Beethoven "Tempest" in Dminor Op. 31 no.2, classissima.com, Journal of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, Oberlin, Oberlin Conservatory, pianist, pianists, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano repertoire, piano study, piano teacher, piano teachers, piano teaching, piano technique, Piano World, piano world-wide, pianoaddict.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, slow mindful practicing, teaching piano, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video, yout tube

Piano Instruction, Part THREE Beethoven “Tempest” Sonata in D minor, Op. 31, No. 2

This instruction continues from measure 41 through 57, where agitated pairs of 8th notes return, picking up the opening motif. As expected, I use blocking or clustering to keep the redundant figures resilient and bundled with energy. (a forward moving wrist motion is attenuated in rapid tempo, but more exaggerated in the slow practice phase)… Continue reading Piano Instruction, Part THREE Beethoven “Tempest” Sonata in D minor, Op. 31, No. 2

pianists, piano, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lessons, piano pedagogy, piano student, piano study, piano technique, piano world-wide, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, playing staccato, playing the piano, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, video instruction, whole body listening, whole body music listening, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

Piano Technique: Reeling off parallel thirds in staccato (with a trampoline effect)

The playground as music teacher applies: My brood of students and I enjoy the romp through a set of parallel thirds within a five-finger position. In our escapade, we usually dance through the Major and parallel minor tonalities. Interplay, back and forth always helps. It allows the teacher to model physical ingredients of a buoyant… Continue reading Piano Technique: Reeling off parallel thirds in staccato (with a trampoline effect)

Bach Invention no. 4 in d minor BWV775, Bach Two Part Inventions, J.S. Bach, Johann Sebastian Bach, phrasing at the piano, pianist, pianists, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano keyboard, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano masterclass, piano pedagogy, piano playing, piano playing and the singing tone, piano practicing, piano student, piano study, piano teacher, piano teachers, piano teaching, piano technique, piano tutorial, Piano World, piano world-wide, pianoaddict.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, playing the piano, practicing piano, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace, publishersmarketplace.com, scales, scales for the piano, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, slow mindful practicing, slow piano practicing, Steinway M grand piano, Steinway piano, teaching piano, teaching scales, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

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

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)

"Tales of a Musical Journey" by Irina Gorin, Journey of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano masterclass, piano masterclasses, piano playing, piano playing and breathing, piano playing and phrasing, piano playing and relaxation, piano playing and the singing tone, piano practicing, piano student, piano study, piano teacher, piano teachers, piano teaching, piano technique, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, playing piano, practicing piano, practicing piano with relaxation, publishers marketplace, publishersmarketplace, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, supple wrist in piano playing, teaching piano, teaching piano to children, technique, whole body listening, whole body music listening, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

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

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

blog, blogger, blogging, blogging about piano, classissima, classissima.com, ear training, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, Facebook, Facebook friend, Fur Elise, Fur Elise by Beethoven, harmonic rhythm, How to practice Fur Elise, Journal of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, keyboard technique, learning piano, legato playing at the piano, Lillian Freundlich, Lillian Lefkofsky Freundlich, mental imagery, mind body connection, mindful piano practicing, mindful practicing, molto cantabile, molto cantabilie, MTAC, MTAC.org, music, music and heart, music education, music teachers association, music teachers association of california, musical phrasing, musical phrasing and breathing, New York City, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin, Oberlin Conservatory, pianist, pianists, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano pedagogy, piano playing, piano playing and breathing, piano playing and phrasing, piano playing and relaxation, piano playing and the singing tone, piano recital, piano restoration, Piano Street, piano student, piano study, piano teacher, piano teachers, piano teaching, piano virtuosos, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, playing piano with expression, playing the piano, playing the piano with a singing tone, practicing difficult piano passages, practicing piano with relaxation, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, slow mindful practicing, slow piano practicing, Steinway M grand, Steinway M grand piano, teaching a piano student about melody, teaching an adult student, the ideal piano lesson, the vocal model for pianists, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

Irina Morozova’s inspiring words flow through a lesson with an adult student (Beethoven’s Fur Elise-in-progress) Video

"From watching great pianists it is obvious that they incorporate quite different movements to achieve the same goals, because people do not play piano with fingers but rather with the mind and the ear. Again, it is the clear image of what kind of sound one wants to achieve, combined with the knowledge of how… Continue reading Irina Morozova’s inspiring words flow through a lesson with an adult student (Beethoven’s Fur Elise-in-progress) Video

Mozart, pianist, piano, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano lessson, piano playing, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, playing piano with expression, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, Sonata in A Major K. 331 by Mozart, whole body listening, whole body music listening, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

The Most Heavenly Piano Music?

