The Frances Clark Center is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Yeeseon Kwon as Director of Institutional Engagement. Dr. Kwon will be focused on our Young Professionals, mentorship, and opportunities for collaboration with institutions across the U.S. and internationally.
Dr. Yeeseon Kwon is Associate Professor in the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. She is a recipient of the 2023 Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy Outstanding Service Recognition Award.
Specializing in teaching adult students and instructional technology applications, she provides adult group and applied piano instruction in both remote and in-person modalities at the Northwestern University Music Academy. Among the numerous collaborative experiences in music industry and publishing, she was formerly an editor of keyboard music and collaborated with various composers, editing numerous educational piano music publications. Dr. Kwon is in demand as an adjudicator, workshop clinician, conference, and masterclass presenter, including performance lectures on developing the technical and musical artistry of Romantic pianism, innovative uses of technology in group piano pedagogy, and best practices in adult learning pedagogy. Her international performances include solo, duo piano, and collaborative engagements.
Yeeseon Kwon serves on the NCKP Teaching Adults Steering Committee and is a Course Contributor for A Pianist’s Guide to Teaching in Groups, from The Frances Clark Center Teacher Education Courses. She is the Column Editor for Books, Materials, and Music of the Piano Magazine, and Vice President of The College Music Society.
“I am deeply honored to serve as Director of Institutional Engagement at the Frances Clark Center. Supporting and expanding mentorship opportunities for Young Professionals and advancing partnerships with higher education are exciting initiatives that will strengthen and develop new teacher engagement.” –Yeeseon Kwon
We are pleased to share this conversation with Olga Kern about her vibrant career and mission as a musician, written by Sara Ernst. This conversation originally appeared in the Summer 2023 issue of Piano Magazine. If you would like to explore other articles from Piano Magazine, please subscribe now for only $7.99/mo or $36/yr.
Olga Kern
Concert pianist Olga Kern has been a regular presence on the international stage since her winning of the Eleventh Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2001,1 and she will be welcomed as concert artist at NCKP: The Piano Conference on July 26–29, 2023, in Lombard, Illinois. Artistic intensity, passionate expression, and technical prowess pervade her playing. At the Cliburn, this resulted in multiple standing ovations and an affect tagged “Olgamania” by newspapers in Dallas/Fort Worth. Her jubilant acceptance of this award followed four intense rounds of competition, which featured her memorable performances of the Brahms Variations on a Theme by Paganini, Barber Sonata for Piano, and Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 3.
In the two decades since her catapult into the highest strata of the profession, Kern has navigated a rigorous schedule, maintaining a fervent commitment to concertizing. When I had the pleasure of speaking with Kern in a phone interview on November 22, 2022, she expressed her gratitude in being a pianist: “It’s a pure joy. Every time I’m on stage, it just gives me happiness. When I finish, I know that I shared what I love so much. They [the audience] have the same response; they are so enthusiastic, they’re so happy. I’m so lucky to have this profession; I love it.”
A notable feature of Kern’s performances is her immediate engagement with the audience—her sparkling eyes meet the crowd as she greets them with an infectious smile. It is remarkable how this effusive energy reached me through the phone. She projects herself as an individual who has found a powerful purpose in her vocation, and this gives her a boundless zeal, determination, and optimism in the future. When I asked her about this disposition, she expressed a more sanguine approach to life as a musician:
Being an artist and musician, there are always doubts about everything—it’s normal for all of us. While we have these jobs, we are growing and learning how we can do better, all of our lives. We need to stay positive. Life is very difficult, especially knowing what’s happening right now in the world…I want to express myself through music in a way that is always a positive experience. Because the audience—either listening to me or talking to me afterwards—needs to feel a good energy.
Furthermore, she shared her deeply held belief in the power of music to heal. Kern explained to me how she was inspired by a pianist in the Cliburn International Amateur Competition who was fighting a rare disease and how he used music to delay the progress of the disease. She also described correspondence from a faithful audience member who declared the healing effects of her performances. Kern furthered her philosophical statement: “This is what music does, it heals our souls…I understand how important and how positive music actually is for all of us, and that’s why it just feels natural to be positive.”
It is probably not surprising to music lovers, but truly remarkable how her energy continues to be drawn from the artform itself. She admitted to me that her demanding schedule is sustained by her love of playing: “When I’m just spending time with my instrument by myself, that’s my happiest time.” She furthered this by stating her focus is purely expressive, which I believe is a product of her engrained technical command. Kern said, “It is so natural somehow, for me, that I am not thinking about difficulties anymore. I think about ideas, what I want to achieve with the whole thing, as an interpretation.” It begs the question of how she became such a masterful pianist. Her response was surprisingly simple, that her passion for the instrument “explains everything.” Certainly, this is not to underestimate the decades devoted to growth and practice. It is clear what fuels Kern, and piano is intertwined with her identity: “I was at the piano, mostly all my life. How I remember myself was at the piano, from five years old.”
While Olga Kern has Russian heritage, she also has become a US citizen, residing currently in New York City. In 2017, she received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, which celebrates Americans, naturalized and native-born, “who are selflessly working for the betterment of our country.”2 Recipients include past presidents, religious figures, business leaders, and Nobel Prize laureates. Kern attended the ceremony, which featured fireworks next to the Statue of Liberty, on the arm of her son Vladislav. Upon receipt of this commendation, she wrote: “The U.S.A. is my beloved adopted country and I will continue to make this country proud!”3 With last year’s outbreak of the war in Ukraine with Russia, Kern released a statement denouncing war:
As a classical music pianist and artist, I embrace beauty. I seek to share with audiences the powerful emotions that make music so magical, and I try to make people feel that beauty and be part of it…Such a mindset is entirely incompatible with any form of aggression or violence. And even more so with the horrors of war…. It’s heartbreaking to witness the tragedy that is unfolding before our very eyes in Ukraine. It’s ugly and brutal beyond words…Please stop this madness! Please say NO to war!4
Her eloquent appeal also reflects the precarious situation of Russians, many of whom, like her, have strong ties to Ukraine—the world is witnessing a war at the hands of a dangerous dictator who shows little signs of yielding.
Kern was born in Russia under the name of Pushechnikova into a profoundly musical household. Her mother, father, and brother all played piano—her mother a piano teacher and father a pianist in the Bolshoi Theater Orchestra. Her grandfather was a prominent professor of oboe at the Gnessin School of Music.5 Her great-grandmother was an opera singer at the Kharkiv Opera and had the honor of singing with Rachmaninoff at the piano. Kern’s musical lineage extends deeper: her great-great grandmother was also a music teacher and friend of Tchaikovsky, which is documented through letters and photographs. In the documentary that showcases the 2001 Cliburn Competition,6 Kern shares her grandmother’s first edition of Rachmaninoff’s third concerto she was soon to perform. The camera captures a touching moment of tender pride, as she carefully pages through this timeworn, but prized possession.
As a young pianist, Kern heard two remarkable recitals in Moscow: Vladmir Horowitz in the historically significant 1986 concert, and Sviatoslav Richter in one of his impromptu, candlelight recitals. She formerly described these two experiences:
“I will never forget [Horowitz’s] concert. That sound range, what he was doing with that piano… what the gradations were, what the colors were. I’ll never forget the fortissimo he made; it was so warm and nice. It was just all over each of us, and it was a full hall; people were just hanging out of the balcony…[Richter] played the Brahms Paganini Variations. When he started I thought that my hair was blown, just like a huge hurricane came and made everyone suddenly alive. That kind of sound, incredible sensibility, and ability to do anything on the piano. Those geniuses for me were really inspiring.”7
Her mother, who initially encouraged her study of Russian ballet, was her first piano teacher; Kern exclaimed that from two or three years old, she knew that piano (not ballet!) was her life’s calling.8 At the Central Music School in Moscow, young Olga studied with highly regarded pedagogue Evgeny Timakin, known for his exercises that develop a comprehensive technical foundation. Her later training was with Sergei Dorensky at the Moscow Conservatory and Boris Petrushansky in Imola, Italy.
