About Monarch Music Lessons
Hi, I’m Cade Ratcliff, owner and instructor at Monarch Music Lessons. I’ve spent nearly 20 years on my own musical journey, and the last 15 teaching others. Let me share a bit about why I started Monarch Music Lessons.
Why Monarch Went Online
Monarch started as in-home lessons, but I kept running into the same problem: Charlotte traffic made it impossible to get from house to house efficiently, and families outside the city — especially in more rural areas — often had little access to quality music instruction at all. Moving lessons online solved both problems at once: no more travel time, and no more limits on who could get a great teacher.
How I Teach
I was homeschooled from middle school through high school, and it taught me that real learning is a two-way commitment — every student thinks differently and brings their own musical interests to the table. So instead of a rigid curriculum, I get to know how each student hears music, share my own journey with them, and let them lead the way, guiding them through each new challenge as they’re ready for it. The best part of teaching is watching a student realize they were always capable of something that once felt impossible.