Beyond the Black and White You’re

Invited!

Issue Six November 2014

PIANO

The Busy Teachers’ Guide to Repertoire

Teaching Students with ADD & ADHD

Carly’s Groovy Music Box

Our Contributors– Thembi Shears

Runs a busy piano studio in Brisbane, where she teaches 60+ students from early childhood beginners through to adults. She holds a First Class Honours degree in Primary Education, with a major in Inclusive Education, and has worked with many students with specialised learning needs in both the school classroom and music studio setting. www.thembishears.com.au

– Dr Therese MilanovicDr Therese Milanovic is in demand as both performer and pedagogue. In 2009, Therese completed her Taubman teacher training with the Golandsky Institute in New York City, the subject of her completed PhD. She reached Associate level certification with the Golandsky Institute in 2012, became Associate Faculty in 2014, and is currently the only certified Taubman instructor in Australia. Therese loves performing chamber music with fellow kindred spirits, and bringing both traditional and lesser known repertoire to the stage. www.theresemilanovic.com

– Samantha CoatesSamantha Coates is a Sydney based pianist, teacher, and music publisher. She completed her Bachelor of Music degree at the Sydney Conservatorium, majoring in piano performance. Samantha is the author and publisher of BlitzBooks, the series that brought music theory into the 21st century. Samantha’s aim is to make music more fun and accessible to all instrumentalists through a more holistic approach to the teaching of music theory. www.blitzbooks.com.au

– Angela Turner

Angela Turner lectures across a range of practical and academic areas at the Queensland Conservatorium, and formerly at the School of Education & Professional Studies, Griffith University. Since 1998, Angela has been a specialist piano lecturer at the Young Conservatorium, where she is Coordinator of the Intermediate piano program. An AMEB Examiner, Angela also maintains an active performance profile as pianist in the international award-winning Lyrebird Trio.

Issue SixThe Piano Teacher

– Elena Kats-CherninBorn in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, Elena Kats-Chernin studied music in Moscow, Sydney and Hanover. She has created works across nearly every genre, from rags to operas and works for robotic instruments to a full scale choral symphony. Elena’s music featured at the opening ceremonies of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games and the 2003 Rugby World Cup. She has received several awards including the Sounds Australian, Green Room, Helpmann, Limelight as well as Sydney Theatre Awards. The most recent is the jointly awarded Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award 2013. Image: Bridget Elliot.

– Carly McDonaldCarly McDonald runs a music business; Novar Music. In addition to teaching 43 piano students each week she manages 14 music teachers in 5 locations across Adelaide. Carly has a special interest in early music education for children. She is passionate about students developing a strong foundation of skills and a healthy voice for expression throughout their lives. Carly is passionate about teaching (with a little stylish flair) and is the founder and publisher of www.creativepianoprofessional.com

Dropbox - DSC_3291.jpg - Simplify your life

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– David LockettDavid Lockett’s career has involved concert performances in 13 countries, scores of recordings for national radio and television and more than 30 world première performances. His CD and subsequent published edition of Margaret Sutherland’s piano music represent part of a long-standing commitment to Australian composers. He has a distinguished track record as a teacher, chamber musician and administrator, having served as Director of the Elder Conservatorium for a total of seven years.

Welcome to Issue Six of The Piano Teacher!In a perfect world we all spend at least one hour each week exploring new repertoire, mentally earmarking each new piece or collection for our students and working our way through the plethora of gems on the manual list. In reality, of course, we have lots of students to teach each week, meals to cook, performances to prepare for, yoga classes to attend, a family to wrangle, friends to hang out with, triathlons to train for… not to mention a range of other interests and obligations. So, our team have played through several hundred pieces to discover the very best collections for your studio and students.

We’re delighted to welcome even more piano teachers from around Australia and New Zealand to join our growing team of contributors. A new feature in this issue of the magazine is our ‘Reviewed by You’ section. If you think you’ve got what it takes to be a reviewer, submit an audition piece by writing a 100 word review of your favourite music book or books (perhaps something your are finding useful for your 40 Piece Challenge students) and send them into australianpiano@halleonard.com.au. If you’re successful, we’ll send you publications to review (and to keep!). Article submissions are also welcome.

The Piano Teacher is published and mailed each May and November, but there are lots of ways to stay in touch with us in between issues.

Send your feedback, ideas and photo or article submissions via email: australianpiano@halleonard.com.au

Facebook: www.facebook.com.au/AustralianPianoTeachersMusicHUB

Twitter: @PianoTeacherHUB

40 Piece Challenge: 40piecechallenge.com.au Certificates are available for 20, 30, 40, 50, 80 and 100

Piano Club: Receive one special offer email each month. Join the club by emailing Gina at australianpiano@halleonard.com.au

Include Join Piano Club in the subject box. Tell us which local music retail store you will be redeeming your offers.

Editor’s Letter

Our Cover Star...

Stay in Touch

What’s On

November 2014

03

Hand position ladybugs and all publications mentioned in this magazine can be purchased at all music shops right here in Australia and New Zealand. Turn to page 35 to see a listing of great local stores we’d love you to support.

— Gina Wake

VICTORIA

Piano Educators’ Day at Bernies Musicland January 19th, 20th 9am to 5pm www.musicland.com.au

Piano Day – AMEB Series 17 presentation January 22nd, 23rd 9am to 5pm

www.victorianmusicteachersassociation.org.au Christopher Norton March 29th to April 2nd

Piano Time, South Melbourne www.pianotime.com.au

Australasian Piano Pedagogy Conference July 7th to 10th www.appca.com.au

QUEENSLAND

Taubman Approach January 10th to 11th Nickson Room, University of Queensland www.theresemilanovic.com

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

AMEB Awards Ceremony and Showcase for SA & NT December 7th, 2pm Elder Hall, The University of Adelaide. ameb.adelaide.edu.au

AMEB Information Day January 20th Hartley Concert Room, The University of Adelaide ameb.adelaide.edu.au

NEW ZEALAND

IRMT 2105 Conference January 15th to 18th

Wellington irmt.org.nz

Looking forward to seeing you all at the Australasian Piano Pedagogy Conference, July 2015!

Our cover star this issue is Vietnamese-born Australian pianist Hoang Pham, winner of the ABC Symphony Australia Young Performer of the Year Award for 2013. Featured in Limelight’s “30 Brilliant Musicians Under 30”, Hoang is a modern day classical musician who thrives in many different roles - recitalist, chamber musician, concerto soloist, presenter, fundraiser and ambassador. This season alone, he has performed concertos with the Melbourne Symphony, Willoughby Symphony, Queensland Symphony, Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra and Orchestra Victoria in major venues across Australia including the Sydney Opera House. Next season, Hoang returns to the Melbourne Symphony and debuts with the Canberra Symphony. Hoang’s passion for music extends beyond the concert platform with his entrepreneurial work raising significant funds in recent years for Breast Cancer Network Australia, the Lev Vlassenko Piano Competition (which he was the winner in 2005) and AED Legal Centre. Because of his unique background, Hoang is an ambassador for countless Vietnamese charities across Australia. He is the founding member and pianist of Trio Bresciani.

Where to Buy that Ladybug

Cover image by Candela Photography www.candelaphotography.com.au

Beyond the Black and WhiteYou’re Invited!

12th Australasian Piano Pedagogy Conference

When: Tuesday 7th July – Friday 10th July, 2015

Where: Melbourne, Victorian College of the Arts Secondary School 57 Miles Street, Southbank

Why: Piano teachers, this is your national conference! It’s an incredible opportunity to meet and socialise with piano teachers from across Australasia…oh and it’s a great professional development opportunity too.

Who will be there? Local and internationally recognised performers and teachers including; Piers Lane AO, Scott McBride Smith (USA), Randall Faber (USA), Ian Munro, Joe Chindamo, Angela Turner, Elissa Milne, Carly McDonald, Jovanni-Rey De Pedro and Thembi Shears and you (hopefully!).

What happens at a piano pedagogy conference? The Conference has something for all piano teachers, young and old, full-time and part-time, new and experienced. There will be recitals, masterclasses, workshops and the presentation of research papers as well as sessions on jazz piano.

Issue Six

4The Piano Teacher

What’s this I hear about a ‘Solutions Stream’? The ‘Solutions Stream’ will provide: business solutions, method solutions, technique solutions and repertoire solutions designed to help you run a successful piano teaching business. Ideas will be presented about how to maximise your income and minimise your business headaches and teaching woes!

How much does it cost? Book before May 1st 2015 to take advantage of the early bird special prices: $490 or $250 (for students). Full conference price includes lunch, morning and afternoon tea and all recitals. A limited number of bursaries are available for young teachers and regional teachers to attend this conference. Bursary applications close on March 27th 2015. Head to www.appca.com.au for more details!

What do I need to bring? Bring a sense of adventure and an open mind. Oh, and bring spending money… you’re bound to discover a wealth of new material you will want to purchase for your studio!

Where will I stay? If you can’t stay with friends, long lost family or organise a house- swap for the week, Melbourne has a wealth of accommodation options. If you are feeling really adventurous try www.airbnb.com.au or look on the APPCA website for special deals.

Want more information? www.appca.com.au www.facebook.com/AustralasianPianoPedagogyConference @appc2015

Melbourne, July 2015 !

We hope to see you all there!

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November 2014

5The Piano Teacher

Teaching Students with ADD & ADHD– by Thembi Shears

Issue Six

6The Piano Teacher

In the last decade there have been more and more children diagnosed with learning difficulties and behavioural conditions than ever before. Two of the most common ‘labels’ given to students these days are Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). I imagine that most teachers out there have had at least one phone call from a parent enquiring about piano lessons for their child with one of these diagnoses! Receiving this call can be quite daunting for those of us that don’t feel we have enough knowledge on the topic to teach that child, but it needn’t be that way. As teachers, we are always working with children with a wide range of learning needs, and we adapt our teaching to suit each individual. Teaching students with ADD or ADHD is no different — with a little research, the flexibility to adapt your teaching style, and the patience you already possess, you will be well on your way to giving that child a wonderful musical learning experience.

What are ADD and ADHD? ADD and ADHD are characterised by:

Inattentiveness — poor concentration, forgetfulness, poor organisation and no sustained attention

Impulsiveness — acting without thought, blurting out answers, and accident prone

Hyperactivity — constant fidgeting, talking too much, and an inability to stay seated

ADD is diagnosed when the main characteristic is inattention. ADHD is diagnosed when the three characteristics listed above are combined, with a tendency towards hyperactivity. It is important to remember that neither condition is related to lowered intelligence.

