New Year, New Goals

One year ends and another begins.  This is a great time for thinking about new goals and resolutions.   It's a good time to think about what you'd like to do with your piano studies.  Obviously, for a resolution to mean anything, YOU have to commit to it and buy into it.  It's great if you choose and follow your own goals.  However, if you're scratching for ideas, here are some suggestions.

1. Commit to 300 days of practice.

Here's how it works.  You don't plan for 300 days.  You plan for 365 days, but you understand that things come up, and you might not be able to practice every day.  Hopefully, those days where you can't practice won't happen often, but you must commit to achieve this.  300 days is 6 days a week for 50 weeks per year.  To prove you've done this:  keep a log of your practice.  Here's an example of how your log may look.

2.  Add 5 more minutes to your average practice time than you did in 2013.

I hate even suggesting practice times because of differing goals and schedules.  Any time you add, even 5 minutes per day, will make a difference.  But if you really, truly want to make leaps and bounds on the piano, you need to be thinking much more than that.  However, let me offer the next suggestion to go along with this one.

3.  Shoot for at least 3 hours of practice within a week.

If you're keeping track of the numbers, that's 6 days of practice at 30 minutes per day.  Now, maybe you've had a busy day and can only practice 10 minutes.  That means you'll have 20 minutes to make up later on.  A good solution is to plan for, as an example, 45 minutes of practice, which gives you some leeway.  No matter how many minutes you practice, the days matter the most!  4 days X 45 minutes equals 3 hours, but it's not as effective in the long run as 6 days X 30 minutes.  Keep in mind that this suggestion is only intended for those who are not already doing 30 minutes per day on the average.  If you're doing more already, then just see if you apply goals 1 and 2.  30 minutes is a floor, not an ultimate goal.  More practice, provided you're practicing daily and correctly, is always better.

Does your practice schedule match the type of pianist you want to be?

4.  Become an expert at practicing, note reading, and technique.

       A. Practicing - Learn how to aggressively and strategically break a piece down and to overcome any difficulties.  Learn how to estimate the maximum number of measures you should expect to learn in a practice session, and become really good at those, not just barely improved over the whole piece.

      B. Note reading - You need to know all the notes you ever see in a piece of music, AND you need to be able to name the notes without having to think about it.  You should be able to see a note and name it instantly.  If you can't yet do this, go here several days per week at http://www.musictheory.net/exercises/note, click the customize button in the upper right corner to set up your exercise to suit you, and get good on the notes.  Answer 100 notes correctly within 3 minutes, and you are an expert.

     C.  Technique -  Play your scales with the right notes and the right fingerings on every single attempt no matter what the speed.  Learn all your chords and arpeggios for your level.  These are the things you just plug into practice and speed up the process.

What else musically do you wish to accomplish next year?

I want to wish all my students and readers a happy New year, and for a most successful 2014!

Mid Boot Camp thoughts, Facebook Page recommendation

Mid boot camp thoughts

I'm not quite done with the Musicianship Boot Camp testing, but everyone is doing very well on the average.  Two areas that are coming out consistently as things to improve are technical skills and music reading speed.  I'll cover technical skills recommendations in a future post, but let me elaborate on music reading speed.

Since musictheory.net has yet again made revisions to its website, I need to revise my tutorial for the Note Identification exercise.  It's an exercise everyone can use.  If you've mastered your notes, you can stretch your upper and lower ranges, increase your speed as much as possible and incorporate the key signatures you've learned.  Really, everyone should play around with the settings to learn and practice this exercise frequently.

However, remember that the primary purpose is not just accuracy, but speed AND accuracy.  The goal for you needs to be to acquire instant recognition of notes on the staff.  Why?  It is because you don't have the luxury to take your time IF you want to sightread well and spend less time in practice.  So here are a few rules when working with the Note Identification exercise.

1. Challenge yourself, but don't overwhelm yourself.  If you're struggling with all notes, focus on just 5 or 6 to get started.   Exhaust those and then add on to them, or switch to a new group of notes before you add them all together.  It should never feel too easy, but should never be so difficult that you aren't improving quickly.

2. Ignore the percentage.  If you get 10 correct in 20 attempts, it will tell you that you are getting 50%.   If you're working for speed, this or worse may occur, especially early on.  Don't worry about wrong attempts.  If you're following rule 1, you're going to see the same notes over and over and over.  You'll not be able to help but eventually get them right more often than not.

3.  Focus on the number correct AND the timer.  There is a timer that keeps track of your game.  Play the exercise in one of the following two ways.

(A) Time yourself and see how quickly you can correctly name 100 notes.  Don't be discouraged if you're really high the first few attempts, even above 10 minutes.  Your ultimate goal, regardless of level, is to be able to do it in 3 minutes or less.  You can do this if all you have to do is see the note, recognize it right away, point the mouse to the correct letter and click.  Answer 100 correct notes in 3 minutes or less, and you're nailing it.

(B) Only recommended if Goal A seems overwhelming for where you are with learning your notes, this would be to watch the timer and observe when you hit the 5 minute mark of the exercise.  See how many you can correctly name by that point.  Keep doing this until you get at least 75 in 5 minutes. Then go with goal A and see how quickly you can answer 100.

As always, remember the first part of rule 1 and that is to challenge yourself.  If it's getting too easy, how can you make it a little harder?  Add more notes, mix your clefs, add sharps and flats in the key signatures (if you've learned them in your lessons already).  Note reading isn't an infinite skill.  You can reach a ceiling in how well you can do, but that ceiling is very high.  Keep stepping up until you reach it.

