Today we’re talking about how to teach A Short Story from Dmitri Kabalevsky's Thirty Pieces for Children Op.27. This is a beautiful etude in broken second inversion chords.

Do you teach piano lessons to your own children?

Yes. And no.

I originally answered that question in this older post. Since then, three school years have finished, I’ve sent a kid off to college, and the younger ones have obviously all gotten older.

I shared that post a few times recently, and I realized that it was time for an update.

Amazon Prime Day is July 11 - 12, 2023!

Here is a quick compilation of items that I have particularly enjoyed in the past year. Let me know in the comments what your 2023 favorites have been!

To that end, here is a long list of suggested albums and playlists featuring classical and jazz piano solo works, including a few concerti. I would recommend that students and families use these as household “background” music to familiarize students with a vast array of possible piano repertoire.

These links all go to Spotify; most of the individual albums should be available on other streaming services.

Today we’re talking about how to teach one of Edvard Grieg’s Lyric Pieces - the big-sounding Sailor’s Song Op.68, No.1. This is great vehicle for helping your student improve his or her octave and big chord technique.

Today in our How To Teach Intermediate Piano Repertoire series we are looking at Bach’s Invention No.13 in A minor. I prefer to use this one as a student’s second invention, after learning either No.1 in C Major or No.8 in F Major. It is at a similar difficulty level to the Invention No.14 in B-flat major.

To view my video covering the Invention No.1, please click here.

To view my video covering the Invention No.14, please click here.

Today we’re talking about how to teach the third movement of Sonatina Op.36, No.1, by Muzio Clementi. This is a well-loved early intermediate piece in the student repertoire, for good reason - it’s catchy and very fun to play!

To view my earlier post and video covering the first movement of Op.36, No.1, please click here.

Today we’re talking about how to teach Dance in Bulgarian Rhythm No.2 which is from Béla Bartók’s Mikrokosmos Volume 6. This is a great example of a piece in asymmetrical meter. For another post on asymmetrical meter and mixed meter, click here.

Today we’re talking about how to teach the first movement of the Sonata in G Major Op.79 by Ludwig van Beethoven. This is an energetic movement marked Presto alla tedesca - “fast, in the style of a German dance.” This is one of the easiest Beethoven sonatas, appropriate for upper intermediate or early advanced students. Click here for my blog post and video all about the EASIEST Beethoven Sonatas.

It was a great privilege to attend the 2023 MTNA National Conference this past week. I know many were prevented from doing so because of the location and cost, and I do not take the privilege lightly. My parents agreed to care for my younger kids (read: entertain them and feed them ice cream!) and Steve and I made a week of it after finding a cheap flight on Spirit Airlines (read: 7 hour layover in Las Vegas in the middle of the night).

Without further ado, here are a few highlights:

Today in our How To Teach Intermediate Piano Repertoire series we are looking at Burgmüller’s Ballade Op.100, No.15. While it can be challenging to teach "overplayed" pieces such as this one (we always seem to be fixing the same problems!), this is one of my favorites because of the fact that this piece is a great vehicle for expression. Students often perform best when they can focus on just that - playing expressively and communicating the drama.

The next of my Six Tips to Ensure Your Student is Ready for a Performance is to help your students practice performing.

This might seem obvious to us as teachers, and even to our students, but if my students’ practicing is evidence, then the truth of this statement is not always applied.

Practicing (rehearsing, learning, working on things, solving problems)

is not the same as

Practicing performing (playing from start to finish with the focus required to carry out all that you intend to do musically).

The next of my Six Tips to Ensure Your Student is Ready for a Performance is to help your students develop a healthy mindset for performance.

Many students who start music lessons at a young age often have a naturally carefree attitude towards performance. However, students who begin lessons at an older age, or those who have grown older and more self-conscious over time, often find themselves worried about making mistakes and concerned with the opinion of others when performing.

So, what is a healthy performance mindset?

The next of my Six Tips to Ensure Your Student is Ready for a Performance is to facilitate the student's emotional connection to the piece so that he or she can play expressively. This is my favorite of these tips!

Without embarking on a long philosophical discussion, I think this is a great point to stop and ask the question - what is art? The definition I like to work with is:

Art is the creative expression of the human condition.

Music, therefore, is…

The next of my Six Tips to Ensure Your Student is Ready for a Performance is to solve any technical problems within a piece. You can’t perform a piece well if you can’t technically manage to play it!

While the intent of this post is not to advocate for one technical system or another, I can say from years of adjudication experience that students who play with freedom and ease of movement are the ones who are most free to play expressively, and therefore have a “successful” performance.

Remember - technique is not…

The next of my Six Tips to Ensure Your Student is Ready for a Performance is to allow enough time for preparation. Less experienced teachers often underestimate how long it truly takes for students to be ready to perform at their highest potential.

Of course, it is also the student’s responsibility to practice regularly and avoid procrastination…

One of the best ways to ensure that your student will be ready for an upcoming performance is to choose appropriate repertoire. This is the first in my series of Six Tips to Ensure Your Student is Ready for a Performance. You can read an overview of all six here.

But what do I mean by “appropriate”?

Have you ever run an ensemble recital for your piano students? You know, duets and trios? (Or maybe even duos if you had access to two pianos?!)

For many years, I have run one recital per year that is entirely made up of ensemble repertoire. The pandemic threw a wrench in those usual plans, but I’m thrilled to say that this past weekend we started up the tradition again after two years off. Most students play one piece, and most of the pieces are piano duet (1P4H). If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you might have seen the three videos this week I posted of highlights from that recital. 

I think I can safely say it’s my favorite performance event of the entire teaching year. 

egular practicing and practicing for performance are two different things.

Anyone who has taught piano for more than a minute knows that most students (unless they have a lot of self-discipline) will simply play through their pieces and call it “practice.” However, doing this will not ensure reliable performance under pressure for most intermediate and advanced students.

So, we have to teach our students practice techniques that will

As musicians and teachers, I would bet a LOT of money that there is not one single reader of this post who has not dealt with “performance anxiety” or “nerves” or “stage fright” (choose your favorite term). We have all dealt with it ourselves - as students, amateurs, or professionals - or as teachers working with students. 

But before we can really learn to deal with it, either for our own good or for that of our students, we must first understand what it is. We also need to be able to understand it well enough to explain it to our students and their parents, so that we all can recognize that the physical and mental reactions to the pressure of performance are normal and to be expected.