Online Music Games

If you're looking for something new to give your students (or if you, a student is looking for something new to play), try these online music games:

• Star Jam - Drop blocks into the space in front of the moving ball to create a musical guitar riff.

• Music Catch - Catch musical shapes that fly onto the screen in time to the music. Yellow is good. Purple is good but Red is BAD.

Enjoy!

(c) 2009 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Piano Fight

Although not quite as violent as the Violin Death Fight posted on The Collaborative Piano Blog, this is still pretty funny.

(c) 2009 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Student Incentive Program Musings

It may seem odd that I'm thinking about next year's student incentive program. It all started with me revamping the Lesson Assignment/Practice Diary Sheet to incorporate things that needed either clarification, simplification or simply more room. Might as well tackle it now while it's fresh on my mind. On the other hand, you could accuse me of procrastinating from practicing, however, it's not altogether true. I just get distracted with all the other things I have to do. All right, I could have worked on it AFTER practicing. Yes, even teachers employ the same pitiful excuses we get from our own students.

Here are two informative sites on student incentive programs that I recently discovered: Music Teachers Helper Piano Teacher Resources

Enough webtime and back to that piano. There's nothing like wanting to do well on an exam to motivate one to go the extra mile. Must drill those trouble spots and work on transposing!

(c) 2009 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

The Blindfolded Pianist

After fighting with my drum kit over the best arrangement to use with I Got Rhythm, I thought I better take a practice break before I give in to the urge to hit it.Martin Leung, AKA The Video Game Pianist burst onto the youtube stage with this "Blindfolded Pianist" videos. He is currently working on his Masters' Degree in Music and touring around the world with Video Games Live.

A pretty sweet gig if I say so myself.

I recently heard him perform with Video Games Live when they came to Calgary.

Here he is in his blindfolded glory:

(c) 2009 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary, AB, Canada. All rights reserved.

Music Exam Preparation Tips

With music students across the country taking exams next month, I thought it would be apropos to post some exam preparation tips. Some of these are "general exam" tips, but for the most part, they can be applied to music exams. After all, an exam is an exam, whether it is theoretical or practical.

• How to Stop Procrastinating and Other Exam Survival Tips

• Exam Advice

• 10 Suggestions to Get You Ready for Graded Music Exam

A few other things I've been constantly reminding my students are:

1. You can't cram technique: practice those scales, chords and arpeggios (and vocalises if you're a singer) and get everything faster than the listed speed. The required speed gets you a pass. If you want a higher mark, go faster (just make sure it's a tempo you can maintain, play cleanly and with good tone).

2. Spend more time on the areas that need work. For many students, it's the technical requirements or the ear and sight reading tests. For others, it's memory or "that one dreaded piece".

3. Look at the mark breakdown, spend more time on the areas that are worth more marks and also make sure that you're not giving any "easy marks" away. If you're in Conservatory Canada, that information is in the back of your piano book. If you're in RCM, check the Syllabus for your instrument at any music store (perhaps consider investing in one).

4. Practice frequency is the key. Right now, the more "airtime" your pieces and technical elements get, the more opportunities you give for everything to sink into your mental and muscle memory.

5. Perform often between now and exam day - it's the closest you can get to simulating exam performance conditions. See if your teacher can sign you up for a student recital hosted by one of the local teaching associations or schedule your own mini-recital and invite all your family and friends to hear you run through your exam repertoire.

(c)2009 by Musespeak(tm), Calgary. AB, Canada. All rights reserved.