Category: Practice and Performance, Technique
There are certain questions I can ask myself over and over and never be satisfied with the answer, like: Why can’t I eat donuts for supper? or: Why do I have to go to work? But the most troubling of all questions is this: Why should I practice scales?
Well, I can think of a few reasons, and Google can think of a few more, so if my post doesn’t quell your curiosity, feel free to type www.google.com into your browser’s address bar. (If you need more help on using Google, you can email me, I have been called an expert. Actually, I haven’t – but I’m working on it.)
Reason Number 1: Helps to practice in a key signature
This is probably the greatest benefit to practicing scales. By practicing scales, you are essentially practicing a particular key signature. This will help greatly when playing a tune in said key signature. Your fingers have memory, and when you practice scales you are developing this memory. This will come in really handy when you want to improve your improvisation skills. I have a new post planned called “Improve Your Improv”… It’s in the planning stage – well, it has been in that stage for two years. (By “planning stage”, I mean that the post has a title.) Anyhow, you will see this theme recurring in that post. Expect great things from that post. When it comes, it will be mind-blowing.
Reason Number 2: Warming Up
Scales are a great way to warm up and get the blood flowing to the tips of your fingers. I’m sure there are ways that are more fun, but this is a PG-rated blog post.
Reason Number 3: Scales are the building blocks of music
When I practice the C major scale, I’m also practicing half of Mozart’s Sonata in C major. You know this sonata .. think back to the days you were obsessed with Bugs Bunny… or was I the only one that went through that phase? (By the way: Thank you Musopen for providing access to this recording).
All piano music is made of chord, scales, and other interval combinations. There is no way around it.. unless you consider banging your head on the piano, “music”. So when you practice chords, scales, and other intervals, you are practicing parts of songs, although it may not feel like it – and it definitely doesn’t sound like it.
So, like it or not, these are my three reasons why one should practice scales on the piano. And if you don’t like it, you can always go to Google.
photo credit: Pink Sherbet Photography
Category: Practice and Performance
If you have been practicing an instrument for any significant period of time, you may be able to relate to my experience. When I sit down to practice a new song, I usually start at the beginning, and practice a single phrase. If the phrase is difficult, I may repeat it many times before I am happy and move on. Once I get to the end of a section, I will practice the section in full, repeating any phrases that cause difficulty. By the time I get past a new section, I can hear cheese calling my name from the fridge, and the call of cheese is the call I cannot ignore.
There is one critical flaw in this method, can you guess what it is? (Hint: It is not cheese-related bowel gridlock, although that is a worrisome problem.) Rather, when I practice from beginning to end, I often find that my finishes are lacking fluency and pizzazz. Quite simply, my endings aren’t practiced nearly as many times as my beginnings!
To combat the erratic-ending syndrome, one could employ the following technique: Start elsewhere. As complex as it may seem, it is actually quite simple. When you intend to do laborious phrase-by-phrase practicing, don’t always start at the beginning. Start at the end; start in the middle; just start ELSEWHERE. Work your way from the end to the beginning of the last section, or from the middle to the end of the next section.
Of course, don’t always start at the end, or you might catch the erratic-beginning syndrome, which is just as bad – probably worse than the erratic-ending syndrome. The key is to mix it up. Speaking of mixing it up, I hear some gouda calling my name…
photo credit: PetitPlat – Stephanie Kilgast (in dolly mood)
Category: Practice and Performance
In a previous post I discussed the importance of sight reading. That’s all well and good, but if I don’t give you any practical tips, what good am I? (Even if I do give you some practical tips, I am probably of limited use to you.) So this post is dedicated to discussing some tips and techniques you can use to improve your sight reading skills. Actually, the word “tips” makes it sound like improving your sight reading will be easy. It’s not. It requires a lot of dedication to become a good sight reader, and it won’t happen overnight. But, with time and effort, you can improve your sight reading skills to the level that you desire.
Step 1: Improve your knowledge of music theory. Know your key signatures and chords so that you can identify them in a piece of music. Know common chord progressions. And hey! it looks like you are taking a good step in visiting my blog! Good for you! Here you will find some useful (and some not so useful) information on musical theory. (<- shameless self-promotion)
Step 2: Start simple. You didn’t learn to read by picking up Tolstoy. Well, I shouldn’t speak for you. *EDIT* I didn’t learn to to read by picking up Tolstoy. Similarly, you probably won’t learn to sight read by trying to play Chopin’s Fantasie Impromptu right off the bat. A good rule of thumb is to start sight reading several grade levels below your current level. If you find that unreasonably easy or difficult, adjust as necessary. If you are a beginner yourself, you are learning about sight reading at the perfect time! Starting early will allow you to develop your sight reading skills along with your technique. And that’s a good thing.
