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On Harmony and Art "Rules"
I realized I had to blog today. And I juggled my lack of inspiration against the stack of my harmony student's work that still needs to be marked and sent back. And then I thought of my own journey through the harmony textbooks. In Grade 9, while I was struggling to remember and follow all the rules, my Grade 9 teacher said, "Yeah, and then you get into studying music history, and you discover that all the famous composers ever did was break the rules anyways." That discouraged me. Why was I learning this stuff if it didn't matter? If no one regarded it? If the rules were only there for the exam and nothing more? In Grade 10, I silently carried this attitude over to my new theory teacher. She didn't reprimand it. Maybe, because I was the silent and obliging type, she didn't even notice it. Instead she took me to her piano. She made me play the wrong harmonies, the rule-breakers. Then she had me play the corrected versions. "Doesn&#
Blogging Schedule Update
Hi, all, Just as a heads up, I won't be blogging on a weekly basis anymore. Not that I was doing that consistently anyways. But from now on, until further notice, it's official. I will be blogging once every two weeks -- the end-of-the-month updates, and tips, thoughts, and memoirs in between. As always, please still head over to my contact page to get in touch. Or you can click on this page to learn about accompaniment services. Finally, the most important page on this blog you possibly can click on is this one. (I know that's vague. I did that on purpose. Hoping to pique your curiousity and that sort of thing....😉) Stay warm!
OK... finally writing November and December updates
Whoops! I never got around to writing a November update. Or a December one. And to top it all off, I also forgot to take pictures. Actually, correction: At my recital, I forgot to ask my mom to take pictures for me. Normally my brother does that. But he was dashing home to grab the dessert I hadn't thought of bringing. Yeah. So, let's start with November! Composer Month Composer Month this year went well. As the month drew to a close, it became clear that the Chopin team was not winning. At 58 points, they came in last. Poor Chopin. The Brahms team started off with a bang, and were in the lead for at least the first two weeks. But at 76 points, they took second place. Not bad, Brahms. The Tchaikovsky team won at 87 points! They owed 65 of those points to three students, who were all in the lead for individuals who brought in the most facts. Two of them tied for most facts at 22, and the third student was right behind them at 21 facts. I try to keep