Facebook Page Recommendations

If you have a Facebook account, please take a moment if you haven't already and "like" the page for:

The Winston-Salem Piano Teachers' Association (a group I belong to and a page I admin.)

And

My own personal page for my composing and performing at David M Lane - Composer, Musician.  Thanks for your support.

Deliberate Practice - A Music and Basketball Parallel

One of my favorite websites to browse is www.lifehacker.com.  Today, they had this wonderful article here about deliberate practice.  It mentions Mozart, but focuses much on basketball player Kobe Bryant.  Parents and other guardians have frequently complained about lack of progress from their child even though they are "practicing".  What's likely going on is that they're sitting down at their instrument, but are they really doing proactive deliberate practice with a goal in mind?  This article explains very well.  I encourage everyone to read it.
http://lifehacker.com/what-mozart-and-kobe-bryant-can-teach-us-about-delibera-1442488267

Musicianship Boot Camp

Introducing something new for my piano students - This is something we are going to try for the month of October and the first part of November.

For lack of a better name, I'm calling it Musicianship Boot Camp.

What is this?  This will be an alteration to your usual practice schedule for the upcoming month.  I'll be asking you to work on technique, music reading, rhythm skills and ear training.   We will work on these things in October.  During the first part of November, we will take portions of one or two lessons to test these skills.  Please note:  I will be giving you a letter grade for how you do.  Don't worry; Unlike school, the letter has no effect on anything you do outside of private lessons.  The grade is just to let you know where you are versus where you should be.

What is the purpose of this?  The four categories we are working on are tools for any musician to have on them.  If a musician knows their technique well, can read notes well, can use their ear and can figure out rhythms, then they are in a great position to learn music faster and learn it correctly.  NOT knowing these things is a hindrance.  Try reading a book written in a foreign language that you don't know.  This is how music is if you neglect your tools.  I like the word "tools" because it suits the context.  Think of cutting a tree limb with a dull saw.  Imagine driving a nail in the wall without a hammer, or drawing with your pencil that has never been sharpened.  There are things in piano that you should know and know well.  You should never have to figure out certain things when you're learning a piece.  You are wasting practice time if you don't have these tools ready.

What kinds of things will you be doing?

Keep in mind that this will be individualized.  I will be assigning things for each of you to do personally that is designed to fit only what you've studied thus far.  I may, in some cases, push you to learn new things or take the things you know and make them better or faster.

TECHNIQUE:  For piano, this involves scales, arpeggios, and chords.  Beginning students may be limited to 5-finger positions.  Some of you will be doing more keys than others.  Some hands separately, while others are hands together.  Some one octave, while others have multiple octaves.  Some will have tempo requirements, while others will not.  You will not be asked to do more than you should already be able to do unless you are already at that level and desire an extra challenge.

RHYTHM:  I will be giving you rhythm exercises that include any rhythm notes you have learned along with any time signatures you have learned.  We will learn how to figure out the rhythm for any pattern using these.

EAR TRAINING:  Every student will be tested on recognizing notes as going up vs going down.  You will be asked to recognize rhythms.  According to your level, you may be asked to recognize intervals, chords, and scales by their sound.

MUSIC READING:  This includes three parts:
1.  Staff Note Recognition:  For whatever notes you have been introduced to so far, you will be asked to get better at note reading.  I will give you a list of notes to learn.  Important to know: Music Reading tests will be timed.

2.  Key Signature recognition and application -  For several of you, this will not apply.  For those who have started adding sharps and flats at the beginning of pieces, you will be expected to name the key of a piece by sight and to play something easy that includes the sharped or flatted notes.

3.  Sight Reading - We'll be working on playing music you've never seen before and improving how well you can play for the first time.

Next week, I'll begin talking to you about your individual requirements.  If this goes well, it will become something we'll do once or twice a year.  The goal is to make much better musicians of all of you by this time in six weeks.

Used Piano Shopping - What to Look For

Readers, I apologize for my extended time off from this blog.  Like many of you, I was in summer mode, but intend to have something for you at least once a week from this point.

A student of mine just inquired about what to look for when shopping for a used piano, so let's go over some important points.

Rule # 1 -  The condition of the cabinet is unimportant.

FACT:  Most people selling their pianos are selling them because they don't play them.  They liked the idea of having a piano in the house, and chose it primarily as a furniture piece.  This means they have probably kept up the appearance - making a pretty, shiny cabinet, but probably not maintained it as an instrument.  Your piano does not need to be pretty to be a good piano.  It can be devoid of polish.  It can have scratch marks.  It's cheap to buy an ugly piano, and then be creative with table runners and to add some polish.  Pianos are like the people you meet;  It's not what is on the outside that counts, it's what is on the inside!

Rule # 2 -  Check the tuning pins first.  If they are rusty, walk away.  Below is a typical, view of the tuning pins inside a piano.  These are not pristine, just dusty.  This is normal and means, however the keyboard sounds, it is at least salvageable.

On the other hand, if the pins look like this, you should not waste any more time.

The price of restoring the tuning pins just so a piano will hold its intonation, not to mention all the piano tunings it will take will in all likelihood EXCEED the asking price of the piano.

3.  Evaluate how badly out of tune your piano is.  If all you're ever going to do is play the piano with yourself (and no other instruments), then it doesn't matter if the D sounds like a D-flat, as long as all the other keys sound just as flat.  In other words, the piano should be in tune with itself.  If having the correct pitch is important to you, then you should buy a chromatic tuner with a sound generator so you can compare a pitch, or download a tone generator app for your smartphone.

