Songbird Piano Lessons

   My siblings and I put together this video, special for Christmas 2020. It's just for you, so please watch, enjoy, and share if you like it!  Merry Christmas and God bless! 

  In thinking over things between yesterday and today, I realized something comforting: Most of the things that are different about online recitals were covered yesterday. Most of what I have to say to students are things I'd say to them anyways. Yay!     So, hints, tips, and protocol for the students! (Parents, please go over these with your young children.) Does it make you nervous to play in front of people? If so, that's OK -- most people feel this way! So, leading up to the recital, perform a lot for your family and friends. This will help you not to be so nervous. Don't forget to get them to sign your music or notebook in pencil!  Recitals are special, so now's a good chance to wear your best clothes! Dress nicely, and don't forget to put on your smiles. :) Check your piano bench before your mom or dad signs in to the recital. Make sure you're comfortable with where it is. When it's your turn to play, come and sit at your piano so we can all see you ov...

  Wow. I am about to write a post on something I've never done before.     I mean, once upon a time, I had to do that with my first in-person recital. But I'd been to in-person recitals -- plenty of them. I'd watched my teachers. I'd even participated in a joint recital with another teacher.     In spring I did a YouTube recital. That was more video editing than I want to be doing this month; hence the switch to music teachers' least favourite platform, Zoom. So what I'm putting down here is just quoting the experts.    So, parents, what should you do in preparation for recital day?  Be there -- not just you, but your whole family! The idea of a recital, be it in-person or over Zoom, is to celebrate what your child can do. Just because it's at home, don't make it an excuse for everyone else to be off in their own bedrooms playing video games while your young pianist is nervously performing in front of a screen for other's benefit.  ...

 Decrescendo Gradually getting quieter

 And by now everyone who's not one of my student's parents or one of my friends is going, "You were doing Composer Month?! You never told us!"    Yes, we just finished Composer Month this week! For those of you who might not be familiar, students compete to bring in the most facts about a specific composer. This year we focused on three Romantic era composers -- Schubert (who, to be accurate, can be considered either a Classical or a Romantic), Mendelssohn, and Liszt. (Why those three? I randomly picked the ones I thought might be the least weird and the most child-friendly. You could debate Liszt's lifestyle in the child-friendly department. But no one brought facts about his exploits, so we're good.) Students are awarded one point for each fact they bring in.     And, to announce the winner... *drumroll*    ...the Liszt team! Congratulations!    The Liszt team won at 34 points. Mendelssohn came in next at 30 points. The Schubert team m...

 Forte Loud & strong

 I could have jumped up and down with excitement.    But doing that in front of people outside my family seemed a little undignified!     What was I so excited over? Let me start from the beginning.     A few years ago, I was into a little bit of beta reading and copy editing. It's a neat little exchange -- you get a free sneak peak at someone else's book or magazine (free is great, right?!), and the authour/editor gets your feedback. This was when a lady from church approached me and asked if I would give her some feedback on her book. The book was about music -- Christian music, my favourite topic :) -- and I wasn't working on anyone else's projects, so I said yes.     Not far into the book, I was absorbed. I'd grown up in a home where we didn't really "do" Christian rock, and the use of contemporary music had gradually diminished. But this book gave arguments -- solid arguments -- that cemented my convictions and honed my un...

 Istesso The same as before.

 Langsam Slowly

Moderato A moderate or medium speed

 Last month I was excited to post.     This month, my main thought is, "I have to blog?! What am I going to blog about?"    I can't even rely on my photos to jog my memory. Because it seems I went back to my typical self and forgot to take pictures of most of the activities. (Sorry, if I have any look-at-the-photos-first readers.) I mean, my piano teachers never took photos. At least, not while I was watching.     Maybe we'll spotlight online lessons for today.    Online Lesson Fun    I can't claim being an online expert yet in the piano teaching world. But I will share with you some of my favourite things about it: I don't have to Disinfect. Absolutely. Everything. before my student shows up. Or worry about what happens when I've just finished disinfecting and one of my siblings decides to come in just then. Or freak out over the universal question: "Are my hands  clean enough?"  If the studio's messy, all I hav...