Kern’s first win in the competition circuit was at age 11, followed by the Rachmaninoff International Piano Competition at age 17; in total, she placed in the top rankings at more than ten competitions. In the Cliburn Competition of 1997, Kern appeared as Olga Pushechnikova, although she did not advance past the preliminary round. In our interview, Kern reflected on the importance of competing, especially the motivation found with undesirable results. One can only imagine that she draws upon her own experience when she encourages her students:
They need to compete, and it’s not always the right result for them. I always tell them not to be depressed, just to go forward and learn. It’s that attitude—you are actually getting stronger. From that experience, they know what they can do better. It’s just part of your life, and without bumps, you will not get higher and better. If everything will be perfect, then there will be no stimulation to do better. You need to really go down sometimes to feel that: No, I want to do something so special that people will hear about me, I am that talented, and that’s how much I love music. These moments, they’re actually great… they’re the super exciting moments in your life.
In the years between Cliburn appearances, life changed for the newly named Olga Kern (using her mother’s maiden name), now with son Vladislav; her toddler remained in Russia in the loving care of her parents while she travelled to Texas, to return with a gold medal in hand.
Kern’s career continues to be filled with an intense schedule of performances and appearances. As many women musicians have faced, performing reviews include discussion of her appearance, attire and beauty, with one writer even making an astoundingly shocking conclusion that her pianistic ability makes gender “irrelevant.”9 Nevertheless, Kern proceeds with lighthearted grace and personal style, deflecting questions about gender back to the artform and by collaborating with fashion designers to craft her wardrobe. In 2016, she reflected, “Whilst I was at the school and the conservatory, it was not about being a man or a woman that fed my love for the instrument… If you love what you do, everything is equal.”10 She then quipped that the only difficulty results from the performance gowns: “But being a woman concert pianist comes with its own challenges. My suitcase is heavier and bigger than that of any man in my job.”
Today, her career is multi-faceted and includes teacher, collaborator, adjudicator, director, and philanthropist. In 2016, she became the Artistic Director of the triennial Olga Kern International Piano Competition in New Mexico, in 2017 she joined the piano faculty at the Manhattan School of Music, and in 2019 she began directing chamber music for the Virginia Arts Festival. Her artistic collaborations have included concerts with conductor Leonard Slatkin and singer Renée Fleming. Her most recent CD release, in 2022, was of the Brahms and Shostakovich quintets with the Dalí quartet. More performances are planned with this string quartet, including the quintet by Rachmaninoff’s teacher Sergei Taneyev. Additionally in 2023, Kern will undertake the Herculean task of performing Rachmaninoff’s four piano concerti and Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. She will perform all five works in two evenings at many venues, a project she initially tackled in South Africa with her brother Vladimir as conductor. She was inspired to revisit this as a celebration of Rachmaninoff, 150 years since his birth and eighty since his death.
She has acknowledged in the past how it was initially difficult to find the ideal balance in her life between performing, traveling, and her family. Reflecting on her post-Cliburn engagements, she summarized:
If you don’t have the balance, this busy travel and concert life can really wear you out very quickly…[After Cliburn,] I was just teaching myself and learning how I can do it correctly. I must say it took me a couple of years…It was hard [but] right now, it’s so much easier for me. People around me saying, “Wow, you’re so organized! You know exactly what hour you need to do practice, rest, interviews, emails.”… Of course, it’s never enough time in one day!11
For her, balance of career and family is essential, professing in 2009: “Without playing the piano I cannot live, and without my family I cannot live.”12 Kern’s son Vladislav is also a pianist, and Olga insists that his desire came from within himself. As a child, he even requested to study at the same schools as she. Vladislav is also one of her musical collaborators, as far back as 2008. In that year, the fiftieth anniversary of Van Cliburn’s win at the Tchaikovsky Competition, mother and son attended the celebratory event and performed. Olga reminisced in 2012 about this special moment:
“My son was eight and a half at the time. We did several pieces by Ravel, Mother Goose Suite, and Rachmaninoff’s Italian Polka. Van Cliburn did not know what we were going to do, it was a surprise. And when we started playing Ravel, he burst into tears, the tears of joy. It turned out that when he was small, he played this music with his mother.13
Vladislav is now an advanced pianist studying at Juilliard School of Music, and mother and son have recently performed Mozart’s Concerto for Two Pianos.
Since joining the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music in 2017, she has taught a small studio of pianists. Along with the rest of the profession, Kern moved her teaching online during the COVID pandemic. Her sentiments about teaching online have been echoed by others: “It was not that easy, but I was happy that I actually found out that I could do it! And then, my students were actually growing and doing things better.” Reflective of her affirming spirit, she summarized the era of online lessons as a “special part of our lives.” Her social media feeds include numerous snapshots into her studio, and these video clips reveal a teacher committed to constructive artistic development. Following the model of her teachers, she believes:
It’s not just a specific hour I need to spend with them, but I just need to give them all the attention they need. And everyone’s different, you know, so you really need to feel their personalities, feel what their fears are, what we really need to do to make them excited about practicing, about working.
Her desire to mentor the next generation—often referred to as her “children”—is palpable. At one point during our interview, she pridefully listed the accomplishments of her students and winners of her competition. In addition, the Kern Foundation “Aspiration” (founded with her brother Vladimir Kern) is another avenue through which she supports upcoming pianists.
The principle of balancing priorities is even significant to her in practice, an approach she instills in her students. Kern referenced Rachmaninoff and his efficient practice schedule of often two hours or less a day. She described how important it is to have structured goals, and how to avoid multiple run-throughs and excessive repetition of difficult sections, both of which stave off fatigue and injury. When I asked her to expand on how to maintain a healthy technique, she responded with important fundamental principles:
For me the very important thing is how you sit at the piano, how you distribute the weight of your body. Because a lot of times I see how young pianists are just using their hands only. This is really wrong, because then of course they will have difficulties, the hands will be tired. First of all, they don’t ever achieve a big, warm sound; it will not happen because they are not using their body. Body weight is so important, and when you are using it together with your hands, everything becomes totally different. Because first of all, you are more relaxed, you are not working that hard, and then you’re producing much bigger sound. At the same time, even if you are playing soft, soft, soft, you also need to use your body weight. It’s not just the finger, you know.
When she guides her students through practice, she focuses on using the mind, breaking down large works into smaller learning goals, and striving for specific sound goals. The practice encouragement she provides her students is simple yet important in our modern world: “It’s just your own time without phones, computers, pure and innocent, just you and your music.”
Before the phone interview with Olga Kern, I fully immersed myself in her recordings and career; I was inspired. After the interview—I was enchanted. She is a force! Her infectious zest for piano motivated me and filled me with gratitude. She is a model of how to learn and grow as a pianist, nurture the potential within oneself, relish the artform for its rejuvenating capabilities, while also championing and supporting those around you. I am waiting with bated breath to hear her solo recital at NCKP 2023.
Sources
1 Stanislav Ioudenitch from Ukraine was a co-winner of the Eleventh Cliburn International Competition in 2001.
2 “Medals of Honor,” Ellis Island Honors Society, accessed January 6, 2023, eihonors.org/medalists.
3 Olga Kern, Facebook post, May 16, 2017. Image taken from Facebook post, July 4, 2019.
4 “A Statement from Olga Kern,” Delos Productions, March 7, 2022, accessed December 8, 2022, delosmusic.com/a-statement- from-olga-kern/.
5 The family lineage of names is the grandfather Ivan Pushechnikov, the great-grandmother Vera Fedorovna Pushechnikova, and the great-great-grandmother Pelageya Safronovna Pushechnikova.
6 Peter Rosen, producer, The Cliburn: Playing on the Edge, PBS broadcast KERA/PBS (Fort Worth, Texas: Van Cliburn Foundation and Peter Rosen Productions, 2001), vimeo.com/519214432, accessed November 17, 2022.