Here are some tone generator app choices for Android and for Apple Products.

If a piano is more than slightly out of tune, it could take 3 or 4 tunings to bring it up to standard where it will hold.  This is an average of $75-100 per service in this area at this time.  Remember, it's one thing if a note is a little off.  It's another more serious issue if one, and especially several keys sound like more than one note.  This means the 2-3 strings per key are not in tune with each other.  This is serious neglect.  Below is a video (not available on email versions of this blog), for you to hear a short sample of a piano evaluation.

4.  Check your damper and una corda pedals.  If the piano has two pedals, these are the two.  If it has three pedals, the damper is the one on the right, and the una corda is on the left.  A middle pedal is sometimes cosmetic and doesn't work correctly on an upright anyway.  If you are shopping for a grand piano, it is a consideration.  The middle pedal (the sostenuto) on a grand works like this.  With the lid open where you can see the dampers (see picture below), you play a low note within the first two octaves, THEN press the middle pedal and let go of the key.  Only that damper should remain up.  The others should be down.

Again, this doesn't matter, nor does it work the same way on an upright.  The damper pedal should work and you'll probably know by your ear.  If the sounds sustain while you press the damper pedal, it works.  If the sound stops, it doesn't.  But the above picture shows the dampers, and they should all be off the strings when the damper pedal is depressed.

The una corda acts in the following way.  On an upright, the hammers move closer to the strings.  On a grand, the hammers move a small amount to the right.  You'll actually see the keyboard move on a grand.

If the damper pedal does not work, don't panic.  Open the bottom panel.  You'll either have a dowel rod that is out of place or needs tightening or, in the case of the video below, a pedal linkage rod you can tighten.  The embedding feature is disabled on this video, so you can find it by clicking here.

5.  When in doubt, consult a professional.  Actually, that isn't me.  For piano students on my roster, I will make an effort to see a piano if it is local and give you my opinion as an experienced pianist, but I'm not trained in tuning or restoration.  I would call a local piano technician if the investment is more than a few hundred dollars.  The hundred dollars they might charge is worthwhile.

July Lessons, Proof of Practice

For all my students, there will be no lessons from Friday, July 12 through Thursday, July 18.  These missing lessons will count as vacation dates (click here and see third bullet point) that I will not be making up except for a few cases where you are also missing dates in July, in which case we'll try to reschedule one of them.

How can you tell if I've practiced?

Truthfully, no teacher can tell if you've attempted to practice.  However, a competent teacher can tell when you have practiced well, practiced correctly and practiced enough.  When it's obvious you haven't done this, it means one of the following things:

• You practiced well, but didn't practice enough.
• You spent time on the piece, but didn't practice correctly.
• You didn't practice.

What are the symptoms of not practicing or bad practice?

1.  The biggest and most common symptom is that you are not showing familiarity with the piece.  The goal of practice should be to get off the sight-reading stage.  I don't mean literal sight-reading, where you are playing a piece for the very first time with no previous practice.   I mean the stage of learning where you're having to look at every single note, decide what to play, and then play it.  Knowing a piece is going to remove hesitations.  Knowing a piece is going to put you in a partially memorized state where you only need the music as reminders here and there.  If you're having to stop, think about what to play, then play it...then you haven't practiced correctly and/or you haven't practiced enough.

2.  You play with some degree of confidence, but are missing many notes/rhythms/other details.  This is a case of preparing something correctly, and probably practicing enough, but not being careful in the early part of practice when you need to be sure what you're playing is correct.

3.  You play well, but everything is way under tempo.  You didn't practice enough.

If those are symptoms, what are causes of bad practice?  How do I fix this?

First, look at this graph below.  It can show the progress of an entire piece from first reading to mastery.  It can even apply to a small section...even a single measure.

There's only one problem with it.  That straight line from start to finish is COMPLETELY WRONG.  If you go into your practice with expectation of smooth and steady progress, you are only going to achieve that if the new music is way too easy for you.  In other words, smooth and steady progress is actually an indication that you're playing the wrong music!

Here's the way correct practice actually looks:

Look what happens.  Nearly halfway through the time you expect to practice, you are barely making progress.  It looks hopeless.  It feels tedious.  Why?  It's because you are going v-e-r-y s-l-o-w.  You are being careful, making sure that every note and rhythm is learned correctly; making sure that at some point you can maintain a slow and steady beat; making sure that you have added correct pedaling, dynamics, articulation and whatever details the music asks for.  It's slow, but it's correct.

At some point, it finally feels good.  It feels easy.  I call this "The Click".  Look what happens after the click.  You take off!  Practice gets fun!  What you are now doing is taking the newly learned music and allowing it to feel easy and, if necessary, get faster.

To practice well, remember these 3 tips:

(1)  Don't mistake "The Click" for being the finish line.  Feeling comfortable with something is a beginning.  Ride it through to the end when you really, truly, thoroughly know it.  That's when music gets fun.  I know this has happened when a student can only play their pieces with careful thought and a very slow tempo.

(2) Don't rush to the 2nd half, beyond the click.  If going slow is difficult, going faster makes it worse - always!  Don't dive ahead into repeating music over and over without first making sure at a very slow tempo that it is completely correct.  I know this happens if the piece is confidently played, but with frequent mistakes.

