piano lessons « piano with nicole

Archive for piano lessons

our piano retreat

{ July 14, 2008 @ 2:49 am } · { piano lessons }
{ } · { Leave a Comment }

Here are some photos from the piano retreat I held Saturday at Garten’s Music. We had a lot of fun, and I’ve already had requests to do it again! A complete schedule of our activities is below.

rhythm workshop

treasure hunting

we made origami pianos!

obligatory silly photo

Piano Retreat

a fun and educational day for students in grades 2 through 6

Saturday, July 12 • 1:00 to 5:00 • Cost: $10

The retreat includes these activities:

Rhythm workshop — students will refine their rhythm skills with hands-on percussion instruments including finger cymbals, African drums, irish whistle, and accordion

Students will perform their piano pieces for one another in a Master Class

A music treasure hunt with maps, clues, and a hidden treasure

Presentations on classical composers and on the history of the piano

Collaborative improvisations — the students work as a team to create music together

Music performed by Nicole for the students during snacktime

Music theory games and more!

•

We will meet in the organ classroom (back of the store, by the music books) at Garten’s Music.

If you are interested in attending, you must RSVP with Nicole by June 21st.

_________________________________________________________________

Piano Retreat Schedule

1:00-1:15 Introductions. Students play the “interview game” which helps them get to know one another a bit.

1:15-1:45 Collaborative piece. Together we will choose a theme for our piece, and each student will compose and play their own part in a piano ensemble. If there is enough time, we will also record the piece.

1:45-2:15 Rhythm workshop. We will review basic rhythm values using percussion instruments, gradually increasing in difficulty, and then create a percussion orchestra.

2:15-2:25 Break. Restrooms, drinks, etc.

2:25-2:45 Piano Master Class. Each student performs a piece they have been studying in their lessons and receives a constructive critique from Nicole.

2:45- 3:10 “Expressions” game. The students break into teams to play a game that teaches musical expressivity–mood, emotion, atmosphere.

3:10-3:30 Snacks. The students enjoy treats and visiting with one another while Nicole performs a “mini-recital” for them.

3:30-4:00 History of the Piano Presentation . The students learn about the invention and evolution of the piano, and complete coloring pages and worksheets to go along with the presentation.

4:00-4:30 Composers Presentation. We will learn about some famous composers’ lives and listen to some of their masterpieces. We will also create drawings to go with the pieces, to represent the different kinds of sounds and instruments we hear.

4:30-4:45 Music Treasure Hunt. The students will have clues based on the new things they learned throughout the day and will work together in teams to decipher the riddles, figure out the treasure map, and find the treasure hidden somewhere in the building.

4:45-5:00 Theory games (if time) and wrapping up.

adjudicate your own playing

{ March 6, 2008 @ 2:09 am } · { piano lessons, practicing piano, recital preparation }
{ } · { Leave a Comment }

judge yourself, lest you be judged! as we approach the upcoming recital and festival dates, test and score yourself in the areas below to track your progress. pianists are typically scored in these categories for competitions and festivals, so it looks very similar to an adjudicator’s sheet. if you were the adjudicator, how would you rate yourself in each of these areas? I have also included a few questions to get you thinking………..

Polishing your piece for performance–be your own judge

● Memorization

Is your piece securely memorized? Are you able to continue playing and finish your piece even if you have a memory slip? Have you practiced “slipping” and continuing? Have you tested your memory by performing for people multiple times?

● Accuracy

Are you playing the correct notes and observing all the written details of the score?

● Tempo, meter, and rhythm

Have you settled on an appropriate tempo? Is your piece “felt” in the correct meter? Is the rhythm precise?

● Interpretation- contrast, mood, phrasing, style, expression

Is your piece convincing in its mood, atmosphere, and contrasts? Are you successfully expressing something, or are you rushing through to get finished?

● Dynamics

Are you conveying the dynamics? Do your softs sound different than your fortes?

● Pedaling

Are you using the appropriate pedaling for your piece? Is the pedaling clear and clean, or mushy?

● Touch- legato, staccato, accents

Are you observing each of these details, and any others marked in the score?

● Continuity, flow

Does the piece sound like a total work, or like a bunch of different pieces strung together? Is the piece totally steady?

● Tone- beauty, control

Is your tone wimpy or strong?

