Ena Bronstein, pianist, plays Debussy’s “Feux D’artifice” (recorded “live” in concert)

A further blend of music and seascapes, not to mention muted swans. Ena Bronstein was my former teacher in Fresno before she departed for the East Coast. Currently, she's on the faculty of Westminster Choir College of Rider University, Princeton, N.J. http://youtu.be/SB6PyiyShtc LINK: https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/04/30/virtuosity-and-poetry-in-motion-hallmark-ena-bronsteins-musical-return-to-fresno/

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

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 relationship to resolving chords. The "harmonic rhythm" moves quickly. While this particular pupil may not…

Piano Technique: Focusing on Rotation in arpeggios, and building up a scale (Videos)

These are two supplementary videos that I created for adult students between lessons. As previously mentioned, they clarify and reinforce the content of our class, and map out ways to practice. I. ROTATION at the turnaround of a B minor Arpeggio Exploring the curve at the very top of the figure with an energy boost…

Supplementing piano lessons with videos

Just a few years ago, the furthest thing from my mind would be to send videos to piano students between lessons. In the past, I had routinely e-mailed assignments for the coming week along with practicing suggestions. (This created an organized set of notes to track learning and progress) Those were the old days, before…

El Cerrito “Sushi” cat is a match for Aiden (Videos)

Aiden took the prize for his mini-choreography of Chopin's C# minor Waltz, http://youtu.be/v38sPHrPSP0 but "Sushi" outdistanced him with an impressive break dance routine on the kitchen floor. http://youtu.be/Z76zHeM2Qwk "Sushi," the house cat in El Cerrito, is always on the move--resistant to stay on the grand piano, or to teeter by the bathroom sink. Aiden, however,…

From El Cerrito with Love: a piano space with shimmering resonance blends the music of J.C. Bach with flowers and more (Video)

Johann Christian Bach's Prelude in A minor swims around an exalted space in the East Bay. It can't get any better, except for flowers and a musical feline that enhance the musical tapestry. Bach's composition is a stream of broken chords shared between the hands. Practicing the sonorities as a prelude to playing the composition…

Kabalevsky’s “A Game” is a delightful way to practice staccato (Videos)

Dimitri Kabalevsky (1904-1987) composed a winner for late elementary and early intermediate level students. While playing "A GAME," they learn a bouncy staccato with light interspersed accents on downbeats. How refreshing to weave technique into a musical romp that moves along with a "feeling of one main impulse per bar." According to notes found in…

Piano lessons should be tailor-made for each student (Videos)

I've come to the conclusion that no full-proof piano method, or method book can be applied across the board to beginning students or those at any level of study. Each pupil is so unique that an individualized growth and development plan is needed. By example, I faced a dilemma when a new adult student who…

Burgmuller’s beautiful “Tendre Fleur” flows in and out of flower portraits (VIDEO)

On my walk from the El Cerrito Hills to BART Del Norte I snapped these pictures and interspersed them in my reading. Composed in the Romantic era, "Tender Flower" (English Tr.) is a gorgeous miniature that says so much in such a short space of time. A repository of nuance and expressive lines, it rivets…

My childhood “Fur Elise,” past teachers, yearbook entries, and present mentoring (Video)

I named one of my daughters, "Elise," in honor of Beethoven's famous composition. That's how much I adored the music. A companion piece since childhood, I managed to squeak through the notes at age 8 when enrolled at a quaint music school off Kingsbridge Road in the Bronx. Private lessons followed my two years of…