I am so happy that I found FreshStart Music Studio. I'm an adult beginner with no prior musical knowledge and I'm learning to play the piano with Ms. Joanne. She is an amazing, highly qualified and experienced teacher, with limitless patience, and she keeps me encouraged and motivated to keep learning. She has tailored my lessons so they're aimed at an adult beginner, and has adjusted them to fit my individual learning needs/speed. Everyone at the studio is extremely kind and welcoming: the school manager, Michael, the founders, Kevin and Clare, and Kevin's mother, Ms. Alice, who graciously welcomed me into her home for the adult students' Music Soirée before I had even started my lessons. The studio's policies regarding pricing and payment are fair and transparent. read more

As Ms Lyka moved on to the next chapter of her life, my daughter now goes to Ms Jennifer C for her weekly violin lesson. Ms Jennifer C is full of energy and eager to teach. Her enthusiasm and high energy has helped my daughter to be more confident in her violin play. Ms Jennifer C mentioned that she used to be shy. Especially her big personality and confidence, it's hard to believe. Ms Jennifer C writes very thorough and detailed feedback on the portal after each lesson. It has helped my daughter's improvement and confidence in her violin play.. I hope my daughter continues to do well under the wing of Ms Jennifer C. read more

My son (10Y) has been going to Mr.Tzu-Jung for his lesson. Since the change, I've noticed my son has become more confident. I'm thankful that Mr.Tzu-Jung is so patient and help improve on my son's piano play. read more

Just sharing an update of this wonderful music studio in Irvine! We are still with this music studio and with Ms. Minjee for piano lessons. She is always wonderful and cheerful to my boys that they are willing to practice every week to impress her. Other than that, the office and staff continue to be wonderful assets to the studio. They recently added Gacha machines to encourage kids to practice and attend lessons. Every few years, they arrange these wonderful "musical fieldtrips" to out of state or out of the country performance venues. We are excited to join Freshstart this summer to perform in Vienna! I feel that we so lucky to have this experience to hold recitals at historical performance halls. read more

My daughter has been taking piano lessons with Ms. Ingrid for several years now, and it is a fantastic experience. Ms. Ingrid strikes that balance of pushing for excellence across all areas - theory, technique, and performance - while also being realistic. My daughter is continuously impressed by how Ms. Ingrid can sight read pieces that take her weeks to master. The best part is that when I pick my daughter up, I sometimes see the two of them laughing at the piano bench together. Developing musicality while having fun? Priceless. read more

We have been taking violin lessons with Ms. Jennifer C. and piano lessons with Ms. Minjee and are so grateful for the teachers' talent and patience with both of my kids. They thoroughly enjoy going to their lessons and I love how attentive the teachers are to proper form and technique. We love FreshStart and can't wait to enroll the rest of our kids there! read more

We have had a great experience at Fresh Start. We currently see Rong Pan and she's very nice. The front desk is great - very helpful in rescheduling and the website is easy to use as well. It's been great. Thank you read more

We adore Ms. Joanne! Her influence on Rene's musicality has been profound. We are incredibly grateful for her time and dedication in teaching our son. We eagerly anticipate his progress in the upcoming year, with each piano lesson bringing him closer to his musical goals. Thank you for all you do Ms. Joanne! read more

Our granddaughter is loving piano lessons. None of us has any musical background and she has learned so much this year. All of her skills come solely from the wonderful teachers at FreshStart Music studio. Most recently Miss Rini Z. is her very capable teacher. She teaches and coaches to motivate her beautifully. Thank you so much! read more

Great experience with them and would highly recommend. Recitals are fun and a great time to see all their hard work pay off. Staff is extremely helpful and friendly. You can do vocal, piano and strings here. I would high recommend you give them a try. I do have a couple things that were odd. Our lesson got cancelled twice in a year due to teacher getting sick which is understandable. But the strangest thing is we pay for an hour lesson but there have been countless of times the lesson is cut short. We've had lessons end after 30-45 minutes and a bunch that would end after 50-55minutes. I don't mind too much but we do pay for an hour so when our lesson if only 30-45 minutes long we do feel a little cheated. read more