Step 3: Start slow. When first starting to practice sight reading, you don’t necessarily need to play the pieces up to the correct speed. The elements of music that you have to worry about when sight reading in order of importance are:
- Most important: Notes and duration. Hit the right notes for the right amount of time, and you are golden!
- Next most important: Dynamics. Make your louds loud, and your softs, soft. Put some feeling into it!
- Also important, but a little less so: Your tempo. Advanced students will want to put a little more focus on this aspect of sight reading, but for beginners, slow and steady wins the race!
Step 4: Play A LOT of music. Don’t practice it! This means playing through the piece once, and then leaving it be. Don’t repeat sections, don’t study the music. Just let it rest.
Step 5: Play a lot of DIFFERENT music. Different styles, different keys, different books, just different!
Step 6: Try not to look at your hands as you play. Learning to sight read is learning about where the keys are on the keyboard just as much as where the notes are on the page. Looking up and down from a piece of music can be difficult. Eventually, with practice, you will just KNOW where the keys are without looking at your fingers. (Kindof like a Jedi power, but cooler.)
Step 7: Scan ahead. As you play, try to be looking at the next measure and recognizing notes, rhythms, patterns, and other goings on. Scanning ahead will prepare your brain for what it needs to tell your hands to do.
Step 8: Use memorization with caution. I think I’ve touched on this before. Memorization is not always a bad thing. Indeed, it is sometimes even a good thing! But memorization can actually hinder your sight-reading progress. Don’t memorize every song you play. Look at the book while you play, and deliberately read the music.
As a side note, I feel like I’ve used more exclamation marks in this post than I usually do. Part of me finds this to be slightly disturbing.
photo credit: »grahamblackall
Category: Practice and Performance
Close your eyes and imagine you are one of the world’s greatest pianists. World renowned. (Actually, don’t close your eyes – continue reading.) Now imagine that you are asked to play with the New York Philharmonic – a beautiful concerto by Chopin. You are provided with sheet music that you have never seen before. Now what?
Sight reading! It’s what we all do the first time we lay eyes on a piece of music. Whether or not we are GOOD at it is a whole different issue. Imagine, in the above scenario, that you have sub-par sight-reading skills. Not only would it take LONGER to learn the piece of music, it could be downright embarrassing. (Uh, Mr. Boico? Could you wait a second while I write letters above the notes?)
Here are a few reasons why having good sight reading skills is important:
- It makes learning a piece of music easier. A good sight-reader can identify notes and patterns without laboring over every note.
- It allows the musician to try more pieces. Being able to read music easily can allows the musician to “test out” all sorts of music. Sitting down and playing a new piece of music gives an idea of whether or not they like the composition.
- It improves versatility. Do you want to be a studio musician? A musician in a band or orchestra? Play the piano in church? Being able to sight read will allow you to be more versatile in these situations. A new piece of music will not be a major hurdle to overcome.
Now these are just some of the reasons why sight-reading skills are important for most musicians. Of course, it’s not important for every musician. There are plenty of musicians that can’t read music at all, but have excellent ear training and improvisational skills. It all depends on what your goals as a musician are. Next post I’ll introduce some techniques that you can use to improve your sight reading skills.
photo credit: m4r00n3d
Category: Miscellaneous, Practice and Performance
Learning to play music by ear can be a useful and fun technique to employ. Combined with note recognition and technique training, it helps form a strong musical foundation that will serve you well in the future. Some people have a natural talent for picking out tunes and being able to play them. But even if you don’t, you can still learn! Here is a few steps you will have to complete to master the art of learning music by ear:
1. Learn your instrument:
Teach your fingers where the notes are; be comfortable finding different keys on the keyboard. It is important to learn to recognize notes and play off of sheet music as well. Having a balance of skills will make you a well-rounded musician who can adapt to different musical situations quite easily.
2. Playback
Playback consists of a someone playing a short tune on the keyboard, and then the student trying to mimic it. Start with short and easy tunes consisting of only a few notes. Beginners can be told what note the tune starts on, and more advanced students can be told what key the tune is in. As the student progresses, the playback can become longer and more advanced, and involve some harmony as well.
3. Listen to the radio
How is the radio going to help me, you ask? Well, picking out a tune and trying to play it on the piano can not only be fun, but very helpful for your ear-training regimen. Sing the tune in your head first, and then try to pick it out on the piano. If you get stuck, try starting in a different spot. Once you have mastered the art of picking out a tune, you can start adding harmony and embellishment.
