Competitions and Performances

At this time of year as I prepare my students for performances and judging at music festivals, I find myself wondering about the need for competitions.  It adds stress to what should be a relaxing enjoyment of music.  In addition to my own students, I accompany band and choir students so it is a very busy time for me and the students.  I find that it takes a great deal of time away from their lesson materials and gets us “off track” with theory and other concepts relating to music instruction. 

Our society is full of competition and I see the advantages for some students.  The truth is that I give my students the option of competing or not.  Most of them choose to participate in the judging.  It is very certainly an opportunity for me to push them to achieve the most possible out of their pieces and if it weren't for the "Specter of the judge”, I doubt whether they would work as hard.  It also is the only time of the year that they perform for someone who really knows music, unlike the warm and fuzzy audiences at concerts and recitals. 

Truthfully, many of my students make larger strides during this time as opposed to the rest of the year.  They are striving for an immediate goal and it appears to drive them to work harder and care more.   Without a deadline, songs seem to take longer to learn and are often not learned as musically.  I tend to not hold them to such high standards of performance for their regular lesson assignments. 

I also find that having performances and competitions keep the students working toward something instead of getting bored with lessons and practice.  The students gain confidence as well as advancing skills after having a successful performance for competitions.  It likely prepares them well for future challenges.

Having said all of that, I still am very ready for the competitions to be finished.  I write this as I am sitting in my home office during yet another day of school being canceled due to extreme cold. Our wind chill is around -30 degrees and it is supposed to be colder tomorrow.  Since my studio is in a public school, my lessons are canceled automatically!  Today I would have had 22 students and another 15  tomorrow.  Now I have another week before they will be judged so the stress continues!  I’m sure they are all at home practicing……………………….and will be even more prepared next week?  There is no way that I could make up that many lessons.  It takes a toll on my income but since I teach during the day at school, lessons are subject to the school schedule.

Our high school competition is in February and once that is finished, we move on to planning recitals!  It never gets boring!

A Memorable Lesson

Amusing things that happen at lessons and recitals

Sometimes our students do or say things that are just too funny or memorable not to share!   Often they will tell us things about their parents or families that I’m sure they wouldn’t want to be a topic of conversation -- if only they knew!

One of my students (a 6 year old girl) came to her piano lesson very distraught.  I asked her what was wrong and if she needed my help with anything.  She immediately began to cry very hard and told me that her mother left them!   She said that now she had to live with her older brother.   I replied that I was sure their mother didn’t really leave for very long but the little girl insisted that she was “gone forever and went very far away.”   Generally she had wonderful lessons and was a very happy child. 

Since my studio is in a school, after trying to reassure her, I walked her to the guidance counselor.  After talking with both of them for awhile; I went to my next student.   The counselor worked on getting her more settled down and then took her back to her classroom.  After trying but failing to reach her parents, they set in motion an investigation of the situation.  

A couple of days later, we found out that her mother went to another son’s graduation from basic training in the Army.   It was in another state and she was staying for the weekend, hence the “far away and for a long time” comment from the little girl.  We were so relieved when we found out the truth.  This poor little one felt like she was deserted!  If only we had known the whole story right away, we could have been much more helpful to her.   She had me, the counselor, and her teacher feeling so bad for her and really coddling her for a couple of days! 

This little girl is now an adult with children of her own, and we have a good laugh about it now.  Some of what we hear from our little students is preciously exaggerated but also very real to them!

Stopping the Summer Slide

....from Sally's Studio

One Week Down!

I am at the end of the first week of fall piano and guitar lessons.  With the exception of one student who came to tell me that she isn't going to continue with lessons (5 minutes after it should have started), all is going well.  After the challenge of the scheduling process, things went quite smoothly.  Due to changes in their school schedules, I have had to adjust lessons several times but it has now stayed constant for almost two days!  Hallelujah!

Ready for Action

Many of my students took summer lessons and after taking a few weeks off at the end of the summer, are ready to jump right in again.  It is so rewarding to see my more advanced students eager to get started on their challenging pieces for competitions.  

Summer Slide

Other students though, obviously haven't touched the piano since school let out last spring. I even had one 6th grader who, even though she has been playing "pops" during the summer,  couldn't remember many basics!  She was crushed at how much she had forgotten.  It will take some intensive reviewing to bring these students back up to speed.  I will use games (our Whirligig games of course!) among other things to make the review process more fun, but it still takes precious time.  

