Tag Archives: music theory

Using piano repertoire as a springboard for a theory lesson: Major, minor and Diminished Chords (Videos)

Posted on May 30, 2012 by

One of my adult students is working on the gorgeous J.C. Bach Prelude in A minor which has a second page full of “Major,” “Minor” and “Diminished” chords. The sonorities progress in sequences, but they also have a secondary dominant … Continue reading →

Posted in J. C. Bach Prelude in A Minor, J.C. Bach, Major minor and diminished chords, musical phrasing, musical phrasing and breathing, phrasing at the piano, pianist, piano, piano learning, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano pedagogy, piano playing, piano regulation, piano studio, piano studio in El Cerrito, piano study, piano teachers, piano teaching, piano tutorial, Piano World, piano world-wide, pianoaddict.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing pentascales, playing piano, playing the piano, playing the piano with a singing tone, POWHOW, POWHOW instruction, practicing piano, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace, repertoire for piano students, rolling forward wrist motions in piano playing, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Kirsten on POWHOW, shirley kirsten on POWHOW webcam piano class, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, studying piano, teaching piano, teaching piano to adults, The art of phrasing at the piano, the art of piano pedaling, Theory, whole body listening, whole body music listening, word press.com, wordpress, you tube video, yout tube, youtube.com | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Piano Instruction: Practicing the Schubert Impromptu in Gb, Op. 90 in Steps (4 videos)

Posted on May 12, 2011 by

It’s obvious that I’m a novice at video editing now that I’m on my own, but I managed to put together 4 videos demonstrating a step-wise approach to practicing the Schubert Gb Major Impromptu. I parceled out voices beginning with … Continue reading →

Posted in 19th Century music, classissima.com, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano studio, music video, piano, piano addict, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano pedagogy, piano repertoire, piano society, Piano Street, piano student, piano teacher, piano teaching repertoire, piano technique, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, Romantic era music, Romantic music, Schubert Impromptus, self-analysis, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, sight-singing, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, teaching piano, video editing, video performances, video uploading, whole body music listening, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Music Theory and Piano Study: It doesn’t have to be drudgery

Posted on March 26, 2011 by

Music Theory doesn’t have to be drudgery If I turn the clock back to my early days as a piano student, I can say without a doubt that I absolutely HATED “Music Theory” or anything remotely related to it. And … Continue reading →

Posted in Circle of Fifths, classissima, classissima.com, composing, Creative Fresno, El Cerrito California, Faber Primer Piano Adventures, five finger positions, Fresno California, Internet, Keith Snell, memoir, MTAC, Music Teachers Asssociation of California, music theory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin, Oberlin Conservatory, pentachords, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lessons, piano pedagogy, piano repertoire, piano student, piano teacher, piano teaching repertoire, piano tutorial, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, Randall Faber, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Steinway and Sons, Steinway M grand piano, Tanglewood Music Festival, Teach Street, teaching piano scales, teaching piano to teenagers, teaching scales, technique, Theory, traditional piano teaching, uk-piano-forums, Uncategorized, video performances, whole body music listening, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Piano Instruction: A Slow Practice Approach to the Schubert Impromptu Op. 90, no.2 in Eb Flat Major (Video)

Posted on March 4, 2011 by

In Tempo reading: Slow practice build-up approach: This Romantic era Impromptu will always benefit from the type of slow practicing that permits careful shaping of phrases, attention to dynamics and other nuances. In the video, I magnify the contours of … Continue reading →

Posted in arpeggios, authorsden, Franz Schubert, harmonic analysis, music theory, Piano Street, piano student, piano teacher, piano teaching repertoire, piano technique, piano warm-ups, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, Schubert Impromptus, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Steinway and Sons, Steinway grand piano, Steinway M grand piano, talkclassical.com, teaching scales, uk-piano-forums, video performances, whole body music listening, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why Play Scales? (with an adult piano student’s updated video)

Posted on February 8, 2011 by

My pupil, Yukiko, demonstrates a sequence of E Major Scales in Legato/staccato–Parallel and Contrary Motion: These provide a repository of articulations and dynamics that apply directly to her repertoire of pieces. *** The Backdrop: As a young piano student living … Continue reading →