4. Play around!
Practice picking out new tunes and playing around on the keyboard. Play random notes, play patterns, just play! Doing this allows you to find sounds and patterns of notes that you like. While you are playing around on the keyboard you might find that you come across a pattern that you recognize from a song. This is one of the most fun ways that you can help train your ears to pick out tunes.
Well, that should help you get started. Playing by ear is a very useful tool to have in your repetoire of musical skills. But more importantly, it’s fun!
photo credit: Paulgi
Category: Practice and Performance
photo credit: fofurasfelinas
Teaching piano to children has its own set of challenges and rewards. In a previous post I talked about how to know whether your child is ready to play the piano. The next thing you need to know is the types of challenges that you will face… such as… how do you make practice fun? how do you know that your child is learning? how do you ensure that your child gets the most out of their music lesson?
Children generally have shorter attention spans than adults, so it is important to break up the lesson into fun, manageable activities. For children ages 4-6 I would recommend a lesson from 15 minutes up to 1/2 hour long – depending on the attention span of the child. Each child is different.
So how do you make practice fun? Well, take a lesson from modern early childhood education. I love talking with my teacher friends and finding out all about the fun activities that they plan for their classrooms. Have a repetoire of activities that you can practice with your child. This can include flash cards, note recognition games, clap-back games, and more! Fire up your creative juices! (Or take a page from my book and take advantage of google.)
Apparently I have a short attention span too. We’ll continue this thread later – until next time!
Category: Practice and Performance
photo credit: Mikey G Ottawa
Sometimes I wish I could achieve things by thinking about them really really hard. I’ve tried, and it doesn’t work. No matter what the books tell you. It often takes hard work and dedication to achieve things that are important to you. Whether that be playing the piano, running a marathon, or losing those last 10 pounds. Nothing is easy. There are a lot of factors that will contribute to your ultimate success or failure. The biggest one? Motivation! Oh, it is such a fickle thing – here one day and gone the next. I haven’t yet mastered the art of keeping motivation. If I did, I would probably be at the gym right now, and I would post on this blog a hell of a lot more. I might also be a virtuoso pianist, entrepreneur, marathoner, and accomplished artist. But back to real life. Motivation. Yes.
Well, since motivation will have a huge impact on how often you practice the piano, and how dedicated you are to your lessons, you should find a way to keep your motivation high. My favorite method is to set a goal date where you will play in public (in church, at a retirement home, in front of friends, at a recital, etc). That way you are publicly committed to keeping up your practice. What motivates you to practice? How do you keep yourself going when you don’t feel like practicing?
Category: Practice and Performance
photo credit: ooOJasonOoo
As silly as it might seem, practicing without the piano can shorten the time you need to practice significantly. I’ve used this technique on many occasions. When encountering a new piece of music, I ALWAYS practice it in my head first, before putting my fingers on the keys.
VISUALIZATION is great for all levels, but is most useful for late beginners and up. It is important that you have a good feeling for the keyboard before you try to use this technique.
Here are some basic steps to start using the visualization technique for piano practice:
- Start with a piece of music that you have already memorized. (Once you have mastered the technique you will be able to use it on any piece of music – even music you have never seen before.)
- Read through the music at the same pace you would use to play it, and imagine that you are playing through it. Now is time to use that vivid imagination of yours! Make it as real as possible in your mind. Visualize the notes, and the fingers that you will use to play the notes. Visualize your hands moving up and down the keyboard.
Beginners can make visualization easier by using these techniques:
- Visualize practicing one hand a time. Like hands-separate practice for your brain
- Mix up playing and visualization. Play a passage of music, then visualize it, then play it again!
- Read the music while you visualize playing it
- Move your fingers as you visualize the keys on the piano and the notes you are playing
Visualization is a great technique to use when you don’t have a keyboard available, or as an additional technique to make the most out of your practice time.
Category: Practice and Performance
photo credit: Sean Rogers1
Here is another practice technique you may want to try. Divide your song into logical sections. Your section could be as short as a few bars, or as long as a few phrases. A good rule of thumb is: the more difficult the section, the shorter the section should be. An example of a section-by-section practice would be:
1. Play through the entire song
2. Identify the different sections. Rate the sections by perceived level of difficulty. (I recommend using a scale from 1-10)
3. Choose one of the most difficult section to focus on. (It doesn’t have to be at the beginning!)
4. Play the section the number of times corresponding to the difficulty. For example, if you rated the passage to have a difficulty of 7, play it 7 times in a row.
