a complete sceptic and would not have contemplated it. However, my opinion was to be revised when circumstances forced me into it after a frustrated and talented young violinist/composer in England, unable to have one-on-one lessons with me, enlisted me as an online teacher. Given her eagerness and talent, I was willing to consider a trial experiment. The success of this venture, after which I used it with several other students, led me to the conclusion that it could be indeed an useful tool, if used properly, but would never and should never take the place of one-on-one teaching.

I would say, good teaching over skype is quite an improvement over bad teaching one-on-one, and, in responsible hands, is a potentially tremendous way of improving overall standards worldwide. What it can be is a valuable supplementary tool for enhanced teaching, for teachers who may want to improve their own teaching skills, for students who need extra help and advice on difficult questions and aspects of playing, and for students who do not have easy access to good quality teaching.