The argument for learning piano on an acoustic

Today I was scoping out some Baldwin Acrosonic pianos on New York Craig's List as I have a few East Coast Skype students who are playing not-so-terrific sounding digitals. They cannot produce a singing tone on them, or enjoy the "feel" of a real piano. (the so-called hammer-weighted feature, notwithstanding) Naturally, not every "real" piano…

Does approaching notes in different ways at the piano affect tone production?

Emanuel Ax, well-known concert pianist and teacher asserts that one note struck cannot be varied by physical approach (except for volume) and I'm assuming duration (a clipped staccato release vs. a lingering sustain without pedal) Yet he didn't provide enough specific details about duration, dynamics, and how delays into notes using supple wrist motions could…

The latest about Seymour Bernstein, the Hawk(e), and two colorful Birds

Today began on a high note. Ethan Hawke's documentary about Seymour received a rave review in the New York Times. It was the latest in a series superlatives that synchronized perfectly with the film's debut in New York City at the Lincoln Center Festival amidst whispers about a probable Oscar nomination. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/27/arts/ethan-hawke-films-seymour-an-introduction.html?_r=0 To many film…

What happened during the Earthquake!

From Berkeley, California At 3:19 a.m. I had just revisited my recently posted video of Bach's Sarabande (French Suite in G)--a foreboding? http://youtu.be/hL3XnZosZ-E ... when suddenly the wall I was leaning against, ( while seated at the piano), started swaying from side-to-side. (somewhat like swells to crescendo < with releases >) Next, I felt a…

A Peak teaching and learning experience!

Piano teachers may complain about students who hardly practice, or come to lessons with a truckload of excuses, but the times we savor are when everything seems to click. Tonight, I had a lesson with an adult student who announced immediately before playing a note that her piece "was in the doghouse." What a tension-relieving…

Pianist, Sara Davis Buechner lights up the Berkeley Piano Club with a special tribute

It was an afternoon to remember. Sara Davis Buechner graced the Berkeley Piano Club stage, and mesmerized her audience with a moving tribute to Reah Sadowksky. (1915-2012) She generously dedicated a solo recital "to the memory of one of America’s greatest pianists," who was her friend and inspiration. (All proceeds will benefit the Club's Dorothy…

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.…

By FACETIME or SKYPE, Quicktime recorded snippets assist piano students

My amazement grows in big spurts when I discover new options to aid piano students who take lessons over Skype or Facetime. Two of mine, have poor SKYPE transmission, while FACETIME hums along with clarity. This circumstance motivated me to explore the FACETIME Record option, whose SKYPE analog I'd mastered as CALL RECORDER. Last night,…

Combining LIVE and SKYPED Piano Lessons

A FACEBOOK forum contributor at the Art of Piano Pedagogy, urged me to blog about the hybrid piano instructor who inhabits the dual universe of LIVE and web-transmitted lessons. So having unplugged three web cams last night to make room for a flesh and blood student, I can expand upon my own multifaceted instructional encounters.…

Multi-cam views during Skype or Face Time piano lessons

  I rely on  Logitech webcams with a long range panoramic capability and various angled keyboard views, including a DIRECT KEYBOARD overhead as below.   These views are just a mouse tap away. For trill and ornament demonstrations, I can highlight the second or third HD PRO cam option listed on my SKYPE (or FACE…