Teaching Tips1. Give clear instructions

It’s amazing how many times we think we are giving an instruction when we’re actually making more of a vague comment, for example:

‘I think it would be better…’ or ‘Isn’t it about time you…?’

Your student probably won’t think it would be better to work on their scales, and that it isn’t about time they stopped playing that game! It is important to use short simple statements, such as:

‘Please play me F major now’, or ‘Come and sit here on the floor and play this game with me’.

It is also useful to avoid changing your wording when repeating an instruction. This way it will be perceived as the same instruction, and not confused as something new.

2. Recognise and praise desired behaviour

It’s important to notice when the child is doing the right thing, and praise that behaviour. It might be as simple as sitting quietly while they listened to you speak, or moving quickly to the next activity you’ve asked them to do. Provide rewards consistently and often — this could be in the form of verbal praise, sticker charts, small prizes, team points etc. Be sure to always ask the parents before giving any kind of sweet rewards as many students with ADD or ADHD are kept away from colours, additives, and preservatives to help manage their behaviour.

3. Arrange the environment to facilitate attention

This is as simple as minimising distractions. Limit the number of people in the room or waiting room, to provide a quiet environment for the child to focus in. My students focus much better with no-one else in the studio, so the parents don’t stay and the following students know not to come inside until we’ve finished. Avoid teaching right next to a window where neighbourhood dogs / cats / birds will be ready and waiting to steal the student’s attention away from you!

4. Use active response instruction

This is the big one! Get your students moving around and doing different activities for short bursts of time. You will find their concentration is really good on something they are interested in, and their behaviour is much better if you have a variety of activities in a lesson. I find 5–7 minutes per activity usually works to keep things moving along. Using manipulatives is great for all students to develop

conceptual understanding, and really helps students with ADD and ADHD who need to move around more. The Blitz Book of Theory Games by Samantha Coates has some fantastic games for a wide range of levels. There are crosswords, puzzles, word searches, and lots of card games, including my all-time favourite ‘Beat It’, a fantastic rhythm and memory game that my students never get tired of. There are also plenty of childhood games that you can adapt to have a musical focus; it can be as simple as asking the child to identify a note or answer a question in between turns of tic-tac-toe, or creating a musical egg-and-spoon race. There are thousands of great ideas for games online if you spend a little time searching and reading through teaching blogs.

5. Foster self-esteem

Students with any kind of learning difficulty or disability are often labelled in that way and they can start to absorb that as part of their identity. They might see themselves as ‘the naughty child’ who is always in trouble and ‘isn’t very good at learning’. As private instrumental teachers we have the most wonderful opportunity to turn this around! At piano lessons my students with ADHD don’t see themselves as ‘the naughty child’; in fact they aren’t disruptive or difficult to teach at all. They are all delightful children who love their piano lessons and are achieving success.

Having one-on-one time with an adult who believes in them, has the freedom to teach the way that suits their needs, and helps them succeed is invaluable in the life of a child who might not be having those experiences at school. As a past classroom teacher I know it’s impossible to spend as much one-on-one time as a child may need when you have 30+ other children who need attention too! As instrumental teachers we have the chance to really make a difference, and I think that’s what excites me the most.

November 2014

7The Piano Teacher

Explore more of Sonny Chua’s Music at your favourite music retail store today!

Here are just some of the wonderfully creative ways teachers used Umi’s Lullaby to celebrate the piano and talk to the media and their community about piano teaching:

• Brisbane teacher Angela Turner arranged Umi’s Lullaby as a trio and it was performed by three sisters at the Australian Piano Duo Festival.

• Composer Christopher Norton arranged and recorded a performance of the piece in 5/4 time.

• Ballarat teacher Bron Solowski ran a festival and awarded certificates to each of his students and community members who played Umi’s Lullaby during the week.

• Mount Tambourine teacher Margaret Buck arranged three variations of Umi’s Lullaby and went on to record and upload performances of her students playing Umi’s Lullaby.

• US Composer Jeremy Siskind recorded himself playing Umi’s Lullaby in the style of Debussy and Bill Evans.

• Melbourne teacher Katrina Wilson created a Piano Orchestra event at Prestige Pianos, in Preston.

Katrina writes:

‘We had chaotic kind of fun at the Piano Orchestra event. A total of 14 players turned up at Prestige Pianos, and together we created a version of Umi’s Lullaby on 9 pianos. It was a fun challenge bringing it together and not quite knowing who was going to turn up or what was going to happen until the day.

Among those performing were veteran teachers and performers, adult students, young learners and volunteers who have never had lessons but were willing to give it a go. We had some lovely duets and trios from parents, their children and younger siblings. There was a combination of those who could read music and those who couldn’t. Everyone had a part to play.

I had a number of aims when arranging the piece. I wanted families to experience practising together at home. It was a way for parents and siblings to experience what it is like to prepare a piece for performance and the types of preparation one needs to go through. This will help to support the student in their future musical endeavours. I also wanted a performance outlet for my adult students to be able to participate in without feeling like they were participating in a ‘kid’s only’ event. I wanted it to be public but not pressured so that I could use the event to promote musical participation in a way that onlookers would see that learning the piano is not exclusive and high pressured.

In the weeks leading up to the Piano Orchestra performance, all my students and their parents were excited with anticipation knowing that we were taking part in an international event. It was also very exciting knowing that the composer was watching and interested to find out what we would do with his piece.’

Umi’s LullabyOne piece, hundreds of ways

Congratulations to Sonny Chua and his wife on the birth of their daughter, Aria (aka Umi).

In Issue 5 of The Piano Teacher magazine we published Sony Chua’s ‘musical smile’, Umi’s Lullaby. We invited teachers and students from around the world to perform, arrange, record and learn Umi’s Lullaby during the week of September 1st.

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Head to Youtube to hear recordings of Umi’s Lullaby from around the world!

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Issue Six

8The Piano Teacher

Sydney composer, Elena Kats-Chernin is delighted to present The Rain Puzzle, written especially for The Piano Teacher magazine. We encourage all teachers from around the world to have their students perform The Rain Puzzle during the week of March 1st.

Celebrate Piano WeekMarch 1 – 7th 2015

The Piano Teacher magazine proudly presents:

Elena suggests that the performer may decide to play the piece staccato or legato and may determine a variety of dynamics as well as tempo.

The piece can be played as is, or may be played simultaneously on either one or more pianos. If played on one piano, the second pianist may play the material one or two octaves above or below the first pianist.

Elena has also provided Versions 2, 3 and 4 which can be presented as alternatives and can be incorporated into ensemble performance or played as separate pieces. You can download the additional parts at www.thepianoteacher.com.au

We encourage you to arrange The Rain Puzzle, add other instruments or create a film clip to go with it. Contact your local newspaper or radio station and talk to them about your studio, the importance of music education and the benefits of learning the piano. The possibilities are endless!

Please note that permission is granted to reproduce, arrange or transcribe The Rain Puzzle only for the period between November 1st 2014 and March 8th 2015.

Turn the page to discover The Rain Puzzle...

You can explore more of Elena’s music at your favourite music store.

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November 2014

9The Piano Teacher

©2014 by Boosey & Hawkes Bote & Bock GmbH, Berlin

– Elena Kats-Chernin

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November 2014

11The Piano Teacher

Duets and Trios– by Angela Turner

The Busy Teachers’ Guide to Repertoire:

The benefits of duet and ensemble playing are well-known, with the potential to help develop better listening, rhythmic and general musicianship skills. Recently, I wanted to explore outside the ‘standard’ published collections. You know the ones — typically published or compiled about 40 or more years ago, filled with classical warhorses of the duet repertoire. Many of these volumes are much loved, but in more recent times, there have been numerous volumes of duet and ensemble repertoire that offer new options to explore — both classical and popular-inspired. It’s always a challenge to evaluate duets and trios properly without the help of colleagues, so with a few close friends and some of my advanced students, I recently read through cover-to-cover about 30 volumes of duets and trios. We also laughed ourselves silly and had a great deal of fun! (Thanks to Bettina, Oscar, Mark, Jenni, Stephen and my students!) Here are some of the best volumes we found:

Mini Tango Manfred Schmitz

Grade Preliminary – 5

Manfred Schmitz’s Mini Tango (Volume 2, published by Deutscher Verlag für Musik), contains 18 trios for six hands at the one piano. An absolutely fantastic volume, starting with the equivalent of AMEB Preliminary-Grade 1 at the beginning, proceeding through to about a Grade 5 standard. The earliest pieces are just a few lines long, with clear patterns in the writing, sensible hand positions, with interest in every part. The latter pieces would be ideal performance showcases. Most pieces have parts that are essentially matched in difficulty, or within one grade of each other, meaning that three students could perform the pieces together. The music is often highly spirited with clear, immediate characters and interesting rhythms, as you might expect with tango-inspired pieces! The volume itself is beautifully laid out with fold-out pages. One of my favourites in the volume was no.9 — translated as Lonely Dancing Girl, at about Grade 2/3 level. A fantastic discovery into the world of piano trios and a complete hit with the students. Had I mentioned I absolutely loved this book?!

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Issue Six

12The Piano Teacher

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More Hands, One Piano Peter Przystaniak

Grade Preliminary – 2

More Hands, One Piano, assembled by Peter Przystaniak (published by Edition Peters) is a terrific collection of originals by Peter Przystaniak and his arrangements of various songs and folk tunes, for six and eight hands. It caters to younger learners beautifully, with the hardest pieces around a Grade 2 level technically, with most of the book capable of being played by preliminary levels upwards. Hand positions are very well thought out and comfortable — mostly spanning five-finger positions over five notes (or very occasionally six notes) for each player. It may find use in group instruction classes as well as private teachers wanting to explore ensemble playing with their students. Some of the traditional pieces arranged include Old MacDonald, Greensleeves, Swanee River and Brahms’ Lullaby. Przystaniak’s originals are the highlight of the volume for me, with Jungle Boogie and Tango di Mango holding lots of appeal. It comes with a CD for practising with other parts.

