Halloween!

We are gearing up for a Halloween mini-recital at Sunrise Assisted Living.  Creepy, spooky, mysterious and kooky music has been wafting through the studio for weeks now and it's time to let it loose.  In addition to piano, a vocal group will join us to perform their own collection of songs.  I'm looking forward to hearing what they have prepared, and always to hearing my own students perform.

Annual dilemma

We're finally back into the routine of the school year, and weekly piano lessons are part of my routine.  It's a good thing I love what I do: I'm afraid I'm not too busy yet.  I have this annual dilemma come mid-September.  Where did all the students go?  Returning students tend to trickle back.  By October, my fears are usually assuaged, but that doesn't make September any easier.

My reasoning for slow registration is simply this -- kids do too much, and parents have little time.  Of course, I allow the slow return.  The beginning of the school year is always fraught with obligations, paperwork, and deadlines.  It takes about a month to get into the flow of the new year.  Even lessons at the college do not begin until mid-September.  And this year in particular, we experienced an earthquake on the first day of school, followed by Hurricane Irene and an extra week of torrential downpours, plus all the consequential school closings.  So it's no wonder it takes a few weeks to get my school age students back at the piano.

Reading other teachers' blogs, however, I don't see my slow-registration problem to be an issue for others.  Somehow they convince their parents to register in July, and pony up the first month's tuition with the early registration.  I guess I'm just too easy on my parents.  Someday I will get tough and learn how to begin the season full steam.  But until then, mid-September will remain a bit scary for me.

(An aside.  My current students are already working on scary Halloween music for an October mini-recital.  Maybe that's what makes my mid-September so scary.)

And so it goes...

We're back.  Back from vacations at the beach, picnics in the park, baseball and hot dogs and all that summer represents.  Back to work, back to school, back to the humdrum of daily practice.  No, stop!  Did I say humdrum?  Never, never!  In fact, I have just purchased a drum, of sorts: an African sanza.  More like a drum with a keyboard.  It's a bowl carved out of wood and topped, seamlessly, with wood.  An etching of a face has been burned into the wood, holes carved as eyes, above which are 8 metal keys of different lengths, thus playing 8 different pitches.  The underside of the bowl shows a woodburning of a drum.  As a piece of primitive art, it is beautiful.  As a tonal percussion instrument, it is intriguing.  I'm not sure how I can weave it into a piano lesson, but I'm going to give it a try.

I also have a bongo drum, which, yes, I use in piano lessons.  Despite the tune "I've got rhythm, I've got music.  Who could ask for anything more?", rhythm can be a difficult concept for some folks.  Counting, clapping, using words instead of notes doesn't always cut it.  I have found, however, that beating a drum tends to break through the rhythm barrier.  Outside of lessons, it's just fun to play.

I wonder what I can do with the 2 kazoos I have by my piano?  Nothing humdrum here!

Spring Recital

It's that time of year again.  Coming to the close of the school year, the weather is clearing, and it's a rare few who want to stay inside practicing the piano.  Hence the early Spring Recital.  Too much competition with spring sports, field trips and finals, not to mention the longer, warmer days, if we put it off any later in the season.

We had our recital this past Sunday, and were blessed to have had a lousy weather day.  Cold and cloudy led to rain, and a full audience for whom to perform.  For the past ten years, I have had the honor of holding my recital in St. Anne's Church in Annapolis.  I tell my kids it's Stop #1 on the Historic Annapolis Tour, so they need to play really well -- you never know who might be walking through the church.  (I remember one Sunday a few years back when Dan Rather wandered in.)  In order to prepare for their performance, I offer one lesson at the church a few weeks before the event.  The acoustics of the church are phenomenal! The music resounds, and can be a bit overwhelming , especially for the younger musicians.  In addition, every piano "plays" a little different.  The feel is different, the action is stiffer or softer, the pedal tighter.  It's always good for the kids to experience all of this, the feel, the sound, the space, before the actual event.

This year our practice day was the Saturday before Palm Sunday.  The Flower Guild was hard at work stripping the palms for the next day services; there was a lot of commotion in the church that day.  And what a good opportunity for the performers.  Instead of playing in my home studio for me and the dog, they actually had an audience!  They were able to work out some of the willies that morning, (and the ladies of the Flower Guild appreciated the entertainment!).

Come recital day, everyone was well prepared.  These young musicians had practiced, and hard!  I had challenged each of them with music a bit beyond their level, and each rose to the occasion.  We began the program with  the most novice; she started lessons just 2 months ago.  At the other end of the spectrum, Stairway to Heaven, performed by 2 sisters, on piano and recorder, was the perfect closing piece.  I think the most poignant performance, however, occurred after the formal recital.  My youngest student, just barely 5 years old, was scheduled early in the program.  His extended family, unfortunately, arrived late and missed hearing him.  After all the commotion at the conclusion of the program, he sat down at the keyboard, his entire family, parents, grandparents,siblings, gathered around the piano and he played his 3 pieces for them.  They were so proud of him and he just glowed in all the attention.  What a heart-warming sight!

It's funny.  I get so worked up, worrying about my introduction.  But the folks in the seats are not there for me; they want to hear their children perform.  I kept my comments to a minimum and all went well.  Now we're into the last month of the piano year.  New this year, I have given each student a piece of music to teach to themselves, as I explained, to practice as if I am sitting next to them every day.  They seem to appreciate the confidence I have in them.  We'll have a soiree at the end of May to show off what they've taught themselves, and to celebrate all their accomplishments this past year.  Should be another fun event.

