Madison Smith

Guitar Teacher

Originally from Hobart, I have been involved in music my entire life. I started learning the flute at the age of 7 and then in my teen years started focusing on the guitar and the bass guitar.

At 21 I received my bachelor degree in music performance and the following year moved to Melbourne to complete my honours at the University of Melbourne, which i received at the end of 2016. During my years as a musician I have played hundreds of shows and been on many recordings in a number of different styles.

I currently have experience performing and teaching on the flute, bass guitar, guitar, clarinet, percussion and piano.

Since my teen years I have had a love of teaching and tutoring music to a wide range of people and I love seeing how students progress and better themselves on their instruments. My teaching philosophy is that every student is different in the way that they learn and practice and I find it really important to cater to the individual students as opposed to using a one size fits all approach.

I am currently teaching a number of students and spend a lot of my time composing music for bands that I perform with.

Testimonials

After one year of keyboard, we were pleasantly surprised how well Christy performed as part of a group in a lovely end of year concert. Christy found further motivation when I finally made time to squeeze in a few private lessons so that she could measure her progress by completing exams. The group and private lessons provide complementary outcomes, by creating a musician who wants to improve and who can play as part of a group. Cath has a caring approach, and there is no pressure to take on private lessons.

Stephanie Mitten

My daughter has been attending Kids on Key through our school for the last 4 years. In this time she has developed a love of music and fostered a wonderful relationship with her music teacher. Kids on Key has provided my daughter with a positive, fun and challenging music program. My daughter is excited to be partaking in her next ANZCA exam for piano this year and I am positive that her love of music and piano is because of the fantastic environment provided by Kids on Key.

Kylie Kibsgaard

My children have been learning keyboard for about 4 years with Kids on Key. I think it is a fantastic program, especially as these classes can be done around school times. My children have learned to read music as well as learn keyboard, both of which I truly believe helps to expand our children’s mind for many other areas of their life, similar to the benefits of learning another language, and Susan is just a wonderful teacher. The opportunity to further the education with exams and grading is there for the students that wish to pursue their instruments further.

Nancy Gibson

My daughter has really enjoyed her Zoom guitar lessons during ISO. The audio is great at both ends, the teacher can see everything she’s doing with her hands and she is very engaged. On the technical side, I'm amazed how seamless the process is and how well it all works.

Catherine Green – St Peter’s

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During the COVID lockdown, music lessons went online and I was a bit apprehensive about how it would work. After we sorted all the technical stuff, I was really surprised by how much Nate engaged in the lessons. He told me after a month or so that he really enjoys having the lessons online and that he finds it easier to focus and learn. The way Cath sets it up works really well in terms of seeing the keyboard and taking turns in playing and listening. Nate's been more motivated than ever to practice and engage in the end of term concert. He's thinking about continuing online lessons when school returns, so he doesn't miss out on school time.

Gwyneth Rees - Tucker Rd Primary

The online music lessons offered by Kids on Key have been fabulous. The sessions were scheduled around our existing commitments, were well structured and tailored to suit the needs of my son. It was easier for my son to focus, without any external disruptions, and he made good progress during this time. I will certainly be considering online lessons for the future.

Lorraine Theodore – Resurrection Primary