DESERT HILLS COMMUNITY SCHOOL OF MUSIC

About Us

​About Desert Hills Community School of Music

As one of the top music schools serving the North Scottsdale, Carefree and Cave Creek areas, Desert Hills Community School of Music offers world-class music instruction for all ages and ability levels. Located at the foot of the boulders on the scenic campus of Desert Hills Presbyterian Church, our offerings include:


  • Private music lessons for keyboard instruments (piano, organ), plucked strings (harp, guitar, ukulele, mandolin), woodwinds (flute, clarinet, oboe, saxophone), brass instruments (trumpet, French horn, trombone, baritone, tuba), strings (violin, viola, cello, double bass) and voice


  • Group music lessons for piano, cello, mandolin, and ukulele


  • An audition-based Advanced Music Program (AMP) for children ages 7-18 who show extraordinary dedication to musical excellence


  • A Music Exploration program for children ages 6-10 who show early interest in music


  • Community ensembles for all ages, including saxophone ensemble, flute choir, community band, intergenerational clarinet choir, youth saxophone quartet, youth and adult string quartets, and more.


  • Summer Band Camp for middle school and high school students (June 2-6, 2025)


  • Instrument rentals for $20/month to all actively enrolled DHCSM students who need an instrument

Talk to Us

Vitaly Serebriakov

Co-Artistic Director

Email Vitaly

Svetlana Obregon

Co-Artistic Director

Email Svetlana

Heather Baldwin

Administrative Director

Email Heather

2025-2026 Calendar

2025-26 Tuition & Fees

Private Lessons


Desert Hills Community School of Music uses a semester-based tuition structure, billed monthly, for private instruction. Rates are based on $80/hr:


Fall Semester – 16 weeks (Aug. 4– Dec. 13, 2025)

  • 30-minute weekly lessons: $640/semester ($128 monthly)
  • 45-minute weekly lessons: $960/semester ($192 monthly)
  • 60-minute weekly lessons: $1,280/semester ($256 monthly)


Spring Semester – 16 weeks (Jan. 5 – May 16, 2026)

  • 30-minute weekly lessons: $640/semester ($128 monthly)
  • 45-minute weekly lessons: $960/semester ($192 monthly)
  • 60-minute weekly lessons: $1,280/semester ($256 monthly)


If you begin private lessons mid-semester and opt for semester-based tuition, your monthly payment will be prorated based on the number of lessons remaining in that semester.


Students who do not wish to commit to a full semester of lessons can opt for per-lesson billing. With per-lesson billing, invoices are issued at the end of each month for the lessons taken that month. There is no requirement to commit to a certain number of lessons. Under this plan, lessons are priced individually at $90/lesson:

  • 30-minute lessons: $45/lesson
  • 45-minute lessons: $67.50/lesson
  • 60-minute lessons: $90/lesson


For all students:

  1. there is a $25 annual registration fee, billed in August each year. If your enrollment falls between September and May, you’ll be charged the registration fee at that time.
  2. For invoices not paid by the 20th of each month, a $10 late fee will be applied.


Advanced Music Program


See the Advanced Music Program page for AMP Tuition & Fee information.

Missed Lesson Policy

Regular lesson attendance is very important for developing mastery of an instrument, and missed lessons are problematic for both student and instructor. However, we do realize that on occasion there will be unavoidable conflicts with a scheduled lesson time. When that happens:

 

  1. Please notify your instructor (via call, text, or email) at least 24 hours in advance when a student will be unable to make their scheduled lesson time.
  2. SEMESTER PLAN ONLY: Up to two (2) missed lessons in a semester are eligible for a make-up lesson at a time mutually agreed on by instructor and student. Makeups can be done in person or online. Any lessons missed beyond two in a semester or missed with notification of less than 24 hours are not eligible for a make-up unless mutually agreed upon by instructor and student. If an instructor needs to miss a lesson, the lesson will be made up will not count toward the two eligible for make-up in a semester.
  3. PER-LESSON BILLING PLAN ONLY: Any lessons missed with no notification (“no-show”) or with notification of less than 24 hours will be charged to the student, unless instructor and student mutually agree that (1) the nature of the cancellation constitutes a true emergency and (2) instructor and student mutually agree on another day/time for that lesson. 


Permanent Cancellation Policy

Sometimes the timing is not right for learning a musical instrument. When this is the case, DHCSM requires 30 days advance notice that the student will not be continuing instruction. This notice should be given via email to the student’s instructor and to the DHCSM administrator (SchoolofMusic@deserthills.org). Your final bill will be adjusted to equal the number of lessons taken through the 30-day notification period, less previous payments.