Apps for Your Digital Toolbox
It’s amazing how much can change in a year. I just returned home from the 2015 Music Teachers National Association conference in Las Vegas. When I asked a roomful of teachers to raise their hands if...
View ArticleA Musical Mother’s Day Card
Kristin Jensen’s site called Ear Training and Improv offers unique worksheets, videos and posts to spur musical imaginations. Kristin’s growing library of clever resources for music teachers is...
View ArticleDevelop the Mind’s Ear with Meludia
Imagine a pink elephant. You’ve just used your mind’s eye. Now imagine the tune “Happy Birthday.” You’ve just used your mind’s ear. If you struggled to recreate the tune in your head it means your...
View ArticleforScore and Cicada: A Match Made in Heaven
This past weekend marked a major milestone in my use of my favorite device, the iPad. I played piano at my niece’s wedding and read all the music scores from my iPad with the help of an app called...
View ArticleExplore and Create Harmony with Tin Pan Rhythm
Count on Tin Pan Rhythm to boost your budding musicians’ understanding of harmonic progressions. Count on the app to trigger arranging skills thanks to the app’s intuitive interface. One more, you can...
View ArticleFinding A Creative State of Mind
Last month I wrapped up my first year of chairing the inaugural Creative Pianist Track at NCKP 2015, the National Conference of Keyboard Pedagogy under the auspices of The Frances Clark Center for...
View ArticleFour Secrets of a Successful Studio
There are four secrets of a successful studio. I realize it’s a bold claim to narrow it down to just four and you may be asking, what does successful mean? Keep reading. Like any other human being,...
View ArticleWolfie App: A New Reality
Ever wonder what the future of piano lessons will look like? The Wolfie app is it: a new reality. In short, it’s a virtual piano book bag for your students packed with power tools. No more forgotten...
View ArticleHow will you play it forward?
Two weeks ago, my student Addison entered my studio and declared, “I wrote a song for Paris!” A little puzzled by what he meant, I probed further and learned that he improvised a piece on the piano...
View ArticleKick Off 2016 with a Pop Music Webinar
As students return for lessons after the holidays, why not kick off 2016 with pop music? Surprising your students with some Coldplay along with Chopin–or any favorite tune from the past or the...
View ArticleQuality Home Practice Begins with the Teacher
Between lessons, music students are left to fend for themselves and practice without your nagging–oops– I mean guidance. The minute they walk out of their lesson, it’s almost as if they walk into a...
View ArticleProduce Your Own Pajama Conference
There’s nothing like attending a music conference. The insight gained from experts in the field, the buzz after a stunning concert, down time spent with fellow colleagues and the exhibit hall...
View ArticleSavvy Musician in Action Here I Come!
The Savvy Musician in Action Have you heard of it before? It’s an immersive, experiential week-long workshop designed to help artists and increase income and impact. The entrepreneurship workshop is...
View ArticleA Tip for Becoming a Better Improviser
“Here’s my top tip for musicians interested in becoming better improvisers: Forget the metronome. Practice with backing tracks, those auto-accompaniment loops that inspire, keep you on the beat, and...
View ArticleIs It Time to Update Your Mission Statement?
What do you do when you have have four marvelous, faithful, dynamic and long-time pianists who are graduating from high school and leaving your studio? You throw a Senior Showcase AND check to see if...
View ArticleWhat Great Teachers Do Differently
The Virtual Music Education Conference produced by Janice and Kevin Tuck packs four days with online presentations by experts in the field of music education. Even though it’s been around for years,...
View ArticleFour Ways to Feel Like a Kid Again
Decades away from my childhood, I recently encountered some experiences, events, and resources that sparked memories of what it’s like to be a kid. I’ve been taken back to those feelings of curiosity,...
View ArticleImprovisation is Scary
For some, improvisation is a little scary. It doesn’t have to be with a clever back pocket pattern guaranteed to sound black-cat cool. As I was planning for the fall, I wanted to include an...
View ArticleThe Five P’s of Performing
Once a piece is memorized with all the details in place it would seem a successful performance would follow. I believe there are THREE MORE ESSENTIAL elements that guarantee a positive outcome for a...
View ArticleStudent Gifts That Keep on Giving
Do you give your students gifts during the holiday season? If so and if you’re like me, it’s usually a struggle to find something that is meaningful with a reasonable price tag. A couple of years ago I...
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