7 Musicale, Interview with Olga Kern, February 18, 2022, youtu.be/_NOV54yfeUI.
8 Ibid.
9 Gil French, “Four Years after Cliburn,” American Record Guide (Washington, United States: Record Guide Publications, August 2005):
10 Robyn Sassen, “Interview with Russian Pianist, Olga Kern, for the JMS,” February 17, 2016, obynsassenmyview.com/2016/02/17/olga-kern-and-the-love-for-music-that-stays/.
11 Musicale, Interview with Olga Kern, February 18, 2022, youtu.be/_NOV54yfeUI.
12 Ann M. Gipson, “From Russia to America: An Interview with Olga Kern,” American Music Teacher. Vol. 58, No. 4 (February 2009): 21.
13 Tatyana Borodina, “Interview with Olga Kern, New York,” Elegant New York (blog), May 8, 2012, accessed December 8, 2022, elegantnewyork.com/interview-with-olga-kern-gold-medal- winner-of-van-cliburn-international-piano-competition/.
George Litterst is a recipient of the 2023 Frances Clark Center Lifetime Achievement Award. His extensive contributions to the field of piano pedagogy are extraordinary and exemplify outstanding dedication to the field of music and piano teaching. The Frances Clark Center Lifetime Achievement Award is the highest honor and is presented on behalf of the Frances Clark Center to individuals who have made substantial and enduring contributions to the field of piano pedagogy and to the work of the Center.
Join us at NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference in Lombard, Illinois for a Gala champagne reception and awards ceremony on Friday, July 28 from 6-8:30pm to celebrate our 2023 Lifetime Achievement Award winners.
Thank you to Evan, Bradan, and Meme for your contributions to this post.
Testimonial by Evan, age 13
I began taking lessons with George four years ago after my brother and I received a piano for Christmas. Throughout these past four years, he has taught me the tips and tricks of the piano, how to play with both hands together, and how to perform more advanced music than I ever thought I could play.
George is a fun teacher and not only teaches me music, but the history and facts about the artist we are learning. He also teaches about the function of the piano itself. He is interested in our lives outside the piano too. We talk about Lego building, 3D printing, school events, and even TV shows.
When the COVID virus struck, George was able to continue teaching us remotely on his apps (MIDI and Classroom Maestro), which helped us to continue our learning during that time.
One of the most memorable moments of our lessons was when George had me record a piece of music, and then he sent my recording to the composer, Paul Sheftel. Then George set up a meeting with Paul over Zoom and we talked about playing his music. It was an exciting moment for me.
George has helped me appreciate music and because of his style of teaching, I want to continue learning.
Testimonial by Bradan, age 11
In four years, George has helped me learn to read music so I can play the piano, and this has also helped me learn how to play xylophone, marimba, and trombone.
He likes talking about other things besides music such as school, band, Legos, and animals. He has taken my brother and I on “field trips” in his house to show us different instruments and has let us play them too. His field trips are always fun.
George asks us to pick a piece of music we would like to learn, and he finds the music for it, which is something I enjoy a lot. George is nice and silly sometimes too; he doesn’t get mad and is patient when we are learning.
I have learned a lot from George over the years and he makes it fun to learn the piano.
Testimonial by Meme
When I was very young, I took piano lessons and loved the experience, but life got very busy for me and I stopped playing at age eleven. I recently retired and I wanted to return to playing the piano, but it had been at least fifty years since my last lesson, so I felt intimidated about this undertaking. George Litterst came into my life and he brought back my appreciation of music and he gave me the confidence to start playing the piano again. Hats off to you, George!
George knew I had some musical background and experience, and he adjusted the level of instruction so I felt comfortable taking lessons again. After hearing me play the piano and listening to some of my concerns about my ability to play pieces after my hand surgery, George taught me techniques to further my finger dexterity and he made me more aware about relaxing my hands so I could enjoy the piano and further develop my skills in playing. He has been very patient and encouraging, and he seems to know when to challenge me. Besides instructing me on music theory, he shows me how to analyze a new piece and different ways to practice to improve my skills. He also shares historical knowledge about composers, music, and the piano.
On top of George’s wealth of musical knowledge and his talent as a pianist, George has worked with a team to develop software to help students learn to play a variety of pieces. He has taught me how to use this program, which has helped me tremendously in furthering my skills in playing the piano.
George is very dedicated to helping others enjoy music and play pieces to the best of their ability. He is thoughtful and adapts his lessons to his students, their interests, and their abilities. His lessons are fun and I look forward to continuing our work to improve my ability as a pianist.
We believe passionately that piano teachers change the world through their dedication to students and communities. Our Power of a Piano Teacher campaign shares personal tributes to document the extraordinary contributions of piano teachers. We welcome you to celebrate your teacher and share your tribute with us by making a donation to the Frances Clark Center. Together, we will further amplify the meaningful work of our noble profession.
QUICK LINKS FOR NCKP 2023: THE PIANO CONFErENCE
REGISTER: Register for the conference. Full, online-only, student, and single-day registrations available!
Check out Anna Beth Rucker’s presentation at the NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference online event,How to Choose and Use Sight-Reading Apps to Enhance Student Learning Experience, on June 11, 2023 from 4:30-4:55PM. There’s still time to Register for NCKP 2023!
In recent years, sight-reading apps have quickly populated app stores and captured the minds of young learners. Not only are children more adept at using technology than ever before, they are drawn to interactive learning experiences. As teachers, this presents a motivating opportunity; however, effectively incorporating a new software into your studio can be overwhelming. With a tight teaching schedule, a flood of apps to choose from, and a studio of unique students to consider, where do you start? This post will provide a step-by-step guide for successfully incorporating a sight-reading app into your studio.
Step 1: Choose the Right App
The first step is to choose the app that is right for you and your students. To simplify this process, Irem Ozay and I are presenting a session titled, “How to Choose and Use Sight-Reading Apps” at the NCKP 2023 online conference. During the session, we will provide a breakdown of the six most useful sight-reading apps that will include their pros, cons, and features. In just twenty minutes, we will share everything you need to know to make an informed decision in choosing an app that aligns with your teaching goals and studio needs. You can register for the conference here.
Pro tip: If you aren’t able to make our session live, it will be archived until September 10, 2023 on the conference platform.
Step 2: Implement the App
1. Download and Test the App
While the initial steps of choosing and downloading the app may seem obvious, don’t overlook the significance of thoroughly exploring the app yourself. It’s crucial that you develop a complete understanding of the app, such as:
All the settings options
How it sequences lessons or exercises
What the student experience will be while using the app (and therefore what are reasonable expectations of use for the student)
The means of teacher involvement
If there are extra requirements for use (such as a MIDI-enabled keyboard) and how to set those up within and outside of the app
Billing procedures (where applicable)
Conducting thorough due diligence at this stage will make the rest of the implementation steps much easier.
2. Determine How You Will Use It in Your Studio
Next, it’s important to think about the logistics of incorporating the app into your studio. Will your students have a copy at home, or will you only have a copy at your studio? Further, determine when students will be expected to use the app: throughout the week, before lessons, during lessons, or at group classes. If you plan to use it in a group setting, will you need the app downloaded on multiple devices or will students each need to bring their own device? Plan to verify that your students have devices that meet the minimum device requirements for the app, and develop a contingency plan for any students who do not.
Deciding how you plan to use the software within your studio will enable you to make efficient decisions for a quick implementation and to allocate time within your curriculum and lessons that utilizes the app to its full potential.
3. Decide How to Manage Costs
Regardless of the payment structure within the app, you will need to decide how to manage the fees. You may choose to consider it part of your students’ tuition, add it into your yearly studio book fee, or have the parents pay for it directly through the app.
Make sure parents are aware of the fee associated with the app, as well as how adding the app to your instructional plan will add long-term benefits and trackable progress to their child’s piano education.
