Portuguese Band
of
San Leandro

About our free lessons
and how to get started

When we say free lessons, we really mean it. We have a large backing of volunteers and donors who help us operate this program without needing to charge our students a cent. With that said, we cannot provide new students with instruments and method books. We do have recommendations for renting-to-own or outright purchasing instruments as well as the very inexpensive books.

Our free lessons are taught in a group session once a week. These lessons are 30 minutes and are comparable and complimentary to many public school programs. We start a round of absolute beginner lessons every February for aspiring musicians ages 8 to 108. If you aren't a beginner or you can't wait for February, just contact us to discuss how we can start helping you today!

In our programs, students learn:

• How to play and maintain their instruments
• How to read music and keep time
• Common scales, musical keys, and notations
• Musical etiquette and how to practice at home

Building a regular practice routine at home is the core of succeeding in music.

Our program is built around concert band and marching music. Because of this, we only teach instruments that are common to those types of music. This includes woodwinds, brass, and some percussion, but excludes strings (violins, guitars) and keyed instruments (piano).