Category: children’s music

"Tales of a Musical Journey" by Irina Gorin, acoustic piano, arioso 7, blog, blogger, blogging, blogging about piano, blogs about piano, children's music, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano instruction, El Cerrito piano studio, emotion in music, fingering and phrasing at the piano, fingering and piano technique, five finger positions at the piano, five finger warm-ups, Irina Gorin, Journal of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, Just Being at the Piano by Mildred Portney-Chase, legato playing at the piano, mental imagery, mindful piano practicing, mindful practicing, molto cantabile, MTAC, MTAC.org, New York City, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin, Oberlin Conservatory, pentascales, phrasing at the piano, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano playing, piano playing and relaxation, piano practicing, piano studio in El Cerrito, piano study, piano teacher, piano teachers, piano teaching, piano world-wide, pianoaddict.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing five-finger positions, playing legato at the piano, playing piano, playing staccato, playing staccato at the piano, playing the piano, POWHOW, POWHOW instruction, POWHOW piano instruction, POWHOW.com, practicing a piece in 7 different emotions, practicing arpeggios, practicing piano, practicing piano with relaxation, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace, Rina, Rina 4 takes piano lessons, Rina takes piano lessons, rotation in piano playing, scales, shirley kirsten piano teacher in El Cerrito, Shirley Kirsten teaches classes at POWHOW, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Skype a piano lesson to Australia, Skype piano lessons, slow mindful practicing, slow piano practicing, teaching piano to young children, teaching Rina piano, teachinig piano to young children, technique, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video, youtube.com

Growing piano technique in baby steps: Rina, 5, advances to hands together five-finger positions (adding in 10ths)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Rina may not know the words "pentascales" and "tenths," but she has the intelligence to notice when her fingers move up and down together, playing the same notes an "octave" apart. With a sound knowledge of the music alphabet in both directions, she has good cognitive reinforcement. (She also knows "running notes" or 8ths, "long… Continue reading Growing piano technique in baby steps: Rina, 5, advances to hands together five-finger positions (adding in 10ths)

blog, blogger, blogging, Bluebook of pianos, cdbaby, children's music, Children's pieces, classical music, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano studio, Faber Primer Piano Adventures, Facebook, Facebook friend, Fig Garden Village, five finger positions, Fresno, Fresno California, humor, keyboard technique, Manhattan, memoir, mental imagery, Mildred Portney Chase, mind body connection, Mrs. Elston, music, music and heart, Music Teachers Asssociation of California, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, piano teacher, piano teaching repertoire, piano technique, piano tutorial, piano warm-ups, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, scale fingerings, scales, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Steinway and Sons, Steinway grand piano, Steinway M grand piano, Steinway piano, suzuki piano teaching, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, teaching piano scales, teaching piano to teenagers, teaching scales, technique, Theory, traditional piano teaching, video performances, whole body music listening, word press, wordpress.com

Scouting a Piano Teacher

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I have to thank "Lisa" for generating this idea for a new blog. Sometimes, the fountain runs dry until a student experience, teacher-related crisis, or musical event renew the supply. Let me think about this whole issue of picking and choosing the "right" piano teacher. (Applies to adult student-seekers as well) Hmm... I probably covered… Continue reading Scouting a Piano Teacher

6 degrees of separation, authorsden, Baroque music, Bay area, blog, blogger, blogging, children's music, Children's pieces, Circle of Fifths, Classical era, classissima, classissima.com, counterpoint, Creative Fresno, Domenico Scarlatti, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano studio, essercizi, Facebook, five finger positions, five finger warm-ups, Fresno, Fresno California, humor, J.S. Bach, JS Bach, Karl Orff, keyboard technique, Major and minor scales, memoir, mind body connection, MTAC, music, music and heart, Music Teachers Asssociation of California, music therapy, musicology, my space, New York City, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, Orff Schulwerk, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano pedagogy, piano practicing, piano society, Piano Street, piano student, piano teacher, piano technique, piano warm-ups, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, publishersmarketplace.com, satire, scale fingerings, scales, Scarlatti, Scarlatti Sonatas, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Steinway and Sons, Steinway grand piano, Steinway M grand piano, Steinway piano, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, teaching piano scales, technique, uk-piano-forums, video performances, videotaped replay, whole body music listening, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

What can you do with a Performance-Piano Degree?

