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Piano Inspires Discovery

A space dedicated to inspiring the love of piano and music making through educational and inspirational content.

  • Awadagin Pratt: Pianist, Conductor, Music Education Advocate

    Awadagin Pratt: Pianist, Conductor, Music Education Advocate

    We would like to thank Artina McCain for this interview with pianist Awadagin Pratt. This week on Piano Inspires Podcast, Artina McCain is interviewed! Check out the latest installment of the Piano Inspires Podcast on Wednesday, May 22, 2024. To learn more, visit pianoinspires.com. Listen to our latest episode with Robert Weirich on Apple Podcasts, Spotify,…


  • Celebrate Marvin Blickenstaff’s 89th Birthday With Us!

    Celebrate Marvin Blickenstaff’s 89th Birthday With Us!

    Join us in honoring our esteemed Marvin Blickenstaff. His 89th birthday is May 19th! Marvin has dedicated his life to serving others, and we are asking for your help to show appreciation in a special way this year. Share Your Birthday Wishes To celebrate Marvin’s birthday and support his legacy, please consider making a donation…


  • Piano Inspires Podcast: Robert Weirich

    Piano Inspires Podcast: Robert Weirich

    To celebrate the latest episode of Piano Inspires Podcast featuring Robert Weirich we are sharing an excerpted transcript of his conversation with Nicholas Phillips. Want to learn more about Weirich? Check out the latest installment of the Piano Inspires Podcast. To learn more, visit pianoinspires.com. Listen to our latest episode with Weirich on Apple Podcasts, Spotify,…


  • Recollections with Robert Weirich

    Recollections with Robert Weirich

    We would like to thank Robert Weirich for his insightful commentary regarding his latest book, Recollections: A Pianist’s Essays on Teaching, Performing, and Living. Learn more and purchase here: https://pianoinspires.com/recollections-by-robert-weirich/. I guess you could say that my pandemic project was to go back through my writings for Clavier and other journals and see if there was…


  • A Lifetime Collaboration with Frances Clark

    A Lifetime Collaboration with Frances Clark

    In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, we are sharing this excerpted article by Louise Goss about her lifetime collaboration with Frances Clark. On behalf of The Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy, thank you to all teachers for sharing the incredible and transformative power of music. Being invited to look at the changes in keyboard…


  • Piano Inspires Podcast: Sara Davis Buechner

    Piano Inspires Podcast: Sara Davis Buechner

    To celebrate the latest episode of Piano Inspires Podcast featuring Sara Davis Buechner, we are sharing an excerpted transcript of her conversation with Craig Sale. Want to learn more about Buechner? Check out the latest installment of the Piano Inspires Podcast. To learn more, visit pianoinspires.com. Listen to our latest episode with Buechner on Apple Podcasts,…


  • Publication Project: Piano Works of Thomas H. Kerr Jr.

    Publication Project: Piano Works of Thomas H. Kerr Jr.

    We hope you enjoy learning about one of the publication projects of the Frances Clark Center—publishing piano works of Thomas H. Kerr Jr. Please join us for our Publications Launch Party with Susanna Garcia and William Chapman Nyaho celebrating the first of these publications, Didn’t My Lord Deliver Daniel?: Concert Scherzo for Two Pianos, Four…


  • A Continuum Between Teaching Styles: Reflections from the US and Chile

    A Continuum Between Teaching Styles: Reflections from the US and Chile

    We would like to thank Paulina Zamora for this insightful article on her experiences growing up as a musician in Chile. Want to learn more about international teaching practices and repertoire? Register for our 2024 Summer Intensive Seminar “An International Exploration of Piano Teaching Literature” lead by Leah Claiborne and Luis Sanchez. Early bird registration…


  • Piano Inspires Podcast: Angelin Chang

    Piano Inspires Podcast: Angelin Chang

    To celebrate the latest episode of Piano Inspires Podcast featuring Angelin Chang we are sharing an excerpted transcript of his conversation with Andrea McAlister. Want to learn more about Chang? Check out the latest installment of the Piano Inspires Podcast. To learn more, visit pianoinspires.com. Listen to our latest episode with Chang on Apple Podcasts, Spotify,…