Mandatory Camp?

I am considering a mandatory end-of-summer camp for those who don't take summer lessons.  The band director and I have been holding music camps for the last few years and they have been very successful.  It would definitely make the first few lessons in the fall much more enjoyable for both me and my students.  

So many people spend the summer running from one sporting event or practice to another.  Several of them had tournaments every weekend as well!  It always frustrates me that they can find the time to do that but not a few minutes to get their children to music lessons.  I understand the value of being involved in team sports and physical activity -- I just wish it was not at the expense of their cultural arts training.  

It would sure be nice if we could find a way for them to coexist!  

blog sponsored by Whirligig, LLP

www.whirligigllp.com

Why Didn't I Think of That?

......from Sharon

I know, I know, you are a music teacher, not a marketer! You love teaching. You love seeing the light in a student's eye as a difficult concept is finally understood.  You love hearing the progress that your students are making as they practice and learn and grow. Marketing isn't something that comes so naturally. Unfortunately though, waiting for word-of-mouth references can make for a slow build-up to a studio.

Marketing is an important part of every business, and it can be difficult to get going in a good direction. Here are at least a few things that can be done to help get the ball rolling.

Talk to the local schools (especially the music teachers)

As a parent (Sally is the music teacher in Whirligig, LLP), I find that I rely heavily on my children's music teachers (band directors) to help with finding private instruction.  I hope that they will be able to give me some guidance as I don't even know where to begin to look.  My children's band director puts together a list of suggested private instructors, and he appreciates any feedback he gets from parents as to the quality of the teacher.

Invite a local music teacher out for coffee and a muffin and discuss your experience and expertise.  Leave some business cards and flyers that will link to a facebook page, website or blog so that the students can find more information about you.

Accompany for competitions

(Back to the local school's teachers again.)  In my children's band programs, solo/ensemble competition is encouraged.  With the exception of percussion, most of the instrument pieces require a piano accompanist.  If the band teacher knows you are available and willing to work with the band students on polishing their pieces, that becomes a great reference for you.  It is another way to get your name out there, and to potentially increase the number of students coming from word of mouth referrals.

Senior Center

Are you interested in some more mature students?  Perhaps someone who has always wanted lessons, but for some reason was unable to have them as a child or young adult.  Now the retirees have some free time, disposable income, and a willingness to practice.  Pinning a flyer on the notice board, leaving business cards, and maybe even volunteering to perform or having a recital at the Senior Center would be ways to let this group know of your interest and availability.

Social Media/Website/Internet Marketing

The internet has become a source of everything these days.  Our young parents have grown up with computers and don't think twice about looking online to find anything.  Setting up a Facebook and/or Google+ page might be one free way to get an online presence.  You can have your own personal page and from that account you can set up a business page.

Blogs are another way to go.  Free blogs can be set up through a Google or Word Press account.  There are templates that can be used so that you can enter your own content and go.  You could keep that as kind of a message-board or "Note from the Teacher" that is directed toward your parents.  Parents of potential students can then see what your studio is up to and perhaps see links to some of your policies and practices.

You can set up your own website.  This will of course require a fee, and maybe even some design savvy.  It is important that the site look professional and appealing. An unprofessional website can discourage people from investigating your services.  Perhaps a parent of one of your students would be willing to help you set up a website.

If your community has a web page that features businesses, you might see if you can be included.  You can see about becoming a part of a piano teacher web resource page like this one http://www.pianoteachers.com/

Don't Give Up!

None of these methods are a "magic bullet" that will guarantee students in your studio.  No matter what  you do, expect it to take time, persistence and patience.  The key is to hang in there and not give up!

Hope these thoughts help!  Good luck with the new year!


Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

Supplies for a New Start

.....musings from Sharon

The summer days are slipping away s-o-o-o-o quickly. In spite of the heat this year it has been a wonderful few months.  The sun, green trees, singing birds, chirping crickets, and beautiful flowers, are rejuvenating!  Walking outdoors into a vibrantly colored landscape is something worth savoring.

While the shortening days, changing leaves, and back-to-school sales bring some sadness, there is also an excitement for the new school year and a fresh start.  My kids are getting new supplies, shoes, clothes, teachers, and activities.  Teachers and students alike are looking forward to the new school year with anticipation.  It's time for new possibilities, to do a little better than last year, and to move upward and onward with a clean slate.  

