Excerpts from my POWHOW TOP NOTCH TONE TUTORIAL! (webcam piano instruction)

Snatches from our first class! We're working on sculpting a beautiful musical line in a five-finger position. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvPMflpfDUA RELATED: http://www.powhow.com/classes/shirley-kirsten A POWER Piano POWHOW LAUNCH: https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2012/04/28/a-power-piano-powhow-launch-live-webcam-class-instruction/ AVOIDING PENCIL POINT PLAYING https://arioso7.wordpress.com/2011/10/20/piano-technique-avoiding-pencil-point-playing/

Piano Instruction: Practicing the “windy” chromatic scale of Beethoven’s “Fur Elise”

After a stream of graceful arpeggiated triplets, a "windy" sounding, descending chromatic scale leads artfully back to the opening theme that concludes "Fur Elise." The traditional chromatic fingering I've inserted in the score corresponds to the 1/2-step sequence beginning on Bb: Black/white, Black/white Black/White/White etc. 3, 1, 3, 1, 3, 2, 1 etc. Video Instruction…

A Power Piano Powhow Launch! (LIVE webcam class instruction)

My first POWHOW class, "Top Notch Tone Tutorial," brought a group of piano enthusiasts who appeared in their own unique "boxes" eager to learn about touch, tone, and nuance. An inspired pooch even chimed in off camera, but was quickly re-routed to BOW-WOW Dog Discipline 101. EXCERPTS: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvPMflpfDUA *** The PIANO basics were top priority:…

Piano Instruction: Pastorale in D Major, K. 415 by Domenico Scarlatti, a stepwise approach

The Pastorale in D, included in Margery Halford's Scarlatti, An Introduction to his Keyboard Works, poses significant musical challenges. In the technical realm, the composer has a tricky landscape of two-note legato figures as offbeats in the treble, and these are set against bass, dotted quarter rhythms. (This counterpoint is later inverted in the middle…

Piano Technique: Practicing the C# minor Arpeggio in a myriad of ways (Video)

You can imagine any number of approaches to an arpeggio that will nudge it along to fluidity. One, is thinking that the elbows, arms, and wrists are playing the fingers. In a sense the fingers are the end of a total arm suspension. Relaxation is the key word. The C# minor arpeggio is thankfully symmetrical…

Part THREE: Guess what happened on the way to my El Cerrito Piano Studio? (Photos!)

There was no rooster greeting me for the past two weeks as I wound my way from Bart Del Norte into the El Cerrito Hills. The "cockadoodledoo" had been a welcome embellishment to my time-honored walk and I wondered what happened to the messenger. Once I had ensnared some video through a wood fence opening…

Piano Instruction: “Ballade” by Burgmuller– phrase contouring and curves of energy (Videos)

Burgmuller's Ballade from his Opus 100 Progressive Piano Pieces is often coined "spooks" because of its Halloween-like opener. Composed in 3/8 time, it moves along in ONE, though the performer should not over-emphasize the first beat in each measure. The way the composer slurs and phrases notes suggests another approach. Thinking LONGER lines and phrases…

Looking back to early piano lessons with Rina, 5, with a solid musical foundation to build on (And now the present) Videos

I'm glad I videotaped many of Rina's early lessons, (from age 4) since I have a tendency to be creative, and take liberties with any instruction in book form. It's a great reference repository and springboard for new ideas. To start with, Irina Gorin's Tales of a Musical Journey, has got it right by its…

Piano Lesson: Rina, 5, plays “Frere Jacques” in C Major and “sad” minor, with legato fingering (smooth and connected) Video

Since Rina embarked upon legato playing two weeks ago in a five-finger position "roll" up and down, she's made a nice transition to rendering her pieces in smooth and connected style. The detached-note playing for at least 6 months prepared her for LEGATO. Here's "Frere Jacques" in C Major, and minor.(using Eb) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_pzkLrQbjYk Rina "READS"…

Rina’s Lesson-in-Progress: From the staircase to the piano (Reinagle Minuet in G) Videos

Rina, 5, has embarked upon her 7th month of study and is scaling my staircase before settling down to the piano. I've used this routine to imbue a sense of music's topography before a keyboard transfer. It's working. Videotaped samples: On the stairs: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2dkza8FehU At the Piano: (with a preliminary five-finger position legato roll between…