(3) As a rule, work 2 to 4 measures at most with the above graph.  It takes 5 to 10 minutes if you're on the correct level (and if your note reading is par for your playing) to go from mystery to mastery in that time.  Trying a whole piece or even a large section will take a long, discouraging amount of time.

Always remember what correct practice looks like and what it doesn't.

Kissin Plays Beethoven, Changes to Musictheory.net

To be a great pianist, watch great pianists.  Obviously there's a LOT more to it than that, but you can no more skip this step than you can be an NBA basketball star without watching the players already there. This is the great Evgeny Kissen performing Beethoven's Rondo e Capriccio (also known as the very strangely nicknamed "Rage Over a Lost Penny")  Please note: if you are reading this blog page as an email subscriber, you will need to follow the link to the actual blog post to see it.

Changes to Musictheory.net

In an earlier blog post, I gave an introduction and tutorial to using musictheory.net, focusing on the note identification exercise.  The video shows how to set up the exercise so that it suits you.  The website has since changed their format.  If you go to www.musictheory.net, click on the Exercises tab, you no longer want to just click on the exercise.  Instead of going to the setting page first, it will now begin the exercise WITHOUT YOUR CUSTOMIZATION.   Before you play the game, you need to scroll down the page until you see FOR TEACHERS, and click on Exercise Customizer.

From this point, you can set up the exercise(s) exactly as I demonstrated earlier on this blog.

Seven Types of Pianists

WHY ARE YOU TAKING PIANO LESSONS?
That's more of an attention-grabbing question than I intended, but it's a question all students should ask of themselves at some point.  This isn't a question with a right or wrong answer, but if your goal is to be  good enough to compete in the Van Cliburn Competition (ongoing now, you can go to their website for radio/video footage), then you need to know what that takes as far as commitment.  Here's a sample of some goals you could have as a pianist, and a general idea of what your preparation should look like.

1.  Be acquainted with the piano.  In other words, you know where the keys are.  You might read some music, and you may even know a few pieces.  You would be considered a beginner in terms of level. This can be accomplished with just a little daily practice (5-10 minutes) and a short-term period of lessons.

2.  Play for small churches or include piano as a secondary/alternate instrument.  If you're primarily a musician on another instrument, and just want to have a solid grasp of the piano as an instrument, or if you want to be able to play for a small church, then you need to work towards knowing your basics:  scales, chords, arpeggios...and learn at least average sight-reading skills.  Daily practice of 15-20 minutes average per day plus half-hour lessons will get you there.

3.  Play as an ensemble player for rock, jazz or other non-classical group.  This is a different type of focus.  Reading music is nice, but you need to be great on your technique.  You need to be as learned as you can with reading chords and incorporating them into music.  You need to develop your ear training as much as you can.  An ability to improvise a solo doesn't hurt.  Half-hour to hour lessons are good, and you should be trying to average 30-45 minutes practice per day.

4.  Be a well-rounded, intermediate pianist.  Some people read "intermediate" and see this as less than good.  Intermediate means you are playing solid, non-beginning music such as much of Mozart, some Chopin, some Beethoven...and sound good when you play.  You're not playing flashy, virtuoso music, but there is plenty of intermediate music that sounds good to the majority of listeners.   This needs a well-rounded music education and eventual commitment of 45 minutes to an hour practice.  Don't worry about these numbers.  You can work your way up to them.

5.  Be a "gigging" professional musician.  To be honest, even though I somewhat qualify for category # 6, this is truly my personal category.  A gigging or working pianist can play for theatre shows like You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, or large churches, or play for weddings/dinners/parties, and accompany dance studios.  This takes a big commitment.  Plan on years of lessons, eventually 1-hour long, learning as much music theory as possible, maximizing your ear training and sight reading skills, and fully mastering your technique.  I recommend an average of 1-2 hours per day practice until you reach a high level.  At this point, you can fall into a 30 minutes - 1 hour maintenance/slow progress.

6.  Be a piano performance major at a conservatory like UNCSA.  Because I teach in Winston-Salem, and because the University of North Carolina School of the Arts is so visible to the community, I sometimes get students who one day after taking a number of lessons decide that this is what they want to do.  The only problem is that they've demonstrated the practice habits of one of the first 3 categories, probably not enough for category # 4 and certainly not for category # 5.  This category is for serious pianists.  The average performance major at UNCSA probably has averaged 3 to 4 hours of daily practice for years.  You need to conquer everything.  An hour lesson per week is minimal.   To achieve this goal, you need to forget about most everything else.   I don't mean school, but I mean other extracurricular activities.  The people who make this goal are NOT well-rounded.  They are specialists, very very good at this one skill.  That's not to say you can't taper off and add some more to your life.  The best organist I've ever met is now an avid long-distance bicyclist.  That's now though.  When I knew him in college, all he ever did was practice.

7.  Top tier pianist.  First, let me break this gently.  Start young, and start aggressive.  If you're 8 years old and not already practicing an hour or more per day and playing early intermediate repertoire, forget this goal.  This is not your top 1% of pianists.  This is your top 0.00001% of pianists.  That's 30 Van Cliburn finalists measured against a roughly estimated 300 million pianists in the world.  You need to devote your life to this single-minded purpose.  Practice becomes your full-time job.  8 hours a day.  You need to learn to master the most advanced repertoire that exists AND try to do it better than everyone else has.  It's an intense goal that I could never recommend.  You don't choose to do this goal.  You are driven, compelled beyond reason to do this goal.  In 13 years of teaching, I've had some talented students who have fit each of the first six categories.  I've never had a student who came close to this.  I never resembled anything close to this as a student myself.  The only reason I put it here is for perspective.  You need to know how your practice habits and goals stack up against the equivalent of the World Series quality for pianists.

