What Do You Like About Group Lessons?
Keyboard Companion Spring 2004; Vol. 15, No. 1
The Magic Triangle: Teacher/Student/Parent Group teaching takes special skills. I rediscovered this fact last Fall when I began teaching Music Together, a program for infants, toddlers, and their caregivers. True, I had taught regular third and first grade sometime during the Dark Ages of my 20s,...
What Practice Steps Would You Assign for the Burgmüller “Ballade” of Op. 100?
Keyboard Companion Spring 2004; Vol. 15, No. 1
from the series: The Other Teacher: Home Practice Elvina Pearce, Editor The Burgmiiller “Ballade” of Op. 100 (see pages 18-19) is usually a favorite with all students who can play it well. In my studio, we frequently refer to it as the “Beauty and the Beast” piece, with...
How is Teaching Adults to Read Music Different Than Teaching Children?
Keyboard Companion Spring 2004; Vol. 15, No. 1
from the series: Independence Day: Music Reading Adult beginners seem to challenge everything we think we know about teaching. From the books used to the rate of skill development, adult learners are different from children. One thing we can do to understand our adult learners is...
How Do You Teach Good Tone to Early-Level Students?
Keyboard Companion Spring 2004; Vol. 15, No. 1
from the series: Let’s Get Physical: Technique I met an old friend while writing my article for this issue of Keyboard Companion. It was great to renew communication after so many years apart – to hear his ideas and be reminded of his wisdom and his...
How is Rhythm Enhanced by Solid Technique Skills?
Keyboard Companion Spring 2004; Vol. 15, No. 1
from the series: The Heart of the Matter: Rhythm Bruce Berr, editor The question this issue straddles two departments in the magazine, Rhythm and Technique. It was therefore a natural for the editors of these two departments – Scott McBride Smith and myself- to answer the question....
Reprise: What Teacher Was Most Influential in Your Teaching Career and Why?
Keyboard Companion Spring 2004; Vol. 15, No. 1
from the series: Issues and Ideas: Perspectives in Pedagogy Kathleen Murray, editor I first posed this question back in the summer of 2002, and Bruce Berr and Marcia Bosits shared wonderful stories about their most influential teachers. Martha Hilley and Sam Holland agreed to do the same...
What Are The Questions (and Answers) That Impact Adults’ Piano Study?
Keyboard Companion Spring 2004; Vol. 15, No. 1
from the series: It’s Never Too Late: Adult Piano Study Brenda Dillon, Editor Barbara Maris After reading Barbara Maris’ book, Making Music at the Piano: Learning Strategies For Adult Students (Oxford University Press), I was constantly reminded that we crave a “one-stop-shopping” experience. In a sense...
Putting It All Together: Repertoire
Keyboard Companion Spring 1991; Vol. 2, No. 1
Martha Appleby is an author, clinician, and independent piano teacher whose studio is in Charleston, Illinois. As a clinician and teacher, she is known for her effective blend of expertise, good humor, and common sense. She has recently returned from Brazil where she was Visiting...
Tomorrow Today: Technology
Keyboard Companion Spring 1991; Vol. 2, No. 1
Marguerite Miller, pianist, teacher, author, adjudicator, clinician, and consultant, is Professor Emeritus at Wichita State University where she was Coordinator of Keyboard Studies and Head of the Piano Pedagogy/Group Piano Program. She is a member of the Baldwin Arts Foundation Advisory Board and the Keyboard...
How Do You Make Your Summer Lessons Different?
Are you looking for some creative ideas for next summer’s teaching? Ideas that will motivate your students, refresh your studio, and provide a change of pace from your regular teaching routine? Then read on! Our writers for this issue include four independent piano teachers as...
What Do Parents Have to Say About Their Children’s Practice?
Last spring, I asked seven teachers to distribute a questionnaire to the parents of five or six of their students. Twenty- seven parents (who, for the most part, retained anonymity) returned the questionnaires. Not all of them answered every question, and the resulting data is by...
What Role Do the Eyes Play in Sightplaying?
Asking what role the eyes play in sightplaying is like asking what role a steady pulse plays in rhythm. The eyes, of course, are central to any consideration of sightplaying. Our respondents, wisely acknowledging that there is much more to fluent sightplaying than eye skills, offer some useful...
How Do You Teach Your Students to Play Loud in One Hand and Soft in the Other?
One of my earliest experiences as a judge was at a festival held in the Midwest at which the one piece required of all elementary contestants was Kabelevsky’s popular Toccatina. To be frank, the performances were not that great. By lunch time on the first day, I felt that...
What Do Publishers Look For When Deciding Which Pieces to Publish?
The general public reads books, but how many attempt to write one? Piano teachers, on the other hand, are frequently inspired to compose. If you were to poll your fellow teachers, I doubt that you could find anyone who hasn’t dabbled in composition, either for...
How Do You Use Computer-Assisted Instruction to Teach Rhythm in Your Studio?
The greatest innovation in our teaching studios this past decade has been the new technology. This fact is made obvious by the topics of our teachers’ association meetings, presentations at conferences, and the display areas of conventions. Each issue of KEYBOARD COMPANION has one section...