What kind of questions do you mostly ask in your piano lessons? Did you know that not all questions are equal and some types have more learning power than others? I played a game with some of my pupils this week where they had to spot every time I asked a question. It was great […]
How does music make you feel? How does teaching make you feel? How does teaching music make you feel? Just take a moment to reflect on these questions in your own experience before going on and reading further. I have a meditation app called Headspace that I love to use for my short, daily meditations. […]
This week we return to The Social History of Piano Teaching, rejoining it just after the First World War when everything, including the piano, was about to undergo enormous change. THE 20TH CENTURY – MAINTAINING THE STATUS QUO The end of the First World War meant the end of life as many people had known […]
Last week we followed the rapid increase in the numbers of people teaching the piano during the Victorian period. The post also looked at piano lessons and the development and popularity of piano tutor books. This week we consider what emerged in an attempt to raise standards of both teachers and players. The Royal College […]
Last week’s post traced the development of the piano from the early days to its emergence as the instrument of choice for many from the late Georgian period onwards. The story continues as we turn our attention to the rise of the Victorian piano teacher and we take a glimpse into the Victorian piano lesson […]
What do you know about the social history of piano teaching? This new blog series, which originally formed a chapter in Sally’s PhD thesis, will trace the development of piano teaching in the UK from its inception, during the Victorian era, to the present day. If you are wondering whether this social history still has […]
‘Sally, it’s 6 o’clock – time to do your piano practice!’ ‘Mum, do I have to? I don’t feel like doing it tonight’. ‘Now, Sally, remember what we both agreed – if want to get better at playing the piano you need to practise it everyday’. So, slightly reluctantly I go to the piano and […]
You see your piano pupils on average for 30 minutes each week leaving them 10,050 minutes between lessons to practise. And yet, as I showed in last week’s post, many of them don’t! You pour your heart and soul into their lessons, you’ve tried every tactic and yet most weeks they return with the same […]
Last week I saw a young brass player taking part in the BBC Young Musician of the Year 2016. I was struck when his Mum said that he was always in his bedroom playing his instrument and that she never had to tell him to go and do his practise. What a joy such a […]
What do Lang Lang, Tiger Woods, Venus and Serena Williams and Mozart have in common? As you might have guessed from the title of this week’s post they are all shining examples of individuals who have become experts in their field through the act of purposeful practice. Over the next four weeks I am going […]