4. Communicate with Parents
Clear communication with parents and students is the key to maximizing app effectiveness. For parents, make sure they understand the benefit of the sight-reading app and how it will serve to enhance their child’s learning experience. You can do this by explaining how the app integrates into your teaching philosophy and why you have determined it is a beneficial addition to your curriculum. Inform them of the billing information, the expectation of use throughout the week, and a few instructions on how to technically support their child while using the app. You may also provide for them a written version of these instructions, with links to appropriate app support pages for additional technical assistance. Remember to regularly update parents on their child’s progress—many apps make this easy through gamification and milestone settings. And, of course, address any questions or concerns parents may have throughout the process.
5. Communicate with Students
Lastly, dedicate time to familiarize your students with the app and clearly communicate your expectations. While this may initially take time away from other lesson activities, it is absolutely critical students understand the app and your expectations of use in order for them to receive the maximum benefits. The progress they will make will far outweigh the time invested in the initial setup. During this onboarding process, explain how you plan to use the app in their lessons or home practice, how often they are expected to use it, how to navigate the app, and how and when you will be tracking their progress. Encourage them to explore the app and to have fun! Your enthusiasm and support during these early stages will influence their attitude as they adapt to this new learning tool.
If you take the time to implement a sight-reading app into your studio following these steps, you will experience a seamless addition of a powerful new teaching tool in your studio and will be well on your way to seeing the objective, trackable progress sight-reading apps are able to provide. Happy sight reading!
QUICK LINKS FOR NCKP 2023: THE PIANO CONFERENCE
REGISTER: Register for the conference. Full, online-only, student, and single-day registrations available!
Don’t miss Shuk-Ki Wong’s presentation at NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference online event,Embracing Diversity in Your Studio: A Pedagogical Exploration of Underrepresented Chinese Keyboard Literature, on June 10, 2023 from 4:30-4:55PM. There’s still time to Register for NCKP 2023!
1. Only 1.77% of scheduled pieces in concert halls were composed by Asian composers.
Despite efforts to diversify music and concert programming, works of long-deceased white male composers still make up 76.4% in 2021-2022 season programming in concert halls around the globe.1 While there is marginal improvement in the representation of Black and women composers (with 3.39% and 7.7% of the 20,400 works performed respectively), Asian composers only comprise 1.77%––a total of 361 works were presented on stage last year. Such data shows the urgency to accelerate change by actively boosting diversity and inclusion in our studio and programming.
Fig. 1. Total number of scheduled pieces in 2021-2022 concert halls. Data from Equality & Diversity in Global Repertoire, a report published by Donne––Women in Music in 2022.
2. Learning diverse repertoire is an enriching musical experience that sparks creativity and collaboration with students.
As the student population continues to become more diverse, it is critical to support our learners by providing an enriching musical experience that connects students’ upbringing, as well as their rich, unique musical cultures. The perpetual foreign stereotype of Asian Americans has not only caused identity denial in Asian students, but also contributes to the invisibility of such a student body. Being open-minded and accepting of Asian repertoire can transform our studio into a creative space for interactive music activities while embracing diverse cultures. For instance, imitating Asian musical instruments on the piano and experimenting with simple music writing with non-Western notation systems are great ways to (re)introduce the richness and significance of Asian musical cultures to our students.
3. Asian student-musicians may face more barriers in classical music than you think.
The deep-rooted model minority stereotypes of Asian and Asian-identified students create a number of obstacles in music learning. In addition to emotional distress, invalidation of achievements, and conflicts with peers and family members, such misconceptions may also lead to the neglect of musical development and limitations to resource access. For instance, students may be falsely assumed to understand musical concepts faster, come from a background with economic advantage, and face less systemic racism and discrimination.2 An initial step to embracing Asian repertoire is a powerful agent for social change while elevating Asian and Asian-identified students.
4. Diversifying standard repertoire does more beyond connecting minority students.
While we witness the power of introducing refreshing repertoire in the connection and growth in students, such endeavors foster belongingness in our students, especially pianists in the historically marginalized community. All young musicians need a safe musical space that embraces their backgrounds and identities. They also need to see themselves in this deep-seated, white-centric classical music world. Not only can diversifying standard repertoire reaffirm the uniqueness of our diverse students, but also uplift and empower students of color while enabling other learners to recognize the artistic values of musical works beyond tradition.
5. Yes, we really can make a difference in our students!
Never underestimate the impact an inclusive and comprehensive teaching approach can have on our students––it is far beyond just learning new and diverse repertoire. We expose our students to diverse music, equip them necessary skills to navigate this fast-growing multicultural society, and create awareness of diverse cultures while advocating for marginalized populations through our studio. We can and we are making a difference!
QUICK LINKS FOR NCKP 2023: THE PIANO CONFERENCE
REGISTER: Register for the conference. Full, online-only, student, and single-day registrations available!
“Equality & Diversity in Global Repertoire,” Equality & Diversity in Global Repertoire (Donne, Women in Music, September 2022), https://donne-uk.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Donne-Report-2022.pdf.
Angela Kim and Christine J. Yeh, “Stereotypes of Asian American Students,” Stereotypes of Asian American students (The Educational Resources Information Center, February 2002), https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED462510.pdf.
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, an executive for an American company, brought the young León and his family to the U.S. León was raised between San Francisco, California, and New Jersey, where he took his first piano lessons. During his early years and young adulthood, he studied at The Juilliard School under the guidance of Carl Friedberg, once a student of Clara Schumann.
Jaime León in 1928.
Carl Friedberg (1872-1955)
Jaime León in 1948.
2. León’s music was influenced by American music from the first half of the twentieth century.
While working at Tin Pan Alley and Broadway in the 1940s, León was fond of the rhythms of other styles such as swing, blues, and boogie-woogie. Moreover, his music developed a deeply lyrical quality inspired by his appreciation of Gershwin’s songs. He started writing music in 1946 when he composed a theme and variations work inspired by Brahms’s Variations on a Theme by Schumann, Opus 23. His output includes many art songs, which are widely regarded as examples of his excellent craftsmanship.
3. León’s career in the US was varied and extensive.
He worked as a freelance repetiteur and conductor of ballet, opera, and music-hall in New York and Texas. His achievements included being the Assistant Conductor of the American Ballet Theater in Washington D.C. where he premiered Duke Ellington’s ballet The River in 1971. In 1948, he assumed the role of Director at the National Conservatory in Colombia, but political unrest forced him to leave the same year.
Jaime León as a conductor in the pit, 1950.
“Blues” from Made in USA , Jaime León
4. León’s piano music remains unpublished and is seldom performed.
Despite his brevity, his output skillfully blends American vernacular and academic languages, influenced by composers such as Gershwin, Copland, Piston, and Cole Porter.
5. The Five Preludes “Made in U.S.A.” were premiered by the dedicatee, Teresa Gomez, the first Afro-Colombian pianist.
Despite confronting racism in the early stages of her career, Gomez has been hailed as one of the most renowned South American pianists and was chosen to play in the last presidential inauguration in July 2022.