Music Teacher Marketing

It only seems fair that those who are teaching are able to get some new, fun supplies too.  With that in mind I have hunted and scoured the print-on-demand store, Zazzle, in search of a few marketing tools for piano teachers.

NOTE - Zazzle always has something on sale.  If you aren't in a hurry, frequently check the Zazzle website for the current deal.  You might save yourself a lot of money and get your marketing off to a good start!

There's a Piano Teacher on my Street?  Really?

For starters, I've found some yard signs to advertise your studio.  How many people know that you give lessons in your house?  How many people drive by on a daily basis who just might want to bring their children to a more convenient location....if only they knew that there was a teacher closer to home or school?

NOTE- These yard signs do not come with stands included.  The stand is an additional $1.95.  It is found at the bottom of the right-hand column of the product page where it says "Add Yard Sign Frame"

Classy Black and White Keyboard Yard Sign by lovescolor
Make yard signs online at Zazzle

Green and White Keyboard Teacher Yard Sign by lovescolor
View additional yard signs

Custom Piano Lessons Yard Sign Ad by CustomSigns
Browse another yard sign at Zazzle

Business Cards

Along with yard signs, of course you will be wanting some business cards!  Not only good for dropping in restaurants for a chance to win a free meal (and who wouldn't want that?), they are perfect to leave on bulletin boards of local schools and community centers.

It is possible to coordinate the look so that you can have matching yard signs and business cards for a consistent look.

Classy Piano Teacher Business Card by lovescolor
Browse more Piano teacher Business Cards

Piano Keys Music business card by BluePlanet
Browse Piano Business Cards

Piano Business Card by queensbusinesscards
View other Piano Business Cards

Looking for something specific?

If you find a business card that you like, but can't find other matching pieces (yard sign, stickers, postage, etc), I have found that most of the designers at Zazzle are willing to go the extra mile and create a product at a customer's request.

That's one of the amazing and cool things about Zazzle -- you can have something that is customized to your needs!  If you click any of the above products and then scroll down the page a bit, you will see the heading "Information from the Designer" along with the designer's Zazzle store name, store link, and contact information.  Click on "Contact" and you can send an email to the designer whose style you like - and you can possibly get a design that is a little more customized to your needs.

No promises, not all designers are able or willing to do this.  I do know though, as one of those designers, and as one who participates in the Zazzle forums, there are many, many designers who will be happy to work with you.


Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

Putting Together a Recital - Part 2

.....from Emma's Studio

Uncertainty does not sit well with me. Because I had never put together a recital at this location before (or anywhere else, for that matter), I spent a good portion of the recital day thinking along these lines: “…..I hope the parents like it….I hope my students come prepared….I hope they come in the first place…..I hope I don’t make a fool of myself…. I hope we have enough chairs… etc, etc, etc. However, when I showed up at the recital venue half an hour early, the music store employees had everything ready to go just as I had requested it. There were extra chairs out, a table to hold my refreshments, and a sink to fill up the water pitcher. The piano was set up and ready to go, and the students who showed up early had the opportunity to test it out beforehand. (See, all that worrying really paid off!)

During the recital, we hit one snag, but I was able to use my improvisational skills to recover. Two of my students could not make the recital on time, and the other students finished playing before these two arrived. I filled the time by inviting any willing students to perform another piece. Surprise, surprise; it worked!

 I am very proud of all of my students for showing up and participating, and some of them really surprised me with the attention to detail they put into their pieces. Only one of my students remembered the time we spent practicing how to finish the performance with a bow, but that leaves something to work on for next time. However, the best part for me was the appreciation shown by the parents after the recital. I am blessed to have such a supportive group of parents and students! 

Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

Putting Together a Recital: Part 1

. . . . . . . . . from Emma's studio

At the beginning of May, I had the opportunity to participate in my first piano recital as a piano teacher. One of my colleagues was generous enough to allow a few of my students to participate in her piano recital. After that experience, I decided to put together my own recital for the rest of my students. Little did I anticipate the challenges I would face…

Challenge number 1: Scheduling. I suppose most teachers just pick a day and tell their students “This is the recital day. If you can make it, that’s great; if not, too bad, maybe next year.” However, I wanted to do my best to make sure that all of my students could participate (since I only had six), so I wound up changing the date twice, after several frantic emails and phone calls.