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Many Hands, One Piano Sonny Chua

Grade 1 – 3

I’ve been a fan of Sonny Chua’s piano works for children for some time, and was thrilled to find his 2009 volume Many Hands, One Piano (All Music Publishing). This volume contains a combination of duets, trios and sextets that have been very popular in my studio for the past five years. The Day in the Life of a T-Rex duets are my personal picks of the volume, particularly the T-Rex Awake (easily managed by Grade 1/2 players) and T-Rex Hungry (Grade 2/3) movements. With descriptive markings like ‘feverishly’, ‘snappingly’ and ‘cantankerously’, the sound world and energy of these pieces have made for plenty of enthusiastic and spirited performances by young players. There are other appealing works based on Three Blind Mice, and Gershwin’s I’ve Got Rhythm gets the Chua cheeky treatment with a piece for six hands called We’ve Got Rhythm.

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The sound world and energy of these pieces have made for plenty of enthusiastic and spirited performances by young players.

November 2014

13The Piano Teacher

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James Bond Theme

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When the piece bursts into the ‘swing’ section mid-way — what an unbeatable moment!Easy Jazzy Duets Piano

& Jazzy Duets Piano Volume 2 Mike Cornick

Grade 3 – 5

Mike Cornick’s Easy Jazzy Duets Piano and Jazzy Duets Piano Volume 2 are both excellent volumes published by Universal Edition. Easy Jazzy Duets Piano have secondo parts at a slightly more advanced level than the primo parts, but all items and parts in this book are within the Grade 3 to 5 level. Jazzy Duets Piano Volume 2 mostly has both primo and secondo parts at the same level of difficulty, with the pieces ranging from Grade 4 to 6. Wonderful, interesting harmonies, and the quality of the music — extremely well-written — immediately comes through.

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Double Agent! Piano Duets Jeremy Siskind

Grade 2 – 5

Double Agent! Piano Duets, arranged by Jeremy Siskind (published by Hal Leonard) features eight works along the ‘Secret Agent’ theme — including favourites like Get Smart, Inspector Gadget, James Bond, Mission: Impossible and Pink Panther. The volume is catered to the intermediate level pianist, with creative, interesting arrangements that sound like authentic jazz, with great harmonies and rhythmic interest. Ranging from about Grade 2/3 (Get Smart) to Grade 5 (Mission Impossible), I think the highlight of this volume is the James Bond arrangements (Grade 4/5). When the piece bursts into the ‘swing’ section mid-way — what an unbeatable moment! Given the jazz nature of the volume, there are a few moments with rhythmical challenges, but the artistic and learning rewards are well worth the effort as the results are ear- and attention-grabbing. A new favourite with my students.

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James Bond Theme

By Monty NormanArranged by Jeremy Siskind

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This arrangement © 2014 EMI UNART CATALOG INC.All Rights Administered by EMI UNART CATALOG INC. (Publishing) and ALFRED MUSIC (Print)

All Rights Reserved Used by Permission

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Issue Six

14The Piano Teacher

Perky, with a swing (h = 76)

Perky, with a swing (h = 76)

Crescent City Connection

By Eugénie R. Rocherolle

Copyright © 2011 by HAL LEONARD CORPORATIONThis arrangement Copyright © 2012 by HAL LEONARD CORPORATION

International Copyright Secured All Rights Reserved

Primo

Secondo

3

f

3

f

mf

2

5

5

3

mf

14

9

9

4

2

13

13

25

3

2

15

Piano Duet Book 2 Edition Peters

Grade 4+

Das vierhändige Pianobuch [The Four-Hand Piano Book] (Volume 2, published by Edition Peters) is an intriguing collection of relatively unusual or unknown originals, by well-known composers (such as Dvořák, Satie, Mozart, Kuhlau, Grieg, and more) and new compositions/commissions by modern-day composers. The collection’s subtitle is Piano Duet Music for Discoverers, which captures the general feeling of the volume. Piece choices are out of the ordinary — there are 17th century pieces alongside new, quasi-improvised works with contemporary notation. There are no standard ‘warhorses’ included; after all, there are numerous published volumes that already cater to that well. The parts are very well matched, and the selection of works appeals strongly to one’s creativity and curiosity. The volume has more of a classical contemporary feel, as opposed to the more common jazz-inspired volumes, which make it a very useful resource. I’m looking forward to seeing Volume 1 of this series, which classifies itself as for easy-intermediate levels. This volume is certainly at the intermediate level, Grade 4 and upwards, and well worth exploring.

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Rocherolle’s Crescent City Connection is a favourite, but the entire volume is notable for its variety of styles and pianistic, idiomatic writing.

Piano Recital Showcase Duet Favorites

Grade 3 – 4

The Hal Leonard Piano Recital Showcase series contains some terrific, clearly graded volumes of solo repertoire. A welcome addition to this series is the duet volume Duet Favourites. It features four of Hal Leonard’s composers — Eugénie Rocherolle, Phillip Keveren, Wendy Stevens and Sondra Clark — with intermediate level duets of a more substantial feature length. The volume could be technically managed by pianists from around a Grade 4 level, though some parts are slightly easier at about a Grade 3 level. Rocherolle’s Crescent City Connection is a favourite, but the entire volume is notable for its variety of styles and pianistic, idiomatic writing.

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November 2014

15The Piano Teacher

Highly Recommended!

20th Century Classics Volume One Boosey and Hawkes

Grade 4+

20th Century Classics — Volume One (published by Boosey and Hawkes) feature 10 orchestral landmarks of the 20th century, arranged well by Roger Brison for piano duet. So much of the orchestral repertoire exists in arrangements for piano duet (or two pianos) and this is a fantastic way to get students to know this rich repertoire. This collection highlights works by Bernstein (America from West Side Story), Britten’s Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra, Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man, and movements from Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony and Romeo and Juliet, amongst others. The arrangement of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 is a hit with younger and older players alike. Most of the parts would be playable by Grade 4 level students, however there are some trickier moments. I tend to use this volume with my more advanced students, for quicker ensemble study pieces and sight-reading in the lesson. The pieces are mostly just a page or two in length. This volume is also a great starting point to introduce concepts of orchestral colour into one’s playing.

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Latin Duets Christopher Norton

Grade 3 – 4

Christopher Norton’s multiple duet volumes in the Microjazz series (published by Boosey and Hawkes) are well-known, and well suited to younger players — from early levels through to about Grade 3–4. His separate volume of Latin Duets start at about the Grade 4 level, moving through to about an advanced Grade 6. My students have particularly enjoyed the first piece in the Latin collection, Mambo, where the parts are very well matched and alternate features. There is also the Rock Duets volume which is highly recommended.

M060097775

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Issue Six

16The Piano Teacher

Don’t Overload that Music Desk, Particularly on Grand Pianos

Pens, pencils, paper clips, a trumpet mouth piece…and a solid chocolate Easter egg. These are some of the items that I’ve found inside grand pianos. However, it’s easy to understand why these items fall in when you take a look at how exposed the inside of a piano can be when the lid is folded back to make use of the music desk.

One way to prevent items falling inside the piano is not to overload the music desk. It doesn’t take much for an item to fall inside and stop a key from working. Stationery (as well as a trumpet mouth piece and an Easter egg for that matter) does not belong inside a piano! Please take care when the piano is in this position.

Cleaning

Speaking of items that don’t belong inside a piano…detritus. Dust, pencil eraser shavings, even small scraps of paper. If you think of the mechanisms that are inside a piano, all of these have to work in order for the piano to function; a build-up of detritus will inhibit this. Get your piano technician to regularly clean the inside of the piano to stop the detritus build-up.

On the outside of the piano, a piano cleaning mitt or chamois cloth is sufficient to pick up surface dust and fingerprints off the piano. Please do not use household cleaning products, as these do more to damage the piano’s surface than clean it. There are specialised piano cleaning products on the market, but use these sparingly as they can remove the finish when applied liberally.

Extremes of Temperature

Pianos are affected by extremes in temperature so be careful where they’re placed in your house. Important questions to ask are: Is it on top of or under a heating/cooling vent? Do you turn the heating vent on fully? Is it exposed to direct sunlight? Is it in the most climatically stable room in your house?

The adage ‘never put a piano next to an outside wall’ is not usually true these days. Modern insulation means that most houses are well insulated, so putting your piano next to an outside wall may not be a problem. However, use your common sense. Gauge the temperature of the wall and assess whether or not it is suitable to put a piano there.

When to Say Goodbye

While an old family piano may hold fond memories for you, it may not meet educational use requirements. If you are going to use your piano as an educational tool, make sure that it is in reasonable condition, both in sound and feel. You could be hindering your learning abilities, as well as your enjoyment if you play a worn-out piano. It may be time to invest in a new piano.

Regular Maintenance…and Playing!

Make sure your piano is regularly maintained by a qualified piano technician. This includes tuning, regulation (the internal workings of the piano), and voicing (the tonal quality of the piano). Generally, pianos in the home will be tuned once or twice every year; regulation occurs every three to five years, and voicing is done after tuning has finished. This may vary according to need.

It’s also important to keep playing the piano. Think of a car that doesn’t get driven — it will eventually seize up. Similarly, a piano that doesn’t get played will also seize up and not perform to its optimum. It’s a musical instrument that’s meant to be played.

At Yamaha, we have a pool of qualified piano technicians to keep your Yamaha piano properly maintained. It’s important to use a qualified technician to properly maintain your piano over its lifespan. You can find them here at our service centre site:

http://yamaha-corporation.force.com/dealers/au_servicecentre

Eric is the Piano Technical Manager at Yamaha Music Australia. Email: eric.ong@music.yamaha.com

Under the Lid by Eric Ong, Piano Technician, and Piano Technical Manager. Yamaha Music Australia

A piano should be properly maintained. That goes without saying. However, you would be surprised what piano owners do to their instruments over time. So let’s start with some basic maintenance to ensure that your piano is enjoyed for many years to come.

An Easter egg found jammed up against one of the keys, inside this grand piano. Note the detritus that builds-up inside a piano over time.

The space behind a music desk provides access to the inside of a piano. Be mindful how many items go on a music desk, to stop these items falling in.

Advertising Feature

November 2014

17The Piano Teacher

I have a Groovy Music Box. It holds all sorts of wonderful things to use in lessons and is a great icebreaker for new students and those not having a good day. It is a hit with primary school aged children, but the group I use it the most with is the early learners.

