Music Teachers walk through many doors into many houses to teach many students and the students are wildly different from one another. Attitude, talent, work ethic, mental endurance are all unique to each person. I’m always thinking about how much my students teach me and, which is probably about as much as I teach them.
General
Don’t Play One Style Of Music
Music is essentially the same in every period and style. Study music theory and you’ll find the same chord progressions (tonal movement in music) throughout all western music. It’s all built on the same foundation. Examine The Music Of The Past Think about the great songs in our past. In order to compose Rhapsody in
Playing By Ear – The Intervals That Make Ear Training Possible
Playing by ear is something that many people want to learn how to do. Some of the songs that we want to learn aren’t written on sheet music. Learning this way requires some time and building blocks. So for the beginners who have been taking lessons for a little while, this one is for you.
Forget The Prize, It’s The Piano Teacher Game
As the founder of Lessons In Your Home I have the privilege of working with 100’s of teachers from across the country in a type of mentor-ship role. It’s one of the favorite things I do everyday. I can get a call from a teacher with a dilemma or situation that they may need help
So What! Study Piano – The Truth We Need To Know
Sometimes the only motivation a music student and his piano teacher need is the truth. Say “So What” and get on with the studying music. A Pedagogy Symposium I recently had the privilege of attending a piano pedagogy symposium by Dr. Randall Faber and during the Q&A at the end of the day, a very
How To Not Quit Piano Lessons – 3 Ideas, Thanks Mom
It’s normal for students to want to Quit Piano Lessons. Here are 3 ideas to make sure that doesn’t happen and a story that made me thank my mom. No.1 Don’t Act Shocked! It’s not shocking if a student comes to a parent or teacher and says they want to quit, they are probably nervous
Play Violin, Even If Your Accompaniment Stops – Surprise Ending
Private Violin Lessons teach students to Play Violin at recitals. Violin Teachers need to teach performers to keep going even if things go wrong. Playing Violin At A Recent Recital At a recent recital in Miami, FL, Brooke, a young student started her violin music, “The Two the Grenadiers by Robert Schumann”. She began to
Teaching Piano Lessons Can Get You Hugged
When you create a positive environment in your piano lessons, you get a positive effect. After a recent lesson, this teacher got a hug! Old MacDonald Had A Farm In a recent piano lesson, I was working with a very beginner piano student. Her name is Olivia. She’s a smart kid, and knows that by
Getting Your First Piano
The first challenge facing many beginning piano students (and their parents) is obtaining a suitable piano or keyboard. Should you get an acoustic piano or a digital keyboard? Should you rent or buy? Where should you shop? This article is the first in a series of articles aimed at helping you make an informed choice when faced with this challenge.
Don’t take singing lessons.
The title of this blog article might surprise you, especially because the author heads up a music education organization dedicated to providing the best in-home instruction available anywhere in the country, in just about every musical instrument you can imagine — including voice. The point of that title — and the point of this article — is that voice lessons are NOT singing lessons. In fact, the term voice lessons ought to be replaced with voice training, or vocal training. So please don’t take singing lessons.