Enjoy our interpretation of "Gebet" [Prayer] by Hugo Wolf: "Lord! Send what Thou wilt, delight or pain; I am content that both flow from Thy hands.
May it be Thy will neither with joys nor with sorrows to overwhelm me! For midway between lies blessed moderation."
-Eduard Mörike
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlHMs6L9AE0&fs=1&hl=en_US]
"I want a snowfall kind of love
The kind of love that quiets the world
I want a snowfall kind of love
'Cause I'm a snowfall kind of girl."
-Ingrid Michaelson
It's the first snow day of the season and I am a happily-snowed-in girl at the moment. This is the perfect weather for writing and a good playlist. See what I'm listening to at the moment.
We have at least 18" on the ground now with more coming down each hour. Of course, snow bunny that I am, Steve and I were up and dressed by 8 a.m. We successfully dug the car out of the parking lot and made it up the mountain. Lifts were running when we pulled up at 8:20 a.m. or so and we eagerly changed into our boots, starting our first run by 8:35 a.m. Conditions were great and with the amount of snow still coming down, it was almost like cutting new tracks for the first few runs.
Today, I learned how to ski in heavy powder (the hard way). I confidently hopped off the lift on the third or fourth run and headed towards the black diamond straight from the top of the mountain. About halfway down, I hit a pile of powder and my skis just stopped. I, of course, tumbled at this point. Two more times on the same run, I found myself flat (think belly flop) with my skis bent over my head (case in point why I wear a helmet!)
What is wrong with me today? I haven't fallen in over a year!
My confidence was shattered and I began skiing with fear (i.e. not fully shifting weight, skis crossing, losing balance). We finally made it to the bottom.
On the lift again, I heard Steve say the words I was dreading, "I think we'll take that trail again." Obviously, I am not comfortable skiing in heavy powder yet, let alone on a black diamond - what are you doing to me! By the time we got to the top, I had given myself enough of a pep talk to at least start down the trail. What a striking similarity to performance:
I've performed this piece before and did everything right - no memory slips, complete control, focus, artistry. Suddenly, a new environment and the whole thing falls apart. Memory slip. Finger slip. Tempo beyond control. Fear.
Well, friends, I hate to admit it, but I fell on the second time down that trail, too. And the third. But with each frustrating misstep and moment of unbalance, I felt more focused and more determined to learn from my mistakes. With each uninspiring turn, what can I improve? How can I change my approach the next time? By the end of the morning, despite falls and fear, I felt a new sense of mastery. Today, I learned to hunker down and not let the heavy stuff hold me back.
Happy snow day, y'all!
This is the first week of the spring term at the Studio and I have all of my piano students setting goals.
#1: Practice ___ times per week
#2: Practice ___ minutes per day
The idea came in part from a suggestion from a parent on an assessment that I sent out at the end of last semester. She was seeking a way to keep her 7-year-old daughter more accountable at home.
To paraphrase her words:
“She loves playing and she looks forward to lessons, yet somehow she never forgets to do her homework but she always forgets to practice the piano.”
In response, I created a one-page chart listing Monday-Sunday with a column for items and number of minutes practiced. The two goals are listed at the top.
It’s interesting to hear the goals these students set for themselves.
Most say they will aim to practice 4-5 times a week with practice sessions ranging from 15 minutes to 25 minutes. They also get a thrill adding up the number of minutes they will practice per week.
I think goal-setting is very important. I could dictate that my students practice 5 days a week for 30 minutes each day but I feel that it’s important for the students to set these initial goals themselves. After a few weeks of hopefully successful practicing, I might suggest that we increase those goals.
This way though, the student has the ownership. It’s not a mandate from me or from their parents, it’s a goal they themselves set out to achieve.
This is the first time I have presented practicing goals to my students so we’ll see how much they achieve in the weeks to come!
