Practicing Piano While on Vacation

Some of my students are going to places warm and exotic for Easter Break. One of them, who's taking her Gr. 7 piano exam in June, asked me how to practice while on vacation. Bonus points to her for asking!What I've done in the past is put my music in a binder or duotang and study the score, analyzing the form, dynamics, articulation, rhythm and harmony. If my ear is on that day, I can hum the melody and practice how I'd like to shape it. I've also tap practiced the melody. That can be done in a 10 minute mini practice at the airport, on the plane, at the beach...you get the idea.

I know of one piano accompanist who played "air piano" while on public transit. Her husband, a conductor, would laugh at her whenever she grumbled over hitting a wrong note. "You're playing an imaginary piano. How do you know?" he asked.

She told him that her body remembered where each note was on the keyboard, so her muscle memory was finely tuned.

I've hopped on a few discussion forums to see what others do. If it's a short vacation, the rule of thumb is to enjoy the time off. If you're preparing for a major performance, one can practice as I outlined above. You can also see if the place you're staying at has a piano or keyboard that is nearby and make arrangements to play on it during low traffic times. Several posters advise packing headphones to plug into a keyboard so that the world doesn't have to listen to you drill a troublespot 50 times.

One of my young students brought an Keyboard Chart Chart on his Christmas vacation, which is available at most music stores. He placed the cardboard keyboard on a table or the floor to practice.

I've also heard of a "roll-up piano", made by Hecsan in Japan. Neat concept. However, advanced pianists would have challenges with the small length and the fact that it doesn't play chords very well.

If only we could be all like pop star Alicia Keys - she brings her piano with her everywhere she goes.

(c) 2007 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Practice Tip: Playing along with a CD

I recently ordered Bleach the Best CD through amazon.com. A courier dropped it off during this morning's piano lessons. As soon as I ushered my day students out the door, I set the CD to Houki Boshi- the song I'm doing for the APTA Festival and played along with it on the piano. This is a surefire way to force a musician to keep going no matter what as the CD doesn't stop for you to correct notes.It was an energizing experience, mainly because the song is supposed to be played at approximately 162 quarter notes per minute.

(c) 2007 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Sight Reading Tips

Busy week - three posts from me. I've had to do some research for students so I have lots of information to share this week. A while back, one of my beginner students (and her dad) asked me why we had to work on sight reading (playing something you haven't seen before). The easy answer? It makes you a better musician.

There is a practical reason to why students are tested in this area.I told my student that there will be times that she's at a social function, ensemble rehearsal or school when someone will place unfamiliar music in front of her and say, "Play this."

I have a handful of students who need work in this area. We've been spending a lot of time lately going through a passage several times, with them focussing on one area (rhythm, touch, melody, dynamics, etc.) before trying to put all the elements together. Some of them look at me funny when I say, "For the first time through, don't bother getting any of the notes right." It helps though because it lifts the pressure off their shoulders to get it perfect.

Sight reading is also one of my weak spots. Since I've been teaching, I have been improving steadily. Some things I've learned along the way are:

• Look for patterns, be they melodic, rhythmic or harmonic

• Ditch "Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge" and all those other phrases to remember note names. Follow the note heads instead, reading intervallically, e.g., C then up a step, then down a skip, etc.

• Getting the rhythm and keeping a steady beat is more important than getting every note right.

• You have to practice sight reading - start easy and work your way up.

• Learn to play by feel - without having to look at your hands.

Here are more useful tips in these articles:

Some Tips on Sight Reading More Tips on Sight Reading Sight Reading Studio 1.0 Software

(c) 2007 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Making the Most of Music Practicing

"My head's exploding!" said one of my students as she walked into her lesson today. September is so exciting and hectic for students and their families. Back to school and back to their extracurricular activities. Homework and limited playtime. With any activity, establishing a regular routine is critical to ensure steady progress, growth and a sense of accomplishment. Set up a regular practice time in your child (or your own) schedule. Goal oriented practicing works well for many students, more than punching the clock, although general guidelines for practice times do exist. Do remember to warm-up, cool down and reflect upon what worked well in your session, what still needs work, what you enjoyed (or didn't) and what you need to ask the teacher at the next lesson.

Here a pretty good article on how to set up a good practice routine at home A Guide to Great Home Music Practice.

(c) 2006 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Music Fun & Games for the Summer

Just two more sleeps before the end of the school year. I, like my students, can't wait. However, I do have seven summer students for July, which works out to eight more teaching evenings. With the exception of one student who is preparing for a theory exam, the rest get to enjoy a more leisurely musical exploration next month. I promised them that we will do plenty of pop songs, improvising and composing (with some finger warm-ups thrown in).

All students will have summer assignments, which consist of playing pop, movie, country, praise & worship and jazz songs, composing and improvising to their hearts content. I paid dearly for not touching the piano in the summer when I was their age. I gradually caught on that this was not a good thing (starting from scratch each year is a painful experience for everyone involved). Now, I stress the importance of keeping their skills up, but also encourage them to have as much fun as they want at their instrument. And yes, we teachers expect the students to have a more relaxed practice routine. Relaxed, but still consistent.

The exam students do have to start on their technical requirements and exam repertoire. If they work hard at it over the summer, then they don't have to work as hard during the school year.

Here are two music games for the students to goof off with over the summer:

• Music Online Games

• Funbrain.com

Enjoy!

(c) 2006 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.