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Face the music! Most new Conservatory grads with fancy Bachelor of Music, Performance-Piano Degrees bound in leather must improvise when catapulted into the competitive job market. With only a tiny space on the world stage reserved for budding soloists, many aspiring concert pianists will teach privately, wait tables, babysit, or become high school choir accompanists.… Continue reading What can you do with a Performance-Piano Degree?

"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

Why Play Scales?

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Scale practicing examples: https://youtu.be/SJGbnFQB8L8 https://youtu.be/Bo1ptHbMu9M https://youtu.be/W3N_9Me7hXQ *** The Backdrop: As a young piano student living in New York City, I remember my reluctance to prepare a mandatory scale each week for my lesson. In fact my first teacher had so many students, she always seemed to forget the scale she had assigned to me, so… Continue reading Why Play Scales?

arpeggios, athletic coaching, athletic training, authorsden, Bay area, California, children's music, Circle of Fifths, classical music, counterpoint, Creative Fresno, diminished 7th arpeggios, diminished 7th chords, diminished chords, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano studio, Facebook, five finger positions, five finger warm-ups, Fresno, Fresno California, Fresno Famous, gymnastics, humor, JS Bach, keyboard technique, Lillian Freundlich, mind body connection, MTAC, music appreciation classes, Music Teachers Asssociation of California, musicology, my space, New York City High School of Performing Arts, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano pedagogy, 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, scales, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Steinway and Sons, Steinway grand piano, Steinway M grand piano, Steinway piano, Steinway studio upright, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, technique, Theory, trills, uk-piano-forums, Uncategorized, video performances, whole body music listening, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

Piano Lesson: Step by step Diminished 7th arpeggio warm-up with a 10 yr. old student

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I previously discussed diminished 7th chords and how they are constructed as an introduction to an actual warm-up routine. The missing ingredient was the student: https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2011/01/19/piano-instruction-playing-diminished-7th-chords-and-arpeggios-video/ In this video, a ten year old pupil fills the bill, romping over the keyboard, joining in a scintillating choreography with her teacher: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhazCUOzzdI Diminished 7th arpeggio sampled: G#… Continue reading Piano Lesson: Step by step Diminished 7th arpeggio warm-up with a 10 yr. old student

20th Century music, Album for the Young, arpeggios, athletic coaching, athletic training, authorsden, Bastien "Taco Joe", children's music, Children's pieces, Creative Fresno, dream piano, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, Faber Primer Piano Adventures, five finger positions, five finger warm-ups, Fresno, Fresno California, Fresno Famous, Gillock "Flamenco", gymnastics, humor, Jane Bastien, keyboard technique, Major and minor scales, MTAC, music appreciation classes, music teachers association, music teachers association of california, Music Together, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Orff Schulwerk, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano finding, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano pedagogy, piano scales, piano society, Piano Street, piano student, piano teacher, piano teaching repertoire, piano technique, piano warm-ups, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld.com, ping pong, ping pong balls, Randall Faber, scales, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Steinway and Sons, Steinway grand piano, Steinway M grand piano, Teach Street, technique, uk-piano-forums, Uncategorized, video performances, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

Piano Lessons: The Two-Way Learning Process, Teaching Albertina, and her sister, Ilyana

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

First Lesson: "Flamenco" by Gillock (Early Intermediate Level) Student: Albertina, age 10 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2vLku_kxR0 This is a teacher/student musical exploration with the use of the second piano at the studio The second piano provides a unique opportunity to share back and forth, provide rhythmic reinforcement when needed, and remind the student about what dynamics, phrase markings,… Continue reading Piano Lessons: The Two-Way Learning Process, Teaching Albertina, and her sister, Ilyana