Vivian has been going to FreshStart for about 3 years now and has been working with Ms. Joy and Ms. Joy is such a wonderful teacher!! She worked hard to make sure Vivian practices and improves and does not hesitate to talk to parents to make sure Vivian is working :) If you are looking for a great piano teacher, look for Ms. Joy here!! read more

This review is for my daughter's piano teacher as she has been a great instructor for the last 2 years. Mrs. Joanne has been fantastic piano instructor for my daughter. She has provided exceptional tutelage each week. Because of her continued support my daughter has completed 3 piano recitals and continues to be highly motivated to continue her lessons and will continue to participate in future recitals with confidence and musical grace. This is all been a huge thanks to the guidance and encouragement from Mrs. Joanne. As for Fresh Start everything is going as well as can be expected, they make scheduling a breeze and rescheduling missed classes is a simple process as well. read more

We are grateful to be a part of Fresh Start Music family! Every teacher is talented and adds his/her value in guiding our kids to achieving their new levels. Mrs.Joanna is very knowledgeable, caring, patient with a lot of different ways how to make a piano lesson fun and developing for our 4y.o. Dr.Manni has her unique talent of discovering and opening a new abilities to learn how to play piano for our older kid. Ms.Gem is extremely talented and sweet, who turns every single music class into a journey around the world. She is guiding and helping our kids to feel, learn and activate their powerful voices. Thank you read more

If you're in search of an awesome music studio, look no further! When we moved back into the area I was in search of a good studio for my daughters to learn piano. Our girls tried out one of the piano sessions and we were hooked. We have been with FreshStart for about 3 years now and our girls have learned so much and gained confidence in themselves when performing. This past summer the studio organized a fantastic opportunity for the students to perform at Carnegie Hall and our girls were fortunate enough to experience it. Awe-inspiring to say the least!! All the little (and BIG) things FreshStart plans has all been for the well-being of the students. They have helped our girls thrive in music and for that we are truly grateful. The staff is great and easy to communicate with whenever we have questions. The online portal is so easy to use and comes in handy for those times I need to reschedule a lesson due to a schedule conflict. The addition of Piano Dojo (an extra group lesson included with your fees) is a huge plus as well to keep my kiddos engaged and have more practice time with the pieces they are learning. Thank you FreshStart for being such a warm and inviting community for our kids to grow in their love for piano=). y'know the mantra = good service + happy learning kiddos = thumbs up FreshStart! read more

**If I could give 10 stars, I would** Our daughter has been taking piano lessons with this studio for just over 6 years. I cannot say enough great things about the owners, staff, and the family community we see at this studio. Music is not easy for all. There is a broad spectrum of talent, personalities, and age groups that must be considered. Those of you with children would agree how hard it is managing every day family life. But to add managing a music studio with many families, building curriculum, and lay out logistical plans for the business, boy, that has to be the challenge of all challenges. I truly and humbly commend Kevin, Claire (the owners), their music educators, and their administrative team for running such an amazing studio. What this team is able to do running this busy studio amazes me. I read the negative reviews on here and it's unfortunate to see. But, I highly disagree. When we want to enrich our children's lives with music, we support them in every way possible. And this includes providing certain etiquettes and courtesies that we parents need to afford our educators. This is so they can continue to provide a nourishing teaching environment for our kids. Like being on time, listening to homework assignments, making sure your student comes prepared, and not distracted. This Freshstart team is truly amazing. Working with kids cannot be easy, but they do an excellent job and work well to keep parents informed. For those who miss the point and focus only on money, or allowing one bad experience over a 7-year tenure, to sever the relationship, it is unfortunate. We all need to be empathetic and patient with the staff as they are with our children. When my daughter started playing piano. She was always so anxious and scared to play publicly. She hated recitals! But we knew once she started playing her nerves would always calm down. I always referred it as her "Storm before the calm"! Now 6 years later she has already passed her Certificate of Merit Level 10 (highest level for piano performance). She plays with such emotion, such great phrasing, and more confidence than ever. She is driven and wants to pursue a music career. Freshstart is helping make that dream a possibility. Those who speak of money. It is tough to come by, and I get it, but this team is worth every penny for what they have achieved for my daughter. And no amount of money can pay for the mentorship and the confidence-inspiring life lessons my daughter has picked up with her 45 minute piano lessons. Freshstart took her love for piano and just knocked it out of the park!!! And, my daughter got to play at Carnegie Hall in New York in 2019! An amazing experience that THIS small studio brought to our normal every day family life. To sum it all up. My daughter's teacher is Kevin. The owner. Who makes it a point to continue doing what he loves. Teach music. We would not have asked for better mentors for our daughter. She has grown so much as a musician, pianist, artist, and a confident individual. Who better to learn from and share music with than true music lovers. FRESHSTART we appreciate you all! Keep up the great work. Can't wait for the next Carnegie trip! read more

