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Friday, November 16, 2012

Short Story Ending

Sometimes the rests make all the difference.  The coordination of rests and quarter notes against eighth notes at the end of Short Story sometimes give students difficulty.  I'd like to share with you a beautiful example of how it should be done.  This student is exaggerating his rests to feel the movement throughout the continued rhythm in the other hand.  It makes things much easier!


The rests you see the student playing are below, circled in pink, and the green arrows indicate the notes that are not to be played staccato.  


Minuet in G minor, RH B section

One of the things your child cannot learn from just listening to the CD is how to use proper and efficient fingering.  For this, you'll have to open the book!  In Minuet in G minor, there are some fingering options that you might see in your book and I propose the following, based on what my students have used to get the best results.


We are, of course looking at the B section, measures 9 - 16.  The A section is quite easily learned by ear.


Wednesday, November 14, 2012

LH B section of Au Claire de la Lune

Now, one thing that makes Au Claire de la Lune more difficult (and also more beautiful) is that the left hand is contrapuntal in parts.  That means that it has a little melody of its own!  The B section is especially interesting because it is NOT made up of C chords and G chords.

You've already learned the LH in the A section and you see that your hand is stretched out a little bit with your pinky on a B instead of a C.  That's perfect!  You're ready for the B section:


Practice this, and you'll be well on your way to contrapuntal playing in no time!



Friday, November 9, 2012

Minuet 1 LH B section

Very similar to the first line of the A section, the B section LH of Minuet 1 poses some difficult at times  in coordination.  The octave figure in measure 18 is very similar to the one in the A section, but teachers the student how to do the same thing in a different key.  Measure 20 is essentially the reversal of measure 18.


Here is how it would look to play this line:

Friday, November 2, 2012

Musette LH B section

Often quite difficult for a student to figure out on her own, the B section of Musette has a really fun sequence of chords in it that students enjoy practicing once they've been shown how it works.


Once the student has moved from the D minor position to the A Major position with the LH, this passage will be quite easy.  Remember that the hand stretches at the thumb like a mitten - not in between the fingers.  So, the thumb will reach up to get the F in the first chord and then return to its spot on the E.  Here is a video example of what this will look like from a student who learned it today!

Friday, October 19, 2012

A Major Pentascale

For those of you participating in The Achievement Program assessment this November, you are already working on preparing several pentascales (five note scales, which can be found using the "Start-Whole-Whole-Half-Whole" method).

Here is how the A major pentascale should be played:


If you are working towards Prep A, you need to prepare the C, G, D, and a minor pentascales (D is the only one with a black note).  If you are working towards Prep B, you need to prepare the A, E, F, e minor and d minor pentacles.

We'll work on these in lesson, but if you forget halfway through the week, watch this video again!  This should be a part of your daily practice!

Thursday, October 18, 2012

A minor broken triads

For those of you participating in the Preparatory B level of the Achievement Program assessment this December, here is an example of how to practice your broken triads:


Practice this in C Major and G Major in addition to your Pentascales in A, E, F, e minor and d minor as well as your full scales in C and G.

Show me what you can do in lesson this week!

Happy Practicing!

Monday, September 17, 2012

Kuhlau Movement 1 opening - Suzuki Book 3

Sometimes all you need to do is listen to the CD.  If that isn't the case though, it helps to count and clap something, or see how two hands are coordinated together.  The opening of the Kuhlau Sonatina is sometimes one of those spots.


Here is a video of the first two measures - first the LH alone, and then the two hands together if listening to the CD is just not enough for you!


Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Chant Arabe HT B section ending, Suzuki Book 1

The trickiest part of Chant Arabe (once you've mastered the even sounding left hand, the subtle changes in dynamic tension in the right hand, and the coordination to keep one legato while the other one isn't) is the last two measures of the B section.


I like to teach students to imagine the second beat of that last measure as a beat that has an "air note" in the left hand.  Here is a student playing that "air note" to perfection the day he learned to put them together.  (The LH air note matches up with the first of the two Ds in the RH in that measure.)

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Short Story - B section HT

Sometimes this passage of LH scales and RH chords comes naturally to a student, and sometimes one has trouble figuring out how exactly they fit together.  And then there is the tricky business of making the beautiful sweeping B section line up with measure 15, which you have worked so hard on already!


Just take a breath, listen to the CD and let your hands try it out.  If that doesn't work, here is a quick clip that might help you out if you can't remember how it worked in your lesson this past week!


Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Ecossaise, LHA - Suzuki 1

Congratulations!  You've started Suzuki Book 2!  This is an exciting moment.  Luckily, we get to celebrate with a pretty exciting piece.  The thing that makes this piece sound so exciting is the staccato in the left hand.  Articulation (rests, staccatos, accents, slurs....) is very important in Book 2 and you'll find it to be very important in this piece as well.  Watch how this student plays the "jumps" and the "legatos" in the A section:

Clair De Lune LH B - Suzuki Book 1

Now, I'm sure I've taught this to you in lesson, but if you're having trouble remembering how the left hand fits with the right hand in the B section of Au Claire de la Lune, here is a little reminder:



Remember to practice hands separately first, and the left hand at this part is "half-note, half-note, rocking, rocking, D-2-3-4, stepping down."

