A survey of current methods: The Robert Pace Keyboard Approach
September 2011; Vol. 3, No. 5
This issue concludes Clavier Companion’s survey of piano methods.1 Looking back over the past two years, I have come to realize that we are blessed with a tremendous variety of excellent, pedagogically sound materials. Several of my core beliefs have been confirmed: no one series is...
Medical issues facing adult students
March 2011; Vol. 3, No. 2
“Growing old is not for the weak in spirit.” Although I’ve heard this adage countless times, I finally know what it means. For me, 2010 ushered in a series of medical mishaps, medications, and miracles. I’m now a cancer survivor, yet I feel that surviving the...
How do you use mobile computing devices (such as smart phones, portable listening devices, and tablets) in your teaching?
March 2011; Vol. 3, No. 2
Just when we have reached the point where traditional, personal computers have become ubiquitous in the home, modern society has become inundated with new mobile computing devices. These mobile devices are basically computers disguised as cellphones, listening devices, and e-readers. As Apple’s Steve Jobs has...
“I have a student who…”
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
The next time you are sitting with a group of teachers, count the number of times someone says, “I have a student who…” When I am on the road giving workshops and teachers approach me at the break, these words begin the phrase I hear...
Blizzards, performances, and best-laid plans
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
So many of you experienced a winter similar to or much worse than the one we had here in Oklahoma, with blizzards, winter storms, and unexpected changes in our plans. It was a horrible winter weather year! Winter seems so far away now, but it...
The life, love, and legacy of Morty Manus: An Interview with Nancy Bachus
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
During Morty Manus’s tenure as owner and president of Alfred Music Publishing Company, he guided its growth from a small print and pop song catalog to the world’s largest educational music publisher. Upon completion of a business degree from City College of New York, Morty...
Preluding with the Masters
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
For centuries, improvising introductions to keyboard works, also known as preluding, helped inspire musicians and prepare audiences for what was to come. (The German verb präludieren and the French verb preluder can simply mean “to improvise.”) Preluding had practical functions as well, allowing performers to warm up, test tuning,...
Scalin’ the chords
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
When I was about twelve years of age, my parents took me to a restaurant that featured a live jazz trio. I was amazed to see the pianist playing without written music. Unaware of the awkwardness I might cause by interrupting a performing musician, I...
How can colors be used to help students learn to read music?
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
For centuries, music notation has been a “black and white” subject. To read this music, musicians have decoded black and white print and transferred it into colorful sound. Even when making notations in our printed music we have usually grabbed an ordinary pencil, thus adding...
A survey of current methods: Music Moves for Piano
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
This issue continues Clavier Companion’s survey of piano methods.1 Each article in this series has three sections—an introductory synopsis by the Associate Editor, two articles written by teachers who have used the method extensively in their studios, and a response from the authors of the method...
Adele Marcus: Master teacher
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
“They don’t make them like they used to,” my grandmother often said, shaking her head. She was referring, of course, to some deed—or misdeed—of mine, compared to her own generation, who were much too busy and exhausted from getting up at dawn to plow the fields...
How can student notebooks be more effective?
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
When I first started teaching, I was determined not to make my students fill out the dreaded practice log. As a young teacher, I still had fresh memories of my own student days, and times spent scrambling right before a lesson to reconstruct (or perhaps...
Introducing students to the music of Schumann
May 2011; Vol. 3, No. 3
Because of the textural, technical, and interpretive demands of music from the Romantic era, students usually do not encounter it until their early intermediate years. Most likely some of the first Romantic compositions a student will study will be by Robert Schumann, whose bicentennial is being...
You can go home again
November 2011; Vol. 3, No. 6
I am spending the summer in the house where I grew up. This is the same house where my parents were married shortly after World War II. My aunt and uncle, who lived next door, witnessed this simple ceremony. A black and white photo of the...
Robert Pace A Tribute
November 2011; Vol. 3, No. 6
Both the scope of materials to be used and the sequence, or order of presentation, are crucial to the success of the student at each stage of development. Students should understand so clearly what they are doing during the lesson that they can literally teach...