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We've been going here for quite some time, we're not in it to become protégé or looking for a scholarships, but just for some simulation for my child. I have a kiddo with some divergence, but miss Joanne has been absolutely fantastic for my little one. We've had substitute teachers on make up and they've all been absolutely fantastic. read more

We started our relationship with FreshStart for roughly 6 years with my oldest son who at the time used to play piano. Today I have my youngest playing violin there and he loves Ms. Jennifer. Since we are there for years, I've got to meet the owners Kevin and Clare and they are very nice, professional, honest people, the front desk personnel always so cordial and helpful. This is a 5-star music school for my family. Thanks Freshstart. read more

We love FreshStart Music Studio! After trying a few other studios, this is by far the BEST choice!!! Our son's piano teacher, Ms. Ingrid, is patient, knowledgeable, and experienced--he has improved so much with her guidance. The free Dojo sessions (guided group practice) are a game-changer, and Mary, the dojo guide, provides detailed feedback on every song our son practices. The friendly front desk staff, Michael and Ally, always make us feel welcome. The studio is bright, cozy, and thoughtfully decorated with inspirational quotes. The comfy lobby with workstations and a cozy reading area is a huge plus for parents and siblings waiting. This studio has truly exceeded our expectations. We highly recommend it to anyone looking for a wonderful place to learn music! read more

We love that we enrolled our son at freshstart for piano! We really appreciate Mrs. Joanne for being a great mentor for René. He only started playing piano a year ago and she has helped him so much already learning to read notes and understand what they mean. He's becoming a wonderful musician thanks to her. She Always welcomes us with a warm smile just as the front staff does. Thank you Mrs Joanne for all you do! read more

My daughter is taking private voice lessons, as well as the Noteworthy group lessons and we are so pleased with Miss Gem's teaching/guidance. My daughter is shy but took a liking to her right away and looks forward to class weekly. As Miss Gem teaches about music/singing, she doesn't neglect other aspects of teaching such as buidling confidence. My daughter is shy and resistant to trying out for any solos despite Miss Gem's encouragement to do so. Miss Gem is creating baby steps and setting goals with her so that one day she will! Not only is my daughter learning how to sing, but she is being challenged to get out of her comfort zone, overcome fear, and build confidence! So thankful to Freshstart & Miss Gem! read more

Ms. Lyka has been an amazing violin teacher for my daughter. She is kind and patient. My daughter has learned so much from her and has moved on to the next book. She really enjoys her weekly lessons. After each lesson, Ms. Lyka posts a message on what they did in class and what she needs to work on for homework. She is so dedicated. Ariana's mom read more

Ms. Joanne is an amazing piano teacher. My six-year-old loves to learn from her. She's warm, patient, and positive. Her encouraging and gentle approach has helped my child build confidence in himself and develop a love for music. Our family highly recommends this studio and teacher. read more

