When an adult piano student advances well beyond Primer preliminaries

Peter started piano lessons from scratch about 1 and 1/2 years ago, not reading a note of music at the time, but having gads of enthusiasm about his maiden musical journey. Readers will be reminded of his earliest efforts playing Faber Piano Adventure duets with me. (I chose the Primer edition because it moved slower…

An adult beginning piano student helps to shape his musical journey

When a newbie knocks on my door, not knowing how to read music, but is starving for a connection to the great "Classical" piano masterworks, I have to figure out a way to engage his interest in the earliest phase of learning without losing him along the way. One approach is to go the "method"…

Piano Lessons: A raw adult beginner moves along

Each piano student shapes his own journey with the help of a cooperating teacher. For one particular pupil, who came to his first lesson not reading a note of music, his burning desire to learn ignited a playful romp through a set of duets. These are sourced from Faber's Accelerated Adventures for the Older Beginner.…

Piano Lessons: The Raw adult beginner

I use the term "raw" to describe adult piano students who don't read music or play by ear. They often come to their first lesson oozing with enthusiasm, but harboring fears associated with success and failure themes. It's the usual environmental humdrum we all know about that puts the business paradigm squarely at odds with…

Piano lessons should be tailor-made for each student (Videos)

I've come to the conclusion that no full-proof piano method, or method book can be applied across the board to beginning students or those at any level of study. Each pupil is so unique that an individualized growth and development plan is needed. By example, I faced a dilemma when a new adult student who…

Bias against Black Notes stopped me in my tracks!

I would have been leg pressing at the gym but for my detour to Nancy Williams's Facebook Page. Here's what I found: "Those bloody sharps and flats--those endless calamities of the personal past. Bah! I disown them from the rest of my life, in which I mean to rest." From "Grass" by Mary Oliver. My…

Thoughts about teaching a 4-year old with an innovative approach (Tales of a Musical Journey)

I would never have entertained the idea of teaching a 4-year old child. Over the years I had adhered to a rigid age boundary when accepting new piano students. Seven was the magic number. When an opportunity arose to sample a new book created by Irina Gorin that focused on instruction for children in the…

My Anna Magdalena Bach Notebook favorites, and why it’s best to play the real deal (Video)

I was thinking about an adult student I currently teach in the Bay area who thumbed through her Faber Older Beginner Adult Accelerated Piano Adventures Method Book, and was instantly drawn to "Musette,"one of the many pieces contained in Anna Magdalena's Notebook. Transcribed to "G Position" by Randall Faber and reduced to a fraction of…

Piano Instruction: Teaching fluidity of motion, phrasing, and the singing tone, Ilyana, 8, plays “Firefly” (Video)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vv5NVmKEN9w Approach: Plan with the student before the piece is played. Map out the dynamics, articulation, whether staccato, legato or a combination. (For tonality, where does piece come to rest?) Identify the "mood" of the piece. Translate sound images into physical motion. (as in the second page of "Firefly," rolling from Right hand to Left…

Individualizing Piano Study: How to avoid Method Book dependency

Over decades of teaching, I've come to the conclusion that each student needs a custom designed long-term lesson plan. Method books only go so far. Often they stratify the learning process, keeping students in an interminably drawn out, regressive C Major universe. For the most part, flats and sharps with Letter Name identifications are regarded…