Mozart's Theme from his A Major Sonata, K. 331, and Beethoven's Adagio from the Sonata "Pathetique," Op. 13, for me, have two of the most hauntingly beautiful melodies in the piano literature. In particular, Mozart's opening theme that threads through the composer's innovative first movement in Variation form, is a lilting lullaby, played in TWO,… Continue reading The Most Heavenly Piano Music?

arioso 7, blog, blogging, blogging about piano, blogs about piano, Classical era, classical music, classical period piano music, Classical sonatina, classissima, classissima.com, classisssima.com, Clementi Sonatina in C Op. 36 no. 1, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano instruction, fingering and phrasing at the piano, fingering and piano technique, Fresno CA, Fresno California, Journal of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, keyboard technique, MTAC, music and heart, music and the breath, musical phrasing, Muzio Clementi, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano playing, piano playing and phrasing, piano playing and relaxation, piano playing and the singing tone, piano practicing, piano teacher, piano technique, Piano World, piano world-wide, pianoaddict.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, playing the piano with a singing tone, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

Piano Lesson: The challenge of playing a slow movement

I chose Muzio Clementi's popular Sonatina in C, Op. 36, No. 1 to flesh out the contrasting middle movement designated ANDANTE by the composer. It's definitely a challenge to play just 6 lines of music with beauty and finesse. As a start, the player is exposed to realizing rolling triplet 8th-notes in the left hand… Continue reading Piano Lesson: The challenge of playing a slow movement

Burgmuller "La Chasse", Burgmuller Inquietude, Burgmuller pastorale, Burgmuller Pastorale Op. 100, Burgmuller Tarentelle, Burgmuller The Chase, Burgmuller's Op. 100 Twenty-Five Progressive Pieces, classissima, classissima.com, Friedrich Burgmuller, music, music and heart, music teachers association of california, New York City High School of Performing Arts, Oberlin Conservatory, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano pedagogy, piano playing, piano playing and breathing, piano playing and phrasing, piano playing and relaxation, piano practicing, piano repertoire, piano student, piano study, piano teachers, piano teaching, piano technique, piano technique and the singing tone, piano world-wide, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano with expression, playing the piano, playing the piano with a singing tone, practicing difficult piano passages, practicing piano with relaxation, Romantic era music, Romantic era piano music, Romantic era piano repertoire, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, slow mindful practicing, slow piano practicing, Steinway M grand piano, studying piano, supple wrist in piano playing, swinging arms in playing piano, teaching a piano student about melody, teaching piano, teaching piano to adults, teaching piano to children, teaching piano to teenagers, technique, The art of phrasing at the piano, Twenty five Progressive pieces by Burgmuller, video instruction, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

Piano Technique: Burgmuller’s Tarentelle, Op. 100-Fueling and shaping fast passages with a dipping, supple wrist (Videos)

Most piano students will have been assigned a Burgmuller selection or two during their formative years of study. And most likely, these would have been snatched from the composer's Twenty-Five Progressive Pieces, Op. 100 that advance by steps in difficulty, though it can be argued that all contain unique technical challenges. Composed in the Romantic… Continue reading Piano Technique: Burgmuller’s Tarentelle, Op. 100-Fueling and shaping fast passages with a dipping, supple wrist (Videos)

Journal of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, phrasing at the piano, pianist, pianists, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano pedagogy, piano playing, piano playing and phrasing, piano playing and relaxation, piano playing and the singing tone, piano practicing, piano repertoire, piano study, piano teacher, piano teachers, piano teaching, piano teaching repertoire, piano world-wide, pianoaddict.com, Pianostreet.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, playing the piano with a singing tone, Rina takes piano lessons, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, shirley smith kirsten blog, slow mindful practicing, slow piano practicing, Steinway M grand piano, studying piano, supple wrist in piano playing, teaching a piano student about melody, teaching piano, teaching piano to children, the art of piano playing, word press, word press.com, wordpress, wordpress.com, you tube, you tube video

Lesson planning for a 5-year old piano student–(Video)

Rina who's into her sixth month of study, is ready to learn dotted-half notes. Up to now, she's been saturated with black and white cardboard circles included within a packet along with Irina Gorin's Tales of a Musical Journey instruction. The black notes (quarters) are known as "short" sounds, and the white ones (Half-notes), "long-sounds"… Continue reading Lesson planning for a 5-year old piano student–(Video)

"The Return" by Burgmuller, arioso7, authors den, authorsden, blog, blogger, blogging, blogging about piano, blogs about piano, Burgmuller, Burgmuller's Op. 100 Twenty-Five Progressive Pieces, classissima, classissima.com, El Cerrito, El Cerrito California, El Cerrito piano instruction, El Cerrito piano studio, forearm staccato, Journal of a Piano Teacher from New York to California, keyboard technique, learning piano, mindful piano practicing, mindful practicing, MTAC, music, music and heart, pianist, piano, piano addict, piano blog, piano blogging, piano blogs, piano instruction, piano instructor, piano lesson, piano lessons, piano lessson, piano study, piano teacher, piano teaching repertoire, piano technique, Piano World, piano world-wide, pianoaddict.com, pianoworld, pianoworld.com, playing piano, playing staccato, playing staccato at the piano, playing the piano, playing the piano with a singing tone, practicing difficult piano passages, Romantic era music, Shirley Kirsten, Shirley Kirsten blog, shirley s kirsten, Shirley Smith Kirsten, video instruction, word press, word press.com, wordpress, you tube, you tube video

Burgmuller’s “The Return”–like a light opera, with interspersed drama (videos)

"The Return" from the composer's Twenty-Five Progressive Pieces, Op. 100, is ear-catching. Like an Offenbach opera replete with an Overture, it delights in a set of lighthearted staccato chords that spill into a passionate MINOR sequenced interlude, setting the heart afire. Extinguished by the revisit of Eb Major punctuations, the music drifts off by authentic… Continue reading Burgmuller’s “The Return”–like a light opera, with interspersed drama (videos)