 Octave An eight

 Pianissimo Very quietly. 

 Rallentando Gradually slowing down.

 My first month of teaching this school is over. 😭    September was a blast! In-Person    There's something thrilling about the medieval era. A child doesn't have to know what "medieval" means to be mesmerized by the whole knights-and-princesses thing. And it's not just children. *sheepish grin.* I'm not the only grown-up out there with this penchant, am I?     So I figured a castle theme would be a pretty intriguing way to kick off the new school year. Welcome, one and all... to the castle.  My teenage siblings were a real help in pulling this off. Most of that Playmobil up there belongs to my brothers, with one of the two princesses being my sister's.  They also loaned me a cape of theirs, and a perusal of online castle classroom ideas 'sparked' the construction-paper torches. I was going to make a banner, too, and cardboard towers, but I ran out of time. :(  Of course, the castle theme demanded some castle games. There was the M...

 Staccato Sharply detached.

 Tenuto Hold the note for its full value

 Una corda Use the soft pedal

 Vivace Lively, brisk

  Next week I start teaching again. Yay!     Next week I also start studying again. Not yay. 😓The good news is, I'm one course away from finishing my ARCT. When I'm done, boy, am I going to celebrate!     So, couple of minor details for anyone who cares to know:  Blogging Schedule    I'll be going back to once-a-month blog posts, keeping you updated on how both  in-person  and  online  lessons are going. (Teaser: I'm super excited to write September's update! I've got a fantastic & fun theme for this month in the in-person studio -- hopefully I can apply it to the online studio as well -- and I can't wait to share with you about it.)     Of course, this blogging schedule doesn't apply to the Word of the Week, which starts next week. For those of you who have been wondering for a while what's up with the Word of the Week, students earn points by 1) knowing the Word of the Week, 2) practicing four ti...

 I first realized there was a problem on a road trip with my friends. The conversation went something like this: Friend: Do you like opera?  Me: No. The music's amazing, but the storylines are always morbid, weird, or suggestive -- or all three. Friend: Oh. Well, everyone talks about what a great piece of music Handel's Messiah  is, but we really don't like the singing. You can't understand what's being said.  Me: *blinks rapidly in confusion* Huh?! Me: Handel's Messiah isn't an opera. It's an oratorio!  Friend: What's the difference?     I explained the difference to my friends, and we kept driving. But I soon discovered that theirs was an extremely common misconception. I was telling my mom about this while listening to a cantata, and with a puzzled glance, she asked, "So, if you don't like opera, why are you listening to one?"     The worst was the comment I found on YouTube. For my music history, I was listening to Jean Coulthar...

 I got this book as a present from my teacher around year ago. I finished reading it several months ago. (Not because it's a thick, intimidating read. It has more to do with trying to read 4 or 5 books at once with an average reading time of 5-10 minutes a day.) Today, you finally get to hear about how much I loved it!    As you can see from the photo, the title is The Soul of the Music: Gifts from the Golden Age of Piano,  and it's written by Edwin Gnandt (who happens to be a Canadian, which gives the book an even better rating in my mind 😄). In six chapters, Gnandt contrasts the approach of the Romantic era and our own in four different areas of pianism: singing tone/legato style, composition and improvisation, interpretation, technical prowess, and performance/competition culture. Though it took me months to read, that was my own fault; the book is slim and no one is going to lose their train of thought before getting to the end. With the technical details covere...

  While I'm now offering  online lessons , I've talked with enough parents over the past few months to know: Not everyone's hyped about the idea of taking lessons online. Many of you would rather continue with traditional, in-person lessons. But does that work in the new world of COVID-19 we've found ourselves in?     Actually, I believe in-person lessons can continue safely under the current situation. Here's my plan for how we're going to continue having lessons that are both fun and safe for everyone! Students and anyone else who comes in will be asked to use either hand sanitizer or hand wipes with tea tree oil. (Why tea tree oil? It's an anti-viral, which makes it, in some of my friends' points of view, more effective against COVID-19 than antibacterial hand sanitizers. But it will be your choice which one you use.) I will be wiping down the piano, chairs, pencils, and any items used during lesson time between lessons.  There will be a masking-tape ...

