Category: pyrotechnical exercises

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Domenico Scarlatti Sonata (Toccata) in D minor, K. 141 with reams of repeated notes (VIDEO)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQiaWoJaUfQ Domenico Scarlatti never fails to come up with a flashy pyrotechnical escapade that can make or break a player in progress. I know, because I've walked the plank with this piece until I was able to reverse my fortune and run with it happily into the horizon. Any number of times those repeated notes,… Continue reading Domenico Scarlatti Sonata (Toccata) in D minor, K. 141 with reams of repeated notes (VIDEO)

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The Big Baroque Festival!

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I cleared most of my Saturday morning lessons so I could be on time for a special rehearsal at Fresno State. I took no chances given the steady rain these past few days that caused dangerously deep puddles along Shaw Avenue. The inevitable flow of traffic to crowd-jamming Bulldog games would also be a time… Continue reading The Big Baroque Festival!

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The iPhone Invades Piano Lessons

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Monday, Jan. 24th, was a first! Esmeralda, a retired attorney, who'd been taking lessons from me for a year, entered my El Cerrito piano studio with a bright red iPhone as a sign of the times. A dangling rectangular prism packed with limitless software had replaced her simple gold cross. This latest "look" included a… Continue reading The iPhone Invades Piano Lessons

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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

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Piano Instruction: Playing Diminished 7th chords and arpeggios (Video)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVZyIhTXmag In order to understand how a diminished chord is formed a student needs to know the difference between a Major and minor third. A Major third has two consecutive whole steps from a starting note so for example, C to E creates a Major third. If a student sings C to D to E,… Continue reading Piano Instruction: Playing Diminished 7th chords and arpeggios (Video)

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Piano Instruction: Five finger warm-ups in Major and minor (Video)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Most piano students can begin playing five finger major and minor positions between the 6th and 9th month of lessons, if not sooner. Young children learning the basic symbols of notation and rhythm may need a longer period before embarking upon these exercises, although in Faber's "Piano's Adventures," Primer level, a five finger warm-up appears… Continue reading Piano Instruction: Five finger warm-ups in Major and minor (Video)

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Piano Technique related videos

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Videos on Piano Technique: https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2011/02/08/why-play-scales/ https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2011/01/12/piano-instruction-five-finger-warm-ups-in-major-and-minor-video/ https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2010/11/15/scales-and-arpeggios-with-videotaped-replay/ https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2011/02/25/piano-instruction-learning-the-f-minor-scale-video/ https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2011/02/25/the-most-reviled-scale-for-piano-players/ https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2010/12/01/playing-scales-from-legato-to-staccato-think-ping-pong-balls/ Blocking four-note chords before unblocking them as arpeggios in a sequence of inversions as prep to play the Moonlight Sonata, last movement, Presto agitato. https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/from-chords-to-gym-and-back-you-tube-video/ Playing a C Major scale in contrary motion: https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2010/12/08/playing-scales-in-contrary-motion-video/ Chunking a B Major scale: https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2010/11/17/sports-and-piano-technique-how-about-chunking-on-you-tube/ https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2010/12/17/piano-gym-routines-with-my-10-year-old-student/ https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2011/01/19/piano-instruction-playing-diminished-7th-chords-and-arpeggios-video/ Mozart Sonata, K.… Continue reading Piano Technique related videos

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Practicing a C Major scale in thirds, tenths, and sixths (Video embedded)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I've chosen the C Major scale to demonstrate/practice in thirds, tenths, and sixths. The best preliminary of course, is to review the scale in its root position and it doesn't have to be a parallel motion run through. (i.e. fingers going up and down in the same direction) You can start with a contrary motion… Continue reading Practicing a C Major scale in thirds, tenths, and sixths (Video embedded)

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Piano Gym routines with my 10 year old student

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuAWQM4qK44 This is a fun romp through the keys of F# Major and minor with some diminished 7th and Dominant 7th arpeggios cruising across the keyboard in legato, followed by detached, "ping pong ball" rendered staccato. Parallel and contrary motion scales/arpeggios are a pianist's preliminary gymnastics. They're great for the warm-up phase of each practice… Continue reading Piano Gym routines with my 10 year old student

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How to practice a G Major scale as a follow-up to C with an adult student example

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXx3SEW81ps The last instructional video covered the C Major scale in depth, and  identified symmetries between the hands, when practicing beyond the one octave level. https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2010/12/15/how-to-practice-a-parallel-motion-c-major-scale-and-by-example-g-d-a-e/ I pointed to the bridge of the C Major scale as the crossover into the next octave. The fingerings at this junction were mirrors for B, C, an D:… Continue reading How to practice a G Major scale as a follow-up to C with an adult student example