19th Century music, Album for the Young, arpeggios, Bach Prelude in C Major, Burgmuller, California, children's music, Children's pieces, classical music, counterpoint, Creative Fresno, dream piano, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, Facebook, five finger positions, five finger warm-ups, Fresno, Fresno California, Fresno Famous, Fresno Piano Store, great pianists, keyboard technique, Major and minor scales, MTAC, music, music history, Music Teachers Asssociation of California, musicology, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Old Fig Garden in Fresno, piano, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano pedagogy, piano repertoire, piano room, piano scales, 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, pyrotechnical exercises, Romantic era music, Romantic music, scales, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Steinway and Sons, Steinway grand piano, Steinway piano, talkclassical.com, Theory, Twenty five Progressive pieces by Burgmuller, uk-piano-forums, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

More piano teaching favorites: Burgmuller’s 25 Progressive Pieces, op. 100

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ncr1BMTtvOQ Burgmuller, a German composer living in France during the Romantic era composed these delightful programmatic pieces in order of "progressive" difficulty; I've chosen 3 favorites to showcase: "Arabesque," "La Chasse" (The Chase) and "L'Harmonie des Anges" (Harmony of the Angels) Arabesque ("beautiful decoration") is a sprightly, fast paced miniature in "A" minor, that basically… Continue reading More piano teaching favorites: Burgmuller’s 25 Progressive Pieces, op. 100

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

The Joy of Teaching Piano to Young Children (Videos)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyY3XSl5Wuc 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 outset, I believe in nurturing an awareness of the singing tone and how it… Continue reading The Joy of Teaching Piano to Young Children (Videos)

Aeolian piano, Album for the Young, Amsterdam Avenue and 74th Street, antique pianos, antiques, authorsden, bluebookofpianos.com, cd baby, cdbaby, children's music, Children's pieces, Classical era, classical music, dream piano, Facebook, Fig Garden Village, five finger positions, five finger warm-ups, Fresno, Fresno California, humor, keyboard technique, Major Deegan Highway, Marble Hill Projects, memoir, music, music history, music teachers association, music teachers association of california, music teachers associationo of California, Needle Park, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Northwest Bronx, Northwest Fresno, Oberlin Conservatory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Old Fig Garden in Fresno, old upright, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano finding, piano lesson, piano pedagogy, piano room, piano society, Piano Street, piano teacher, Piano World, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, Pierce Piano Atlas, public school 122, satire, scales, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, Shirley Smith Kirsten, Sohmer upright, Steinway and Sons, Steinway console, Steinway grand piano, Steinway M grand piano, Steinway piano, Steinway studio upright, talkclassical.com, Teach Street, uk-piano-forums, used piano, used pianos, West San Ramon Fresno, word press, wordpress.com

Housing my Dream Pianos

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I grew up in the Marble Hill projects of the Bronx and lived on the ninth floor. The walls of our housing development were so paper thin that when I practiced on my Sohmer 1922 studio upright, my first dream piano, it would elicit nerve-racking thumps from the neighbor down below. To my embarrassment, I… Continue reading Housing my Dream Pianos

authorsden, Bay area, California, children's music, Children's pieces, Creative Fresno, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, five finger positions, five finger warm-ups, Fresno, Fresno California, gymnastics, humor, Internet, Kawai piano, memoir, music, music teachers association of california, Music Teachers Asssociation of California, musicology, Musictogether.com, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, New York City High School of Performing Arts, pianist, piano, piano lesson, piano maintenance, piano pedagogy, piano room, Piano Street, piano student, piano teacher, piano technician, piano technician's guild, piano tutorial, piano warm-ups, Piano World, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, ping pong, ping pong balls, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, Randall Faber, satire, scales, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, sports, Steinway and Sons, Teach Street, technique, Theory, uk-piano-forums, word press, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

A Piano Teacher’s Worst Nightmare!

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

In a routine Yahoo e mail search for a Kawai USA technician I had spoken with a year ago, I stumbled upon a document that I had drafted out of sheer desperation. It related to the decline of my sustain pedal which had been mercilessly pounded by a student who had serious impulse control problems.… Continue reading A Piano Teacher’s Worst Nightmare!