My blind date sweetheart piano, the Baldwin Hamilton grand 1929, that was a shot in the dark, telephone interviewed instrument, is falling into the hands of my adult student, Julie. That means it's remaining in the family. (Julie lives practically next door) The good news is that I now have ample space for my NEW… Continue reading My Old Baldwin piano passes to a new owner, but keeps family ties
https://youtu.be/u_YG7qNUpkU Baldwin Grand with lid up plays J.S. Bach Prelude in F minor, BWV 881 (WTC Book 2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSNOvkbqbKw And J.S. Bach Prelude No. 1 in C, Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1 https://youtu.be/TmGa78iBM04 Mozart Sonata in C, K. 545, Allegro https://youtu.be/qWDdJOG318I LINK: MY BIRTHDAY PRESENT TO ME! https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2015/04/09/my-birthday-present-to-me/
Who would have imagined that a new piano would be my special gift to myself! It was one week since my mother had passed away at 100 and I was devastated, shaken by the loss-- too distressed to be thinking about celebrating my upcoming birthday in any way. Yet when I saw an ad for… Continue reading My Birthday present to me!
Tonight's lesson with Judy had inspiring moments within a phrase sharing interplay. We started out singing the opening measures of the composer's charming masterpiece, emphasizing a singing line supported by harmonies cresting and dipping into resolutions. The vocal lead-in, threaded through the whole lesson, often rippling into supple wrists, relaxed arms --but it deepened in… Continue reading A Phrase loving exchange between Teacher and Student (Mozart Sonata in C, K. 545)
I’m now a three-time Logitech webcam user with a long range panoramic capability and two close-up keyboard views, (including an overhead) that’s a mouse tap away. For trill and ornament demonstrations, I highlight the second or third LOGITECH option listed on my Preferences window and can easily switch back to the longer range image with another click. (first view) The FULL SCREEN option is recommended.
NOTE: Since my iMac upgrade to MAVERICKS, I use the HDC920HD1080 webcams.
To add more than one web cam view to the mix, I downloaded the Manycam program to my iMac. (It’s FREE)
For Panorama: C920HD1080 (Place cam on end block of piano, high treble side)
Close-up below: C920HD1080 (clipped to a music stand to the left of me)
LONGER side view of piano
My Close-up cam sits on a music stand by specific marked placement. (You can see it in the photo showing the…
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This has to be one of my favorite reciprocal teaching/learning videos because it fleshes out the importance of breathing through scales with mindful concentration. Framed by a singing pulse, the scale becomes a model for all playing. Here's B minor in Contrary Motion (legato) with my annotations that reference the BREATH and mindfulness. https://youtu.be/kVmCWbA32bg Important… Continue reading Piano Technique: Stabilizing tempo, presence of mind, and breathing through scales and arpeggios
This is not a planned or staged informercial, but one of my students spontaneously reviewed the value of her piano lessons by Face Time, and I snatched her critique on my iPhone. NOTIFICATION: She was not impeded from sharing the down side of her piano learning experience so naturally I was riveted to what would… Continue reading Technology as a valuable piano teaching tool
Did I expect a dental visit to UCSF on Parnassus to blossom into a Landmark expedition through the Embarcadero Business Center?! Why not? I'd caught a glimpse of Seymour an Introduction playing in close proximity to my #6 AC TRANSIT point of departure once I stepped off BART on Market Street in downtown San Francisco.… Continue reading A San Francisco Landmark and musical reunion!
It was no surprise that Judy, one of my adult piano students came to her lesson yesterday gushing about Seymour: An Introduction. And naturally, in the nick of time, I grabbed my super-charged, helium packed iPhone and added the latest film rave to my growing collection. Need I say more?... or is it SEE MORE?..… Continue reading Judy, Seymour, and Ludwig