● Other- stage presence, appearance

Have you practiced walking to the piano and taking a bow in front of a mirror? Have you practiced your piece in the shoes you plan to wear for the performance? These things may seem trivial, but at the performance you will need to be confident and solely focused on the music, rather than worrying about how dorky you feel when you bow or trying to remember how exactly to walk in heels.

carving practice time into your child’s schedule

{ March 3, 2008 @ 2:34 pm } · { piano lessons, practicing piano, teaching piano }
{ } · { Comments (1) }

Hello Piano Parents! I wanted to share some ideas about how to find and schedule practice sessions into your child’s everyday life. Luckily, I came across an excellent article that articulates it better than I could, here——-> “Build a Regular Practice Schedule.”

hand positions—the good and the grotesque

{ February 21, 2008 @ 7:53 pm } · { piano lessons, practicing piano, teaching piano }
{ } · { Comments (1) }

In an earlier post, “How to encourage your child to practice the piano,” I wrote about strategies parents can use to establish a routine of consistent practicing for their children.

There are many other things you can do to make sure your child gets the most out of their practice sessions, and I will share a bunch of these as I have time to type them out. I hope to explain these clearly and practically so that even if you have absolutely no musical background you will still have a good grasp on the concepts.

The first aspect we will look at is the student’s hand position. You can easily check this at home to make sure they are on the right track. Here is what to look for:

the happy, rounded hand

This is an example of a good hand position. Notice that the joints in the fingers are bent, and the hand has a rounded shape. The wrist should be up—at least level with the knuckles, not hanging down. Many students automatically raise their shoulders at the same time they raise their wrists, so check to make sure their shoulders are in a normal, relaxed position.

bad hand #1:

Check to make sure the fingers are not flat. This flat position results in the student exerting force from the wrong part of their fingers.

bad hand #2

Yuck! Notice how the joint is caved in—-it’s going in the opposite direction that joints were meant to go. Check to make sure your child’s finger joints are not pressing in or “caving” when they play a key.

bad hand #3

Rather than having the fingers splayed upward, the student should have a relaxed hand with the fingers resting on or very close to the keys. Sometimes the fingers will go up just a little when a different finger depresses a key, and that is fine.

bad hand #4

Don’t let the wrist slouch down low as in the above photo. Ouch!

It is important for piano students to have a good, healthy hand position for several reasons–to prevent injury and repetitive strain, to enable the hands and fingers to have a range of touch from soft to loud, to keep the fingers from tiring out, to have the most control over those tiny delicate muscles as possible, to have the ability to play fast without tension, etc. It may take time to correct bad habits, but it’s worth the effort!

how to encourage your child to practice the piano

{ January 31, 2008 @ 2:36 pm } · { lessons, piano, piano lessons, practicing piano, teaching piano }
{ } · { Leave a Comment }

As a parent, there are a number of things you can do:

Most importantly, the student’s practice time should be a required part of their daily schedule (5 days per week). Just as with homework or household chores, if parents do not enforce practice as part of the daily routine, the student will probably not do it on their own.
Practice charts keep track of the student’s efforts each week. Check your child’s practice chart often to see how much time they are investing. If they do not have one, or have lost it, contact me and I will send them home with a new one.
Reward your child for practicing consistently and with a good attitude. Praise and encourage them, give them a small gift that is meaningful to them, or allow them to do some special activity they enjoy.
Sometimes it is a good idea to set up a system of privileges that the child may gain or lose, depending on how faithfully they obey your requirements to practice consistently. The privilege should be something that the child really desires.
Attend your child’s recitals. Be positive; do not criticize them.
Let your child know that you are proud of their progress and enjoy listening to them play.

I also use a number of strategies to encourage my students to practice. I am constantly searching out new pieces and new music books to find music that appeals to individual students. When the student is studying a piece they actually enjoy, they are much more likely to practice. I have found this to be the most effective motivator with my students.

Sometimes I arrange for students to play duets with friends or in ensembles. Students are always free to bring in music outside of their assigned pieces, such as pieces from movies, popular songs, or musicals. Most students excel greatly when they are assigned a “special”, exciting, difficult-sounding piece that is not in their method books.

I use incentives with some students–stickers (for younger ones), candy when certain goals have been reached, and more personalized incentives for older students. For example, I recently arranged to buy a high-school student the CD of his choice, if he completes 95-100% of his practicing goals.

Performances are also motivating to piano students, because none of them want to be embarrassed or unprepared in front of their fellow students and peers. For this reason, I notice a dramatic increase in students’ practice time in the weeks leading up to a recital or some other performance. This is a good thing!

Many piano students are also inspired by hearing the performances of more advanced students. I remember being awed by my teacher’s playing when I was a student, so I try to perform myself for my students at least once a year on a big recital.

Here is a helpful page from the Piano Education website with links to articles like “Being a Supportive Parent of a Piano Student,” “Taking an Active Role in Your Child’s Piano Training,” and “My Kid Wants to Quit Piano?!?!?”:

http://pianoeducation.org/pnotchld.html#Parent

If anyone has additional ideas, I would love to hear them!