We have been taking lessons at this studio for a few years and my kids absolutely adore their teacher, Miss Joanne. She is so kind and patient with them and incredibly encouraging. My 3 kids love seeing her each week and I love hearing all the progress they've made with her guidance! read more

I really don't like their system, the owner has no understanding of the talent of the kids and the music. If you have a talented child, never ever go there because they don't have the power to guide your talented child. Making money is more important than teaching the students. The last time she made my son, who plays guitar at the age of 3, cry so hard. My son asked me to never go back there. read more

We have been with this studio for 6-7 years and our experience has been pleasant until a recent unfortunate event with one specific teacher last month. The day before the piano recital, we had a lesson after which the teacher told me that my 8yo son could not play in the recital. I was completely shocked and caught off guard as I've never experienced a situation like this before. The reasons that were given were outright lies (e.g., nobody plays Christmas music in a January recital - in actuality, 25-50% of kids played Christmas music and the teacher had picked this song out explicitly (although he denied this later)) and the teacher hadn't even deigned to listen to my son's performance prior to making his recommendation. He said that they had moved on and didn't even practice the recital song during the lesson. He didn't even afford him the opportunity to show him what he had learned and had the gall to say he wasn't good enough to perform in front of his face. The teacher had not even had a lesson with my son for 1.5 months due to winter break and the teacher being out sick. In spite of that, my son learned the piece that was assigned to him on his own and worked hard to learn it for the performance. All of that was summarily dismissed out of hand by his own teacher and my son was devastated. Recitals are a mechanism by which parents can take pride in watching their kids progress and perform (whether they do great or not so great). In this case, it seemed that the recital was more about the teacher and his ego. We spend a lot of money on lessons and recitals are events that we look forward to in order to see our kids' accomplishments. Ultimately, he did perform at the recital but we asked that the teacher not be in attendance as my son was very anxious and stressed to perform after hearing that his teacher was adamantly against it. The studio accommodated, for which we are grateful, but I felt as if the follow-up was less than satisfactory. The studio and the teacher offered a backhanded apology (we are sorry, but ...) and that was it. Thus, we decided to leave the studio as we could not condone or overlook this behavior. Teachers should be building students' confidence as opposed to cutting them down. When we told them that we wanted to cancel, they told us that we didn't make the cut-off per their cancellation policy and I would still be charged for next month's lessons for my daughter. They made an exception for my son but would not budge for the family. Given the circumstances, I had hoped they would understand and make the exception as we had not wanted to leave the studio on our own accord and they had made no other effort at recompense. I definitely wanted to share this experience with others as I felt that it had a deep impact on my child's psyche and could be useful information for parents to weigh in determining whether to join the studio. Edit post Kevin's feedback: To be clear, I did not receive any monetary refund for any lesson. I was only offered a refund for the last lesson we had left outstanding (which we did not take as we attended the lesson to say goodbye to the teacher). To be fair, I also never said that you should fire this teacher; I was never offered any type of recourse (monetary refund of lessons with this teacher or anything else) outside of getting an exception to your cancellation policy. read more

My daughter joined FreshStart about a year ago with little piano experience. Within a few months with Ms. Shaunna, she can play her favorite music fluently and she never complains when it comes to going for piano lesson. Ms. Shaunna is kind, soft spoken and very gentle with feedback. My daughter loves her and that she gives out stickers at the end of the lesson depending on how many songs she plays. The staffs are very friendly and helpful. I sing praises to people who asked about this place and a lot of my neighbors are now students there read more

Love the studio for its caring teachers and supportive environment to foster children's love in music. My eldest daughter has been with the studio for ~5 years and she enjoys studying piano with Ms. Ellie. We take advantage of the free Piano Dojo to help her with practice. Also, I started my little one about couple months ago studying violin with Ms. Lisa and she loves it! The studio even offered free trial violin lesson and after a few lessons she demanded me to enroll her and that's how she started violin even though I wanted her to do guitar lol ... I recommended the studio to my neighbor and a few friends who have started their children's music journey since. read more