Challenge number 2: Location. My studio is, as my mom so succinctly put it, “Mom’s living room.” Unfortunately, Mom’s living room is not set up to host four families of students without squishing people together. Fortunately, my local music store offers the use of its facility free to piano teachers for their recitals. Great! Right? Well, we all know what assuming does… I thought I would be free to pick whatever time I wanted. Instead, my choices were 6pm or 6:30pm, and as I was planning an early afternoon recital, these choices left my rather flustered. Oh well, I choose 6pm and made it work. 

The other challenge involved putting together a program for the recital. However, since my time in the education department at Wisconsin Lutheran College made me very adept at Microsoft Office Word and I had several previous programs of my own to use for reference, I skated through that challenge without much difficulty.

Stay tuned for information on the recital itself….


Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

A Little History . . .

from Emma's Studio

Most people, once they graduate from college, do not find themselves willingly sitting down to write a research paper. However, two weeks ago I found myself spending many hours at the kitchen table writing a research paper on “Russian Music for Children.” The reason? My piano teacher (I still take piano lessons in addition to teach them) roped me into participating in his semi-annual thematic recital, this time focused on Russian music. After putting in the work to do my paper, I spent a pleasant evening with several of my fellow piano students listening to performances of Russian music and learning details about Russian music I had never heard before.

This thematic recital idea is a great one to use in piano studios for many reasons. For many students, it is a rather fun break from the traditional repertoire recital. A thematic recital also provides an opportunity for students to learn about a topic they might not otherwise explore, and share this information with their fellow students. I learned several things about Russian art music during my recital, including the fact that it did not really begin until the early 1800’s due to censorship by the church. I also learned that composers Rachmaninoff and Scriabin had the same musical training but came up with very different styles, and the Communist party’s emphasis on education caused many fine composers to write great music for children. I would recommend implementing this kind of recital in your piano studio because it gives students opportunities to learn from each other.

Looking for tools to help reinforce theory concepts? Check our our theory games at Whirligig, LLP!

Patriotic Theme Recital

....from Sally's Studio

In 2002, my students really wanted to do Patriotic music. 

We had a screen placed on one side in front of the stage and the students chose pictures that portrayed the music they were performing.  We used Power Point and had one person running that program on a laptop during the performances.  That afforded them the opportunity to choreograph their own pieces.  They made marks in the music to tell where each picture should change.  It was a lot of work but added a very unique touch to the recital.

Since the attacks of 9-11 were very fresh in our minds, many of them wanted to use pictures of the World Trade Center and Pentagon and show the devastation.  I reminded them that there was more to patriotism and encouraged a variety of scenes of America.   They found many wonderful scenes and moods.   The pride they had in their country was very evident.

We expanded the theme to “The Music of America” so it allowed them to choose many kinds of music from ragtime through modern.   It was a great way to explore American music and still let them include many patriotic pieces.

When Books Fail Me . . .

from Emma's Studio

All throughout my time as a piano student, my teachers have seemed to know exactly what books to use with me. I never questioned their judgment, because everything they did worked. I comfort myself with the thought that my students think the same of me; however, after six months of teaching, one of the method books I chose for my middle school students has sputtered and died in its effectiveness. I saw it in the faces of my students as they slowly pulled out the book at the beginning of each lesson and struggled through each song. Nothing kills motivation faster than lack of progress! 

I’ve asked myself “how was I supposed to know when I started that this would not work? I don’t know the answer to that question, but I think the more important question is “what am I doing about it now?” I have started using bits and pieces of another series with these students, along with other supplementary materials. I’ve also motivated one student by bringing in a simplified version of a song by his favorite band. Even if he practices nothing else, he will faithfully practice that song. 

In addition, I am more than willing to take advice from other teachers.  If any of you piano teachers have thoughts on this subject, I would love to hear them!

Musical Shout it Out

. . . from Sally's Studio

In 2010 I had posted a number of entries about our Summer Music Camp (check out our the blog archive links in the right-hand column to find the series).  Since then, I have had requests to share this particular game in more detail - Musical Shout it Out.  Here it is -- I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!  

You can check the Music Camp Ideas page on our website for even more summer camp ideas.