Another goal-setting resource I created for my students includes space for them to jot down ideas about achievement goals, how they want to use their music for good, and creativity goals. Each worksheet is intended for a 12-week or 3-month period of time, giving students plenty of time to work through their action steps.
This popular New Year's slogan is probably over-used but I still like its implications. Since returning from a week of busy travel, suitcase living, multiple holiday celebrations and gift exchanges, and more than enough food, Steve and I have happily put life back into relative orderliness. The Carriage House is clean, Christmas decorations have been wrapped and stored, books have been shelved, homemade edibles have been consumed, clothes and linens are freshly-laundered, and work is relatively organized. 1. Google Reader. I finally subscribed to all those blogs I've kept in disarray on my browser toolbar for the past few months. Now, they are in one easy-to-read pane. Life simplified.
2. Grooveshark. Besides offering freedom from Pandora, I'm enjoying this new way to organize my music playlists without advertisements, time limits, or unrelated songs being included. Bonus: There's an extensive classical library so I can explore the music of American song composers and contemporaries such as Arvo Pärt in the coming year.
3. Making Things Happen. I just came across this blog yesterday but I have a feeling I will be revisiting its pages in the days and weeks to come (via Google Reader, that is!) Its motivation and inspiration tied together with a few recent topics that particularly grabbed me - "learning how to say 'no'" and "goal setting in 2011."
I haven't made resolutions in several years, mostly because I tend to fail at them a few weeks in. I mean to say that I set myself up for failure by "resolving" to begin/change an element of my lifestyle cold-turkey on January 1st. Change takes time as does the cultivation of new habits. Like going to bed earlier. That's not a resolution, it's a goal I am setting for myself. Other goals include:
It's not an overwhelming list, just things that I want to keep in the forefront of my mind as I plan my days this year. Cheers to 2011!
Have you heard our latest recording on YouTube? Here I am with Steve Danyew playing his piece, Prelude & Dance for saxophone and piano... [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6e4cabd3ZqA]
This week marks the end of my first semester of collegiate teaching. I survived! There were plenty of new experiences – leaving the room for course evaluations, grading tests, giving written feedback, and administering juries, just to name a few. It’s life on the other side of the fence. I am so thankful for the education I received at Eastman which prepared me for these situations. I saw the need for periodic “checkpoints” – making sure that the students are keeping up and able to master the new concepts during the course of the semester. How can you grade piano performances by seven different students simultaneously and objectively?I developed a unique system using the technology resources in the lab. Every few weeks, I chose four items for students to record via Garage Band. They had 30 minutes to complete these items, which allowed them the opportunity to re-record, if needed. I am more concerned about whether or not they can perform the selected items rather than how well they do on their first attempt. At the conclusion of the test time, the students emailed me their files for grading. This allowed me to use a rating scale to grade their performances on tonal and rhythmic accuracy and expression. I generally listened to each item three times to focus individually on each of these criteria rather than having to take in everything the first time. When the students get their tests back, they have a very clear measure of their tonal, rhythmic, and expressive performances across all four items. It’s a great way to see areas of consistency (i.e., John is great with rhythm but could spend more time on his preparation of tonal patterns).
I graded my fourth and final quiz/exam on Tuesday (yes, I am the teacher that gives a final exam on the last day of class – two days prior to the final). The final exam is a 15-minute jury. Students were asked to prepare the following:
My classes are held in the Music Technology Lab so many of my students are not used to playing on an acoustic piano. There are four small practice rooms on the first floor of the Fine Arts building (all with Boston uprights) but I thought it might be nice to arrange the juries to be held in a space that had a nice instrument. My students were enamored with the classroom Steinway – the touch, the sound, the pedals – I think it had a positive impact on their performances.
For the jury, I decided not to record the student performances, for time’s sake. Rather, I developed a grading chart to be filled out while listening. I included items such as fingering, characteristic tone, rhythmic consistency, tonal accuracy, hand position, posture, technique, pedaling, phrasing, and articulation, each worth no more than 5 points out of 100. This proved to be a great tool. I administered six juries on Wednesday (with grades: 94, 93, two 89s, 87 and 85) with six more to go on Monday.
