Knowing Right From Wrong (Notes)
So I have been teaching about 45 years, with a few gaps here and there. I have had a WIDE variety of students from super eager to "My...
Musical Goosebumps for Halloween!
October 31st will soon be here, which makes me think of my two favorite spooky pieces of music. The first is somewhat kid friendly: In...
How Jose Ferrer (In A Movie) Taught Me to Phrase
No, I never met Jose Ferrer, so this story is not about some grand meeting between a local musician and a great actor. No, this is about...
The Marine's Hymn is NOT American Born! WHAAAT!
Shocking isn't it? I just discovered this fact recently. One of my students started playing the Marine Corp Hymn in the Bastien Level 2...
Playing Gracefully (In an Ungraceful Time)
love playing blues, rock and roll, dramatic Romantic period pieces. They are "let-it-all-hang- out in-your-face" pieces that can be good f
What Is the Most Important Musical Skill I Teach?
It is not technique, music reading, theory, transposing, ear training, singing while playing, phrasing. Those are all skills I teach and...
Students Teaching Teachers
Learning is not a one-way street. Teachers teach students, but students also teach teachers. I was reminded of that recently while...
The Music Machine (The Piano Is)
One of the sweetest gifts a student gave me years ago was a poem she had a written for an English class titled "The Music Machine." It...
Learning To Play Songs, or To Be a Musician?
Learning by rote versus learning musical skills such as reading music, technical skills, understanding styles.
Take Your Foot Off That Pedal!!!
You know the driver that "puts the pedal to the metal" all the time? Never slows down, does not know what a brake is? Eventually that...