Again, none of these 7 goals are better than the other.  They are just various ways you can learn the instrument.  Do you have to choose one now and keep it for life?  No.  However, you need to have a goal that suits where you are right now, and practice right now in such a way that you are working towards that end.  Again this is only a sample, not comprehensive.  Do you have a goal that doesn't fit the above categories?

Recital Wrap-up, Playing in Public, Summer Planning

RECITAL WRAP-UP
Congratulations to the 14 students who participated in the Spring Recital this past Sunday, May 19!  I hope to see more new faces the next time we have one.  Performance experience is much like real life.  It's tempting to say, regardless of how you did this past weekend, that every time you perform will get easier and you'll do better each time.  The reality is that there are too many factors.  How nervous you are, how focused your concentration is, how well you've slept, how confident (without being overconfident) you are, and how well (not just how much) you've practiced will all determine how you do on any given day.   This is why you can play perfectly one recital and not do so well the next.  It's also why if you didn't play your best one recital, the next time you play might be really well.

Here are several things you can do to get better at performing in public.

1.  Practice well.  More practice is better than less practice, but that's not the same thing as practicing well.  A big goal of practice should be to identify mistakes early and to work on what is causing the mistake, not just the mistake itself.  Every mistake you've allowed yourself to make has the potential to show up when you're nervous.  Fix the tendency to make them, and you'll play it right every time.

2.  Memorize regularly.  You have enough stress in life and even in lessons for me to actually assign memorization.   To play well without music on a regular basis, you need to apply yourself to memorize something regularly.  If this is difficult for you, try just 1 or 2 measures for a start.  Later on, I'll likely write on proven methods of memorization, but for now try anyway you can.  A good practical thing to memorize is if you have a page turn.  Memorize several measures before and after the turn so you can be early or late turning the page.  Take something you learned a while back and already know how to play well with the music and commit it to memory.

3.  Watch your hands when you play.  This is related to the above point.  Every teacher I know says you should keep your eyes on the music, and not your hands when you play.  This is correct...when you are FIRST learning the music.   Sightreading well is impossible if you insist on looking at your hands more than the music.  However, If your goal is to get off the music, then you need to get your eyes off the music.  You may need to do this gradually.

4.  Slow down and breathe.  Breathing gets shallow when you get nervous.  Take slow and deep breaths to clear your mind.  Move slowly to and from the instrument.  Set a tempo in your head before you play a note.  This isn't the same suggestion as saying to play everything slowly.  No, you should play everything up to tempo, but control your tempo.

5.  Your audience supports you.  Keep this in mind whenever you play.  Who comes to hear you play?  Not your enemies; not the people who can't stand you.  It's people who care about you, and people who love music.  An audience isn't a collection of judges.  Instead, it is a group of silent cheerleaders.  How can you possibly get nervous when you think of your listeners as a resource of support?  I think the day I realized that was the day I stopped feeling fear in front of audiences.  My nerves are now excitement.  Remember this rule anytime you play for someone else.

SUMMER PLANNING
With school about to be out for a few months, this always brings up a few questions.  Do you teach in the summer?  Can I take time off and resume in the Fall?  Is it better to continue taking lessons or take time off?  Do I have to practice in the summer?  How can I practice when I'm at camp/the beach, etc?

Do you teach in the summer?  Yes.  I teach year-round.  Count on no lessons for July 4, but there are no other days I plan to miss as of this moment.

Can I take time off and resume in the Fall?  Yes.  My policy is that you must pay a two-week minimum whether you attend or not to maintain your spot when you return.  If you choose to take time off without payment, then you would need to find a new vacant time when you return.

Is it better to continue taking lessons or take time off?  If you are progressing at all, it's always better to continue.  It's virtually a law of nature that the more time you take off from lessons, the more time will be needed for review just to get back to where you are.  However, if lessons and/or practice time have been frustrating, you won't be hindering progress with a break.  It may be just what you need.

Do I have to practice in the summer?  Let's answer this as if you're at home and have much more free time.  Why wouldn't you practice?  In fact, why not practice more?  The number one reason I hear from students for not having practiced well in a particular week is that they had too much homework.  This is not a problem in the summer.  In fact, this is an OPPORTUNITY!  Practice like you never have before!

How can I practice when I'm at camp/the beach, etc?  If you're on vacation, I'm not going to suggest that you should practice hard, but it's possible and not unreasonable to take 10-15 minutes each day and do some mental practice.  You can practice scale fingerings, for example.  You can take a piece or two with the music, and play it on a table or desk as if you were playing on the keyboard.  This has been shown to be roughly 80% as effective as playing on a keyboard or piano.

Recital Basics

Tomorrow is the date of the Spring Recital at Pfafftown Baptist Church, 4336 Transou Rd, Pfafftown, NC at 3:00pm.

Here are some things to remember:

Performers: Early means on time, "on time" means late
Good performers not only don't show up late; They don't even risk the chance of it.  Aim for arriving 15 minutes early.  If you're running late, you still have a safety window.  However, if you arrive on time, you can relax in your surroundings and get used to being there before the recital begins.

Remember Stage Presence
Don't sit down before you take a bow.  Don't leave the piano before you take a bow.  In the case of the latter, it doesn't matter how you think you did.  Sometimes we don't perform as well as expected, and in our self-disgust we forget our etiquette.  Always remember your stage presence.

