Helping the Community and Promoting Your Business

Once in a while, I am asked to make a silent auction donation for a community event. Now, I know that some companies give gift certificates or packages. However, one thing I learned at my self-employment classes is to never discount or give away your services. If you're a one person show, you can't give away all your time and talents! However, it's important to serve the community. A few years ago, I found another way to show my support while not discounting myself: gift baskets. This year, I teamed up with my brother at To the Wind Studio and we're offering this Italian themed music appreciation basket to benefit the Father Lacombe Care Centre Foundation's 14th Annual Legacy Dinner and Silent Auction on March 1, 2013:

The lucky recipient doesn't have to play a musical instrument. He or she just needs to have an appreciation for (or curiosity for) music. There's Vivaldi's Four Seasons as well as Andrea Bocelli's Passione. The centerpiece of the basket is the Pisa hazelnut liqueur. Completing the set are two lovely Mediterranean coffee/tea mugs.

Every Other Bar Drill Demonstration for Piano and Melodica

The Every Other Bar Drill has proved to be a successful drill with my students this month. Some need to clean things up, especially their notes, rhythm and fingering. Others need to make their music flow more smoothly. This drill addresses these issues. The student plays the odd numbered bars in a troublespot, while I play the even numbered bars on the melodica. Then we switch.Afterwards, when I get them to play the entire passage, the difference from their first runthrough at the lesson and the latest is like night and day.

It really doesn't matter what that second instrument is - voice, French horn, percussion. What I have been finding is that this drill really forces my students to count and "feel" the pulse. For me, this is proving to be a great way to practice "Instrument #5" - the melodica. This wind piano is a fun little instrument. It looks like I'll need to work on breath technique a bit more, though.

Special thanks to my student "S" for giving me permission to share this clip from last week's lesson.

Fingering is Important

One of my students is learning the Piano Guys' arrangement of "All of Me". We thought this warning was pretty hilarious, not to mention true.

Here's the piece. See you if can find the "fingering or die" part:

Want to hear more? Click on the Piano Guys CD to check out their CD's:

Keyboard Geography Cheat Sheets

This year, I have seven students who have had a tough time with their keyboard geography at the piano. One of them is an ARK learner (aural, read/write, kinesthetic. Another one is a VR (visual, read/write. The others are VA (visual, aural) learners. We've tried landmark notes. We've tried colour-coding lines or notes (that worked pretty well, until I started to wean them from the colour-coding). We've tried the good old phrases that everyone knows (e.g., "Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge"). No matter what, they look at me and ask "Where do my hands go?" or they'll look at Bass C and play me Treble C, as if any C will do.

This new idea came to me as another student and I were checking with DaTuner Lite to see how well my acoustic piano was holding its pitch.

I pulled out my Piano Teacher's Resource Kit and photocopied the reproducible Keynote Reader worksheets. Next, I had those students write in the letter names and draw a line connecting the note on the keyboard to the corresponding position on the staff.

Next, the pièce de résistance: I introduced the keyboard number system. For instance, the lowest C on the piano is C1, with the notes below being A0 to B0. I labelled the first one for them and had them finish the rest.

Next, I had them apply this new knowledge to the pieces they have been working on. It didn't take them long at all once they labelled their starting notes as "C4" instead of just any old "C".

Thank you DaTuner Lite and Piano Teacher's Resource Kit!

look inside

Piano Teacher's Resource Kit Reproducible Worksheets, Games, Puzzles, and More!. Educational Piano Library. Teacher Resource. Softcover. 88 pages. Published by Hal Leonard (HL.296802).

Concert Review of CJO's Romance Concert

The Calgary Jazz Orchestra performed a selection of popular love songs on Sunday, February 10, 2013 at River Park Church. Calgary, Alberta. The programme featured t

he music of Nat King Cole, Tony Bennett, Michael Buble, Diana

Krall and more.

Special guests included Johanna Sillanpaa and members of the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra.

The E.P. Scarlett Jazz Ensemble, under the direction of Jonathan Bell, kicked things off with a Duke Ellington classic, "Moon over Cuba." This lively number featured the clarinet, piano and trombone. This was followed by "Jitterbug Waltz" by Fats Waller, which featured the vibraphone, piano and drums.

Members of the Calgary Philharmonic Join the CJO for an Evening of Romance

"The music is all over the map," said Calgary Jazz Orchestra Director Johnny Summers at the start of the first set. This was the first CJO concert that included a string octet, comprised of members from the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra.