My daughter has been going to this music academy for several years, and we are so happy and proud of her results. We have worked with different piano instructors for make up lessons, but Mr. Mark has been the her primary teacher! He is so awesome. All the teachers are great and I highly recommend this to anyone starting fresh. Shout out to The front desk staff that are super friendly and helpful :) read more

We love Ms Anna's toddler music class. She is energetic, talented, and loves the kids.  We've been to other toddler music classes before, Ms Anna's is the best! This class is for 2 to 4-year-olds and each class is 45 minutes. There were not only singing and dancing, but also exposure to different instruments. I appreciate Ms Anna incorporting different classical music with movements like moving with scarves to "The Blue Danube Waltz" by Johann Strauss. My son learned solfege and basic rhythms, he also had a lot of fun with crafts and storytelling. highly recommended! PS I just use my husband's account to write a review since I don't have an account. read more

My 2 daughters are with Miss Shelby and Miss Ellie for piano and Miss Lisa for violin. My kids used to hate going to piano lessons but ever since we switched their lessons to Fresh Start about a year ago, they have completely changed their attitude towards practicing and going to lessons! I find them being drawn to the piano and violin on their own (I don't have to harass them to practice anymore)!!! I can tell that they really are enjoying music now. The teachers are super supportive, encouraging and really brings out the best in my girls. The owners of the place are super friendly and kind and the venues for the recitals are beautiful and have been outdoors since the pandemic. I thought that was super thoughtful for all of those uncomfortable with being indoors. I really am happy with my girls progress and couldn't have asked for better teachers. I highly recommend this place! read more

My daughter started her lesson with Ms Clare and later moved to Ms. Shelby's class. Both Clare and Shelby are very patient and caring. We had very difficult times when my daughter refused to practice piano but Ms. Clare tried different ways to guid her and we successfully came through it. Ms. Shelby is kind and detail-orientated. She explains every detail to me after each lesson and encourages my daughter to try various styles of music. She's passionate and my danger really loves her. We've been with FreshStart for 5 years and my daughter passed CM level 5 earlier this year. We are very grateful for all the help and support from this studio. Definitely recommend it! read more

I have been working with Fresh Start Piano Studio for quite some time now. I am one of Kevin's earlier students from when he held classes at his house. I would like to highlight Ms. Audrey for her excellent communication and flexibility, as well as, her dedication to ensuring my success in my piano studies. She is patient, kind and straightforward with her teaching. I appreciate that we have an open line of communication when it comes to choosing my repertoire, managing my workload, and building rapport. I would recommend this studio to anyone who is passionate about learning piano. read more

My daughter started her 1st piano group class when she was little with Freshstart 7 years ago. She has grown to love playing piano and did really well in CM (State honor) for the past few years. We are very grateful for the teaching, training, encouragement that she has received from the teachers & staffs there. More importantly, we appreciate the value that Freshstart pass on to her: the love and appreciation of music (there were books about music inside the studio & recitals), the encouragement to practice (piano dojo time for students to practice mid-week in studio), the value of hard work (doing yearly CM & competitions), and opportunity to do good with musical skills (benefit concerts). Although she didn't participate in those concerts but knowing that every year the piano studio did something for others with their musical talent, that is an encouragement and example to her. Thank you Freshstart for helping my daughter to grow in her musical journey, please continue your good work!! read more

This is the best piano studio to put your kids in (they do singing and guitar too). Mrs. Clare is my son's teacher and she has been nothing short of wonderful. She really has taken my son under her wing and I can see that she is invested in his progress. He is now playing very well and we are excited to see him grow so much. The staff here is great too. They put together a few recitals and special events every year. read more

