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Frequently Asked Questions [FAQ]

1.            What are the courses available at alapana?

alapana offers Carnatic (South Indian) classical music, vocal, veena, Violin & mridangam, and Indian classical dance, bharatanatyam

 

2.     What is the duration for a lesson?

      The duration is approximately 50 minutes per lesson.

3.     What is the fee structure for the various courses?

Annual membership fee -$50

Admission fee -$50 per subject per student    

Regular Course:

Fee per month under all teachers (other than senior teachers)

 

Group(3 or more)

Individual                     

Standard level, Stage 1

$45

$100

Standard level, Stage 2

$50

$105

Standard level, Stage 3

$55

$110

Intermediate – all stages

$65

$120

Deposit- equivalent of 1 month’s fee    

Fee per month under senior teachers

All stages

Group(3 or more)

Individual

Standard

$65

NA

Intermediate

$80

$130

Advanced

NA

$150

Deposit- equivalent of 1 month’s fee    

Maintenance Fee for Traditional instruments - $40 per annum   

4.     When do we need to renew for the annual membership?

      Membership has to be renewed every calendar year.

 

5.     During what period of time are the classes conducted?

      Classes are conducted between 9am and 9pm.


 

6.     Do we need to pay the December fees?

Alapana is closed in December. However, the December fee needs to be paid. Those learning more than 1 subject need to pay December fees for only one subject (the higher one) along with November fees. This is to cover the rentals & salaries of alapana.

 

7.     Who are the senior teachers of alapana? 

Mrs R.Banumathy and Mr V.Raghuraman are considered senior teachers of alapana.

 

8.     Is there any age limit for the admission?

There is no age limit but it is recommended to start at 6 years or later.

 

9.     What about children who are below 6 years?

There is a special course called ‘abc’(alapana balak culture) where children of age bracket 3 to 6 years can be admitted to this special course of alapana. Further details on this course may be obtained on alapana telephone, 63963296.

 

10.            What is the attendance needed for taking examinations in alapana?

Students taking examinations should meet the yearly attendance requirements as below:

Std- 40 lessons

Int- 60 lessons

          Adv-80 lessons

 

11.            Is the deposit refundable?

Yes.

12.            Are there any course materials that have to be purchased?

Music students will buy the prescribed course materials like the

      Sruti Manjai (book & CD) and Mridangam students, Laya Manjari.

These text books are available at alapana.

 

13.            What are the rules & regulations of Flexilearn?

Students taking up Flexilearn should pay fees for a set of 12 lessons in one go in advance before commencing the lessons. Each course under Flexilearn should be completed within 3 calendar months. Students under Flexilearn need not pay the deposit.

 

14.              Are students allowed to take Flexilearn in addition to any other courses?

Students are allowed to take both of them if they want to.

 

15.            Are Flexilearn students allowed to attend classes with those taking regular     course?

A student of Flexilearn will generally not be allowed to attend a class of regular course students. However, in exceptional cases, certain combined classes may also be considered.

 

16.              What are the course details and fee structure for Flexilearn?

FLEXILEARN 

level

Minimum no. of classes per course

Fee per class

Standard

12

$40

Intermediate

12

$50

Advanced

 4

$60

 

17.            What happens if a prearranged class is missed by the student?

A prearranged lesson missed by the student will be treated as held.

 

18.             Is there any dress code for specific classes?

Girls are recommended to wear chudidhar, half-saree/Saree & boys in their kurthas on the first day of lesson and also on Vijayadasami & performance days.

 

19.            What is the number of lessons per month under the Regular course?

Alapana offers 4 lessons in a month, at weekly intervals.

 

20.            What is the deadline for paying the month’s fees?

The deadline is 7th of every month in advance.

 

21.            What happens if I forget to pay by 7th of the month?

There is only a late fee of $5 for fees paid after the 7th of the month. If it is not paid for more than 2 weeks, alapana teachers may not allow the student in the class.

 

22.            What are the 3 levels in alapana?

Courses are conducted at 3 levels, Standard, Intermediate & Advanced.

Each level has 3 stages. Generally, the duration of each stage is one year.

 

23.            Are examinations held?

Examinations are held and certificates are issued. There are no failures in examinations as candidates are pre-screened before taking examination. The following grades are awarded : Merit, First Class & Distinction. However, the examinations are not compulsory.

24.            What is the requirement to enroll in the next level?

One has to possess a First class or Distinction to be promoted to the next level.

 

25.             Can I pay the fees through internet?

      Yes, it can be paid vis internet-banking using POSB or DBS account. Standing instructions to your banker to transfer via GIRO is another alternative.

 

26.             Is there any lesson conducted during public holidays?

There will not be any lessons on public holidays they are alapana holidays, as well.

 

27.            What happens if the group size changes and drops to two or one?

Then, the fee appropriate to individuals will apply. Such changes will take effect from the month subsequent to the month of occurrence.

 

28.             What happens if a teacher is not able to conduct a lesson as prearranged?

A make up class will be offered to compensate the lesson missed.

 

29.            Are there performance opportunities?

There are plenty of performance opportunities at alapana. In fact there is an in-house stage at alapana. Deserving students will be given chance. Students are encourages to attend performance even if they do not perform.

 

30.             Why is it that alapana fees are so low? Will it continue to be like that?

Currently, alapana is celebrating its 10th anniversary. In order to welcome the year of the Tiger, alapana has slashed down the fees in many categories. In fact the fee structure offers probably the lowest fees in Singapore by any reputed Indian music/dance institution. Alapana has set itself a target of 1000 students by Dec2012, which is double the present strength. We hope the fee reduction will help new students to join alapana without any hesitation. In the normal circumstances, we would try to keep the minimum level for beginners the same for a long time to come.