Category: piano practicing

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Our individual musical study grows our piano teaching

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

For the past year I've devoted many daily hours to the study J.S. Bach's six French Suites while simultaneously keeping pace with my students' passage through diverse repertoire. The decision to take on this additional musical challenge apart from meeting my basic teacher obligations of being present at lessons; knowing the material assigned, and dispensing… Continue reading Our individual musical study grows our piano teaching

piano, piano blog, piano instruction, piano lessons, piano practicing, piano teaching, slow piano practicing

Why is practicing slowly so unpopular?

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

There appears to be a stigma attached to parceling out a brand new piece in deliberately slow tempo, where a player threads through separate lines with a commitment to expression framed by an ultra-relaxed singing pulse. In the best realization of such immersion, the music becomes magnified to a new level of awareness, albeit in… Continue reading Why is practicing slowly so unpopular?

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Piano Practicing: Breathing into phrases and blocking out passages (Mozart Sonata, example)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I've picked the first two pages of Mozart's Sonata in Bb Major, K. 281, last movement, Rondeau, Allegro to explore breathing and blocking techniques in the learning process. (These principles can be applied to practicing music from a variety of eras) Starting a composition is often taken for granted. Sometimes students will land on a… Continue reading Piano Practicing: Breathing into phrases and blocking out passages (Mozart Sonata, example)

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Revisiting an old piano piece learned years earlier

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I find my current musical journey down memory lane to be joyful and challenging--especially as I cut and paste the Mozart Rondo: Allegro, K. 311 pages to fit comfortably on the piano rack. (Deja Vu, Haydn C Major Hoboken XVI35--Haydn pinned and unpinned) I wrote to a musician friend during the height of my frustration.… Continue reading Revisiting an old piano piece learned years earlier

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Rina, 5, moves right along in her piano studies (Videos)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Rina takes to piano like a duck in water. Yesterday, she began her lesson with a five-finger romp through D Major and minor, adding chords to her repertoire. Did I say "chords?" It's every child's dream to play more than one voice at a time, to fully appreciate the piano as an orchestral instrument. I… Continue reading Rina, 5, moves right along in her piano studies (Videos)

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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)

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Piano Technique: A Bouncy Scale workout with forward arm rolls and supple wrist motions–Enjoy the romp! (Videos)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Scales can be a great workout routine if you let your arms loose, dip your pliant wrists and go with the flow. And it's a great cardio. (No treadmill or weights required) Just apply principles of balance and buoyancy. Here are snatches from an adult student's lesson (Legato and staccato playing with slow motion replays)… Continue reading Piano Technique: A Bouncy Scale workout with forward arm rolls and supple wrist motions–Enjoy the romp! (Videos)

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Part Six Piano Instruction, Beethoven’s “Tempest” Sonata No. 17, Op. 31 No. 2 and all FIVE teaching segments preceding

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

In order from Part One to Six: I. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bd-lC_JeNS0 II. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9VNsvfyNtE III. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntQ4fJ-Swlg IV. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fargqHQiJfk V. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pd52itE4aAQ VI. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwQzBpWJWqs LINKS: Part ONE: Beethoven Tempest Sonata in D minor https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/04/01/practicing-tips-for-beethovens-tempest-sonata-op-31-no-2-part-one-video/ Part TWO Instruction https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/04/01/piano-instuction-part-two-beethovens-tempest-sonata-hand-cross-over-with-tremolo-in-the-middle-voice/ Part THREE Instruction https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/piano-instruction-part-three-beethoven-tempest-sonata-in-d-minor-op-31-no-2/ Part FOUR Instruction https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/04/04/piano-instruction-part-four-beethovens-tempest-sonata-in-d-minor-op-31-no-2-measures-55-93/ Part FIVE Instruction https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/04/05/piano-instruction-part-five-beethovens-tempest-sonata-op-31-no-2-measures-93-to-158-development-recitative-submerged-pedal/ PART SIX, referenced in You Tube format http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwQzBpWJWqs

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Piano Lesson: Analyzing/playing Bach Invention in D minor, No. 4, BWV 775 in slow tempo (Videos)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

In J.S. Bach's Two-part Inventions both voices overlap and imitate each other creating counterpoint. The SUBJECT of no. 4 contains a d-minor Harmonic form scale whose 6th note, B flat does NOT continue in an upward motion to the leading tone, C# or 7th note, but instead, the C# is displaced down to the lower… Continue reading Piano Lesson: Analyzing/playing Bach Invention in D minor, No. 4, BWV 775 in slow tempo (Videos)

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Irina Gorin, creator of Tales of a Musical Journey, shares her thoughts about braving a new piano teaching universe

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

From Irina Gorin: “An expert is a person who makes all mistakes possible in a very specific field and learns from those mistakes. So I could probably consider myself getting close to being an expert in teaching children. But I hope there are many more mistakes and learning experiences ahead." This riveting quote set in… Continue reading Irina Gorin, creator of Tales of a Musical Journey, shares her thoughts about braving a new piano teaching universe