It all began when my first early learner came to the studio. He was four, very bright and a little bit quirky. This was over a decade ago when there weren’t as many great resources around for the early beginners. So I set about making my own curriculum and this is how the music box was born. I found an old shoe box and covered it with bright wrapping paper and stickers. It was bright and just big enough for me to keep the resources for that particular lesson in.

One lesson we were exploring the musical alphabet, I thought I’d done really well to collect an item starting with each letter required. A for apple, B for banana, C for carrot, D for dragon fruit, E for egg and so on. He went into the box ready for

his lesson. Imagine my surprise when I opened the box in the lesson and he screamed and hid behind his mum! Apparently he had a phobia of fruit and vegetables! Since then I have, through trial and error, found what works best in the music box. Resources that make it easy to use for a wide range of students and activities to have on hand for those ‘need a change of pace’ moments.

Firstly there are LOTS of animals. I have discovered, since the fruit incident, that animals are much safer! We have Ribbit the frog, who is an original member of the music box cast. He is great for jumping off the back of little hands up to the music stand to demonstrate staccato, and also helpful for sounds on the piano around middle C. Most recently he has featured for a young student doing a glissando, apparently it wouldn’t give him a headache but it would save her little fingers! Then we have Dorothy the duck, Fluffy Rabbit, Disco Tweet, Zor the elephant, Roary the lion, Wendy

the whale, Daisy the ladybug, Neko the cat and Mr Mischief the monkey! Most of these animals are used when young students begin with ‘sound mapping’ the piano, gauging pitch-high/low and direction-up/down. Students can put the animals on the piano and experiment with creating sounds of that animal. It is also very useful to bring in the animals for storytelling of pieces the student is learning. Or a small animal can be used to highlight a particular note on the piano if a piece has a large leap in it, giving a visual cue for the new location.

Several animals have a further, technique-based purpose. Recently Daisy the ladybug has come to our studio and each of my young students has one at home as well. Daisy is used as a physical prompt for developing hand posture. Held in the palm of the hand with the nose out towards the thumb, this demonstrates beautiful hand shape. This is a tip I picked up from Diane Hidy’s blog and is a winner for my students!

Carly’s Groovy Music Box– by Carly McDonald

Issue Six

18The Piano Teacher

Mr Mischief the monkey is also helpful for students who have very stiff arms. Irina Gorin has some excellent YouTube teaching videos and in one uses a toy monkey to demonstrate the arm being a branch of a tree and the monkey on the branch going for a ride in the breeze. The imagery of this and the cue of having the monkey on their arm draws the student’s awareness to the body and opens a discussion about relaxation through the arms and shoulders. It’s also great fun and the kids love Mr Mischief!

Moving on from the animals, another original cast member is the modelling clay. It is great for practising terms and signs, and doing games. I pick a recently learnt sign for the student to make and they pick one for me to make. Normally they pick the hardest thing they can think of for me to make, which gives me some insight into the terms and signs I need to work with them on more in the future. Then we have a race to make them. It’s hands on, 3D and a great activity away from the piano. I would recommend this one at the end of the lesson as kids fingers sometimes need a clean if they pick at the clay!

Which brings me to my next item, hand wipes. These are young children we are

dealing with, they bring all sorts of surprises with them. Having some antibacterial wipes in the music box is a must.

I have GAK in my music box. As a child of the 80s I love the GAK. I suppose the best definition of it is slime. It is great for getting the sensation of pushing through something into the student’s mind. Being able to feel the depth of their notes and being sensitive to the different depths they may use is the main purpose of having the GAK in the music box. It is also helpful to encourage firm rounded fingertips even when depressing the notes (rather than playing with straight fingers). The GAK stays in its container and it isn’t messy so it can be used at the piano.

For a bit of light relief I have a purple Honka in the box and a bouncy ball. The Honka is just like a clown horn. Sometimes when we are discussing different sounds it comes in handy, but it’s mostly there because it always gets a laugh or smile from a student who needs one. The bouncy ball is for my students who need physical play in their lessons. Away from the piano we can bounce the ball to one another (great for opening a discussion about accuracy). Alternatively we can bounce the ball high and watch how the first bounce is bigger and each

subsequent bounce decreases in size. Much like a diminuendo!

Flash cards are also an original cast member! The cards that get used from the packs vary, sometimes we do rhythm activities with them, other times we find as many terms from their piece as we can in the pack. This encourages them to actively look at all of the terms and become familiar with them. Other times we can play ‘Hide and Seek’ with finding locations of notes on the piano with the note reading flashcards. Furthering this theory side of the music box and to encourage writing and drawing we have the small magnetic whiteboard, marker and magnetic music notes and rests. This is very versatile and can be useful for students who benefit from tactile, kinaesthetic learning opportunities.

Finally in the music box are a range of rhythm instruments. We have a triangle, a frog castanet, two sets of claves, an egg shaker that is just the right size for little hands and several shakers with small handles on them. There are a plethora of activities that these can be used for. From introducing each instrument to an early beginner, discovering what different sounds they can make with it, to learning rhythms in student pieces or mirrored rhythm activities, there are so many things you can do! Having them all at the ready means you never have to go looking during lesson time. Has a student got a piece that could benefit from an added triangle chime in a bar of rest? Why not bring it out? These instruments make opportunities for discovery of sound and enjoyment in their music and can all be integrated in piano lessons. Less so perhaps with my older students, but younger students eyes light up when they get to create with the music box.

There are some items that are transient in the music box, they come for some time and then cycle out. The items I have discussed here are those that have stood the test of time and durability! As for that first music box? They get a bit of wear and tear over the years and when it was time for the first to retire, that very first student asked if it could go and live at his house. I guess it made an impression and some lasting memories!

November 2014

19The Piano Teacher

Squeals of joy will be heard when tween-age girls are presented with this fabulous collection of hits from British boy band sensation One Direction (or so was the case for my students!). The album contains simple and easy-to-read arrangements of hits from the group’s 2011 debut album Up All Night, the perfect book to reward progress with the 40 Piece Challenge or good exam results! But the benefits of this resource don’t stop at fun play. In addition to strengthening notational reading skills, students will be extending their chordal vocabulary with ‘sneaky suspensions’, added 2nds, major and minor 7th chords. Rhythms range from basic crotchet and minim phrases to more complex dotted patterns, tied notes and syncopation. As an added teaching bonus, More Than This features brief time signature changes, a great opportunity to strengthen inner pulsing. The absence of bar numbers could be used to introduce pop-song form, encouraging students to complete basic song analysis to identify verses, chorus, bridge etc. Whole lessons could be spent working ‘outside the staff ’ even before playing commences! A great book with relevant music and ample teaching opportunities… I give it 5 stars!

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Calling all Katy Perry fans! This book features well-written and easy arrangements of songs from the deluxe edition of the pop diva’s 2013 album Prism. The page layout is crisp, fresh and easy to read — with simple key signatures and uncluttered staff spacing. Rhythmically, the songs are relatively straightforward, with only dotted rhythms, tied notes and triplets needing a special mention. The melody is generally taken by the right hand (with left hand chordal accompaniment) and sounds true to the original, allowing students to quickly learn their favourite parts and sing along… perfect for budding singers who want to self-accompany! Chord symbols range from basic root position (e.g., C, G, Em) through to dominant/major/minor 7 and 9 (Birthday, Unconditionally), suspensions (Love Me), add2 (Ghost) and b5 (By The Grace of God). Lyrics are included, but due to some suggestive content, the book may be better suited to teenaged pianists. Whether you’re seeking to just play along with the melody, or to take a more in depth look at the the harmonic structure and form, this book is full of options for students (and their teachers!). A perfect addition to the music library of all KP fans… I give it 4 stars!

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Featuring a collection of accessible arrangements of 17-year-old Lorde’s debut album Pure Heroine, this book is perfect for teenage pianists who are in need of some fresh material (or extra motivation) in their piano practice. The lyrics are fresh and relevant to high school students, while fingering suggestions help to make learning a breeze. Repeats, dal segno and coda sections are clearly marked, with the layout in general uncluttered and easy-to-follow. Chord symbols range from basic root position (e.g., C, G, Am) through to suspensions and 7th chords — a great opportunity to extend understanding of pop music through harmonic analysis. The album is ideal for ‘jamming’ with friends during the lunch break and is sure to be a huge hit… 4 stars!

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A book well suited to teenage students needing a ‘pop injection’ in their repertoire list. Featuring acoustic, ‘stripped back’ arrangements of Sandé’s 2012 album Our Version of Events (with bonus track Read All About It which featured at the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympic Games), the collection would be ideal to impress in school music performances. Rhythms vary from basic crotchets and minims through to more complex syncopated and semiquaver passages (imitating the vocal runs of the original recording). Chord symbols and fingering are included, allowing for logical reading and fast-tracked learning. This one’s sure to be a favourite… 4 stars!

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Pure Heroine

Lorde (Easy Piano)

Grade 1

Our Version of Events

Emili Sandé (Easy Piano)

Grade 1

Up All Night

One Direction (Easy Piano)

Grade 1

Prism

Katy Perry (Easy Piano)

Grade 1

Reviewed by You:

Courtney Feldman runs a contemporary piano studio in Toowoomba QLD, where she is committed to bringing the cutting edge of piano pedagogy to her students, engaging a holistic approach to music education. Although classically trained, Courtney’s passion lies with contemporary and jazz music. She holds a Bachelor of Creative Arts (with Distinction) and will be undertaking postgraduate study in jazz voice and piano performance in 2015. www.feldmanmusic.com.au

Courtney Feldman

Issue Six

20The Piano Teacher

CALL ME MAYBE,

HOME & MORE HOT

SINGLES

Call Me Maybe, Heart

Attack, Home, Just Give

Me a Reason, Next To Me

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GET LUCKY, BLURRED

LINES & MORE HOT

SINGLES

Blurred Lines, Brave,

Cruise, Cups (When I’m

Gone), Get Lucky

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HO HEY, SOME

NIGHTS & 3 MORE

HOT SINGLES

Ho Hey, It’s Time, Some

Nights, Stay, When I Was

Your Man

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ROAR, ROYALS &

MORE HOT SINGLES

Atlas, Roar, Royals, Safe

And Sound, Wake Me Up!

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STAY WITH ME, SING &

MORE HOT SINGLES

Am I Wrong?, Boom Clap

(from The Fault in Our

Stars), Love Runs Out, Sing

(Ed Sheeran), Stay with Me.