  • 5 Things You Might Not Know About Colombian Composer Jaime León

    5 Things You Might Not Know About Colombian Composer Jaime León

    Don’t forget to check out Felipe Calle‘s presentation at NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference, The Piano Works of Jaime Leon: A Pedagogical Approach, on June 11, 2023 from 4:30-4:55PM during our online event. Register now for NCKP 2023! 1. Jaime León was born in 1921 in Cartagena, Colombia, a colonial city on the Caribbean coast. His father,…


  • The Value and Survival of Music – Philosophies of Frances Clark

    The Value and Survival of Music – Philosophies of Frances Clark

    We are pleased to share some of our favorite quotes by Frances Clark, the pioneer pianist and educator for whom the organization is named. To read more of Clark’s writing, you can purchase her book, Questions and Answers, by clicking here. On the Value of Music “To understand music is to know an entire range…


  • 5 Things You Might Not Know About Career-aged Adult Piano Learners

    5 Things You Might Not Know About Career-aged Adult Piano Learners

    Check out Pei-Chen Chen‘s presentation at NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference, It’s Never Too Late – Lived Experiences of Amateur Adult Piano Learners, on June 11, 2023 from 3:00-3:25PM during our online event. Register now for NCKP 2023! 1. They take lessons to fulfill a long held-dream. Fulfilling a long-held dream is one of the most common…


  • How to Teach like Kodály in 5 Easy Steps

    How to Teach like Kodály in 5 Easy Steps

    Don’t miss Megan Rich‘s Lightning Talk at NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference, Singing in the Piano Lesson: Zoltán Kodály’s 333 Elementary Exercises in Solfège Singing, on July 26, 2023 from 4:00-4:50PM during our in-person event. Register now for NCKP 2023! 1. Sing! Zoltan Kodály said that “To teach a child an instrument without first giving him preparatory…


  • Q&A with Marvin Blickenstaff: Part Two

    Q&A with Marvin Blickenstaff: Part Two

    We invited our followers to submit questions for Marvin Blickenstaff about all things teaching. In honor of his birthday (May 19), we are posting his answers! You can read Part One here. Join us on social media for the opportunity to have your questions on a variety of interesting topics answered by additional experts in…


  • Q&A with Marvin Blickenstaff: Part One

    Q&A with Marvin Blickenstaff: Part One

    We invited our followers to submit questions for Marvin Blickenstaff about all things teaching. In honor of his birthday today (May 19), we are posting his answers! Join us on social media for the opportunity to have your questions on a variety of interesting topics answered by additional experts in the coming weeks. I love…


  • The Consummate Role Model for Piano Teachers | Honoring Marvin Blickenstaff

    The Consummate Role Model for Piano Teachers | Honoring Marvin Blickenstaff

    Naegeli van Bergen Metcalf was my first college piano teacher and a beloved mentor. She left Wesleyan College after my freshman year to get married, and we stayed in touch throughout the remainder of her teaching years. So, during my junior year, she was in touch and encouraged me to go to the University of…


  • Happy Birthday, Marvin Blickenstaff!

    Happy Birthday, Marvin Blickenstaff!

    THIS WEEK IN PIANO HISTORY, we celebrate one of our own—Marvin Blickenstaff—who was born on May 19, 1935. A world-renowned music educator and pianist, Blickenstaff’s career as a leader in the field of piano pedagogy has spanned nearly six decades. Blickenstaff grew up in Nampa, Idaho and credits his teacher Fern Nolte Davidson with helping…


  • Five Principles to Help you Prepare and Practice Orchestral Reductions

    Five Principles to Help you Prepare and Practice Orchestral Reductions

    Don’t miss Cecilia Lo-Chien Kao‘s presentation at NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference, Piano as Orchestra: Creating Artful Orchestral Reductions, on June 11, 2023 from 2:00-2:50PM during our online event. Register now for NCKP 2023! 1. Listen to a Recording When you are learning a new orchestral reduction, it is very important to listen to the original orchestral…


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