If there is a option of giving more stars I would definitely give them 100 . My son goes to this studio for more then 4 years and our experience is amazing. First, the front desk people are extremely nice and polite. They are always available to answer your questions or even if they are busy with other call, they make sure to get back to you as soon as possible. Second, the teachers are very loving and caring. They understand kids strengths and weaknesses so they work accordingly. My son was having a hard time to bend his fingers properly on piano but Ms Audrey taught him so beautifully and patiently that now he is able to do so perfectly. It's very hard to find a teacher who has patience and care about their students and, we are very lucky to have her. She is a amazing teacher. Last, I would like to thank to the Director's. They are always available to discuss your concerns and always try to help you as much they can. Overall, our experience with FreshStart is amazing. I definitely recommend this music school to all the parents who looking for professional, caring and loving atmosphere. read more

I cannot say enough about this studio! My children have been attending for a little over a year and I can't imagine them learning anywhere else! The owners, office staff and piano instructors are attentive, knowledgeable, friendly and so very helpful. My kids have grown in both musical knowledge and delight in playing piano and singing and I think these are life-long skills they will have because of Fresh Start. Sally is just the best and we look forward to time here each week. read more

Finding a good piano teacher is a difficult task. Especially since we had to leave our amazing teacher my daughter had back in Austin, TX. Kevin has made piano fun for my daughter who, although in the past had a great teacher she hated going! Now, she loves going to her piano lessons and with the help of Kevin she willingly practices almost daily at home without me having to fight with her. I also appreciate how flexible Kevin can be with my schedule changes once in a while. I am very happy and very thankful for Kevin and Fresh Start Piano. read more

My older son started lessons with Kevin about 1.5 years ago when he was 6. We had tried group lessons at pianoforte prior, but they did not keep his attention at all. Time and again, different friends would tell us stories about how their kids dreaded or quit playing piano because they didn't enjoy it. Our goal was to find a class that could build upon his joy of music, not to discourage it! So it was extremely refreshing to find Kevin, who truly has a gift for teaching piano in a way that makes it as positive and enjoyable for kids as possible. He's extremely patient as well as encouraging, a great combination when it comes to teaching young children anything that can be challenging at times. 6 months ago, we enrolled our 4 year old son into Miss. Clare's group lesson and it's been an equally wonderful experience. He was so delighted with the music he was learning that he would draw notes everywhere and would run downstairs to our piano in the morning and play the new music he had learned. Kevin and Clare are both incredibly professional and musically talented individuals, but possibly more importantly, their passion for teaching really shines when they are with their students. It's such a joy witnessing my boys learning the art of music in a truly warm, personal and caring environment. I am looking forward to watching my boys' love of music continue to grow with time and to establish a strong musical foundation to help them in their future. I would highly recommend FreshStart Piano Studio without reservation. read more

I was looking for a good piano teacher for my 6 year old daughter. I checked out several places and I decided to send her to FreshStart Piano Studio. From the very first day, my daughter loved it. She's been going for about 9 months now and we love it!! I can see how much she has improved and the best part is that she likes her teacher and loves going to her lessons. Kevin is a great teacher. He makes it fun for kids which I think is really important especially for the beginners. They recently moved to a new studio. It's very clean and nice. Lovely studio!! read more

FreshStart Piano is nothing short of AMAZING! My 8 year old son and 5 year old daughter had been taking lessons at another studio for 5 months and hating it (name of school withheld :)). After finding FreshStart's info online, I met Mr. Kevin, Ms. Clare and Ms. Belle and had my fingers crossed that they would be good for my kids. It has been almost two years and I have not been disappointed since! My daughter has been taught by Ms. Clare for group lessons and now by Ms. Belle for private lessons. My daughter has enjoyed piano time so much so that she has actually cried when I forgot to take her to her class one Saturday, what?! My son continues to take private lessons with Mr. Kevin and he has not only improved from the last school but exceeded my expectations! The school offers multiple recitals to celebrate the kids' hard work throughout the year, group lessons where the kids dress up for holidays (such as Halloween) and have pizza, share music, just to name a few. Kevin and the team are very personable and they care for the kids not just with their piano but the well-being of the kids while in school and at home as well. We love FreshStart Piano and my kids are students here for life! read more

FreshStart Music Studio - My daughter Elle and Ms. Belle :) - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Irvine, California

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