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Pop Piano Hits 5 More Great Titles in this Range...

A fabulous collection of Broadway hits from old favourites and modern musicals alike including Annie, Mary Poppins, Oliver, My Fair Lady and South Pacific, are sure to keep pianists of all ages entertained! Fingering suggestions are provided throughout, along with chord symbols and easy-to-follow lyrics. The music is uncluttered and clearly set out, allowing for easy reading. No bar numbers are marked, but repeats, dal segno and coda sections are clearly shown. Some pieces will require careful attention, particularly those with ‘instrumental’ like passages between sections, but would be perfect for Eisteddfodau or concerts once performance ready. Primary aged students will enjoy energetic selections like Consider Yourself, Part of Your World and A Spoonful of Sugar while older students (and adult learners) may prefer to revisit old favourites like Dites Moi, Getting to Know You and Wouldn’t it Be Loverly. Use of pedal is suggested, but no specific indications are included, so the album may be better learnt (and enjoyed) with teacher guidance. A fun and challenging resource… 5 stars!

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A fabulously current book that pianists of all ages will love to play! Featuring accessible arrangements of five chart topping pop singles, this book would be the perfect reward for students progressing through the 40 Piece Challenge — or perhaps even as an early Christmas present for your child! With the addition of well-considered fingering suggestions, most students could comfortably work through the book at their own pace, but may need some guidance for translating trickier chord symbols such as add4 (Say Something), minor 7, added 6 and suspensions (Story of My Life). All repeats, dal segno and codas are clearly marked, so the lack of bar numbers shouldn’t be noticed. The arrangements are generally capped at intervals of a sixth (and any shifts or octave jumps can be achieved with clever pedalling) — so smaller handed pianists need not worry! Lyrics are neatly incorporated and the layout is clear, concise and easy to read. An accessible and funky resource, good value for money… I give it 5 stars!

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This book offers a great collection of chart topping pop and movie hits — with everyone’s favourite song of the moment… LET IT GO (OOO) *cue theatrical vocal rendition*! As the most accessible piece of the folio, Dark Horse could be introduced to Grade 1 students, with the remaining selections used as motivation to achieve good exam results (starting on the funky Grade 2 pieces just in time for the Christmas holidays!). The arrangement of Happy is my pick of the bunch, cleverly swapping the melodic line between right and left hand to imitate the solo and echo voices featured in the original (e.g., start of the chorus, bar 18). Much of the remaining left hand work provides a stable percussive beat to ‘keep toes tapping’! On a lighter note, this book is ideal for teachers and parents who really can’t bear the thought of more than one frozen song on the practice list! The eight page long arrangement of Let It Go will keep developing pianists entertained for a while and pays homage to the original recording! Although some passages will require careful fingering and attention, generally, the pieces sound more difficult than they actually are — great for end of year concerts to impress! A great all-rounder… 4 stars!

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Kids Broadway Favorites

(Easy Piano)

Grade 2

Say Something, Counting Stars & More Hot Singles

Grade 1

Let it Go, Happy & More Hot Singles

Grade 2

— Grade levels are approximate

November 2014

21The Piano Teacher

Reviewed by You:

This book contains eight very fine arrangements of famous jazz standards and they are all winners! The arrangements are quite sophisticated and complex, but well worth the musical effort. They have a professional sound, and the voicings and pedalling guides are extremely slick. There are rich jazz chord colourings, fantastic bass counterpoint parts and lots of variety of mood and styles.

The arrangements do not have chord symbols which makes them an excellent theory assignment for chord analysis. Siskind creates some extremely sophisticated chord harmonies (e.g., 7ths, 9ths) and syncopated rhythms which require work to master. The finished product is definitely worth it. Jeremy Siskind is certainly a rising star. I highly recommend this terrific book to students preparing for AMEB or ANZCA Modern Grade 5/6 and developing jazz hounds whether teacher, student or player.

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This book contains 24 very interesting arrangements of music from movies and other modern sources and includes modern composers such as Einaudi, Morricone, Burwell, Williams and Enya. The arrangements are very sophisticated and cover many styles and moods. The selections are all generally very syncopated and very long. They would be suitable choices for Grade 6–7 players upwards. The selections would appeal to those fussy teenagers who like sourcing their music from YouTube and provide excellent music reading challenges for such players. This is a book to complement standard teaching books. Whilst most of the arrangements are quite difficult, they are very beautiful and would stand well in any cocktail piano environment.

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The jazz arrangements that Brett Edstrom has come up with for these 20 Elton John songs are simply sophisticated, and very cool. Each arrangement (chord symbols included) is a masterpiece of chordal alteration, chord voicing and melodic realisation. They are strictly for advanced players and would be a smart choice for jazz pianists for their end of degree recital because of their absolute surprise factor — plus a player would have to work extremely hard on jazz rhythmic nuances. Backing tracks and/or recordings would be very useful with this book. This book is a total gem for any Elton John lover who wants to sound cool.

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This book delivers what the title suggests — it contains 80 very famous jazz standards such as Blues for Martha, Like Young, 52nd Street, Dolphin Dance, Watermelon Man and many more. The arrangements are of cocktail piano bar standard and would be great for jazz exams/programs from Grade 7 up to Associates. It will also appeal to the young jazz pianist who wants to seriously extend their playing skills for the professional arena. The arrangements are terrific, and all have chord symbols. Every jazz pianist/teacher should have this book on their library shelf.

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Elton John – Jazz Solos Volume 29

Brett Edstrom

Grade 5+

The Best Jazz Solos Ever

Grade 7+

The Magic of Standards

Jeremy Siskind

Grade 5 – 6

River Flows in You and other Eloquent Songs for Piano

Grade 6 – 7

Originally from Tasmania, Christina Trus moved to Perth in 1985 where she is a regular examiner for ANZCA and is a busy accompanist for Perth musicians. Christina tutors piano at St Brigid’s College and Guildford Grammar School in Perth and also runs a private studio for young, advanced and senior players in the Perth Hills. Christina enjoys playing and teaching all musical styles from classical to jazz and even comedy, and in particular she loves musicals.

Christina Trus

Issue Six

22The Piano Teacher

Anybody who loves playing the great jazz standards will love this fake-book. It contains over 150 famous standards and five fantastic pages of instruction on chord alteration (plus other jazz style instructions) from the King himself — Frank Mantooth. This book is a valuable learning tool and repertoire (fake-sheet) resource for any aspiring jazz hound. Mantooth’s suggested altered chords provide an example of excellent chord improvising, which is necessary for piano students auditioning for a tertiary jazz course, and also extremely useful in general for tertiary jazz players. This is a ‘must have’ book for any piano player, professional or amateur, who wants to seriously increase their jazz standards repertoire.

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This is a total treasure-chest for anyone from the 80s and before! It’s an excellent resource book of beautiful arrangements that will especially appeal to adult players who want to remember their favourite movies. There is a mix of levels starting from Grade 5 up to around Grade 7. The perfect choice for ANZCA teachers looking for free choice material for Modern Syllabi students. While the book does lack chord symbols, I would still strongly recommend every teacher have this in their library — if not simply for the pure pleasure of playing great cocktail piano selections.

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This is a completely fantastic book for high school piano players who have Grade 4 and up reading skills. The 23 arrangements are for multiple keyboards, and contain some very catchy pop tunes such as Tubular Bells, Popcorn, along with some classics from JS Bach! This book is an incredible resource for high school instrumental teachers who have to find contemporary projects for all the piano/keyboard players in their class. Whilst the arrangements are very professional and would be time consuming to put together, the end musical result would be well worth the effort.

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This book is definitely for advanced players and then some! It contains some very professional arrangements of country standards. They are quite demanding and require high reading skills and knowledge of rhythmic sub-divisions. The accompanying backing tracks are great and this book is ideal for players wanting to increase their store of fills, licks and country voicings. Chord symbols are included.

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This is THE book for anyone who wants sophisticated arrangements of all the beautiful music in the world! It is a fantastic selection from Air on a G String, Fur Elise to Yesterday, Your Song and Stormy Weather (fabulous arrangement). Despite the absence of chord symbols, this is a terrific book for the advanced teenager or adult who wants to prepare cocktail piano repertoire. The level is advanced at Grade 6 and up. I would strongly recommend every teacher to have this in their library — if simply not for the pure pleasure of playing through the selections. I had to fight to keep it in my studio whilst reviewing it!

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This is a total treasure-chest for senior adult learners who want to play the movie and song tunes that they remember! The big font, the chord symbols, the well-crafted harmonisation of melodies (the depth of the chords are not lost) and fingerings for the 70 songs make this book a great resource for any teacher who has senior age players — particularly those interested in the 40 Piece Challenge.

310425

Pro Chord Changes for All ‘C’ InstrumentsVol. 1

Grade 5+

100 Movie Songs for Piano Solo

Grade 5 – 7

Keyboard Instrumentals 23 Transcriptions

Grade 4+

The Piano Magic of Floyd Cramer

Grade 8+

100 of the Most Beautiful Piano Solos Ever

Grade 6+

The Best Songs Ever

Grade 5+

— Grade levels are approximate

November 2014

23The Piano Teacher

The Beauty of Books… and the Consequence of Copies– by Samantha Coates

Issue Six

24The Piano Teacher

Call me old-fashioned, but I love using music books. I insist that all of my students buy them. To me, a music book is something you have for life, an addition to a library, a nostalgic possession that can be passed on to the next generation of musicians.

However, I feel like I’m fighting a losing battle. In this digital age, it seems that today’s music students are increasingly expecting to get all of their music instantly, electronically, and without paying any money.

But is this the way of the future? Just as book collections may become a thing of the past as people move towards e-readers and Kindles, will it become so easy and economical to access music scores digitally that music books will become redundant? As much as I love the volumes on my music bookshelf, I don’t think my digital-native children will view it in quite the same way. So as we move further into the 21st century, we need to educate ourselves, our students, and our parents about what is okay and what is

not when it comes to photocopying and downloading music.

Sometimes it is perfectly legitimate to obtain a ‘copy’ — it may be a work in the public domain downloaded from a reputable site like Canadian website IMSLP (imslp.org), or an original composition that has been made freely available by a young composer.