I'm back!!

I feel like Rip van Winkle.  I must have just woken up.  It's been 2 months, to the day, since I last updated.  Oops!


We started the new year with a new resolution, and so far we’ve stuck to it.  Congratulations! We have explored Baroque and early Classical music, in preparation for our Spring Recital, and we have made some good selections.  I am hoping each of you has at least two pieces to play; we will continue to play through more selections to make the final decision in the next few weeks.

Our Spring Recital is always a Big Event.  We are fortunate to play again this year at St. Anne’s in Annapolis.  Mark your calendar!  Sunday, May 1, with an on-site practice on Saturday, April 16.

January weather hit us hard, and who knows what February has to offer.  I need to repeat my snow policy:  I do not have one.  Please do not assume that when schools are closed, so are lessons.  Too many times the County has over reacted, and the roads are fine.  When in doubt, call.  Always call.

I know it’s cold, but we need to think about your Spring Break.   I have students from different schools, with different vacation dates.  I have worked into the piano year schedule one floating holiday, to accommodate everyone.  Please let me know in advance of your spring break plans, so I then can plan around them.  And play that piano!

Mini-Recital

Six of my younger students performed for the residents of Sunrise Assisted Living this past weekend.  After a lot of schedule changes, we were happy to be there, and the residents were happy to have us!  The recital opened with the National Anthem.  One of the gentlemen asked if they should all stand.  LOL  From there the music ranged from a spooky, well-performed Halloween selection (see previous note about schedule changes) to Jingle Bells, from Classical to Rock 'n Roll.  The kids were great.  The youngest performer, 7 years old, asked if she could play her own composition.  I admit, I was hesitant, I didn't know what to expect.  But she really wanted to play, and what a great job she did -- you could hear the Christmas bells ringing!  After performing, we shared juice and cookies with our audience.  All in all, a wonderful respite from the pre-holiday rush!

Adult soiree

Such fun!  I hosted a soiree last Sunday afternoon.  Four of my adult students participated, playing whatever they have been working on most recently.  We gathered at 4:00.  One participant was detained, so we gathered around the hors d'oevres and chatted it up a bit.  Present so far:  Phyllis, a brandie-new student to me, transferring from the credit department at the college to the non-credit department (less pressure); Olivia, a student of 3 years; Rob, whom I've been teaching for 5, maybe 6 years, his wife Katie, and Kerry, my newlywed daughter.   The Rob and Olivia played at my last adult soiree, 2 years ago.  None of us could believe it had been that long ago!  All enjoyed sharing their stories, why they are taking lessons, how long they've been playing, what they enjoy playing.  My daughter entered into the conversation as well, having played both the piano and the flute for a while when she was younger.

Jim and Frieda eventually joined us, at which point we moved to the piano to enjoy an informal performance.  I volunteered to go first.  This was new for me -- I do not perform in recitals.  After my summer camp experience, I thought I should break the ice, as it were.  I had played Confidence, one of Mendelssohn's Songs without Words, last summer, and dusted it off that morning.  I introduced my piece, talked a bit about my summer experience, what I had done, what I had learned.  Then I sat down and played.  Not flawlessly, but well enough.  One of my favorite quotes from Oprah magazine: "Strive for Excellence, not Perfection."

Phyllis volunteered to go next.  She had just finished working on Bach's Minuet in D Major.  She gave quite a good introduction, talked about Anna Magdelena Bach and her children, the Baroque era.  Finally she talked herself down enough to play.  She was nervous, but I insisted that she go on: we are not a discriminating audience, but a most appreciative group of fans.  She started hesitantly, but played on, and received a great round of applause when she finished.  She sat down and said she can now relax and enjoy the rest of the afternoon.  Her audience noted her well-rounded knowledge of her piece.  Phyllis was happy to move out of the spotlight, which now shone on Rob.

Not to be outdone, Rob gave a brief history of the Beatles before facing the keyboard to play Here, There and Everywhere.  I was very proud of his performance.  He has been working on bringing out the melody, not rushing.  He was very expressive.  He, too, received a hearty round of applause.  Katie, especially, was happy to hear him play -- he tends to practice when no one is home.

Jim was quick to volunteer next.  Jim is my "youngest" student, in that he just started at the piano in June.  We had worked about halfway through the lesson book, and he said he wanted to play more rock and roll.  He wanted to play Layla!  LOTS of notes, but he was determined.  We worked on it for a few weeks, and he felt comfortable enough to play through the first verse.  Jim has enviously long fingers -- he could play Clapton's chords with relative ease, but he stopped at the chorus!  Didn't matter -- he did very well, and his wife, too, was especially proud of his performance.  Everyone was impressed that such a rookie would tackle such a composition.  Good job!

Okay, Olivia, it's your turn.  She has been working on another Baroque piece, Minuet in F Major, by Haydn. She has worked hard on this one, and it showed.  Her technique was admirable, her dynamics well-suited.  She commented upon finishing that she forgot the repeats, but perhaps she just forgot that she played them.. She seemed more nervous toward the end than at the start, and any mishaps occurred in the last line.  Nevertheless, she was spectacular.  Another round of applause for a job well done.

Now we can party!  I had prepared a limited array of appetizers, and wine, of course.  I think everyone had a great time.  We concluded the evening with hugs all around, and promises to get together again for another performance opportunity.  I received my marching orders: a soiree next spring.  I'm already looking forward to it!