A Life among Legends
March 2016; Vol. 8, No. 2
Richter, Michelangeli, Berman, Arrau, Cziffra, Callas. These are just a few of the legendary artists that Jacques Leiser has worked with in his remarkable career. As an agent, impresario, and photographer, he played no small part in the successful careers of many of the greatest musicians...
Blues 101: Basics
March 2016; Vol. 8, No. 2
Blues music evolved from its eighteenth-century roots in the work songs and lamentations of enslaved African-Americans to become one of the most identifiable streams in American music. If you grew up in the United States when I did, you heard it on the radio (Jerry...
Art song and pedaling
March 2016; Vol. 8, No. 2
I love art songs, and I’ve recently returned to practicing art song accompaniments on the piano. It’s been good for me; I get to practice music I like without the usual piano exercises or repertoire. Moreover, I get to rethink, reconsider, and reaffirm my philosophy...
Better together: Chamber music for all levels
March 2016; Vol. 8, No. 2
What pieces do you remember performing as a young pianist? Were they solo pieces? As pianists, we are lucky to have at our fingertips a seemingly infinite body of solo masterworks. To be able to sit down at an instrument and create music alone is...
Six keys to enforcing an effective studio policy
March 2016; Vol. 8, No. 2
A good studio policy is only effective if it is enforced. And while it is relatively easy to write a policy, it is certainly much harder to enforce it in a kind but firm manner. Yet enforcement of an effective policy is the key to...
March 2016: Mind Matters: The Odd Couple
March 2016; Vol. 8, No. 2
When I returned to graduate school in psychology, writing papers was a typical assignment. This was often the case in courses dealing with clinical material. I remember being assigned a paper in a class on Family Dynamics; we were asked to describe a family we...
March 2016: Pupil Saver: Unique; reflective music
March 2016; Vol. 8, No. 2
Finding interesting late-intermediate literature can be a challenge. In addition to teaching the repertoire standards, I always look for something a bit more out-of- the box, quite often a contemporary composition. I find that the contemporary music of Dianne Goolkasian Rahbee fits my needs perfectly, and...
How do you teach technique to beginning piano students?
May 2016; Vol. 8, No. 3
Beginning piano technique: Back to basics “He’s just trying it out, so he doesn’t need an expert teacher. We’ll just go to the most inexpensive teacher we can find until we know he likes it.” How many times have we bristled at this kind of...
When students quit
May 2016; Vol. 8, No. 3
I quit piano twice. During my last year of high school, I left my long-time teacher a handwritten note in an envelope on her desk. In it I detailed the reasons I was “quitting piano.” I no longer remember what those reasons were, but I...
Solutions to common technical problems
May 2016; Vol. 8, No. 3
We all agree that the best solution to problems is to prevent them before they even begin. However, even with our best intentions, problems sometimes arise. Collapsed knuckle bridge Teacher places hands on the student’s hands, molding, shaping, and modeling. Start beginning students with a...
Pedagogical treasures from Paul Pollei
May 2016; Vol. 8, No. 3
Paul Pollei (left) and Robin Hancock. Paul Pollei, popularly known as the “ambassador of the piano,” passed away in July 2013 in Provo, Utah, leaving behind friends and colleagues on many continents, who loved him and his enthusiasm for life. He was a champion of...
What are they thinking? The key to your students’ best performances
May 2016; Vol. 8, No. 3
The lights are dimmed and a hush comes over the crowd. The atmosphere is charged as your student takes the stage for her recital. She is well prepared and ready for this moment, but there are no guarantees. More than anything else, what happens next...
I saw Mozart in Motown
May 2016; Vol. 8, No. 3
You may think that I’m losing my mind—that my elevator no longer stops at all of the floors (and you may be right), but I just saw Mozart in Motown. I wasn’t in Detroit, and there wasn’t any time travel involved. Indulge me for a...
Blues 102—Variations
May 2016; Vol. 8, No. 3
Having addressed in the last column how to help students compose simple Blues tunes, let’s now consider how to help them add on to their creations. 1. Embellish the melody Whether notated or improvised, ask your students to play their compositions a couple of times...
Walk a mile in your neighbor’s shoes: Gender issues in piano teaching
May 2016; Vol. 8, No. 3
Change, learning, and growth are able to happen when conversations begin. Conversations about what I think, and what you think, and how I feel, and how you feel rarely happen in this screen-crazy, busy world we live in. Yet, there are often important questions looming...