But unfortunately, all too often the acquisition of music is not so legitimate. It’s a deliberate money-saving venture, where one user purchases a new music book and allows another user to photocopy it, therefore avoiding having to buy it for themselves. Even more unfortunate is the fact that many teachers knowingly and willingly photocopy music that is still under copyright and give it to their students, and the parent is not even aware that this practice is illegal.

The photocopying of music that is still under copyright impacts hugely on the music community: composers, publishers, and retailers all suffer. Being

a publisher myself, I am particularly sensitive to this issue. Piracy not only costs the music industry millions of dollars each year — in the end it creates a vicious cycle for the user because it forces the cost of music up.

In Australia, the vast majority of students who undertake exams do so with the Australian Music Examinations Board (AMEB). I myself came through the AMEB exam ‘system’, and in my student years I remember doing the following from time to time:• learning from photocopies that my

teacher gave me;• borrowing the original from my

teacher for use in the exam; and• only bringing a photocopy into the

exam if it was to facilitate a page-turn, and feeling nervous even about that because I knew that photocopies were ‘banned’.

Having become a publisher I now cringe at the amount of photocopies I used as a child. It was a common practice and no-one thought much of it. These days,

there is a broader awareness of piracy and although some teachers choose to ignore it and still follow the procedure described in the bullet points, many teachers encourage their students to purchase music legitimately. Any legitimately acquired music is perfectly fine to bring into an exam room, even if it is on A4 sheets of paper and not in books.

The trick here is to understand what is legitimate and what is not. Many people think it’s okay to photocopy anything by Beethoven, since he has been dead for more than 70 years. But copyright applies to the design, layout and typesetting of an edition that is less than 25 years old, despite it containing a work that is out of copyright, in this case by Beethoven.

I recently contacted Bernard Depasquale, CEO of the Australian Music Examinations Board, asking for clarification about the use of photocopies and sheet music downloads in exams as opposed to ‘originals’ (meaning music in books). Below is an extract of Bernard’s response, reproduced with permission, which explains (incredibly well) the copyright laws that we should all know and understand:

There are actually many examples of a piece that is in the public domain (that applies to the majority of ‘classical music’) that it is not legal to photocopy. Most public domain pieces are published in editions that maintain their own copyright over the published edition and hence cannot be copied. While establishing a piece being in the public domain is normally quite easy, establishing whether a published edition is under copyright or not is very difficult. There are many other reasons why a ‘public domain’ work may be under copyright still. There are many songs where the music may be in the public domain but the lyrics are under copyright, or vice versa. Often an original composition may be in the public domain but the work published is an arrangement and the arrangement is a new artistic work and therefore under copyright. Many of these things are difficult to assess, especially for a person with little experience in tracking the ancestry of a piece.

For this reason AMEB is somewhat reluctant to publish formal statements on copyright because people tend to take the bit that they want to take (public domain so I can copy it) and forget the bit they don’t want to take (published edition under copyright so I can’t).

However the following is a correct statement of copyright law as we understand it.

An exception to copyright applies: This can refer to public domain works that are available as downloads, for example from sites like IMSLP [a Canadian site]. We advise that before photocopying, users ensure that not only is the music public domain in Australia but that the printed edition is also free to use and is not covered by copyright. This information is generally available on the website from which the file is being downloaded.

The relevant music publisher has granted permission for the candidate to make a copy: There are some downloads or publications where photocopying is permitted by the publisher. You can contact the publisher or do some research to ensure photocopying of the music is permitted.

There are two problems with the above. Just because something is on [Canadian Site] IMSLP it doesn’t mean it is not under copyright in Australia. Music copyrights, and particularly sheet music copyrights vary quite considerably from territory to territory. The second problem is that while IMSLP takes some trouble to try to meet [Canadian] copyright laws, most online sites that offer free sheet music do not. They are just peer to peer sharing sites that blatantly disregard publishers and composers rights and illegally provide free sheet music. People tend to read IMSLP and then interpret this as ‘any sheet music on the internet’.

Establishing whether a piece of music is under copyright or not is often extremely difficult and trying to make definitive statements on the topic is also very difficult. As you can see from my email, I have made one or two definitive statements followed immediately by many exceptions to these. For that reason we insist that people use original music for published music that is under copyright and recommend people use original music wherever possible because it removes one source of anxiety from what is for many people an anxious experience—doing an exam. And we do, in the end, emphasise to people that when using copies, they need to take responsibility for ensuring it is a legal copy.

Bernard’s summary of copyright, whilst extremely helpful, unfortunately falls outside the realm of understanding for many. There are so many issues to consider, and for every ‘rule’ there

is always an exception. The world of copyright law is ever-evolving and as teachers we need to be vigilant about keeping up with it as well as being ambassadors for the composers who write the music we teach. For this reason alone it is a good idea to encourage the purchase of music books, because we can be sure that all the legalities have been taken care of.

In addition to alleviating the burden of copyright compliance, music books help students to be more organised. Students who play from photocopies (whether legal or not) are constantly dealing with pieces of paper. Pages are easily lost or damaged, and whilst it is usually possible to go and print it out again, this takes up valuable lesson or practice time — and is not so great for the environment!

Another wonderful thing about a music book is that it usually contains a certain set of repertoire; a volume of sonatas for example, or a book of jazz pieces. Working from a printout of Bach’s Prelude No. 1 in C major, or Chopin’s Etude No. 4 in E minor, means that the student does not see these pieces in the context of an important musical compilation.

Whether or not we choose to embrace the digital age, there are still good reasons to purchase books. Students will build a music library, not a pile of paper. As they progress through to higher levels of music, old books can be used as extra repertoire, perfect for sight-reading practice. When they become adults, they will pull out their old music books and (hopefully) have fond memories of learning their pieces, as they pass the books on to their own children. If we help our students foster a love of music books, we not only reinforce that music books are a wonderful investment, but we also help our existing music community to thrive.

If we help our students foster a love of music books, we not only reinforce that music books are a wonderful investment, but we also help our existing music community to thrive.

“

”

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25The Piano Teacher

Doorway to the Treasures Within – by David Lockett

Where does one begin with such an undertaking? I wanted to trawl as widely as I could to secure the best possible material, and headed immediately to some of Australia’s leading music warehouses and publishers. I was astounded by what I encountered. Not only did I find all the standard fare that has featured in pedagogical anthologies from time immemorial, but I also discovered an abundance of new material from around the world. The publishers showed great generosity in making their vast holdings available for perusal, even agreeing to send much of it to my home for more detailed appraisal. For the next two months, my music room floor was covered with piles of music scores. With added material from my own personal library, university collections and internet downloads, literally thousands of pieces were included in the mix for consideration. Gradually, I was able to whittle these down to an initial short list of around 350 works, from which 128 were finally selected for the nine volume series.

I was looking for material that was attractive and engaging, interesting for both students and teachers. I sought pieces that lay naturally under the hand, which explored the distinctive character and sonority of the piano and had a clear musical and pedagogical purpose. I wanted to cater for different tastes and learning styles through repertoire that was both challenging and achievable. Most of all, I wanted the selections to elicit a true sense of ownership from the players, something that goes beyond mere technical satisfaction to embrace a deeper and more personal connection with the music itself. The pieces needed to have a distinctive and accessible musical character, each with a type of expressive doorway leading to the treasures within.

I was keen for the repertoire to represent composers of different times, styles, nationality and gender. I wanted students to experience the work of the great composers while also sampling interesting and engaging pieces by less familiar names. So alongside Haydn and Mozart, we have

Georg Benda and Leopold Koželuch. In addition to Chopin and Mendelssohn, there is George Chadwick, Niels Gade and Cécile Chaminade. There are two Schumanns (Robert and Clara) and two Handels (George and Amanda, each from a different century and a different continent). The Bach family is well repre- sented, with pieces by Johann Sebastian, Wilhelm Friedemann, Johann Christian and Carl Philipp Emanuel, showing just how different they all were. The Grade 1 canons have a somewhat quirky twist while the List A selections include several pieces that explore technical or contrapuntal elements in a fresh, modern context.

I was around eight years old when I took my first AMEB exam. Strange as it may seem, I had a dream the night before in which I pictured almost exactly the circumstances of the exam itself. Several decades later, enriched by years of studying, performing, teaching and examining, I found myself charged with the responsibility of compiling a collection of repertoire that would lead a new generation of students into the joys of musical engagement.

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26The Piano Teacher

I wanted to trawl as widely as I could to secure the best possible material .. Not only did I find all the standard fare that has featured in pedagogical anthologies from time immemorial, but I also discovered an abundance of new material from around the world.

While I wished to ensure that Australian composers were adequately represented, I was not expecting to encounter such a wealth of excellent material. The Series includes 25 works by 17 Australian composers, some of them well known nationally and internationally, others working quietly but effectively in their own pedagogical settings.

The quality and range of the repertoire was naturally of critical importance, but so too was the presentation. Over the years, the AMEB has developed extremely high publishing standards, producing musical texts that are based on the best possible sources. An important part of my role was to edit the scores in such a way that they faithfully represented the composers’ texts while also giving practical guidance to candidates and teachers.

This aspect of the task was much more complex than one might initially have imagined, if only because of the different ways in which composers have, over time, regarded the printed score. From the 19th century onwards, they provided more and more instructions for performers, including tempo markings, dynamics, articulation signs and pedalling. More recently, some composers have become quite prescriptive, loading their scores with information and expecting the performer to assume the role of obedient servant rather than creative collaborator.

Compare this with an 18th century composer who wrote music solely for personal use, either as player, teacher or musical director. They would have been shocked to think that someone, 300 years later and in a country of which they were completely unaware, might wish to play or teach their compositions. They had no reason to write any more than the notes themselves, and even then they

sometimes only notated a skeleton — enough to remind them how the piece went but without the level of precision that we now take for granted in a musical score. In the unlikely event that someone in a neighbouring district might acquire a copy, they too would know how to approach the piece because there was a language of music that every educated musician understood and instinctively applied. Today, centuries later, musicians are educated in a completely different way and what was obvious to an 18th century mind may be entirely foreign to us.

This dilemma comes very much to the fore in music from the Baroque and early Classical periods, where composers typically presented just the notes, with few if any interpretative clues. The most authentic modern editions present as closely as possible precisely what the composer wrote, with no additions or alterations. Such editions can take us close to the musical mind of a Bach or a Haydn, yet, unless one is well informed about contemporary performance conventions, it is very easy to miss the musical intent and — even with the best will in the world — completely misinterpret what was intended. Fortunately, there were distinguished contemporary musicians such as Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and Daniel Türk, who wrote in great detail about such performance conventions, giving copious examples of how the music of the time was actually played.