The first song performed was the love theme from Superman, "Can You Read My Mind", composed by John Williams. A cymbal roll swelled dramatically until the rest of the ensemble came in. The strings played the head, while the piano, flutes and clarinets added flourishes here and there. Al Muirhead's trumpet solo was melodic and motivic.

Another highlight was "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green. Drummer Greg Baker sung this classic R & B hit. Dr. Jeremy Brown's saxophone solo looped and climbed, leading us higher and higher still, until Johnny Summers' trumpet solo came in, played in the high register. This gave way to Rich Harding's sax solo, which weaved around, leading us back to the final verse. This number garnered several whoops and cheers from the audience.

Before performing the final number in the first set, the CJO did a quick plug for the May concert, which will feature pop hits and favourites arranged by members of the Calgary Jazz Orchestra. Johnny Summers encouraged patrons to email, Facebook or Tweet the CJO with song requests.

Vocalist Johanna Sillanpaa joined Johnny Summers to sing "Exactly Like You" to close the set. This light-hearted number is one of the tracks on Johnny Summer's new CD, Piano Sessions Volume 1. The strings augmented the playful lines the duo weaved. This number featured impressive solos by Johnny Summers on trumpet and Egor Ukoloff on piano.

Two more songs were performed in the first set, including Paul McCartney's "My Valentine". Johanna Sillanpaa was featured in Gus Kahn's "Dream a Little Dream of Me".

The CJO Performs Classic Love Songs and Logs in Some FaceTime to Maui

Johnny Summers shared with the audience what a learning experience it was to write for strings at the concert's second half. He reminisced with CPO Concertmaster  Donovan Seidle about their student days at the University of Calgary.

Then, he tried to introduce the first number. However, various members of the CJO heckled him, describing it as "Great...slow...awful." On the other hand, Johnny described Jimmy McHugh's "It Had to Be You" as "one of the most romantic songs of all time."

The strings opened with a mysterious tremolos before the clarinets joined them. This number features solos by Kodi Hutchinson on bass and Shane Statz on sax. Despite Johnny's complaints over his cold, I'd have to say that it really injected more "oomph" to his lower vocal range.

One memorable moment from the second half was "You are So Beautiful", which featured Brian Walley on trombone. Several bars in, Johnny Summers stopped the performance to inquire where Brian's sweetheart was. When Brian replied, "In Maui," Johnny reached for an iPad and said, "Let's FaceTime her!"

Yours truly held the iPad in the front row so that Brian's fiancée could be serenaded. Special thanks to the gentleman who sat beside me who assisted me in positioning the iPad to give Karen a good view of Brian and the stage.

The CJO's Chet Baker cover of "My Funny Valentine" was dedicated to a couple in the audience who recently got engaged. This year's arrangement opened with a solo piano introduction. The rest of the ensemble came in layers. This lovely arrangement featured Johnny on vocals and trumpet as well as Egor Ukoloff on piano:

The second half of CJO's concert featured three more romantic songs, including Victor Young's "Beautiful Love" and Michael Buble's "Everything" (an audience member's request). Johanna Sillanpaa returned to the stage to sing Whiting & Moret's "He's Funny that Way".

About the Calgary Jazz Orchestra

The Calgary Jazz Orchestra is a 17 piece big band founded by Johnny Summers in 2004. This performance included Rich Harding, Keith O'Rourke, Dr. Jeremy Brown, Shane Statz and Sarah Matheson on saxophone. Johnny Summers, Jay Michalak, Gord Wilhelm and Al Muirhead comprise the trumpet section. Brian Walley, Dean Yeats, Tim Embree and Dave Reid from the trombone section.

The string section was comprised of Donovan Seidle, Diane Lane, Jeremy Gabbery and Melanie Leonard on violin; Carl Boychuk and Megan Singer on viola; while Andrea Case and David Morrisey filled out the octet on cello. Arrangements for "Romance" were written by Greg Baker and Johnny Summers.

The Calgary Jazz Orchestra and guests presented a delightful jazz concert on Sunday, February 10, 2013 at the River Park Church in Calgary, Alberta. The supportive audience began applauding even before the final song drew to a close and quickly stood up to give a standing ovation as soon as the last note was played. The addition of a string section welcome addition for audience members and CJO members, adding a refreshing spin on these classic love songs. All in all, a successful Calgary event.