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 of human expression, and to be able to play it means participating in that communication. As much as writing or mathematics, music represents a special form of literacy with its own repertoire of emotional and intellectual content. Perhaps as in no other discipline, to study music is to study a truly universal language, one that illuminates our culture as it connects us with other people and other times. It’s no wonder, then, that the understanding of music and the ability to play it have long been regarded as marks of a well-educated individual, as much as music itself is the mark of civilization. It’s in this context — the pursuit of the best possible education — that a sequential, balanced, comprehensive program of music study belongs.”1
On the Survival of Music
“All that’s new today is that change is occurring faster, the list of activities that compete for a student’s time is longer and family life as we once knew it has changed. But music is tough stuff. Piano students have survived all these changes; piano study has survived all this competition. Piano teachers must be a tough breed, too, for they have survived as well.”2
On the Philosophy of Teaching
“A philosophy of piano pedagogy is the piano teacher’s most valuable possession. And because it is so valuable, we need to take time out at regular intervals to reevaluate it. Occasionally we also need to put it into words. Then, in the privacy of our own studios, we need to ask ourselves, ‘Is that what I demonstrated, what I used, what I lived when I taught today?’ And we need to ask whether we are working with a student who is preparing to play a concerto with an orchestra or with a young beginner, with a student whose musicianship exceeds his technique or one whose technique outruns his musical understanding. With each of these students, and with all the others, do we really live what we say we believe about piano teaching?”3
On Being a Successful Teacher
“If they continue not only to play music they studied with you but to explore other music; if they are part of the musical life of their communities; if they attend concerts; if, when they have children of their own, they encourage them to study piano, not because it’s the thing to do, but because they want their children to have the same musical experience they remember with such pleasure — then I think we can assume, without any reasonable doubt, that you have been a successful teacher.”4
On Teaching Piano Pedagogy
“As piano pedagogy teachers we need to be able to verbalize our philosophy and we need to be able to demonstrate it with beginners, with intermediate students, and with students who are advanced… But being a good model is only half the pedagogy teacher’s job. The other part is equally important. Can we sit back and watch objectively when the student-teacher takes over? Can we give ourselves completely to the observation, refraining from interrupting when things go less smoothly than we could make them go? And in our conference after the observed lesson, can we avoid judgmental evaluation, using instead questions that lead the student-teacher to his own awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of his teaching?”5
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 motivations for adult piano students (P. J. Jutras, 2006; Kim, 2015; Parker, 2006; Polischuk, 2019; Uszler et al., 1999). Many career-aged adult piano learners delay piano study for different reasons, and they will often wait patiently until their life is ready. Common factors that affect their decision to learn include finding enough time to practice, having the physical space for a piano, and mental readiness.
2. They are self-motivated.
Adult learners are self-motivated and self-directed in their learning. While many young learners have extrinsic pressure and expectations from their parents and others (Fisher, 2010; Polischuk, 2019; Uszler et al., 1999), adults are more intrinsically motivated. Adult piano learners want to improve their piano playing with different goals in mind. Most of their motivations are internal, including the desire for a better quality of life, greater self-confidence, and self-actualization.
3. They like to make conscious and meaningful decisions in their learning.
Career-aged adult piano learners like to learn at their own pace, preferring an individualized curriculum with repertoire that they want to learn. They learn better when the lesson style is customized to fit their needs (MacKeracher, 2004). This means it is important for teachers and students to discuss method books and repertoire choices to create an engaging learning environment (Coutts, 2018; Mizok-Taylor, 2008).
4. They acknowledge the challenges of being an adult learner.
Career-aged adult piano learners acknowledge their mental and physical difficulties while learning and practicing the piano. Feeling mental frustration and discomfort in practice is a common issue for them. However, they are also able to recognize that frustration comes from their own self-judgment. They often hear their own “inner critic,” feel self-conscious, and have negative self-judgments while learning the piano. (Bissell, 1984; Fisher, 2010).
In addition to mental discomfort, career-aged adult piano learners may also experience physical challenges, including feeling a lack of coordination when playing the piano. Many piano educators also believe adults need more time to transfer theoretical knowledge into physical playing energy (Fisher, 2010; Kim, 2015; Polischuk, 2019; Uszler et al., 1999). Hand-eye coordination and the cognitive process of learning to read music are also common challenges adults may experience (Kim, 2015). This lack of coordination can cause career-aged adult piano learners to feel self-conscious and frustrated. The discomfort for adult piano learners is both mental and physical, and often mental aspects will influence physical aspects and vice versa.
5. They feel joy and make meaningful connections between music and life.
Despite the challenges of learning piano, career-aged adult piano learners enjoy playing music and having music in their lives. They find that being able to play music is meaningful and gives them a sense of joy. Sharing music with others and making social connections can also bring them joy. Many educators believe that music is a leisure activity, and adult students enjoy the social opportunity to interact and share music with others (Fisher, 2010; Kronish, 2005; McQueen, 2013; Polischuk, 2019; Uszler et al., 1999).
SOURCES Bissell, P. M. (1984). “Group Keyboard and the Adult Market.” American Music Teacher, 34(1), 12–17.
Coutts, L. (2018). “Selecting Motivating Repertoire for Adult Piano Students: A Transformative Pedagogical Approach.” British Journal of Music Education, 35(3), 285–299. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0265051718000074.
Fisher, C. (2010). “Group Piano and the Adult Hobby Student.” In Teaching Piano in Groups (pp. 189–211). Oxford University Press.
Jutras, P. (2006). “The Benefits of Adult Piano Study as Self-Reported by Selected Adult Piano Students.” Journal of Research in Music Education, 54(2), 97–110. https://doi.org/10.1177/002242940605400202
Kim, K. R., Peter Jutras, Seon Joo. (2015). “Adult perspectives of learning musical instruments”— Kathryn Roulston, Peter Jutras, Seon Joo Kim, 2015. International Journal of Music Education, 33(3). http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0255761415584291
Kronish, N. B. (2005). “Social, cultural, and psychological influences on three promising piano students’ decisions to continue taking piano lessons” [Ph.D., McGill University (Canada)]. http://search.proquest.com/docview/305364045/abstract/173826EAF88C45AEPQ/12
MacKeracher, D. (2004). Making Sense of Adult Learning. University of Toronto Press Incorporated.
McQueen, M. V., Susan Hallam, Andrea Creech, Hilary. (2013). “Different ways of experiencing music-making in later life: Creative music sessions for older learners in East London” – Maria Varvarigou, Susan Hallam, Andrea Creech, Hilary McQueen, 2013. Research Studies in Music Education, 35(1). http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1321103X13478863
Mizok-Taylor, R. J. (2008). “Promoting self-directed learning in adult piano instruction” [D.M.A., West Virginia University]. http://search.proquest.com/docview/304448652/abstract/B327D2A3DC5F4856PQ/1
Parker, E. (2006). Piano Pedagogy: A Practical Approach. Longbow Pub
Polischuk, D. K. (2019). “Teaching Adult Pianists.” In Transformational Piano Teaching (pp. 21– 35). Oxford University. Uszler, M., Gordon, S., & McBride-Smith, S. (1999). “The Adult Student.” In The Well-Tempered Keyboard Teacher (2nd ed. edition, pp. 147–179). Schirmer.
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 training and without developing singing, reading and dictating to the highest level along with the playing is to build upon sand.”1 To develop singing and reading, Kodály wrote a book of sequential solfege exercises titled 333 Elementary Exercises in Solfege Singing.2
2. Use Folk Music
Kodály educator Jean Sinor said that “Content [of music education] should be generated by the music: initially by the folk music of the people and later by the folk music of other peoples and the finest examples of composed music.”3 Folk music is effective because of its familiarity and simplicity, and the use of varied folk music from different regions can greatly enhance piano lessons.
“Children learn effectively from the act of play.”
~ L. S. Vygotsky
3. Speak
Kodály educators use rhythm syllables and chants as a kinesthetic tool to help students internalize a steady beat and rhythm. The Kodály Music Education Institute of Australia published their helpful Rhythm Syllable Chart4 in 2003.
4. Play
Children learn effectively from the act of play.5 Music lessons that incorporate games and music are not only more fun, but often more effective. The following three websites have resources for Kodály-inspired music games:
Provide an opportunity in every lesson for beautiful music-making. Whether playing or singing, students need the opportunity to participate in ensemble music and in music for music’s sake. As Kodály said, “If we ourselves sing often, this provides a deep experience of happiness in music. Through our own musical activities, we learn to know the pulsation, rhythm, and shape of melody. The enjoyment given encourages the study of instruments and the listening to other pieces of music as well.”6
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 the coming weeks.
Do you have any advice for avoiding burnout? Or recovering from it? The last few years have been so intense as a teacher and I feel tired! But I still love my students and want to give them my best.
It’s a good question. It’s an important question, because we work too hard. We’ve got too many students, we don’t have enough time for ourselves or our families. And my first answer is to take a hard look at your schedule. Is there any time that you reserve for yourself? Even five or ten minutes in your schedule that’s just for you? A sure, clear road to teacher burnout is never having any time for yourself.
