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We are creatures of our senses- we feel before we can slow down to think and analyze.  When we perform a piece, it’s not the notes that are most challenging, but the requirement that we arouse a certain passion, a certain feeling, with only those notes.  It follows then, that how we approach our practice time emotionally is paramount to our ability to deliver at will in the performance.  If every time we sit down, we think, “This piece is so hard”, or “I’m never to going to play it like Argerich”, then we condition our bodies to be paralyzed before we even start.  On the other hand, if we p

There is a stigma, a myth, that physical symptoms equate to weakness and incompetency.  It follows then that most tudents are not forthcoming about physical aches.

Opera and Dido's Lament by Purcell

  Open a discussion with your students with:        

What is opera?

What are your experiences with opera?   Do you like it?   Have you ever been to one?

Might you consider going to one?

How does opera compare to the Broadway musical?

What impact did opera have on western society?  How important is it as an art form?

True or false: 

Opera was as popular in the 1600’s as sports and movies are today.  True!

Introducing Art Music to the Very Young Child

I still remember the wonder of discovering my breath for the first time as a college student, after a debilitating over-use injury.  Just noticing the air flow swept my muscle pain away.  I was amazed at how simple it was.  As I slowly returned to the piano, I started to explore how to breath to enhance my phrasing, my accuracy, my artistry.  Nowadays, I teach breathing techniques to all my students, and here are some reasons why I find it so useful:

Johannes Brahms – Rhapsody Op. 79 No.1 

Start the year off with some great Listening as an Event!  Send your students some links to great masterworks. Give them a couple of weeks to become friends with them. Then, gather together for a listening quiz!  Give bonus points if they can remember the composer, era, and performance styles! Here is a sample quiz:

1.  Brandenberg Concerto No. 5,  allegro

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZK6-x9sdEYo  

Baroque / J. S. Bach

Introducing the Young Student to Master Works and Master Composers

The Bagatelle

Clara Schumann