The C Chord Progression

As you may well know, chords provide the basis of harmonic support for a melody and much of the "background" (or often in beginning music - the left hand).  This harmonic support is comprised of a progression of chords in one form or another.  Many of you will already be comfortable with the alberti bass pattern of playing chords.  (5-1-3-1)

Below is a chord progression in C in blocked form.  (That means, all the notes of the chord are played at once.)  The chord progression is I-IV-I-V-V7-I, which in the key of C is C-F-C-G-G7-C.




The chord progression should be practiced slowly, with even tone and a flexible wrist.

The C Arpeggio

In order to play much of Suzuki Book 2 and any early intermediate literature, a student needs to be able to play an arpeggio with ease.  An arpeggio outlines a triad and provides both melody and harmony in a quick, easy, and charming way to a lot of piano music.

Small hands need to be careful though, not to have an excess of stretching.  The arm should support the hand, which should support the fingers, which should all be carried along to each note.

Below is an example of a child learning the C arpeggio.  The notes are C-E-G-C with fingering for the right hand being 1-2-3-5 (coming back down with the same notes and respective fingerings).

Monday, March 12, 2012

Lightly Row, HT B section, Suzuki Book 1

Now that your child is getting more comfortable with hand independence involving legato touch, he should be zooming ahead with putting hands together on many of the pieces we've worked on hands separately!  What an exciting time!  Here is a quick refresher of how legato in the left hand and lifting in the right hand would work in the B section of Lightly Row:




Next up, French Children's Song!   And for a refresher on starting Lightly Row hands together, or how to slow down and practice that hand independence, go back to this post.
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Christmas Day Secrets, LH B section ending, Suzuki Book 1

I've already shown you how this works in lesson, but in case you or your child has forgotten the fingering we discussed, here is a quick example of how it should be played.


We are looking at the very end of the B section of Christmas Day Secrets; left hand.  The fingering should be as follows:

1     2     1     2     3
G    A    G    F     E          and the 3 on E begins the return of the A section seamlessly.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

French Children's Song - HT - Suzuki Book 1

One of the tricky things about putting hands together in French Children's Song is that it begins with a repeated note in the right hand.   After doing some careful legato practice, and simplifying it into smaller steps:


the goal should be playing the opening phrase like so: 

Careful Legato Practice

When one hand needs to change chords, or repeat a note, while the other hand is expected to play a legato line, sometimes a student finds this difficult to practice.  Sometimes "willing" it to happen will work, but it isn't very efficient.

Instead, incorporating an exaggerated movement into the hand that lifts will help disconnect the reliance the hands have on eachother to do the same thing.  Like this!


Pauline's left hand has a singing melody, while her right hand needs to change chords.  Before practicing this way, both hands would lift and the musical effect would be jarring.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Ecossaise Grace Note Passage, Suzuki Book 2

If your child has a difficult time practicing slowly, the following passage sometimes gets away from them and isn't played properly.  The articulation is more complicated here, as you can see:



Here is a student demonstrating how the passage should be practiced slowly with good articulation:



Short Story RH B section Thirds, Suzuki Book 2

Accompanying a melody by thirds and sixths in one hand is a pianists technique that is often introduced in simple right hand scale passages.  In the Suzuki piano repertoire, this is introduced in the B section of Short Story.



It is important that the student be able to play even thirds while bringing out the top note melody.  Here is a video of a student learning this passage for the first time in her lesson.  She came to lesson already being able to play the top notes of the passage by ear.  By using "touch - play" and incorporating her wrist into the movement, she is able to play the thirds evenly and staccato, when necessary.


Friday, February 10, 2012

Ecossaise LH B section, Suzuki Book 2

If your child has been practicing his chord progression, scale, and arpeggio in the key of C, starting Suzuki Book 2 is going to be so easy!  Unblocking the LH in the B section of Ecossaise though can be intimidating to a child who has never before had to decipher the following notation:


But walking through the first two measures carefully in lesson will make it easy for your child to proceed confidently with the rest of it on his own!



Thursday, January 19, 2012

Chant Arabe B section LH

By now, you understand that there is a lot to this little piece!  We've worked on balance, we've worked on having a flexible wrist, we've worked on phrasing.  There is this one little bit though at the end of the B section that often gives kids an issue.


To learn this little bit, and to coordinate it later with the RH, I find it is easiest to choreograph the octave leap.  My students practice it as follows:

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Body Staff Basics

If you are a parent new to piano lessons, you might be bewildered by the concept of the "body staff."  A staff is the set of lines and spaces used to place notes on to make reading music easy and organized.  At the very basic level, students need to get used to the ideas of highs and lows, steps and skips.  This can be facilitated in an easy and fun way using the body staff.  Pictured below is a diagram of how the body can be used corresponding to notes on the scale (please don't be disturbed that the child in the diagram looks like a gingerbread man).
Some of the most basic songs can be practiced on the body staff.  Here are two examples that you may be working on in your lessons!


Hot Crossed Buns


and Honeybee

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Goodbye to Winter, LH

Most kids figure out the beginning of the accompaniment to Goodbye to Winter on their own.  The second bit is a little tricky though!  If your child started this in his/her lesson this week, you might want to watch this video mid-week as a refresher.