Musical Shout It Out

Our music camp students were divided into three different teams.   We chose a team to go first and gave them a category (topic).  They had three minutes to try to guess all the items in our list relating to the topic.  If they guessed the complete list, their team received one point.   If at the end of the time allotted, they didn’t guess everything, the other teams had the chance to steal the point for that topic.   They had to shout out their guesses.  If someone correctly identified one of the remaining things on the list, their team received the point.

Before you read these categories, just a note -- our summer camp had musicians of all types.  Some were piano students; others were in choirs or instrumentalists.  Camp was designed for basic music theory rather than piano students so our categories do not relate to just one instrument.  Some of the items in the lists could be improved upon.  Please feel free to share additional possibilities.

Things related to tempo

andante, moderato, allegro, vivace, largo, andantino, allegretto,
metronome, adagio, presto

Things related to Dynamics

pp, p, mp, f, mf, ff, crescendo, diminuendo, decrescendo, subito

Kinds of notes

quarter, half, whole, dotted half, eighth, dotted quarter, triplet,
sixteenth, thirty-second, sixty-fourth

Instruments in a band

flute, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, french horn,
tuba, baritone (euphonium), snare drum, bass drum

String Instruments

violin, viola, cello, double bass, bass guitar, electric guitar,
acoustic guitar, piano, harp, harpsichord, banjo

Things relating to articulation

staccato, marcato, tenuto, accent, slur, legato, portato,
staccatissimo, tie

Things related to rhythm

beat, notes, rests, triplet, syncopation, pulse, upbeat, tempo,
meter, down beat

Things you would find in a band room

music stands, chairs, music, instruments, flags, metronome,
tuner, white board (chalk board), director, students, sound equipment

Things you would find in your music

notes, dynamics, slurs, repeat signs, titles, key signature, measures,
clef signs, tempo marking

Things you would find in a percussion section

snare drum, bass drum, cymbals, marimba, xylophone, maracas, tambourine,
triangle, drum sticks, mallets

Types of Music

rock, country, pop, hip hop, jazz, ragtime, march, dance, classical, rap

Things you would find in a jazz band

trumpet, saxophone, drums, piano or electric keyboard, bass guitar,
electric guitar, clarinet, music stands, drum set, trombone

Things relating to a marching band

uniforms, music lyres, marches, hats, flip folders, drum major or majorette,
flag bearers, drums, director, half time show

Check out the Music Camp page on our website for more ideas!

Sharon's Picks - March!

Don't know about you, but when I was a kid (and my own children confirm that it is still this way), on St. Patrick's Day it was always wise to wear something green to school to avoid getting pinched.  It doesn't seem to matter how much or how little green it is, but there must be something green on your person to avoid getting a pinch.  

Curious about the significance of this particular tradition, I checked it out.  I found that wearing green, of course, is supposed to make one invisible to leprechauns -- if they can't see you, they can't pinch you! 

Some Protestants choose to wear orange on the traditionally green day. It is in honor of William of Orange (a Protestant), who was the victor in a battle against King James II (a Roman Catholic)  Read more here.  

In honor of this most-green (and a little orange) day.  I have searched and found a variety of music-themed St. Patrick's Day products on Zazzle.  It might be fun to be able to play a game with your students and give them a special St. Patrick's Day card, sticker, or button in honor of the month, or you might want to wear a special shirt in honor of the day!

There are some selections below, and more to be found on our website.  Check it out!

Lilt card 

Green Grand Piano Stickers

Green and Orange Irish Pianist

Green electric guitar with keyboard

Happy St. Patrick's Day!  More designs on our website!

Classical Music......something you hear every day

...from Sally's Studio

One particularly fun recital theme I have used was based on a book titled “Classical Music for People Who Hate Classical Music”.  Many people don’t even know that they have heard, and have loved, the classics.   

The term “Classical Music” is often used by untrained musicians to describe the more serious music or that of old masters such as Beethoven and Mozart.  In this book, “Classical music” is really a term that refers to music anywhere from the earliest music to that of the contemporary composers.  It helped to make the students more aware of what they are hearing in their daily lives.   

I live in a rural community that amazingly enough has many cultural opportunities.   Within a 35 mile radius, we have opportunity to attend and experience multiple cultural events and performances.  Even with that chance though, I find that much of the public is musically uneducated.  They may enjoy music but it is more the kind of music that we hear on the radio……….pops and country.  They are very surprised to hear that many songs used in cartoons, commercials, and the like, are really portions of famous classics.   When we did this recital, people were saying things like -- "That is the pizza commercial song," or "That one is from Bugs Bunny cartoons"………etc.  We can spark an interest in exploring the classics by doing a recital that uses famous themes.  