I think another way to avoid teacher burnout is to find some beautiful music and listen to it or play it for yourself. And if you don’t sight read well enough to play advanced repertoire, find some beautiful music at your students’ levels. And you play those just as beautifully as you possibly can.
It may seem a little bit off the tangent from our topic of teacher burnout, but I would urge you to do a little bit of evaluation of some of your lessons. For most of my life, I taught piano pedagogy on a college level. And I had a favorite way to start the first pedagogy class out with these students. I would say, “We’re here to learn piano pedagogy. We’re going to teach music principles to young, beginning piano students.” Then I’d say, “But, before we can do that, we ought to define what music is. What is music?” And I would just stop there, and let them discuss for a while. And they would argue this side and that side, this idea versus that idea. And usually the definition would turn out to be something like, “music is expression.” I would say, “In a way, that’s almost enough. Music is expression. But, I need you to go on and finish that. What is it that music is expressing?” And with a little bit of work playing devil’s advocate, the class would come up with a definition. It varied a bit from year to year, but always landed around, “Music is the expression of the entire human experience through organized sound.”
Marvin teaching a student.
Now I say that because I think it can help with our issue of teacher burnout. If we would ask ourselves at the end of the day, or at the end of a lesson, “Did I teach music lessons?” We might say, “Well, that lesson had the main emphasis on technique, or that lesson had the main emphasis on rhythm. Or, in that lesson, I spent most of my time labeling harmonies and naming harmony.” And I would say the most exciting for us as teachers is actually when we work on expression. Music is expression. We feel like we’re really music teachers when we emphasize that, and the students get fired up because they’re playing their pieces more beautifully, or more excitingly, etc. Getting our students fired up to make beautiful sound is one way to avoid teacher burnout.
Another thing that you could do to avoid teacher burnout is to take a piano lesson. It could be an esteemed teacher in your community. It could be just a colleague in your teachers group. But play for somebody, take a lesson. And it’s not just that you play through the piece, but solicit comments on your playing. That can just give you lots of new life and a new zest in your step about your playing.
What is your favorite piece to perform? To teach?
I’m not sure. I play quite regularly and I’m working right now on repertoire to play on my 90th birthday. Isn’t that shocking? I’m planning to play a recital on my 90th birthday! And I have the recital picked out, I’m practicing on that, and I’m enjoying that so much.
A lot of times I start out recitals with this Schumann Romance. And then Schubert Impromptu in G-flat Major. So those over the years have become some of my favorite pieces.
What’s my favorite piece to teach? I’m not sure that I have necessarily a favorite piece to teach. But I will tell you that I’ve tried to get every student up to the level where they can play Solfeggietto. I just find so much value in that piece. So, I try to get everybody to play it, and then we have fun trying to see how fast we can get the speed on it. It’s just a fantastic technical piece.
What advice do you have for people who are still learning the craft?
I, and I’m sure many of you, learned most through the school of hard knocks. We taught, we evaluated ourselves, and we learned. We made some mistakes, so we revised and relearned. I think most piano teachers will tell you that they learned the most from their own teaching and evaluation. Of course, some of us were lucky enough to have good pedagogy courses. And that can be very, very helpful.
So, how do teachers learn? I would say, first of all, you learn how to teach by playing the piano. And what you experience is what you share with your students.
Another thing that helps us improve our teaching is to read new music, and then say, “How would I introduce this piece? What are the highlights of this piece? What are the important things?” In other words, you must analyze. That’s an important teacher skill.
Another way to improve your craft is to record your lessons, or even just one or two lessons, listen, then ask yourself, “Was that a music lesson?” Remember our definition of music? Music is the expression of the entire human experience through organized sound. Every part of that definition is to be evaluated when you listen to your recording. Music is the expression—was there an emphasis in your teaching on what that music expresses? Music is an expression of the entire human experience—what mood, what emotion? What human experience was expressed? Was it joy, sadness, loss, frustration, anger, remorse?
One other thing that helps me teach a better lesson is to write out a lesson plan for every lesson so I know what’s going to happen. At the top of the lesson plan, I write the acronym: TERRAC. T stands for technique. E stands for expression. The first R is reading. The second R is rhythm. A is aural skills. C is creativity. These are aspects that I incorporate into each lesson plan so that I’m sure that I’m teaching the students a well-rounded lesson. That can help tremendously in improving your teaching.
What is something you’ve learned in the last year that has changed your teaching?
I’m constantly reminded of the infinite potential of every one of my students. I have come to believe that each student has the potential for being a young artist. And if I start my work with a student with the attitude in mind, “I believe in you and your artistic potential,” that really is tremendously helpful.
In 2023, the Frances Clark Center established the Marvin Blickenstaff Institute for Teaching Excellence in honor of his legacy as a pedagogue. This division of The Frances Clark Center encompasses inclusive teaching programs, teacher education, courses, performance, advocacy, publications, research, and resources that support excellence in piano teaching and learning. To learn more about the Institute, please visit this page. We invite you to make a donation in honor of Marvin’s 88th birthday.
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 your technique videos on PianoInspires.com! I use your exercises with all of my students. My question is: how do you encourage students to spend so much of their practice time on technical skills? How do you teach them to stay focused and to enjoy the process?
I try to point out to my students that one of the issues that we face when we’re studying piano is developing the technique that is necessary to play the repertoire at hand. And with that, I place a great deal of emphasis in my lessons on warmups. Athletes warm up, dancers warm up, and piano students warm up. The bottom line of warming up is to stimulate blood circulation in the playing mechanism—the hands and the arms. Along with that, I have two important things that I try to stress with all my students and illustrate in their warm ups: stretching and rotations. They are such an emphasis in my work with my students that I joke with them that I’m sure that when I die, they will have inscribed on my gravestone, “Here lies piano teacher Marvin Blickenstaff. May he stretch and rotate in peace.”
So I think warm ups are very important. It might be possible to over-emphasize technique and the warm up in lessons, but what we’re doing is preparing the student for the rest of their piano life. So I don’t apologize very much for having six or seven different technical exercises that they are to practice as part of their work every day.
In order to get students invested in their work on technique I try to be very, very aware of pointing out how much their hand is improving, how much the sound is improving, and how much their coordination skills are improving so that they can see that the technique work is paying off.
In summary, every minute that we spend in the lesson on technical exercises, and every minute that the students spend at home on technical exercises, ultimately pays off. Now, that’s not as much fun as learning a new piece or playing a recital piece, but you can’t play your pieces effectively if you don’t have enough technique. And I try to emphasize to my students that growth in piano playing is directly related to how you start to practice every afternoon.
Marvin celebrating his student
What is the first thing you say to a new student?
I think it’s important for piano students to hear from a piano teacher that they feel privileged to have this relationship and this experience of learning about music together. You’ll have your own words to communicate that. But, it’s not that I’m the big authority, you’re the little student, and you have to do exactly what I tell you to. Rather, it’s very important for piano teachers to cultivate the attitude that this is a partnership and we’re working together to make beautiful music.
Additionally, we have to hook our students into the excitement of playing the piano. How? Through sound. That’s why when students come for their first lesson, I try to play a few bars of different kinds of pieces, because it’s so interesting for a student to hear such contrasting sounds. And I say, “I am so glad that we have this opportunity to learn how to play the piano together. We’ll learn quiet pieces, we’ll learn fast pieces. We’ll learn hopping and jumping pieces, and we’ll learn dancing pieces.” Hook the student on sound and they will be excited to learn.
Have you ever struggled with students who weren’t interested in taking piano lessons but had parents who signed them up anyway? How do you get that student excited about music learning?
Once again, I would say you hook the student on sound. And you pull out all of your pupil saver pieces—the pieces that are kind of easy to learn, but have a great sound to them. Richard Chronister was a colleague of Frances Clark and Louise Goss, founder of Keyboard Companion and the National Conference on Piano Pedagogy (now NCKP: The Piano Conference), and a major force of 20th-century piano pedagogy. He always used to say that piano students come to us for one reason only: to play exciting sounds at the keyboard. I try to really ingest that into my pedagogical being. Why are students here? They want to play exciting sound, whether it’s quiet, loud, fast, or slow.