Don't try for better than ever, just as good as normal
The best you've ever played your piece(s) ever is as good as you can expect in a performance.  Don't try for the miraculous flawless all-star performance.  You'll feel deflated after the first mistake.  The tension will cause more mistakes to come.  Relax.  Trust your preparation, and remember that practice time is over once you play.  You're not to even consider monitoring your mistakes or trying to improve it.  You have all the way until you leave the house tomorrow to improve and prepare.  That's all you can do at that point.  Trust it, and show it off.

Give yourself room to fail
With all that said above, you will probably make a mistake.  You might, just might play a note-perfect piece with your best ever playing, but that's not super common.  So many things have to go right for a flawless performance.  If you expect something wrong might happen, you won't be caught off guard.  Remember, you might not mess up, but give yourself permission to do so.  Public performance is just as much about selling your wrong notes as playing the right ones.  You'll know your mistakes far better than nearly everyone who is listening.

What to Wear
There is no required dress code, but a recital is considered at least a semi-formal event.  Suggested dress is button-up shirt, slacks and dressier shoes for guys.  Coat and/or tie are optional.  Girls should consider a dress or a dressier casual look.  If you don't own anything like this, wear the best you have.

Good luck to everyone, please remember to review the Recital Etiquette before tomorrow.  Have fun, and I will see you soon!

Upcoming Recital Details

Time and Location

The Spring Recital will be at 3:00pm, on Sunday May 19, at Pfafftown Baptist Church; 4336 Transou Rd, Pfafftown, NC.  If participating, you should arrive 15 minutes early.  If you wish to arrive earlier, doors will open about 2:15.

Performer Traditions and Etiquette

Everybody performing in the Spring Recital this year is playing a solo and, according to the rules of tradition, should play from memory.  Music will be permitted to review while at your seat, but please leave it behind when you walk up to play.  Take your time in walking to and from the piano.  Don't rush.  Remember to bow before AND after you play.  If you play two pieces, you should not bow in between pieces.  Don't forget to adjust the bench.  Don't settle for your one-time performance if you know it is too close or far from the piano to do your best.  Performers, be sure to go to the restroom before the recital begins.  Students have missed their turn in the past for underestimating how soon their turn would arrive while making a "quick trip".  Family members should sit in pews in a way that does not make it difficult for the student to get out of the seat and up to the piano.

Audience Etiquette

The recital is a maximum of 40 minutes, probably less.  The primary rule I would ask is that you arrive on time and stay through the end if at all possible.  It is appropriate to applaud each performer as he or she walks up to the piano, and after they have played all their selections.  It is not appropriate to clap after each selection when a student has more than one piece.  Please allow silence after the first of multiple pieces.  Avoid flash photography while a piece is being played.  This can distract students who are already nervous.  Video taping is permitted provided it doesn't obstruct anyone's view.  If you share videos afterward on YouTube or another public forum, please be mindful of copyright laws.  Only a few of the pieces being played are public domain.  A good solution is to only post things privately where a link is required to view the video.

NEW - Seating Requirement

As the sanctuary will seat about triple what I'm expecting for the recital, I want to address an issue that has been a problem for me in past performances as a teacher, and that is sitting so close to the piano that the student doesn't even have to walk up to perform; They just stand up and they're already at the piano.  "The walk" is as much apart of the recital experience as everything else.  So I am more specific this year about where I want students to sit.  Though I'm very close to going to a "all students sit together" policy, I want to try to keep students with families during these events.

This photo is from a Christmas service at the church several years ago, but will give you an idea of the sanctuary's layout when viewing the piano.  The piano is on the left.  The FIRST TWO PEWS on that side are off-limits to students.  Family members, especially ones with hand-held video cameras are permitted to sit there, but Do not sit there if you are performing.  In addition, please note this center aisle in the middle of the photo.  It represents two of four ways to leave your seat and go to the piano.  Another way is to sit on the right pews and exit the far right side (off the picture).  This is okay.  Another option is to sit on the far left and walk up the aisle closest the left windows (also off the picture).  This is NOT okay.  I will angle the piano in such a way that the audience on the right can still get a good view, but I appreciate everyone following these guidelines this year.  There are plenty of seats, and again this limitation is only for the students.  Family members can sit anywhere.

Two Most Important Visuals for Musicians

For years, I've mentioned in lessons that there are two things a musician can know well and really increase their overall musicianship level.  The two items are the Rhythm Pyramid and the Circle of Fifths.

The Rhythm Pyramid

What's most important about this image is what it doesn't tell you, and that is how many beats each item gets.  If you haven't reached this point in your lessons yet, you will;  Quarter notes don't always get 1 beat.  Sometimes they get 2.  Sometimes they only get 1/2 beat.  The bottom number of a time signature tells you what the beat is.  If it's a 4, then a quarter note is 1 beat.  If it's something else, then you have to change the values of all these notes.  But here's what stays the same:  THIS PICTURE.

A whole note (at the top) is equal to any one of the rows below it (2 half notes, 4 quarters, etc).  Then notice the diagram lines to see what fits into a half note.  Look at what fits into a quarter note.  In other words. the number values may change, but the ratios stay the same...always.  It's something you can count on, and is the ultimate way of understanding rhythm.

The Circle of Fifths

I can only graze the surface of what the Circle of Fifths shows you, because it is an amazing tool.  I've discovered more and more intricacies to it since I started teaching.  But here's what you need to know.