      Today I started a course from  Music Teacher's Helper  that was all about teaching piano online.     The course has made me feel more positive and confident about offering online lessons. It showed me that, yes, there are advantages for students taking lessons online. And the disadvantages? They're hurdles I can overcome, not roadblocks that will stop me. Most of all, that first lesson has assured me that online lessons are something that students can enjoy and learn from, just as much as in-person lessons.    So on to what you really want to know: Are online lessons right for you? Well, based on my first course module and my experience, here's my thoughts. Online lessons might be right for you if: you like the idea of taking lessons from home. Some children actually find this more comfortable than going somewhere for lessons. your schedule would make it difficult to drive to a piano teacher's studio every week (you could save a lo...

So ... I thought I had already posted about creating video lessons. But then I actually read my own blog (for a change) and discovered I hadn't. I'd posted about how much I hated teaching online. But that was about it.     From the beginning, then!    Not all of my students switched to online lessons when COVID-19 shut the world down. Some of them decided a hiatus was a better idea. The only problem was, I still owed one family a few more lessons. At first, I hoped that this whole thing would blow over before the school year ended, and we'd have a couple more lessons in-person.    But then I came up with another idea, a back-up plan that intrigued me. I had made video lessons in the past for a certain student -- why couldn't I do it again for this family? Except I could make them even better. Maybe I could even use it to start creating a marketable video series.     Three months later, I am cheering because I'm finally done their video l...

Hope. Ingenuity.  Resourcefulness.  These are the words that come to mind when I watch this video.  "People realize that we shouldn't throw away trash carelessly. Well, we shouldn't throw away people either."    Who would have thought that something beautiful could come out of a landfill? Well, when you think about it, the real answer is, our Creator and Redeemer did. Because that's exactly what He does -- takes what is worthless in the eyes of others and transforms it into something beautiful.     If these people can do this, what can you do with what you have? Especially if you're a Christian, things like this ought to challenge all of us. We have the best Hope of all to share through our music!    

   You don't really think about what it means to have two self-employed people in the same household -- until you have to move your workspace. Or use it for something else besides working.     Wednesday morning started out just like any other summer Wednesday morning for most music teachers: with nothing in particular on the schedule.    That, very quickly, turned out to be a good thing. Right after breakfast, I ran down to our extra bedroom in the basement, looking for something.    I didn't find what I was looking for. Instead, I found a large puddle. Flicking on light switches revealed several more large puddles. Puddles outside are normal when you live in the country, but ... inside?!    The good news? The copious amounts of water were neither in Dad's office wrecking his files, nor in the studio wrecking my pianos!     The bad news? Currently, the water's the only thing not in our work areas.     Y...

A few months ago, shortly after COVID-19 hit, I had a crazy urge: to pull out my Playmobil.     Now, don't get me wrong. I didn't actually want to play with it. I just wanted to set it up. I mean, my Playmobil was one of my favourite toys, along with my 18-inch dolls, and I still get a ridiculous delight out of going to a toy store and just walking through a Playmobil aisle. I also get a ridiculous delight of seeing other people's Playmobil.     I guess it's just the child in me ....     Anyways, I did have the perfect place to set it up. 😆    Unfortunately, my tablet distorted my piano top as I was taking the picture, making it look like my piano had an asteroid crash into it and create a bend. Don't worry, my piano top is actually flat. :)    I do wonder (as do my parents) how much of a distraction this will prove to be once I have students in here again. Especially as I watch my siblings. They're all in their teens, so...

This post has nothing to do with music. And if I had a huge following, I might think twice about posting this. But most of the people who read my posts are my friends & family, anyways, so .... 😏    I'm sharing the following video. There's a lot of talk about racism these days, but the solution is not political correctness, because political correctness never changed anyone's mind or heart. It's also not tearing down statues. Christopher Columbus, to borrow a pun from David Barber, is not in a position (lying down dead) to care what people think about him.     I believe this video has the true solution. WARNING: If you are politically correct, this video might make you angry. 😊 I still think you should watch it! 