“I think it’s important for piano students to hear from a piano teacher that they feel privileged to have this relationship and this experience of learning about music together.”
There are two files of pieces that I would urge you to start in your studio. One is “beautiful pieces,” and the other is “pupil savers” (a term from Louise Bianchi in Texas). Pupil savers are pieces that are easy to learn, but have great sound.
So, what do you do with a disinterested student? You hook them with the repertoire. And you don’t work so much on technical exercises. Instead, you work on beautiful pieces (pupil savers, perhaps) that they will really enjoy.
What is a favorite performance memory?
Last summer I played a recital at Goshen College where I taught for 20 years in Indiana. That was really well-tested repertoire and I had a wonderful piano to play on. I thought all during that recital, “What a privilege to play this music on this piano for old friends.” Years ago, I was invited to play a concerto with the North Carolina symphony. It was not a very good choice, but I decided that I would learn the Samuel Barber Concerto for Piano. That’s a tough tune. That performance is one of my least favorite memories of a performance, because it was really a rough performance and the orchestra and I kind of fought our way to the end. But actually, four nights later, I played the same concerto, same orchestra, in my hometown in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and it went really well. And it was almost like I had to go through the fires of hell in order to reach Nirvana. And it was just such fun to play the Barber concerto with an orchestra. So we have different experiences with performances, but we go on.
I have a student who really struggles with memorizing music. We have tried all kinds of exercises, tips, and tricks, but they are quite discouraged despite my encouragement. What advice would you give them… and me?
The issue boils down to the fact that students think that memory is just to train the fingers in muscle memory, and there’s a big missing link there. The students who rely solely on muscle memory do not have a mental concept of how the piece is constructed. So one of my goals for my students is to do more labeling and analysis. We piano teachers must do a much better and more thorough job of helping our students name what they play. If you can name what you play, you probably have it memorized. So for most students, if there’s a memory issue, I think it’s because they don’t know what they’re playing.
When my students are memorizing pieces, we establish three memory checkpoints on each page. The goal is that they can start cold at any number. Go back to number two, jump ahead to number five. And boy, if you can start your piece at all those memory checkpoints, you have your piece very well memorized.
I would also say that along with the memory checkpoints, you should be able to articulate the reason that a spot is a memory checkpoint (such as, that’s where you play the D major chord in your left hand).
Marvin with Dr. Sara Ernst at NCKP 2019
So I think that labels and memory checkpoints are really the answer for memory problems. The great American pianist Josef Hoffman said that there are actually four ways to practice a piece. One way is that you play the piece at the piano looking carefully at the score. Then, you play your piece at the piano without the score (from memory). The third way to practice a piece is to sit away from the piano with the music in your hand, looking at the score and hearing the music. And the fourth way– which I think is just an incredible memory check– is to sit away from the piano, close your eyes, and see your hands playing the piece on the keyboard. It’s so helpful. Actually, it’s my favorite way of checking memory when I’m getting ready for a performance. And when I’m falling asleep at night!
Coming soon: Q&A with Marvin Blickenstaff: Part 2 where Marvin answers more of your questions!
In 2023, the Frances Clark Center established the Marvin Blickenstaff Institute for Teaching Excellence in honor of his legacy as a pedagogue. This division of The Frances Clark Center encompasses inclusive teaching programs, teacher education, courses, performance, advocacy, publications, research, and resources that support excellence in piano teaching and learning. To learn more about the Institute, please visit this page. We invite you to make a donation in honor of Marvin’s 88th birthday.
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 North Carolina at Chapel Hill to study with her good friend from Indiana University for my master’s degree. He was a new young teacher, Marvin Blickenstaff, who had just joined the faculty there. We didn’t have the internet or publicity booklets from the department, but everything I heard sounded wonderful.
My audition date finally arrived in December 1971. The scuttlebutt had alerted me to the fact that noted pianist and author William S. Newman was on the musicology/piano faculty there and that I would need to play by ear for him in my interview and that Marvin Blickenstaff was debonair and handsome, and also a very kind individual. My interest was piqued. In preparation for the audition on that day, I warmed up on the stage of Hill Hall, working simultaneously to bolster my confidence. During some moments of concentrated warm up, the sought-after teacher himself walked briskly down the center aisle toward me and introduced himself. Yes, it was Marvin Blickenstaff, kind, affirming and encouraging, but absolutely nothing like I expected from the person I requested to be my next teacher. He turned out to be a pivotal piano instructor for me!
Marvin is a person with such a large heart, still capable of giving unimaginable inspiration to a piano student of any age, to piano teachers everywhere, to colleagues, or to anyone who needs a pep talk.
That day Mr. Blickenstaff and the other two male faculty, all three young and engaging, made me feel quite welcome, and Dr. Newman asked me to play “Home on the Range” in A-flat during my graduate school interview. Thus began a long and life-changing relationship with Mr. Blickenstaff and Dr. Newman, in the fall of 1972.
As an applied piano student between fall 1972 and spring of 1974, my lessons were filled with dedicated and inspired teaching, concern for my total well-being as well as my playing, laughter, a lot of detailed teaching, and a focus on listening, technique, and tone. At that juncture in time, Marvin was a young graduate of the Indiana University School of Music. My first semester repertoire was huge, I seem to remember it consisting of two full recital programs. All I knew was that it was a lot, and was I ever motivated. He held us to the highest artistic standards, and we rose to meet the bar he set.
He was motivated too, along with us. He taught long hours, and numerous extra lessons. We reveled in his discussions of Brahms’ piano music and Beethoven sonatas. His students became his family, and he and his wife, Sara Faye, treated us to dinners and parties in their lovely home. Our studio bonded, and many of us have remained close to this day, even after we spread all over the country.The Blickenstaffs lived close to campus, and it worked well for Marvin to ride his bicycle to school and back home each day, even on those dark nights after recitals and his late-night practicing. He was committed to his health, but even more committed to his students. For much of the time I knew him, the hour of his studio class was on “Friday at 4” and the meeting was set in stone, the highlight of our piano weeks. We loved playing for each other and grew to support our colleagues unconditionally.
An important message that I received from Marvin and his two equally engaging piano faculty colleagues was the importance of collegiality among a piano faculty. He, Michael Zenge, and Francis Whang were mutually supportive of each others’ playing and of all students within the piano department. It made for a strong and healthy model of collegial support among faculty members at a college or university, that permeated all three of the studios and the students’ philosophies as they eventually moved on and grew into faculty members and opened independent piano studios.
Marvin’s faculty recitals were “the” event of the season for his students and the piano community in Chapel Hill at large. Marvin walked briskly onto stage in a recital, smiling and greeting everyone warmly. His playing had them in the palm of his hands at the end of the first two lines of whatever was programmed. Listening to him play, one lost track of time in his beautiful and gripping performances! As you probably know by now, he still has the movie-star-like persona and presence.
In Chapel Hill, North Carolina I also had the chance to listen on occasion to his conversations with his inspiring colleagues Lynn Freeman Olson and Louise Bianchi as they wrote their legendary piano method Music Pathways.
Marvin Blickenstaff
I heard about the reading approach they used, their counting system, the off-the-bench activities they created for the children. What a distinguished trio of educators creating educational materials during their formative years! Thank you, Marvin, for sharing so much of yourself with all of us as students.
That was over forty years ago! Marvin moved away from Chapel Hill and continued to teach at Goshen College in Indiana. As that transition occurred, I came to know him as a quintessential workshop presenter. In essence, he was evolving into a national teacher of teachers, inspiring hundreds in his workshops—and there, too, he provided a strong influence on so many of us. It was his habit to stay in close touch with all of us, talking by phone, inspiring us, reminding us to be dedicated and work hard—as he always set the highest bar for all of us, all the while teaching a full load. Each year around Christmas, he would send a multi-page, inter-generational studio newsletter catching everyone up on his students and our colleagues’ “comings and goings.” It became a highlight of the season, catching up on the families, performances, locales, high and low points, and pulling us together still again as dedicated young professionals, now striving to make a difference in our own students’ lives. One could never have asked for a better role model.
As a teacher to this day, Marvin is a person with such a large heart, still capable of giving unimaginable inspiration to a piano student of any age, to piano teachers everywhere, to colleagues, or to anyone who needs a pep talk. His teaching, mentorship, and love for his students, colleagues, and for teachers throughout the profession is legendary. Dare I say thousands of teachers and students have been touched in the most positive ways by his kindness, thoughtfulness, talent, and selfless giving. Thank you, dear Marvin for being you and for nurturing the largest circle of friends, teachers, students, and colleagues imaginable throughout this country and all over the world! Thank you for always caring. And by the way, I imagine you probably still ride your bike daily, and I know you still practice late at night.
In 2023, the Frances Clark Center established the Marvin Blickenstaff Institute for Teaching Excellence in honor of his legacy as a pedagogue. This division of The Frances Clark Center encompasses inclusive teaching programs, teacher education, courses, performance, advocacy, publications, research, and resources that support excellence in piano teaching and learning. To learn more about the Institute, please visit this page. We invite you to make a donation in honor of Marvin’s 88th birthday (May 19).
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.
Marvin Blickenstaff through the years.
Blickenstaff grew up in Nampa, Idaho and credits his teacher Fern Nolte Davidson with helping him to establish a love of music—and the piano—as a child. After completing high school, Marvin spent two years in Austria serving his church, before moving to Oberlin, OH to complete a Bachelor of Music degree from the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Following another short trip abroad, Marvin enrolled in the piano class of Béla Böszormenyi-Nagy and quickly received a Master of Music degree from Indiana University.
Marvin Blickenstaff and Sara Ernst.
In 1969, Blickenstaff was appointed to the faculty at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where he taught for nearly ten years. Among his many students were Jane Magrath, Karen Zorn, and Joel M. Harrison. In 1978, Blickenstaff moved to Goshen, Indiana, where he served as Professor of Music at Goshen College for over twenty years. While serving as a professor at Goshen College, Blickenstaff continued to maintain a robust performance schedule while also developing the Goshen College Piano Workshop, presenting at the International Workshops in Europe, and serving as an Associate Editor at Keyboard Companion and Clavier Companion.
Following his tenure at Goshen College, Blickenstaff moved to Philadelphia where he continues to reside. From 2000-2013, he served as the President of the Board of Trustees for the Frances Clark Center and has taught at the New School for Music Study since 1999.
Throughout his life, Blickenstaff has traveled throughout the world including New Zealand, Switzerland, and Austria, to perform and present workshops to teachers. Blickenstaff received one of MTNA’s highest honors—the MTNA Achievement Award—in 2009 and the Frances Clark Center’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2013. He was also inducted into Steinway & Sons’ Teacher Hall of Fame in 2019.
In 2023, the Frances Clark Center established the Marvin Blickenstaff Institute for Teaching Excellence in honor of his legacy as a pedagogue. This division of The Frances Clark Center encompasses inclusive teaching programs, teacher education, courses, performance, advocacy, publications, research, and resources that support excellence in piano teaching and learning. To learn more about the Institute and to donate, please visit this page.
In 2023, the Frances Clark Center established the Marvin Blickenstaff Institute for Teaching Excellence in honor of his legacy as a pedagogue. This division of The Frances Clark Center encompasses inclusive teaching programs, teacher education, courses, performance, advocacy, publications, research, and resources that support excellence in piano teaching and learning. To learn more about the Institute, please visit this page. We invite you to make a donation in honor of Marvin’s 88th birthday (May 19).
Dr. Curtis Pavey is a pianist, harpsichordist, and educator. A performer of works from the 16th through the 21st centuries, he feels equally at home performing or teaching at the piano and the harpsichord. He is currently based in the Cincinnati area and maintains a private piano studio.
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 version of the piece. You want your ears to absorb and be familiar with the orchestral sonority and its characters.
2. Play What You Hear, Not What You See
Remember that an orchestral reduction is the composer or arranger’s piano realization of the piece and not a complete reproduction of the original score. This requires a different approach than playing an instrumental sonata! After listening to the recording and studying the full score, try to focus on the bigger musical picture of the piece and play what you hear as the most important musical elements.
3. Keep the Rhythm (Consider Orchestral Timing vs. Pianistic Timing)
An orchestra can create a lot of rhythmic drive and energy. Remember that a pianist also represents the conductor when playing a reduction. No matter how complicated a passage is, it is important to prioritize rhythmic integrity. If you are playing with a fluctuating tempo to accommodate the difficulty of the reduction, you may consider simplifying or rearranging the reduction
4. Interpreting Orchestral Dynamics vs. Piano Dynamics
The dynamics in the reduction are relative to the full score. In order to maintain the sound and character of the orchestra, it is important to consider the orchestration when interpreting dynamics.
5. Rethink Orchestral Sonority and Clarity on the Piano
The orchestra can have a very rich and resonant sonority when the entire ensemble is playing at a strong dynamic. In order to replicate that kind of sonority on the piano, you may use the sustain pedal to help give resonance or to “moisturize” the sound in addition to playing fuller or stronger. No matter how you are using the pedal, it is important to maintain clarity and good voicing on the piano since each individual instrument has clarity in the orchestra, even when playing at a loud dynamic.
QUICK LINKS FOR NCKP 2023: THE PIANO CONFERENCE
REGISTER: Register for the conference. Full, online-only, student, and single-day registrations available!
Special thanks to Jackie Edwards-Henry (JEH) and Mary Sallee (MKS), members of the NCKP 2023 Teaching Adults committee, for this post.
Why is teaching adults important for pianists today?
JEH: Teaching adults shows us that we’re never too old to learn and experience the joy of music-making at the piano. So many adults say, “I wish my mother had never let me quit piano!” And they think the ship has sailed—it’s too late to learn to play. As teachers of adult students, we know this is a fallacy. Watching our adult students succeed at piano also teaches us life lessons—that we can still learn in the Third Age of adulthood, and that learning new skills provides physical and mental benefits.
What is something you wish every pianist knew about working with adult students?
JEH: How much shared joy is experienced by adult piano students and their facilitators! Adults are not being forced to take lessons and come to them because THEY want to learn. Once they relax into the role of learner and enjoy the process, joy is a natural bi-product. When teacher/facilitators include no-fail activities such as black-key improvisation and simple ensemble experiences, shared joy can be experienced from the very first lesson.
What is one free resource about teaching adults that you would recommend?
MKS: I will have a handout at our session, “Yes to Lead Sheets” A-chording to Adults!” that demonstrates how to turn a lead sheet of “Greensleeves” into a duet. Secondo of the duet will play their part based on the chord symbols. Teachers can see how to get their students reading chord symbols to create a free, easy duet that is perfect for friends, siblings, or family members.
What makes your track at NCKP 2023 special? Why should people attend?
MKS: Members of our committee are excited to share their heartwarming experiences of working with their adult students. They hope to inspire any novices or teachers that have not had good experiences to try some new ideas. There will be something for everyone because good teaching can be applied to any student at any level. The more ways you have to explain/present a concept to a variety of different learners, the better equipped you will be as a teacher of any student. Regardless of experience or success, we can all learn from each other. We invite participants to bring their questions and share their experiences as they join in the discussions.
What are you most excited for at NCKP 2023?
MKS: (1) To see friends and great teachers from around the country and abroad once again—IN PERSON! (2) To get some time away for “R and R” that is also tax deductible. (3) To get inspired about teaching and learn from great pedagogues—like I have for more than 35 years!
Interested in learning more about teaching adults? Attend NCKP 2023: The Piano Conference! View the NCKP 2023 schedules to explore all the Teaching Adults track sessions: online and in-person, andregister for the conference.
QUICK LINKS FOR NCKP 2023: THE PIANO CONFErENCE
REGISTER: Register for the conference. Full, online-only, student, and single-day registrations available!