Posted in "Just Being At the Piano", "The Inner Game of Tennis", Amsterdam Avenue and 74th Street, arpeggios, athletic coaching, athletic training, authorsden, Bay area, Bronx, California, cd baby, cdbaby, children's music, Children's pieces, Circle of Fifths, Classical era, classical music, Classical period sonata, Classical sonatina, classissima.com, counterpoint, Creative Fresno, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano studio, Exposition in piano sonata, Facebook, Fig Garden Village, five finger positions, five finger warm-ups, Fresno, Fresno California, great pianists, gymnastics, humor, Internet, Irwin Freundlich, keyboard technique, Latour, Latour Sonatina, Lillian Freundlich, Major and minor scales, mind body connection, MTAC, music, music and heart, music appreciation classes, music history, music teachers association of california, Music Teachers Asssociation of California, Music Together, musicology, Musictogether.com, my space, New York, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Northwest Bronx, Northwest Fresno, Oberlin, Oberlin Conservatory, Oberlin Conservatory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Old Fig Garden in Fresno, ornaments, pentachords, pentatonic song, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano finding, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano pedagogy, piano practicing, piano society, Piano Street, piano student, piano teacher, piano teaching repertoire, piano technique, piano tutorial, piano warm-ups, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, ping pong, ping pong balls, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, satire, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, sonatina, Steinway and Sons, Steinway grand piano, Steinway piano, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, teaching piano to teenagers, technique, Theodore Latour, trills, uk-piano-forums, video performances, whole body music listening, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Joy of Teaching Piano to Young Children (Videos)

Posted on January 23, 2011 by

Starting a very young child on a musical journey is joyful, exciting and challenging. The first baby steps taken at the piano will be memorable for both teacher and student, so careful thought and preparation are needed. At the very … Continue reading →

Posted in Album for the Young, athletic training, Bay area, California, cat, cats, cd baby, cdbaby, children's music, Children's pieces, classical music, Clowns by Kabalevsky, Creative Fresno, dream piano, Faber Primer Piano Adventures, Facebook, five finger positions, five finger warm-ups, Gallop by Kabalevsky, games, gymnastics, humor, Kabalevsky, Kabalevsky Op. 39 Children's pieces, Major and minor scales, MTAC, music teachers association, music teachers association of california, music teachers associationo of California, Music Teachers Asssociation of California, Music Together, Musictogether.com, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, old upright, pentachords, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano finding, piano finding adventure, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano pedagogy, piano room, piano society, Piano Street, piano student, piano teacher, piano warm-ups, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld.com, ping pong, ping pong balls, Randall Faber, scales, Schumann's Album for the Young, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Steinway and Sons, Steinway grand piano, Steinway M grand piano, Steinway studio upright, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, technique, Theory, used piano, used pianos, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Piano Instruction: Part one, Harmonic Rhythm and Phrasing, Mozart Sonata in C, K. 545, Shirley Kirsten, Piano

Posted on December 29, 2010 by

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8cBg_qKSeU  (Part 2) The attached video contains the first part of a tutorial on the subject of Harmonic Rhythm and Phrasing as applies to Mozart’s popular “drawing room” sonata in C, K. 545. (First Theme) I will be uploading part … Continue reading →

Posted in Classical era, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, Fresno, Fresno California, Fresno miniseries, Irwin Freundlich, Lillian Freundlich, MTAC, music, music history, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano pedagogoy, piano scales, piano student, piano teacher, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, scales, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Steinway and Sons, Steinway piano, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, technique, uk-piano-forums, Uncategorized, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Chopin Etude op. 10, no. 3 and the devil in music

Posted on November 21, 2010 by

Who would believe the Chopin Etude, Op. 10 no. 3, opening with a somber melody that melts the heart away, would venture into the devil’s realm with a splash of “tritones.” Music historians characterize the interval of a ”tritone” (A whole step … Continue reading →

Posted in Chopin Etude, music, music history, Oberlin Conservatory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, piano, piano instruction, piano teacher, pianoaddict.com, Shirley Kirsten, Steinway piano, The devil in music, Theory, tritone, Uncategorized, you tube | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment