NEW UPDATE – Music Lessons can continue from Week 6

Wed 19th Aug, 2020

Statement from Matt Dalziel – Managing Director, Key Music Australia

Thank you for your patience as Key Music Australia (KMA) Management has navigated the recently updated Department of Education (DoE) Guidelines that have had an impact on music within schools. Matt Dalziel has this week personally spoken on the phone multiple times to the School Principal or Executive Staff Member at each of our schools.

**We are pleased to announce that KMA will be able to continue Face to Face Music Lessons for ALL Instruments onsite at schools from Week 6 (from Mon 24th Aug).**

The DoE Guidelines limit activities in group settings.
Wind Instruments are not currently permitted in a group setting (the DoE has defined Wind Instruments as anything that students will need to blow into using their mouths)
From Week 6, only 1 student and 1 tutor will be able to be in a music lesson (no group lessons).
Therefore, any student currently having a private music lesson will be able to restart their lesson as normal in Week 6 at the same time/day. There will be no changes.
All other music lessons with 2 or more students in them will be automatically allocated a 15mins private lesson. This will be either at the same time or as close to your current time as possible.
Amended Timetables will be released to all families via email before the start of next week (Week 6).
We understand that there may be some inconvenience with these changes, but our staff are working extremely hard to endeavour to fit all students into a face to face music lesson to ensure the continuation of your child’s musical education.
Please note there will still be No Music Lessons for the remainder of Week 5.
Unfortunately due to the new restrictions on group activities, there will be No Band Rehearsals for Term 3 until further notice. Band Rehearsals will restart once permitted by the DoE.

Term 3 Invoices:

Term 3 Invoices were sent out by our Accounts Department to all families via email in Week 4.
All families were only invoiced for 7 music lessons in Term 3.
We anticipate still being able to deliver at least 7 lessons in Term 3
If at the end of Term 3, KMA has not been able to provide you with at least 7 lessons, a credit will be provided on your Term 4 invoice.
ALL PRIVATE LESSON STUDENTS – please pay your invoice as issued.
GROUP & SHARED LESSON STUDENTS – as there will be some changes to the timetable, if you have not yet paid your invoice, please wait to pay until the timetable is finalised and re-issued. If you have already paid your invoice and an amendment is deemed necessary, we will address this once the timetable is finalised.
Some Percussion/Drum students have had multiple lessons cancelled in the early weeks of Term 3 due to staff absence. Your invoices will be amended and re-issued ASAP

Band Fees (if paid to KMA):

All Term 3 invoices have already been issued with a discount for Band Fees in Term 3.
As conductors have already been paid for their work in the first few weeks of Term 3, and the significant challenges of amending 500 invoices (many of which have already been paid), we would ask that all families please pay their invoice as issued.
Further discounts will be applied to band fees on your Term 4 invoice for the missed band in Term 3.

We wish to acknowledge and thank the Principal’s of all our schools for their support. They have worked with us to ensure that we can restart Music Lessons within the new DoE guidelines from Week 6. As always KMA’s priority has been the safety and well being of our staff and students. Accordingly, our COVID-19 Safety Plans are being amended to the new DoE Protocols and submitted to schools.

Our hope is that we will be able to return to Band Rehearsals and the regular Music Lesson Timetables in Term 4. We will have a clearer indication by the end of Term 3.

We appreciate your patience, flexibility, understanding, encouragement and kind words as we have navigated these constant changes.