Once you've begun to study key signatures, you'll learn that you can have up to 7 sharps or 7 flats in a piece.  The Circle of Fifths is what it says it is: a circular diagram showing the letters in music going up (clockwise) or down (counterclockwise) by a perfect fifth (7 half steps).  This arrangement shows you many things but here are the most important:

• The order by which keys are sharp or flat.  Start at the top and go to the right.  You go from 0 sharps to 7 sharps,  Go to the left from the top, and you go from 0 flats to 7 flats.
• The order of sharps and flats.  Sharps and flats occur in a traditional order.  If you have ANY sharps in the key signature, you can count on it being an F#.  If you have a flat, it will include B-flat.  Here's what's going on.  Go to the top of the circle where you'd put "11" on a clock.  That's the letter F.  Start there and read the 1st 7 letters clockwise: F-C-G-D-A-E-B.  That is your order of sharps in a key signature.  Now go in reverse: B-E-A-D-G-C-F.  That is the order of flats.

If any of the above seems complicated, it's only because we've either not gone over it much in your lessons or because they are both very versatile.  It's not a tool for teaching from scratch, but it illuminates what you're learning in your lessons.  If you can memorize the above images (and keep in mind that both have many variations out there), you'll know so much about music just from this.

Practice Tip, Igudesman and Joo

Please note to all email subscribers, videos are not sent in emailed transcriptions of these blog posts.  I will try to always make it clear in the body of an article when a video is included, but you will need to follow the link within your emails to the actual blog article to view everything.  That includes this blog post.

Practice Tip - One Problem at a Time

If you've had a dozen lessons with me, then you almost certainly have heard me give you this very important principle to good practice.  Inevitably, you will attempt to learn something that seems overwhelming.  You have to address every obstacle in a piece of music in order to learn it completely, but you don't have to and shouldn't try to do it all at once.  That's probably obvious enough, but let's take it one step further:  don't even try to solve TWO things at once.  Limit it to one.

Sometimes the problem is as simple as getting from note # 1 to note # 2.  You may need to practice that slowly, then speed up.  Sometimes the rhythm is a problem.  Get off the keyboard and practice on a table.  No pitches to hear, so you need to focus on the rhythm.  Sometimes it's pedaling.  So pedal as you watch the music imagining you are playing without actually moving your hands.  We'll go over more ways than this, but the point is:  take care of just one problem at a time.  In a really tough passage, it may mean ignoring one problem while you work on another.  You'll do nothing but frustrate yourself trying to multi-task.

Meet Igudesman and Joo - Video and Concert Info

If you've ever been misled into thinking that classical music is boring, allow me to introduce you to the funniest classical comedy duo I've ever seen.  They are from England, and are Alexis Igudesman and Hyung-Ki Joo.  They are coming to Greensboro on Friday, April 12 at 8:00pm to perform with the Greensboro Symphony Orchestra to play their Big Nightmare Music show (as opposed to their two-person Little Nightmare Music show).  Here is a link for more info: http://www.greensborosymphony.org/season/2012-13/masterworks5.asp

Finally, I leave you with this video by Igudesman and Joo from their Little Nightmare Music show.  The next time you think you're having a tough piano lesson, compare it to this one and its pure madness!

Is a half-hour lesson enough?

Three reasons for upgrading to a one hour lesson per week

By default, I teach a half-hour lesson per student each week.  It's less expensive and tends to be the right amount of time needed to go over the material that the average student practices in one week.  A few of you would benefit by upgrading to an hour each week.  Here are three signs to check and see if it's right for you.

1.  Half-hour lessons feel rushed.  If you are practicing more music than we have time to properly go over in a 30 minute lesson, then you should consider expanding to a 60 minute lesson.  One of the downsides to practicing and progressing a lot is that you may be outpacing what we can properly review during the lesson.  An hour makes it so much easier for the ambitious or advancing student to get proper coaching.

2.  You desire an additional focus.   Some piano students may also want to study French horn.  They may want more focus on theory.  They may want to learn both classical AND jazz/pop styles of playing.  They may want to additionally learn composing.  If you want to learn piano AND something else, then you need an hour.

3.  It is within your budget.   Choose reason number 1 OR number 2, but then add this third reason.  I do offer a discount per half-hour when you expand to an hour by a difference of $20 per month, but this is still more total money for your music education than a half-hour lesson.  If you or your child is single-focused or having only a small time to practice, I do not recommend adding money for more time.  It's very difficult to fill an hour's time with material in those situations, and your money is not as efficiently being used.  If you fit one of the first two choices, you should look at your budget and see if you can fit it in.  Hour lessons aren't always immediately available to schedule, but by putting in a request, I can arrange the time as soon as possible for you to get this in.  If you are unsure whether you are the type of student who would benefit, please email me, and I will give you my honest opinion.  If you are a prospect and unsure about whether an hour lesson would be more beneficial than a half-hour, then I always suggest starting with a half-hour and seeing if it feels like enough, and then expand to an hour as needed.

Tutorial for musictheory.net part 1 - Note Trainer

A wonderful website for piano students of every level is www.musictheory.net.  One of the things that makes it great is that it works for all levels, depending on how you use the settings.  I just started using this app (you'll see the watermark at the bottom of the video) to record videos while using the website.  Please pardon some of the excess mic noise.  I'll try to fix that in the future.  For now, here is an introduction to using the Note Trainer, an exercise you need to use unless you have total mastery of treble and bass clef notes.  Enjoy.

