Search Results for: teaching piano with artistry

classissima.com, Irina Morozova, Journal of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, piano blog, piano blogging, playing scales, Special Music School Kaufman Center

Teaching piano technique with artistry at the Special Music School/Kaufman Center

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Master teacher, Irina Morozova infuses her piano lessons with an expressive music-making approach that applies to technique and repertoire. Scales, arpeggios, chords, Czerny etudes, etc. are not compartmentalized as pedantic exercises bundled in torturous repetitions. To the contrary, they’re the substance of a musical craft that she honors with specific, singing-tone framed demonstrations of kinetic… Continue reading Teaching piano technique with artistry at the Special Music School/Kaufman Center

phrasing, phrasing at the piano, pianists, piano, piano instruction, piano learning

What you Learn by Teaching Piano

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I was inspired by the sagacious words of Peter Takacs, Oberlin Conservatory piano faculty member, in response to a query by Zsolt Bognar. (Living the Classical Life interview) Zsolt: “Should a pianist teach?” (I was a bit surprised by a question that sowed doubt about the endeavor of mentoring–as if it proliferated the weak cliche… Continue reading What you Learn by Teaching Piano

Alfred Brendel, blog metrics, Journal of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano instruction, piano lessons, Piano Street, Piano World, piano worldwide, recording, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

Mirrors and piano playing

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

As we age, we’re reluctant to look at our reflection in the mirror, but as we grow over time as musicians, the mirror of our playing in recorded “reflections” can foster quality adjustments in phrasing and interpretation. If we nudge ourselves to step back and be “objective” about what we’re hearing, we may try to… Continue reading Mirrors and piano playing

Grigory Sokolov, Irina Morozova, Livia Rev, Murray Perahia, piano, piano methods, piano teaching

Does any one piano method or playing approach work?

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Most piano teachers get inquiries from parents who are riveted to “methods.” The most frequently posed question is, “can you tell me how you teach?” Under duress and painted into a corner, a prospective mentor’s perfect, all-encompassing answer seems unattainable. And upon closer consideration, a boundary limited approach for every student who crosses the threshold… Continue reading Does any one piano method or playing approach work?

Irina Morozova, Oberlin Conservatory, piano pedagogy, piano playing, piano teaching, piano technique

Piano Technique: No Pain, Much Gain

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Sometimes we learn a floating, flowing path to beauty through the unfortunate school of HARD knocks. To this effect, I recall my esteemed Oberlin Conservatory piano teacher dealing in mindless, stressful repetitions of meaningless exercises that caused joint pain and unremarkable displays of flat-lined, tightly squeezed playing. His teaching, to an extreme level of adherence… Continue reading Piano Technique: No Pain, Much Gain

adult piano instruction, piano blog, piano blogging, piano lessons, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten

Piano Technique: Breathing through inverted chords and 4-note arpeggios

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

A thoughtful journey through 4-note (double root) C Major Chords in INVERSIONS was a lesson preliminary to unraveling them with shape and contour. As a start, an adult student imagined the sound intended, breathed through a string of sonorities, and became aware of sensory and muscle memory dimensions of practicing. These fed nicely into the… Continue reading Piano Technique: Breathing through inverted chords and 4-note arpeggios

Alexey Chernov, classissima.com, Shirley Smith Kirsten

Going into the Finals at the Alaska International Piano-E-Competition, and thoughts about COMPETING

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Neither memory lapses nor occasional note slip-ups impeded any of the five selected Piano Finalists from forging ahead to the Chamber Music and Concerto Rounds of the Alaska-based E-Competition. My two particular favorites, Marianna Prjevalskaya and Alexey Chernov honored Schubert with gorgeous performances of the composer’s A Major (D.959) and C minor Sonatas (D. 958),… Continue reading Going into the Finals at the Alaska International Piano-E-Competition, and thoughts about COMPETING

Brigitte Engerer, music, piano pedagogy, Piano Street, Rada Bukhman, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube video, you tube.com, yout tube

Favorite Tchaikovsky piano pieces and their pedagogical value

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I made a promise to myself well before the New Year, that I would learn one new Tchaikovsky composition each day from the composer’s Op. 39 Children’s Album. (24 tableaux) Not that I’m recommending to piano students that they assimilate new music at lightning speed, but for me the challenge was to make a spurt… Continue reading Favorite Tchaikovsky piano pieces and their pedagogical value

classissima, classissima.com, Mozart Sonata in C K. 545, piano, piano instruction, piano lessons, Piano Street, Piano World, piano worldwide, W.A. Mozart, word press, wordpress.com, you tube.com, yout tube, youtube.com

Should a piano student be a carbon copy of the teacher?

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

The whole universe of music teaching and learning became crystallized when I found myself bouncing ideas back and forth with two parents of Suzuki-trained children on a blog COMMENTS forum. First, I questioned the purist form of the Japanese imported “method” to the piano that delays note-reading to conform with the acquisition of language. Babies,… Continue reading Should a piano student be a carbon copy of the teacher?

my piano-finding adventures with Connell York, whole body music listening, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video, you tube.com, yout tube, youtube.com

Me, York and Our Great Piano Adventure!

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

For over a year I was an apprentice to Connell York, 84-year old piano tuner. During our colorful journey on the piano-finding trail, a folksy narrative emerged that informs as it entertains. *** Scenes preview: 84-year old, piana’ tuna,’ Connell York holds a ten-dollar bill he retrieved in a deep-sea diving expedition under a grand… Continue reading Me, York and Our Great Piano Adventure!