Category: teaching piano to adults

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Piano Instruction: Part FIVE, Beethoven’s “Tempest” Sonata, Op. 31 no. 2 Measures 93 to 158 (Development, Recitative, submerged pedal)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

This is a hauntingly beautiful section of the first movement. After the composer has devoted so many preceding measures to the key of A minor, he decides to travel at quick intervals through a series of different keys. Such fast-paced modulations occur primarily with the return of the crossed-hands portion of the piece, beginning in… Continue reading Piano Instruction: Part FIVE, Beethoven’s “Tempest” Sonata, Op. 31 no. 2 Measures 93 to 158 (Development, Recitative, submerged pedal)

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Practicing tips for Beethoven’s “Tempest” Sonata, Op. 31 No. 2, Part ONE: (Video)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Because I found myself rambling on and on about the first page, I decided to compartmentalize the instruction to make it easier to absorb. And since I played the "Tempest" years ago, the surest route to my restoring the piece to a respectable performance level, was to practice it from the ground up in slow… Continue reading Practicing tips for Beethoven’s “Tempest” Sonata, Op. 31 No. 2, Part ONE: (Video)

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Piano Technique: An adult student works on rolling forward wrist motions in Two, Three, and Six-note groupings (Video)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

This particular student has come a long way in the six years we've worked together, and as always been the case, I've probably learned more from her than in reverse. From my second piano, I can gaze over at my pupil sitting at the grand and grasp a whole body in-motion perspective of her playing.… Continue reading Piano Technique: An adult student works on rolling forward wrist motions in Two, Three, and Six-note groupings (Video)

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

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

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)

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Piano Technique: More wrist-forward rolling motion in Sonatina by Clementi Op. 36 no. 1 Vivace (Videos)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

In two videos, I flesh out the need for a rolling forward wrist motion in playing the last movement of Clementi's well-known Sonatina in C, vivace. In addition, a 3/8 meter designation in rapid tempo requires the "feeling" of ONE impulse per measure not three. And this sense of ONENESS suggests CIRCLES of motion which… Continue reading Piano Technique: More wrist-forward rolling motion in Sonatina by Clementi Op. 36 no. 1 Vivace (Videos)

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J.S. Bach Fugue/Piano Lesson in Progress, (BWV 847 in C minor) plus Aiden Cat begs for affection, feeling left out (Videos)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Claudia, 11, continued practicing Bach's Fugue in C minor, (Well-Tempered Clavier) following a break for the Baroque Festival. We had intensified study of the Prelude in preparation for this event. For today's lesson, our work encompassed the Fugue opening through measure 20. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W55yctLJcWw The manuscript below incorporates the theoretical mapping of Jose Rodriguez Alvira http://www.teoria.com/articulos/analysis/BWV847/index.htm… Continue reading J.S. Bach Fugue/Piano Lesson in Progress, (BWV 847 in C minor) plus Aiden Cat begs for affection, feeling left out (Videos)

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Piano Technique: Enlisting arpeggios to create mood shifts (Video)

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

A piano teacher can use the technique portion of a lesson to explore emotions or moods. The student can be instructed to play an arpeggio or scale in a tender way, or with "anger," "happiness," etc. I prefer this type of technique-framed mood exploration to an enlistment of Baroque, Classic or Romantic era repertoire for… Continue reading Piano Technique: Enlisting arpeggios to create mood shifts (Video)

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Bonus post-concert Video Footage: Daniil Trifonov Interview, Fresno, California

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

In supplementary video footage, Trifonov discussed the role of "relaxation," and physical "freedom" in beautiful music-making. He reiterated a practicing modality where a pianist plays a composition in "seven different emotions." One of my adult students and her husband joined me during the post-recital interview that took place in the private Fresno State University music… Continue reading Bonus post-concert Video Footage: Daniil Trifonov Interview, Fresno, California

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The joy and value of teaching a piano student over many years

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

Claudia, age 6 playing a duet with me I recall Elaine Comparone, the renowned harpsichordist having described a student she had mentored for 35 years before a move cut short a lasting musical relationship. "She was the real deal," the musician insisted. Seymour Bernstein, author, With Your Own Two Hands, often shared the joy of… Continue reading The joy and value of teaching a piano student over many years

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The Transfer Piano Student

arioso7: Shirley Kirsten

I would hate to pigeon hole all "transfer" students in one way or another. It would be unfair, and unfortunately many piano teachers shy away from prospects who were immersed in learning environments where little progress was made over a period of years. Some reluctant piano instructors might say, "there's just too much work involved… Continue reading The Transfer Piano Student