The Basic Stroke

I know of no better video to demonstrate correct basic arm technique than this section from Barbara Lister-Sink's award-winning video.  Study this until you can imitate it completely.

Policies

updated Dec. 16, 2013

Please refer to this post for whenever you have comments or questions regarding payment, make-ups and other portions of my studio policy.

PAYMENT, ATTENDANCE and MAKE-UPS

Lessons are charged at a flat rate per month, guaranteeing you a slot for one lesson per week. The rate is not affected by the number of weeks in a month. Accepted payments are cash, online banking, or a check made payable to David Lane.

*For half-hour lessons: email or call for rates

*For hour lessons (or families with two students): email or call for rates

Payment is due by your first scheduled lesson, subject to a $10 late fee after the 15th, and subject to a $20 returned check fee.

*All rates subject to change.  Please contact me to verify current rates.

What Your lesson Pays For: (Important!)

Many students begin taking lessons with the false impression that they are simply paying for their lessons when they attend. This leads to the understanding that attended lessons require payment and missed lessons do not. I've tried a number of ways to explain the error in this, and have simply come down to this:

100% of your tuition goes towards your name being reserved at a specific time on my schedule. The lesson itself is free!

Whether you attend or not, the payment is to ensure that you have a spot for you whether you show, have to cancel, can't communicate with me, forget, or whatever else comes up. I would consider it a courtesy if you'd inform me of any known absences in advance. If you've let me know you won't be there, your timeslot is still available if you have paid, and I will only use it for another purpose with your permission.

Your payment covers simply being on my roster. HOWEVER, you get the following free benefits:

• A quality lesson when you do attend.
• My education, experience and expertise
• A subscription to my blog, which you can remain on even if you discontinue lessons.
• My dedication to researching questions or helping you with specific goals.
• Occasional performance opportunities

MAKE-UP POLICY

When YOU miss: As the previous section states, there are no make-ups or credits for lessons you miss. That said, provided you give me plenty of notice of an absence, I will make an effort to find you an alternate time if there are vacancies or cancelations in my schedule. You can view my updated schedule at the website listed above. If this policy seems harsh, please consider that it is no different than most other recreational activities you'd sign up for including karate and league sports, and it is the policy of the majority of music teachers in this area. If you've canceled and plans change, let me know in advance.

When I miss: Because there are 52 weeks in a year, I do not charge for 4 of them. These are 4 times I may miss due to illness, vacation, holiday or weather. If I am to miss more than 4 lessons per year (which is likely for students who take on Saturdays or after 6pm on weekdays), I will prorate your remaining month by $25 per half hour lesson and $45 per hour lesson unless a makeup lesson is available.

YOUR PART in PREPARATION

• Always come prepared to your lessons with all books and a notebook or notepad. You may additionally bring a recording device and metronome. I provide pen and pencils.
• You must practice daily. You are otherwise wasting time and money. Additional guidelines will be given during your lessons. If you fail to practice, or bring all of your materials, I cannot assume responsibility for an unproductive lesson.

(over)

• You cannot practice without an instrument. For piano students, any acoustic piano will do. Any basic keyboard is suitable for beginners. Eventually, you will need a full-sized keyboard (88 keys), with hammer-action weighting on the keys, and at least one sustain pedal.
• You will likely need to purchase books for your lesson on a regular basis. Details will be provided during your lesson.
• An essential tool is a metronome. Any working metronome will do, but I recommend digital metronomes with variable beat patterns and, if possible, a tap feature. You do not need to bring this to your lesson unless you desire help with using it.
• OPTIONAL: Some students find it beneficial for me to record their assigned pieces. I will be happy to do that if you will bring in a recording device. I recommend portable digital recorders or your smartphone.

PERFORMANCE OPPORTUNITIES

• Each student is encouraged, not required, to prepare for and participate in up to two recitals per year (offered in the Fall and/or Spring). Additional opportunities are available throughout the year through the Winston-Salem Piano Teachers' Association. WSPTA events may require an entry fee, but recitals are free. A certain minimal amount of progress is expected to participate in these events.

HOLIDAYS and INCLEMENT WEATHER

• Except for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Independence Day, never assume I am not teaching. This includes days of inclement weather, holidays, or other days when school is cancelled. I will inform you if I cannot be there, and you must likewise inform me. If your lesson day falls on one of the above holidays, it is covered by one of the four extra weeks in your tuition.

MISCELLANEOUS

• Please behave with respect during your lesson. Do not talk or play while instruction is being given.
• Please refrain from or be very minimal with wearing cologne or perfume when you come to your lessons.
• I reserve the right to dismiss you from my roster if you are inconsistent with payment or regularly misbehave during lessons.

SPECIAL NOTE TO PARENTS

• If your child is under the age of 10, they can really use your active involvement. I encourage an adult to sit in on the lessons and then be willing to coach your child at home. I have found that students stick with lessons longer when a guardian is actively helping them. Please also understand that is not normal for a child to practice regularly without prompting. Practice is work, even if they really want to learn piano, and is highly unusual for a child under 12 to be self-responsible in this area.

Welcome to Lane Piano Studio

Welcome to all students of David Lane and their parents, as well as prospects and any other people interested in the piano.

This is the place where I will be regularly writing practice tips, making event announcements, maintaining my schedule, as well as offering you helpful videos, websites and other links.

At anytime, you will be able to navigate by seeing my permanent links along the side, along with blog labels.  Thank you for taking time to read.