5. After repeating the passage a number of times, it is important to put it back into context. So play the entire song again. (If it is a really long song, just play a section of it again)
Now, of course – this is just one of the ways that you can use the section-by-section technique to your advantage. The main idea is to identify the difficult sections, and to repeat them a number of times. The more difficult the section, the shorter it is, and the more times you should repeat it. Play around with different ways of using the section-by-section technique. I’m sure you’ll find something that works well
for you!
Category: Practice and Performance
photo credit: chelseagirl
It is very important (especially when just beginning the piano) to practice hands separately before playing with your hands together. Most of your technique will be developed when practicing hands apart. When practicing hands apart, follow these guidelines to make the most of your practice:
- Pay attention to your fingering. Make sure you use the right finger in the right place each time you practice. Don’t try playing hands together until you are completely comfortable with the fingering in both your right and your left hand.
- Choose a short passage and switch between the right and the left hand every few minutes
- Practice hands separately until you can play as fast as the final song will be played – maybe faster
Hands-separate practice is very important for developing technique. It is a valuable learning tool for beginners and advanced piano players alike. Add hands separate practice to your repertoire of practicing techniques – if you haven’t already!
Category: Practice and Performance
photo credit: betta design
It is difficult to know how to get the most out of your practice time. After all, time is all too valuable these days to be wasting it with ineffective practice techniques. I’m going to be writing a series of blog postings about different techniques you can use during your practice sessions. What will work for some people may not work for others. That is why it is important to try a variety of techniques and see what works best for you.
The first thing you will want to assess is what type of learner you are. We now know a lot about different learning styles. You may be a visual, auditory, or tactile learner, or you might be a combination of two or more. Below we will discuss the different learning styles.
Visual Learner:
Visual learners absorb the most information usually by reading it. This type of learner benefits from visual aids like flashcards, graphs, and flowcharts. What does this mean for those learning the piano? If you are a visual learner try to the following techniques to learn piano and music theory:
- Flashcards
- Worksheets
- White board learning
- Visualize yourself playing before you touch the keys
- Highlight areas of music that you are having difficulty with
Auditory Learner:
Auditory learners learn primarily through listening. They would rather listen or talk than write. If you are an auditory learner, try to use the following techniques:
- Take piano lessons, or watch instructional videos online
- Say the notes aloud as you play them
- Find people that you can talk to about the piano and music
- Clap the rhythm before you play it
- Try to sing the notes before you play them
Tactile (Kinesthetic) Learner:
The tactile learner learns by doing. This person would rather dive in head first, and figure it out as they go along. The tactile learner can use the following techniques:
- Practice by doing – play!
- Clap the rhythm before you play it
- Use worksheets to learn theory
- Write your own songs on blank sheet music, then play them
So the first step is to determine what kind of learner you are. If you don’t know, try taking an online quiz like the one on this site. I’m a tactile/visual learner, in case you wanted to know In the next few blog posts, I will be discussing piano practicing techniques in-depth.
Category: Miscellaneous
I’ve got mixed feelings about memorizing music. Memorization is a very valuable tool if used correctly. However, memorization can be misused and abused. As you will come to learn, there is a right time for memorization and a wrong time. Memorization needs to be approached carefully. Let us discuss.
Sometimes musicians will memorize music because memorization makes the piece easier to play. Once they have a piece memorized, they never look at the music again. This is very detrimental to the learning experience and will hinder efforts to learn new and more difficult pieces. In my opinion, one should never attempt to memorize practice pieces in order to make them easier. Of course, some memorization will happen naturally. However, when practicing, always make an effort to follow the music with your eyes, and do your best to look at the book, and not at your fingers!
But memorization isn’t all bad. Memorizing a piece for performance ensures that the performer knows the piece thoroughly. In fact, some examinations require the student to memorize pages and pages of music. (I memorized over 100 pages for my last exam.) Here are some tips to get the most out of music memorization.
1. Slow and careful practice with special attention to details. Ensure you memorize all the details such as dynamic and tempo changes, phrases, and fingering.
2. Learn the form. Music is usually divided into logical sections that are played in sequence and might be repeated. Memorize the sections, and in what sequence they are played.
3. Mental Practice. Read the music and think about how you will play it. Do this while you are away from the piano. Read the music like a book.
Most importantly, learn the music correctly from the beginning. It is very difficult to go back and rewrite what has already been written to memory, so correct memorization is very important. Good luck!
Category: Lessons
Learning the notes on the bass clef is as easy as learning fun little phrases. Lets start with the notes in the spaces.
