SEMM Music Academy

Teaching The Art Of Music - One Note At A Time!

SEMM Music Academy is a division of SEMM Foundation,
a non profit organization.  Our music academy provides private
and group vocal and instrumental music lessons to students
and adults of all ages in Columbus and Central Ohio.

Key to our music academy is our "Give Back and Pay
Forward Music Arts Initiative" that provides free private
music scholarship lessons to underprivileged students in the Columbus City Schools.

Our academy provides a professional and comfortable
atmosphere that is conducive to a student’s ability to learn.

Our multilingual faculty of degreed and professional instructors
with national and international credentials, helps students
experience the joy and pleasure of music.

To meet the cultural and linguistic demands of the students, in addition to English, the Academy’s teachers can converse
with students in Spanish, French and German.  More information is provided on the SEMM Academy website.


Students of all ages, abilities and levels develop skills and a love of music through private and group lessons with their
chosen instrument. Private and group music study is offered year-round and includes:
  • Instruction in classical, contemporary, jazz, blues, Latin, pop, classic R&B, jazz funk and popular styles for
    students of all ages.
  • Instruction that includes teaching and building a solid foundation … from proper technique, sight reading,
    ear training and music theory, to imp    rovisation and more.
  • Lessons take place once a week at a regularly scheduled time and may be 30 or 60 minutes in length.
    Students must have an instrument available for daily practice.
Providing the tools necessary for building a solid music foundation
  • Fundamentals
  • Breathing, Posture
  • Tone Development
  • Intonation
  • Technique
  • Scales, Arpeggios, Scales and More Scales
  • Tips and Tricks
  • Reading, Theory, Composition, Improvisation



Our Give Back and Pay Forward Program


As concerned parents and educators, either through our own personal experience of having school aged children in the
public school system, or in discussing the current music education programs in the public school system with teachers
and administrators, we realized current economic conditions had made it difficult for instrumental band and vocal
instructional school programs to fill the student’s learning needs alone.

We realized there were a number of school aged children with musical talent or limited training opportunities that may
not be participating regularly in an organized school program and for those students, we wanted to reach out and
introduce them to this art form.

As a result, in a special partnership with the Columbus City Schools, the Academy developed and implemented an unprecedented scholarship program to provide free and reduced fee private music instruction to an anticipated 186 school children from elementary through high school. Our "Give Back and Pay Forward Music Arts Initiative" is a program that
helps students reach their potential. To date, we have given over 200 children free private scholarship lessons and
assisted several into being accepted in College.

We believed this program would create a "trickle up" economic benefit to retail music stores and others of which these students would become customers buying reeds, slide oil, sheet music, other accessories, and even instruments.
Chances are, these students would not have been customers had we not reached out to teach them or rejuvenate their
musical interests.

With the inclusion of our radio station, we plan to expand this program and structure it to effectively support as many organizations and community causes that mirror our industry and culture. We believe that it takes more than just caring;
it takes proactive action to build or rebuild and sustain our music community.  We must keep the pipeline of young
budding musicians full to insure that the art of music remains alive and vibrant.