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Da Capo Repeat from the beginning
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Back to Piano!
Whew! After taking my practical ARCT exam, I thought I'd be able to catch my breath. Really? I should have known better. Now it's back into fall schedule -- which means teaching again. :) First Week of Lessons! My students started their lessons this week. As a teacher, my first impulse was to get straight to work, reviewing and reviewing some more. But a blog post I read made me decide to make first lessons easier. So there were a couple of things we did that were definitely on the lighter side. This is the fourth wall in my piano studio -- two garish, screaming-80s-green Sunday school room dividers. (Hey, I got them for free!) In spite of their outdated and unappealing colour, I love these walls for two reasons: 1) They can be moved aside when hosting a recital or when my family needs the basement space for company, and 2) I can jab as many pins into them as I like without worrying about making holes in the drywall. One divider serves as my Brag Wall -- where stude...
A Quote for You
This is something I saw pinned to the corkboard in the foyer of my teacher's studio. I like it, so I took a picture of it to share with you all. Enjoy what remains of summer!
When Music Teachers Meet
It was Sunday evening, and various members of PMTA were gathered at one member's home for the Annual General Meeting. Since I've only been a member for less than a year, this was the first time I'd been to one of their meetings. As we were setting up for supper, I asked the president, "So, what goes on in the meeting?" She looked at me, and her face instantly displayed drama. With gusto, she replied, "You'll be thrilled, and chilled, and ... bored out of your mind!" LOL! That's the great thing about hanging around with other artistic minds. There's plenty of room for drama. :) Seriously, though, I like getting together with other music teachers, because all of us can talk for hours about music. :) It was a lot of fun comparing notes back and forth and getting to know some of the other teachers. I pick up ideas from these exchanges, including other teachers' favourite methods and new things to include -- or new ways ...
Spring Recital and (Very Brief) Year Recap
Note to readers: You won't be hearing much from me over the next few months, as I will be preparing for my ARCT and History 3 exams in August. However, if you're a parent looking for a piano teacher, I will be resuming teaching in the fall. So I am still available to contact. :) Spring recital Last Saturday found my students and I at a seniours' home in Stony Plain, doing our annual spring recital. I've mentioned before that that was something I grew up with -- the teacher that I stayed with the longest (about 5 or 6 years) always took us to a seniours' home every spring. It's a gift. It's a gift to the residents. It's also a gift to the student -- the chance to make music with a purpose, to bring a moment of sunshine into someone else's life and to use music to benefit the community. Because music shouldn't be about who the spotlight is on. Sure, the spotlight feels great at the moment, but everyone will agree that kindness matter...