Series 17 seeks to provide practical help by offering a few performance clues (mostly tempi, dynamics and some articulation markings), designed to flesh-out the original score without destroying its integrity. These additions have been kept to a minimum and have been distinguished from the remainder of the text by the use of a lighter, ‘stippled’ print.

It is important to stress that these editorial additions are in no way obligatory. Players are always encouraged to make their own decisions, within the context of their own musical personality and their knowledge of contemporary practice.

A similar approach has been applied to fingering which, in these volumes, has been devised with both practical convenience and musical effect in mind. But every hand is different and what might suit one player may be quite uncomfortable for another. Again, thoughtful experimentation is encouraged.

I hope that users of Series 17 will not only be inspired by the music itself, but also encouraged to engage with it deeply and personally. My own early experience with an AMEB grade book led me along a surprising and rewarding path. I hope that this series too will have a value that extends well beyond the examination context to support longer term personal and artistic enrichment.

With this pack, students can learn the repertoire, study for the General Knowledge questions and listen to professional recordings of their pieces. In addition they can record their practice, keep notes from lessons, and enjoy general music and theory glossaries and guides.

Student packs are available for all grades (Preliminary – Grade 8). Teacher packs will also be available. The Level 1 and Level 2 Teacher Packs include Grade Books and Recording & Handbooks.

Series 17 will be released November 2014. Series 17 will join Series 16 and Series 15 as repertoire options alongside the existing syllabus and manual lists.

For the very first time, the AMEB is offering Student Packs for students learning piano and working towards an AMEB Piano exam.

Now at a discounted rate, each student pack includes:

Grade Book Recording & Handbook

Free Practice Diary

B 2 VNovember 2014

27The Piano Teacher

1 2 3

Series 17 Piano

AMEB NEW RELEASE

NEW STUDENT PACKS + TEACHER PACKS

Teachers Level P-4 Pack: 1201101039

Teachers Level 5-8 Pack: 1201101139

Teacher packs include Grade Books and Recording & Handbooks.

Preliminary Book only: 1201100139 Pack: 1201101239

Grade 1 Book only: 1201100239 Pack: 1201101339

Grade 2 Book only: 1201100339 Pack: 1201101439

Grade 3 Book only: 1201100439 Pack: 1201101539

Grade 4 Book only: 1201100539 Pack: 1201101639

Grade 5 Book only: 1201100639 Pack: 1201101739

Grade 6 Book only: 1201100739 Pack: 1201101839

Grade 7 Book only: 1201100339 Pack: 1201101939

Grade 8 Book only: 1201100939 Pack: 1201102039

Contact your favourite music retail store to find out the prices, and to order your copies today. If sending students in-store to purchase, here are the codes they need:

Teacher Packs Student Books & Packs

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28The Piano Teacher

Wood is amazing stuff, irreplaceable for a long list of applications, from the decking off the side of your house to the soundboard on your piano — but there are very good reasons that it’s not used for high-precision applications, or for punishing structural work, in the 21st century. It’s prone to swelling and contraction in changing temperature. It perishes. It breaks. The hardest hardwood can’t compete with modern industrial textiles for strength and durability. Look at the aerospace industry. Look at helicopters and boats, helmets, tennis racquets, golf clubs. Medical prostheses — once upon a time all these things were wood, but if you’re making something that needs to be strong, light and precise in 2014, wood isn’t even going to be in the top 10.

Carbon fibre has become a symbol for high performance, feather-weight power. High grade carbon fibre is stronger than steel, lighter than aluminium, and can

be shaped to the nanometre. This is not vulgar plastic. It is a triumph of industrial science, and the $15 billion dollar a year industry that has grown around it touches everything from the satellites that bounce our phone calls around the world, to the pianos that connect our hands to our hearts.

The mechanics required to convert downward motion into sound are intricate and numerous — there are thousands of parts to a grand piano, most of them mechanical. The singing parts are timber, of course, they must be — there’s no synthesising the warm resonances and complex tonalities that so define the piano’s voice. Of course the soundboard is spruce. Of course the hammer heads are mahogany and the shanks are birch.

But the wippen body? The backcheck? The hammer flanges? Their purpose is not to sing, but to dance. They need to be strong, fast, and precise; to respond reliably to the pianist’s touch, and to feed that expression from the fingertips to the hammers and strings. A timber soundboard makes sense. A timber backcheck is tradition for tradition’s sake.

California’s State Polytechnic tested a number of these piano parts in wood against new, and also heavily used, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) composite parts supplied by

Kawai. Tensile strength, dimensional tolerances, parallelism of pin hole axis, dimensional variances and more — in every test, the composites dominated the traditional parts. ABS is 70% more consistent in shape than wood, so will need less servicing. It is 40% stronger, so is less likely to need replacing. Where a wooden flange’s mass increased by 20% on exposure to humidity, the equivalent ABS part increased less than 0.2%, so it’s vastly more stable, in more environments. The composite parts will ‘exhibit a longer life under stress in service’. They ‘exhibit superior properties to their wood counterparts’. And on, and on. The report is not lyrical, but it is exhaustive, and unequivocal.

You don’t need to know these numbers. You need to know that your investment will perform into the future. You need to know that you’re preparing your student for a life at the keyboard, where her demands on her instrument will be as great as yours are on her. That you’re preparing her for the world she will inhabit — a world where the locus of tradition and innovation will give her opportunities not just to imitate, but to create. A future that embraces the past, learns from it and grows.

New Versions of Old Friends – by Mark Della-Libera, Kawai Australia

Advertising Feature

November 2014

29The Piano Teacher

What’s New in Educational Piano Music?Known for their fabulous arrangements and harmonically delightful teacher accompaniments Phillip Keveren, Fred Kern and Mona Rejino, have done it again in the 2nd editions of the Popular Piano series. These collections of timeless popular repertoire have been updated to include new top pop hits and other favourites, and they have introduced a new Prestaff Level so even the earliest beginners can play familiar songs. Graded and levelled for easy selection, these collections will work alongside any method book and provide a huge amount of additional repertoire for 40 Piece Challenge participants. The book/CD pack includes instrumental accompaniments making practice and performance even more fun!

Popular Piano Solos – Prestaff Level

Can’t Help Falling in Love, Happy Birthday to You, Heigh-Ho, It’s a Small World, Love Is a Song, Love Me Tender, The Siamese Cat Song, Winnie the Pooh.

121434 Book only 121435 BK/CD

Popular Piano Solos – Level 1

All My Loving, The Bare Necessities, Candle on the Water, Good Morning, I Just Can’t Wait to Be King, Les Poissons, Let’s Go Fly a Kite, The Music of the Night, My Heart Will Go On (Love Theme from Titanic), This Is It, Whistle While You Work, The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers.

296031 Book only 121436 BK/CD

Popular Piano Solos – Level 2

Beauty and the Beast, Ding-Dong! The Witch Is Dead, Do You Hear the People Sing?, Edelweiss, Lean on Me, The Loco-Motion, Over the Rainbow, The Rainbow Connection, Smile, Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

296032 Book only 126040 BK/CD

Popular Piano Solos – Level 3 (Preliminary)

Bubbly, Can You Feel the Love Tonight, Castle on a Cloud, Firework, Hallelujah, Heart and Soul, Memory, Rockin’ Robin, Skyfall, True Colors.

296033 Book only 126041 BK/CD

Popular Piano Solos – Level 4 (Grade 1)

Bella’s Lullaby, Cruella De Vil, Eleanor Rigby, Georgia on My Mind, Hey Jude, The Medallion Calls, Satin Doll, Star Wars (Main Theme), Sweet Caroline, Under the Sea.

296053 Book only 126202 BK/CD

Popular Piano Solos – Level 5 (Grade 2)

Anything Goes, Get Back, I Say a Little Prayer, Let It Go, Mission: Impossible Theme, The Pink Panther, Popular, River Flows in You, Somewhere Out There, You Are the Sunshine of My Life.

296147 Book only 126204 BK/CD

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30The Piano Teacher

What’s New from Piano Adventures®The new All-In-Two editions of Piano Adventures® were specifically developed to meet the needs of teachers and students in Australia and New Zealand. The student-centred approach encourages practice and progress, with a spirit of adventure! It is a comprehensive method that teaches children analysis, creativity and musical expression.

Lesson & Theory Book/CD IEFF8007EACD

Lesson & Theory Book IEFF8007EA

Technique & Performance IEFF8008EA

Each level of the All-In-Two includes a Lesson & Theory Book and a Technique and Performance Book, and now Level 2B has been released!

The All-In-Two books sequence together beautifully. The titles of the pieces lend themselves to a discussion about what we want the piece to sound like — the ‘picture’ of what the composer was trying to convey and how we can convey that in a way for those listening to what we play.

There is also lots of review. Theoretical concepts are interspersed throughout the lessons giving many opportunities for the teacher to engage the student in thinking about music. I would highly recommend the use of the All-in-Two series in the piano teacher’s studio.

Robyn Shaw SA

I have found the All-In-Two books to be comprehensive without becoming boring. Because the theory is presented with the pieces, students are connecting more easily to the concepts presented. The Australian terminology suits me and is less confusing for my students. It’s easier for them to cope with two books instead of four. They’re a winning combination!

Jill Chalwell VIC

It makes my life a lot easier having everything all together. I am able to keep a strong focus on their technique at all times. The books also teach the concepts behind developing good reading skills quite well, without as many shortcuts or tricks to make it easier initially. Having the fingers always change positions is good for students in developing their reading skills as it gets them to focus on the name and position of the note, not just the finger it is always played with.

Kitt Byfield WA

Don’t miss the opportunity to meet Piano Adventures® author, Randall Faber at the Australasian Piano Pedagogy Conference in Melbourne in July 2015. For all the details go to www.appca.com.au

What teachers are saying about the All-In-Two

November 2014

31The Piano Teacher

PreludeI was diagnosed with de Quervain’s tendonitis in my right thumb in my first year studying at the Queensland Conservatorium, Griffith University, shortly after my 18th birthday. The prescribed six weeks without practice seemed like an eternity. Little did I suspect there would be another nine years of struggle ahead, and that I would find the solutions to my problems on the other side of the world.