The spaces are A, C, E, and G. One of the phrases you can use to memorize this is: All Cows Eat Grass.
And now for the notes that live on the lines:
Good Boys Do Fine Always. It’s not my favourite phrase. If you have a better one, let me know! Next lesson we will see all of the notes on the grand staff together with the keys on the keyboard. Check the worksheet download section for downloadable note recognition practice sheets.
Category: Lessons, Music Theory
Piano music is divided by bar lines into small sections called measures. These concepts are demonstrated in the image above.
Piano music also has numbers near the beginning of the music. These numbers are is called the time signature. The time signature is related to the rhythm of the music. Each time signature contains 2 numbers: the top number tells you the number of beats or counts in each measure. The number at the bottom tells you which type of note gets the beat. A 4 at the bottom means that the QUARTER NOTE gets one beat. The 4/4 time signature is a very common time signature.
The QUARTER NOTE is a black note with a stem. It receives one count, or one beat. The HALF NOTE is a white note with a stem. It receives 2 counts (1-2). The WHOLE NOTE is a white note with no stem. It receives 4 counts, or 4 beats (1-2-3-4). In the image above, there are 4 counts in each measure.
This lesson introduces you to the basic rhythmic components of music. Look in the worksheet section for downloadable practice worksheets.
Category: Methods, Reviews
The Bastien Piano Basics is a well-known series of instructional books for piano. It is graded to assure steady progress, starting with the Piano Primer, and progressing to Level 4. This series includes instructional books for practical piano, theory, performance, technique, and sight-reading exercises. Additional material such as CDs and flash cards are also available to accompany this series.
For the young beginner, this series offers a two-part primer that is geared towards children aged 5-6. A separate primer is designed for older children (age 7-10). After the completion of either set, the student can then continue with Level 1.
In my opinion, this method is among the best that is available for children. It focuses on mastering the basics, rather than relying on some type of gimmick. The page layout is clean, the descriptions concise, and every page features a fun full-color illustration. The compositions encourage good technique and independence of hands. The songs are generally attractive and fun to play, and many include duet accompaniment. After completing this series, the student will have a very good understanding of the piano keyboard, musical terms and notation, as well as chords, major and minor scales, and a variety of musical techniques and terms.
Read the rest of this entry »
Category: Practice and Performance
Learning the piano is a journey that takes dedication and motivation. It pays to be prepared. Taking a little bit of time to prepare before you jump in will pay off in the long run. Take a few minutes and make sure you have everything you need before you start.
1. A Goal
The first step of any journey should involve defining a destination. What do you want from this experience? Some example goals might be: I will play the piano in church this Christmas season. I will finish the first level of the Alfred’s piano method in 6 months. Set one or more goals that you would like to achieve in the next 6 months to a year.
2. A Plan
Devising a plan is a step that is often overlooked. This step is especially important for busy adults who don’t have a lot of time to spare. Take a look at how serious you are about learning the piano. What steps will you take in order to achieve your goal? How much time and money do you want to invest? What time of day will you practice? How long will you practice? What kind of resources are available for you to use?
All of these things are important to think about. Write your plan down. Promise yourself that you will stick to the plan. Tell other people about it. Set yourself up for success! Periodically review and revise your plan to keep yourself motivated.
3. The Right Instrument
You will need to have a piano or keyboard available to you. You don’t need anything fancy, you just need something that works! Things to consider when purchasing an instrument is functionality, price, space requirements, and maintenance requirements.
Your cheapest option is to go with a digital keyboard. You will want a keyboard with at least 5 octaves (about 66 keys). A full-sized keyboard will have 88 keys. Eventually you may also want a sustain pedal. Well-established brands include Yamaha and Casio. Buy one new, buy one used, or borrow one from a friend…just get one!
Only you know what is right for you. In most cases a keyboard in the price range of $100-200 will fit the job requirements perfectly.
4. Resources
Whether you are taking formal lessons or teaching yourself, you will need information. Luckily we live in the information age. Virtually everything you will need is available on the internet including sheet music, lessons, and software.
Other types of resources include forums, books, CDs, and friends… the possibilities are endless!
5. Commitment
It’s easy to start something – finishing is what makes the effort worthwhile. Make a commitment to yourself that you will achieve your goal – put it in writing, tell your friends, tell your family, tell your coworkers. Commit to it 100%. Motivation will fade, commitment is the only thing that will keep you going.
Well, thats it, you are ready to go! Good luck and happy playing!
Posted on November 9th, 2011 by sharlene
3 Comments