Time to take what I have learned and prepare materials for my classes next semester!
*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.
I am learning so much about the nature of boys from my piano lessons with seven-year-old Matthew.
At first, it may seem to an observer that Matthew is easily distracted, often outspoken, and possibly disinterested in piano. However, after several weeks of lessons, I see the situation a little differently.
Tonight, I introduced the slur (Unit 3 of Time to Begin from the Music Tree Series).
“Do you know what this curved line means?” I asked.
“No!” said Matthew, boldly.
“It means to play things smoothly – like this,” I said as I demonstrated a connected melody.
Wiggling on the bench next to me, Matthew instantly began playing loudly in the bass register of the piano, cutting off my more delicate melody. Instead of stopping him or suggesting that his playing was loud or interruptive, I let him play.
I recognized after just a second of hearing him play that he was experiencing this new concept of smooth playing. He heard me define and demonstrate it – now he needed to experience it. Imagine the learning that would not have taken place had I cut him off abruptly!
“Can you demonstrate something that is not smooth and connected?” I prodded.
Relating a new concept to what it is not is always helpful in the learning process. Instantly, Matthew began playing – with both hands.
“What do you call that?” I asked.
I wanted to encourage him to name this opposite style himself rather than me enforcing a foreign name such as “staccato.”
“Crime,” he said with big eyes.
“I guess it might sound like crime,” I responded. You can never expect the path that true imagination takes!
“We could call it disconnected or – popcorn!” I said, catching myself introducing a foreign word.
Seven-year-olds can relate to popcorn, though this analogy still required a demonstration before he agreed. Once Matthew understood the concept of the slur and experienced what it felt like to play in a smooth and connected style, the next few pieces came easily.
I have also learned that Matthew loves rhythm and it comes very naturally to him. To encourage rhythm study in lessons, I created a series of rhythm pattern cards in triple and duple meter. I let Matthew choose 8-12 cards each week to arrange in any order.
Tonight, he was confident enough in his rhythm reading that he performed a series of four patterns while I read a contrasting series of four patterns. This is his favorite way to end our lessons each week!
There’s a certain image associated with the great expression, “spinning plates.” I often picture a wobbly cartoon character attempting to balance multiple spinning items on every body part until, with the climax of the classical music accompaniment, they all come crashing down on top of him. Hopefully, that’s not how my life will unfold in the next few weeks.
It’s a great feeling to have lots going on, especially when they are all related to music. In the next month, I will have everything from recording sessions and committee meetings to conference calls and grant applications; advisory board meetings and course preparation for the spring to choir planning and website development. I love it! I feel as if I am truly living every musician’s dream: to live, eat, and breathe music. It’s more and more apparent to me that to survive in today’s music market, you must be diversified or skilled in different areas of the field. It’s amazing how many opportunities are out there – I have to keep reminding myself of that fact. As an example of this fact, here are few of my “spinning plates:”
Sometimes, this list seems a little out of control; but what a blessing it is to have so many ways in which to share music. This week, I’m thankful for vision, I’m thankful for opportunities, and I’m thankful for music.
Image Credit: Lauren Chester
Recently, I had the opportunity to attend a choral workshop in western Massachusetts with Alice Parker. The soft-spoken, grey-haired woman dressed in bright colors had the room of 15 attendees mesmerized for two 3-hour sessions. You’d never know she was in her mid-eighties. In addition to reflecting on her experiences (her time at Juilliard and the opportunity to work with the great Robert Shaw), Alice spoke of the qualities that make music powerful and captivating.
