It's a never-ending display of piano-playing children nursed along on Tales of a Musical Journey, Irina Gorin's personal creation. A phrase-spinning magic permeates each and every performance, demonstrating a musical sophistication uncommon to the efforts of beginners and beyond. (And many pupils are Carmel, Indiana Arts Council Showcase winners) The teaching material provides a solid… Continue reading Irina Gorin’s piano students shine again! (Videos)
Tag: word press blog
The woes of technology: No, I wasn’t finger synching someone else’s Chopin Waltz in C# minor (Videos)
I watched in disbelief as my 55th take of the C# minor Chopin Waltz Op. 64 went up in smoke. That is, it had been the most satisfying re-do, until I discovered that for 50% of the iMac iMovie, (commencing on p. 2) my hand motions and the music were out of synch. Add to… Continue reading The woes of technology: No, I wasn’t finger synching someone else’s Chopin Waltz in C# minor (Videos)
The view in my living room with an iMac, Tripod, Three Pianos, and Aiden cat
This about sums it up. Now that the iMac arrived right after Haddy Haddorff replaced a digital keyboard, Aiden cat found space for himself dwindling, yet he still managed to plop himself right in the middle of the muddle. RELATED: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5MLPxKFl2c Aiden cat sits in on a concert...
Should piano students listen to recorded performances of pieces they are first beginning to learn?
I was thinking of Palmer's edition of Chopin, an Introduction to His Music, and when I first purchased it years ago there was no inserted CD of recorded selections contained in the album. With subsequent published editions, a CD popped into an envelope, beckoning a player to sample another pianist's interpretation of music he had… Continue reading Should piano students listen to recorded performances of pieces they are first beginning to learn?
Piano Instruction: Part Two Debussy Arabesque, No. 1, Teacher, Shirley Kirsten (Video #2)
Part two transitions to A Major. (The composition is in E Major) and has a different character though motifs and ideas from the opening section intersperse this portion of the Arabesque. A very noteworthy change that occurs with the modulation to A Major, is a prevalence of chords, some of which move homophonically (in the… Continue reading Piano Instruction: Part Two Debussy Arabesque, No. 1, Teacher, Shirley Kirsten (Video #2)
More ideas about Piano Technique and Mental Imagery (Playing into a Bowl of Molasses)
Continuing my practice of videotaping my Thursday evening lesson, I reviewed the footage and discovered some catch words that helped me clarify ideas about technique and fluency. While it may sound a bit outlandish to think of the piano as a "bowl of molasses," the image alone helped my adult student approach the keys with… Continue reading More ideas about Piano Technique and Mental Imagery (Playing into a Bowl of Molasses)
Scoping out Hammer-Weighted Digital Pianos: On Location at Guitar Center, Fresno, CA (Videos)
I managed to get to Guitar Center right as it opened this morning, and had the good fortune to avoid the crowds along with obtrusive pop style background music. Unfortunately, I bumped my head a few times on the same shelved keyboard that hadn't qualified as a hammer weighted digital. Maybe it was retribution for… Continue reading Scoping out Hammer-Weighted Digital Pianos: On Location at Guitar Center, Fresno, CA (Videos)
Aiden Cat joins Ilyana, age 8, at the Haddorff piano (Video)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5tK4GvhqRo On a scorching Wednesday morning, Aiden was piano plopping. First it was the Steinway piano bench -- then he moved on to Haddy where he joined Ilyana who played "Firefly" and the first section of "Little Flower Girl of Paris" by William Gillock. Ilyana declared that she liked Haddy more than the Steinway grand… Continue reading Aiden Cat joins Ilyana, age 8, at the Haddorff piano (Video)
Memorization at the piano: How to improve your skills
Memorization should be a natural outflow of consistent, thoughtful practicing. Thoughtful is underscored because it's the most important ingredient in the process of playing a studied piece without music. It means having mental assists that relate to mapping out a particular composition without chance reliance on intuition or instinct. So if you suddenly find yourself… Continue reading Memorization at the piano: How to improve your skills
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… Continue reading Individualizing Piano Study: How to avoid Method Book dependency
