Piano Teacher

Improvisation: A Lifesaver for Nick

Improvisation: A Lifesaver for Nick

My former student Nick is a talented actor. He performed in several plays growing up, and he knows how to improvise his way through onstage catastrophes such as missed lines, malfunctioning props and wardrobe, and unexpected disasters.

The Next Big Thing: Encouraging Creativity

For Listening House Studios' third annual Next Big Thing event, we're changing the requirements a little. For the last two years, students could play any genre, including classical and popular. This year, we're asking for popular only. We're also encouraging creativity.

 

Most contests ask students to play exactly what's written. Judges hold a copy of the music and scrupulously compare what they see to what they hear.

 

This contest is different because we'd like our students to think outside the box: to arrange the chording on a piece, to improvise, to play an original composition, to exercise their creativity in some way. 

 

Creativity is not required, but for those who'll take the challenge, we think it will make the NBT more fun.

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The Value Of A Great Teacher

The Value Of A Great Teacher

A few blogs ago, I mentioned my perfectionist college piano teacher, Leonora Suppan. I may have given the impression that I didn’t like her. In reality, she was one of my mentors and a great inspiration.