Vanna Chun performs “Morning” by Edvard Grieg, arranged by Faber, in her lesson.When Vanna found out that I wanted to post her video to YouTube, it motivated her practice and memorize this piece within no time!
Category Archives: Piano & Keyboard Lessons
5 Tips for a Successful Performance
Every year, my piano teacher hosted two piano recitals. Even though I practiced and practiced, I could not overcome the stage fright until my senior year of high school.
So, here are 5 tips to help you execute a successful performance.
1) Practice Performing
There isn’t a better way to become comfortable performing then by doing it. My mother would have each of us kids perform one or two pieces for anyone who walked through our door – even the guy who repaired our appliances. Find opportunities to share your music. Be courageous!
2) Practice Acting
Stage freight starts in the mind. Pretend you are an actor or actress. Imagine that you are someone else on stage. It may sound strange, but it psychologically helped me to overcome my fear of feeling vulnerable.
3) Practice Imagining
Walk through the entire performance (even in the clothes you would wear). Sit in a chair near the piano. Imagine that there are people and other performers surrounding you. Walk to the piano, and adjust the bench to a good distance. Take a deep breath and perform for your “audience”. Remember to bow at the end of your performance!
4) Practice Ghosting
Have you ever tried to play your piano piece on a hard surface while singing it in your mind? One of my teachers called it “ghosting”, like you are moving your fingers without hearing the actual sound. If you have a memory glitch without even playing the piece on the piano, then you most likely will have it when actually play the instrument. Review that passage and practice ghosting again.
5) Practice Breathing
Yes, it may sound like a blonde joke, but it’s true. You need to make sure that you are breathing when you play. Take deep breaths during the challenging passages. Oxygen to the brain can only be a good thing when you are under pressure.
No matter what happens, remember to make colorful music!
200 Days of Practice!
Each year, I introduce a new challenge for my students to engage in. At the end of the school year, the students who attained the goal are honored with a trophy! For the 2014 – 2015 school year, my challenge to each student in my studio is to practice 200 days from September – May! This comes out to approximately 5-6 days per week. Each day they practice, they will fill in a star on the chart below (click to download and print). The first student to reach 200 days will receive special recognition! Parents, please hold your children accountable by having them come to you first before they fill in the star.
If you would like to use other charts, I have found a few others online that might appealing. I’m looking forward to a successful year of practice!
200 Days of Practice: the practice shoppe
All Star Recital Practice: Ear Training and Improv
Planes and Jets Theme: Kids Pointz
Coloring Music Chart: ABCTEACH
Flowers Practice Sheet: Susan Paradis
Practice Sticker Charts: Making Music Fun
Music Practice: Chart Jungle
Name It in a Minute!
At the beginning of the summer, I challenged each of my students to name all of the notes on the grand staff in one minute. Lesson after lesson, I would set the timer and use flashcards to test them.
One of the first students to attain this goal almost didn’t try it a second time. She named them in 1 minute and 24 seconds. I encouraged her to overcome her fear of failure by being courageous. She decided to overcome her fear and try again. When she saw the timer, her eyes shined with excitement. She made it in exactly 1 minute! She almost couldn’t believe that she really attained that goal!
Sometimes it takes the extra bit of encouragement to help students move toward their goals. Teachers and parents, don’t give up! Keep on encouraging! It may be the moment that helps them reach the stars!
This week is the last week for students to fulfill this challenge. I’m looking forward to seeing how many more students will name those notes in a minute!
Do you have any great ideas to encourage students to memorize notes on the grand staff?
Name It In A Minute!
My First Piano Lesson
Exactly 20 years ago today, I sat down at a piano and experienced my very first lesson. I’ll never forget that morning. When I was playing with my toys, my mother walked into my room and said with excitement, “Jamie, are you ready for your first piano lesson today?”
“Today?!” I exclaimed. My heart raced with joy and enthusiam – I always wanted to learn how to play the piano!
Twenty years later, I am now teaching piano and performing music. It’s such a great reminder as to how precious those first few lessons are for any child. Last week, I went through a few keep sakes and found all of the notebooks my first piano teacher used to write down a list of things for me to practice. They definitely brought a smile to my face!
Inspirational Duet Team
When I was reading Keyboard Magazine, I came across an article on Greg Anderson and Elizabeth Joy Roe. I immediately looked them up on YouTube. I was inspired by what I heard!
Learning Songs by Ear – Lean On Me
If you started learning music through reading music rather than by learning by ear, “Lean on Me” is one of the easier songs to learn on the piano by ear. It uses one chord shape (the first inversion of each chord) in the right hand and a single note in the left hand for the bass notes. The easiest part – it’s in the key of C! If you are piano player, try to figure it out!
Blues Inspiration
I took lessons from Tony Z for about a year. Here’s an inspirational video on him showing us how to play blues.
Keyboard Rig for Night of Worship
Expressive Keys 