Seeking every treatment possible for my recurring pain, I took anti-inflammatory

medication, had a cortisone injection, then surgery, innumerable sessions of physiotherapy, acupuncture, hypnotherapy, Reiki, hypnosis, and massage. Somehow I battled through my undergraduate studies. I was forced to dictate my Honours thesis because typing was painful; preparation for my final recital was largely mental practice. After a further four years of forced rest from the piano upon completing my undergraduate degree, it became clear that I needed to consider an alternative occupation.

Then I heard of the Taubman Approach

from a colleague studying in the US. Giving my life as a musician one last chance, in 2003 I attended two intensive Taubman courses in the US and Italy, with borrowed money in my pocket and dreams of playing the piano again. In that month, during approximately seven hours of individual lessons with Taubman teacher Teresa (Terry) Dybvig, the technical issues that had caused my problems were diagnosed and replaced with healthy movements.

In retrospect, I had arrived in 2003 with isolated, curled fingers that gripped and squeezed the keybed. I twisted my hands

The Taubman Approach to Piano Technique: A Personal Experience and Introduction to the Work

– by Dr Therese Milanovic

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away from my arms, stretched, and sat low. Subsequently, my upper arms were raised to compensate, and my wrists were lowered. My ‘musicianship’ and ‘expressivity’ were intrinsically connected to shaping with the shoulder, upper arm, and elbow, creating the pain across my shoulders.

Finding freedom at the piano was overwhelming, even if on a few dropped notes. Being balanced into the key with the finger, hand and arm in peaceful alignment brought me to tears. The ‘sensation of no sensation’ was shattering. Alongside my excitement, I felt guilt in ‘betraying’ my former teacher as I adopted a new way of approaching the piano that often contradicted previous instruction. It was also confronting to discover that what I had worked so hard to cultivate in my playing was directly responsible for my injury.

There was understandably much that I didn’t learn in one month of immersive Taubman training. Nevertheless, after feeling between two pianistic worlds for six months, what I had learned in the US settled into my playing. From that time onwards, my playing and teaching has gone from strength to strength. I completed my Masters in performance, started building a strong performance profile, attracting high-level students and later a teaching position at Young Conservatorium Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia.

In July 2007, I returned to the US for another month of concentrated symposia. My lessons with Edna Golandsky transcended my initial understanding of the Taubman Approach and opened my playing and teaching to new levels of security, colour, virtuosity, and inspiration. Following two years of planning, I travelled to New York in April 2009 to undertake a condensed program towards certification as a Taubman teacher, which formed the fieldwork for this research project.

Fast forward to 2014. After many trips to the US and regular Skype lessons, I am now Associate Faculty level with the Golandsky Institute. My dream of being able to train Australian teachers within Australia towards Taubman certification is now a reality.

In summarising my Taubman training, I run out of superlatives. My hands have never felt so good. As my understanding of the Taubman Approach deepens, so does my comprehension of the indivisible relationship between artistry and the physical know-how behind compelling music making. The Taubman Approach has completely transformed my teaching and performing.

Brief Introduction to the Taubman ApproachContext

Despite the advances in biomechanical analysis in the last century, technical knowledge of playing one’s instrument has been passed down largely unquestioned over the generations. Pedagogues often teach as they were taught, and as their teachers were taught, developing their own approach through trial and error. These pedagogical attitudes are the result of a tendency to analyse piano technique based primarily on how playing looks, with little understanding of the underlying principles of anatomy and biomechanics. As Taubman stated, ‘Ours is a hearsay tradition … Scientific study in our profession has been minimal, and even that little bit has all too frequently been overlooked’. Taubman’s analytical approach to pianism was thus revolutionary for its time.

Background

The Taubman Approach was developed over five decades by Brooklyn-based pedagogue Dorothy Taubman (1918–2013). It is not a method, but rather ‘a comprehensive approach to piano technique that allows for an ordered and rational means of solving technical problems. Not only has this approach produced virtuoso pianists, it has also achieved an extraordinary success rate curing injured pianists, most of whom are performing again’.

Apart from developing ‘brilliance and ease’ in playing, the Taubman Approach offers tools to understand and teach ‘full artistic expression’, helping pianists to reach their ‘highest potential as performing artists’.

Initially, Taubman’s motivation was to uncover the secrets of virtuoso technique to assist gifted pianists in realising their potential. She queried the ‘frightening number’ of pianists in pain, including amateurs, who practised relatively little. Taubman questioned how child prodigies can intuitively play virtuoso repertoire with tiny hands, and why these gifts are often lost in the ‘transition from intuitive to conscious playing’ in adulthood. She investigated her own ‘natural’ playing, and examined traditional pedagogical dogmas through studying anatomy, physiology, physics, and the piano’s construction. Taubman also studied Otto Ortmann’s groundbreaking scientific analysis of piano technique.

Increasingly, Taubman ‘began to see a whole coordinate approach emerge’. Taubman initially underestimated the importance of her discovery, believing ‘everybody knew about the technique but me’. As Taubman’s reputation travelled within the US, she became known by the 1960s as the ‘underground’ teacher that pianists secretly sought for help. Accolades included pianists of the calibre of Leon Fleisher, who is quoted as saying, ‘Dorothy is absolutely extraordinary in her intuition of when you have pain, where it is you are doing something wrong, and how you can get rid of it’.

Principles

The principles of the Taubman Approach are not new. Taubman’s innovation was in explicitly codifying the mostly invisible motions underlying a fluent, free technique, which many virtuosi intuitively adopt. However, as the Russian pianist Feinberg stated, ‘sometimes intuition is not sufficient, and we have to resort to conscious analysis in order to discern the simple within the complex’. Thus, Taubman constructed a systematic pedagogical approach to developing coordinate movement through a process of ‘complexity that results in simplicity’.

The fundamental principle of the Taubman Approach maintains that the ‘fingers, hand and arm always operate as a synchronised unit, with each part doing what it does best’. When this tenet is examined in detail, three further guidelines emerge:

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33The Piano Teacher

1. Coordinate movement ‘permits the joints involved to act as near to their mid-range of action as possible’. As Ortmann discovered, this produces ‘minimum fatigue’ and ‘maximum accuracy of kinaesthetic judgement’. Increasing tension results as the extreme of motion is approached.

2. In coordinate movement, each part must act ‘at the best mechanical advantage’. For example, as the larger upper arm is incapable of the forearm’s speed, the forearm initiates motion.

3. Coordinate movement denotes minimum effort for the maximum result, creating precision and freedom.

Contributions

One of Taubman’s major contributions was drawing attention to the existence of playing-related musculoskeletal disorders and analysing their physical, playing-related causes in the late 1960s, long before awareness reached the mainstream in the 1980s. Taubman also found that coordinate movement is therapeutic,

either minimising or alleviating problems. Through developing more coordinated use, injured pianists not only overcame their problems, but also played at a higher level than prior to injury. Those who were never injured acquired new levels of facility. Further, Taubman discovered that ‘it is correct motion, not muscular development, that produces great technique’. Taubman also stressed the physical pleasure of coordinate playing. She believed that ‘If playing the piano doesn’t feel delicious and euphoric, you’re doing something wrong’.

Another of Taubman’s revelations was that ‘Relaxation is the result, not the cause, of correct playing’. Excessive relaxation is heavy, rendering speed difficult. Relaxation may also cause tension elsewhere, as more energy is required to initiate movement, and other parts have to work harder. Taubman advocated the lively, free midrange of movement between tension and relaxation.

An underlying premise in Taubman pedagogy is all technical problems can be solved through effective diagnosis, rather than more practice. Students’ issues are

due to a lack of knowledge, rather than lack of talent. As Taubman said, ‘We’re talking about dedicated, earnest, gifted people. There should be no reason why they can’t do what they want to do’.

(Extract from Learning and Teaching Healthy Piano Technique: Training as an Instructor in the Taubman Approach. Available through www.theresemilanovic.com)

How to find out more

The tools and insights of Dorothy Taubman are available to everyone. Videos are available online through www.golandskyinstitute.org and www.ednagolandsky.com. While there is no substitute for hands-on lessons, much can be accomplished on Skype.

Go to www.theresemilanovic.com to read articles on learning and teaching the Taubman Approach, forthcoming performances and Taubman workshops.

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34The Piano Teacher

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Pacific Music Cairns www.pacificmusic.com.au

WA Crescendo Music Myaree www.crescendomusic.com.au

Park Pianos / Music Park Victoria Park www.parkpianos.com

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SA Harrison Music Adelaide www.harrisonmusic.com.au

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TAS Barratts Music Launceston www.barrattsmusic.com.au

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NSW Carlingford Music Carlingford www.carlingfordmusic.com.au

Engadine Music Sydney www.engadinemusic.com

High Street Music Penrith www.highstreetmusic.com.au

Hutchings Pianos Bondi Junction www.hutchingspianos.com.au

Logans Pianos Burwood www.loganspianos.com.au

Music Centre Gosford Central Coast www.musiccentre.com.au

Music on the Move Hurstville www.motm.com.au

Musos Corner Newcastle www.musoscorner.com.au

Powerpoint Music Bowral www.powerpointmusic.com.au

Zephyr Music Crows Nest www.zephyrmusic.com.au

VIC Cranbourne Music Cranbourne www.cranbournemusic.com.au

Fine Music Hawthorn www.finemusiconline.com.au

Hans Music Spot Croydon www.hansmusicspot.com.au

Keyboard Corner Boronia www.keyboardcorner.com.au

Music Junction Blackburn Blackburn www.musicjunction.com.au

Music Junction Camberwell Camberwell www.musicjunction.com.au

Pat’s Music Oakleigh South www.patsmusic.com.au

Prestige Pianos & Organs Preston www.prestigepianos.com.au

Wright’s Music Pty. Ltd. North Fitzroy www.wrightsmusic.com.au

ACT Better Music Phillip www.bettermusic.com.au

Where to buy...

November 2014

35The Piano Teacher

Hal Leonard Australia ABN: 13 085 333 713

4 Lentara Court Cheltenham VIC 3192

Phone +61 3 9585 3300

Fax +61 3 9585 3399

Email australianpiano@halleonard.com.au

©2014 Hal Leonard Australia Printed in Australia – Not for Sale

www.thepianoteacher.com.auContact your favourite music retailer for all titles listed and more!

PIANO

6778067818639

ISBN 9781863677806