Hey, I'm finally back!     So ... I haven't actually posted about how my teaching has been going, with COVID-19 and social distancing and all. Life has been too busy to worry about a trivial thing like blogging.    Yes, I did say busy. Because when you live on five acres with two parents, three to four siblings (depending on who's home), two cats, and a hyperactive dog ... the idea of being quarantined doesn't look that bad! Taking an exam over Zoom (which was NOT fun and games), planting the garden, other miscellaneous yardwork, cleaning, and other need-to-do tasks have been more than enough to keep me busy.    But today it's raining. So, lucky for you, I can't go work outside!     Now I'm rambling.     When COVID-19 hit Canada in mid-March, my first response was to continue lessons as normal. Quickly that became apparent that it wasn't going to be possible to do so.  There was just one problem: I had never before Sk...

Meno mosso Less movement (play slower)

Leggiero Light

Furioso Furiously

Da capo From the beginning

Coda A section that ends a piece.

So, the question for me was: My students aren't coming to my studio right now. They're getting their lessons over Skype for the time being or just taking a break. So do I bother putting up my Resurrection Weekend deco?    In the end, I decided, yes.  Because nobody said I can't share them with you. The Cross ...    ...because when wrong is done, someone has to pay.    It's ingrained somewhere deep inside us. When we are robbed, cheated, betrayed, we want the other person to suffer. We know that is justice. But when it's us ... we crave mercy.    And for that reason, every world religion has demanded a sacrifice. Something was needed to appease whatever God or gods that religion worshiped. The Jews were commanded to sacrifice livestock. The Mayans and Aztecs did bloody sacrifices of a more brutal type. (No details -- you probably already know why!!!) Modern religions claim that good works and generous giving are the sacrifice need...

Buffa Comic or humorous

I had three experiences between my childhood and teens that taught me about how God can work through music. This is one. When I was a child, I was terrified ... of a lot of things.    The dark.    Heights.    A bomb being dropped on us. (You want irrational?! I had it! This particular fear, by the way, began after reading a WWII novel set in China. The novel was for 9-12 year olds, but I was probably 8.)    That first fear -- the dark -- was about to become more than a little problematic in my pre-teen years. We used to let our dog into the house for the night, to keep him from barking at the moon. At night, an old, ratty comforter was spread over the floor for him. In the daytime, it was folded up and hung up on a clothesline.    A clothesline that happened to be closer to the woods than the house.    It wasn't actually that far from the house -- we lived on a one-acre plot back then, and so when it was dark, and...

Hello, everyone,    As Parkland Music Festival has been postponed due to COVID-19, I thought I'd take a minute to update you all on how my studio will be dealing with this new health concern. But first, there's something more important to be said:     God is in control of this!     "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment...." 1 John 4:18    I'm not joining the throngs of people in their panic. That being said, I have no problem with taking precautions. So, I am preparing to teach lessons via Skype, should a student, myself, or a family member get sick. (Even if it's just a common cold -- who likes catching a cold?!) Students will be asked to stay home if they are sick with anything. The pianos in my studio will be wiped down frequently before and between lessons. I will find something to use as a cleaner that is anti-viral.  Students will be asked to wash their hands properl...

Agitato Agitated or excited

Hello, everyone!    With Parkland Music Festival just around the corner, I thought I'd share their code of conduct on here. It's important information, so please take a moment to read through it. (Taken from the 2020 syllabus, available  on their website. ) Since everyone has busy lives, I highlighted the most important parts. (The 'don't do's' are in orange.) PARKLAND MUSIC FESTIVAL CODE OF CONDUCT The Parkland Music Festival Committee appreciates every person’s effort in making the Parkland Music Festival a success. We are striving to make this event a positive experience for everyone. To make sure that we achieve this goal, we have set forward some basic guidelines for all to follow. It is vitally important to make sure that all of our participants are treated fairly and that the adjudicator is basing their judgments from a purely unbiased scope. Please see below for our code of conduct: 1. No individual should discuss their own student or any other...

Tempo primo Return to your first speed

Scherzando (pronounced: skirt-ZAN-do) Playful, lively.