We spent the morning singing and improvising folk songs with a focus on accents, melody, and text. Never before have I paid such close attention to the melody! In our Western culture, we place so much emphasis on harmony that the inherent value of the melody is often lost or obscured. Alice states in her book (The Anatomy of Melody, p. xv):
Western music is the only society to list harmony right up there in the trinity of musical greats. But I don’t think it belongs there. If melody (tones) and rhythm (time) are intrinsic to human beings, then harmony is a subset of melody. It is no more on the same level as melody than vertical combinations of rhythmic figures would be equal to rhythm itself. Should we say melody, harmony, rhythm, and polyrhythms?
With this mindset in place, a room of music professionals enjoyed singing elementary-level music in unison. There was freedom and flexibility in the music-making and almost no accompaniment. What better way to teach choral music, especially for children? In the afternoon, we observed a coaching session between Alice and a high school chorus from the area. What incredible insight as to how to truly embody music and communicate its fullest potential. Lastly, Alice focused on departure from the written score and greater reliance on the ear. She also speaks about this in her book (The Anatomy of Melody, p. xxii):
I have come to realize over the years that a healthy mistrust of written music is the only proper starting point. The page doesn’t mean what it seems. It’s only a beginning (sight) not an ending (sound). . . .Does a song you know leap out at you with the immediacy of a remembered voice? Or do the symbols lie obstinately flat on the page with the attendant words similarly meaningless? To understand what I am attempting here, realize that I am trying to balance two antithetical worlds at once–those of eye and ear–and in this case, ear must always triumph not only in notes, but in the written text where a living voice must be sounding for you to begin to respond in kind. And respond, aloud, you must! Sing, argue, affirm, correct–the page does not live until you enter into its dialogue with your ear, voice, and mind.
Image Credit: personal
My piano studio is officially up and running and I have nine students enrolled for the fall. I have quite a spread at the moment with students ranging from age 5 to retired adult. I am also teaching seven students and staff members at Fitchburg State University. It’s a wonderful opportunity to teach at so many different levels but I must confess, Kindergarten and 1st Grade is still my favorite age. Yesterday, I had a lesson with 5-year-old Lily.
With a head full of curls and always decked out in the latest fashion, Lily is bright-eyed and full of energy. As such, we started our piano lesson with “warm-ups” a.k.a “get the wiggles out before you sit down on the bench.” We wiggled our arms, we bobbed our wrists, and we wiggled all of our fingers (what a great way to promote large-body movements to fine motor skills and relaxation – something we all should practice!).
We spent the beginning of the lesson reviewing the pieces we started last week: chanting the texts while keeping a steady beat (for the following piece I used an imaginary oar as a variation of the arm swing), tapping the rhythm on the keyboard cover, singing, and looking for musical patterns.
Crossing the lake in a canoe, Paddling along enjoying the view!
“What do you see when you’re paddling across the lake?” “Umm,” Lily said, cocking her head to one side. “I see some trees, and a blue sky… and some clouds, and – this is silly.” “What is it?” I prodded. “A bread-tree,” she replied, matter-of-factly. What is a bread-tree, you might ask? In Lily’s words, “It’s a tree with slices of bread on it!” What an imagination! If only we could look at the world through the eyes of a five-year-old every once in a while.
The second half of the lesson was spent on new material: We walked in place (keeping a steady beat while chanting the text), swung our arms, tapped our hands, and identified the starting hand position. After demonstrating the beginning of the piece, I said, “Can you copy me? Do you have it in your head?”
Immediately, Lily’s facial expression changed and I knew this was a concept difficult for her to grasp. Think about the question literally – imagine the notes swirling around or maybe the printed page crumpled up in your head. Quick – improvise!
“It’s not in your head? Well, open it up (pretending to open a door into the top of my head) and put it in!” She quickly copied my motions, smiling. I knew she had heard me play the piece and we had spoken the text in rhythm several times as preparation. Once we overcame this intangible gap, she played the piece just fine.
I learn so much about myself as a teacher in these kinds of lessons. I can’t help but come home beside myself with excitement and eager to share my creative experiences with Steve – it’s the five-year-old in me.