Theme and Variations by Haydn was included in one of my recitals. A beginner student played the theme followed by more advanced students doing the variations.   We had two pianos on stage.  When one student was performing the following student was getting ready on the other piano.  We kept the variations going without interruption.   It was a big hit!    I have also had younger students playing an arrangement of one of the classics followed by a more advanced student doing the original version.  It gave the opportunity to show how music can be arranged at different levels.  

I had the students each introduce their own pieces by telling about the composer and something that they really liked about the composition.  Some of the students were reluctant to speak in front of an audience but after doing so, they found that it wasn’t as hard as expected when they prepared in advance.   It was good to have the older students do research on their songs to find out about the selection as well as more about the composer.  

Contemporary Composer Recital Theme

.....from Sally's Studio

Often we concentrate on the “old masters” when it comes to performance-worthy songs.  I have recently begun to have recitals that instead highlight the music of current composers.

The first such recital featured the music of Kevin Olson.   He has written a wealth of music for pianists ranging from beginners through late intermediate and beyond.   My students love his pieces and were eager to learn more about him.   We discussed the things he did with his compositions to make them unique.  It gave me a chance to explain more about form and harmonic structure along with the aspects that made his music different from that of other composers.  For example, his Sonatina in Colors afforded the opportunity to make the sonata form a concept that they could easily understand but relate it to contemporary music.

My students were so surprised to find out that he lived in Illinois, right next to their home of Wisconsin (he has since moved to Utah)!  Our students have always performed music by composers from Europe or other “far away places” but to think that a real composer was that close and actually alive now, was very exciting to them.  In addition, I talked with Kevin and he had offered to come and speak to them.  We tried to arrange a time for that but since my schedule was so busy, we weren’t able to connect at that time.  He wrote a letter to my students that we read at the recitals. 

When our recital is featuring the music of one or two composers, I have contacted them.  They are always willing to send a message to the students which I include in the recital program.  This makes it very special and makes the composer more “real” to them.

Like many of you, we are in the process of choosing the theme for this year.  We are considering Robert Vandall music.  In addition, Bob has offered that I could send the music to him and he would autograph the students’ books and sheet music and send them back to me.  What a great memento for them!

Recital Management . . . for over 80 students!

.....from Sally's Studio
 
I hold 4 different recitals each year to keep them each to a manageable length.  The first (for the advanced students) is on a Friday evening.  Much to my distress, I have found that many people don’t appreciate the more serious pieces and what it takes to get them learned.  Often I have heard that the songs were too long and boring.   I have learned that if I identified the evening recital as being one with serious music and that it would potentially be a longer event, I had an audience that was appreciative of the higher level music.  The other three recitals are on Saturday.  The Saturday recitals are shorter and a little less formal; although all students are still expected to dress up and follow common performance practices.  The students and parents are always honored to “graduate” to the Friday night recital.

Theme and decorating and program, oh my!
Every year we try to find a recital theme.  My students enjoy decorating the recital venue and designing the programs.  Some years I have held a program cover design contest.  Anyone who wanted to submit a design had to do so a month before the recital.   Sometimes I chose the winner and sometimes have had a panel of judges do the choosing - to avoid any feelings of favoritism among my students.  They enjoyed competing for the honor of seeing their artwork on the cover.  Since the programs are often in black and white, I have at times let the students color them while they waited for their lessons.  It gave them some ownership of the programs.

Even though we generally have a theme, not all students play pieces that are connected to it.  The advanced recital rarely is associated with the current theme, but the other students love to choose music that matches the theme-of-the-year.   At times they even dress to match the theme or the feel of their song. 

Ensemble - yes!
Each student plays a solo and then performs with an ensemble.  Since my studio is in a public school I have access to them throughout the day, making ensemble work readily available.   I understand the limitations of teachers who work out of their homes, but I highly recommend trying to find a way to get ensembles to work.   It is worth the effort since much of piano playing is a solitary event.  My students really enjoy working on duets, trios, and quartets.   When we put our advanced or intermediate students together on pieces like Perpetual Commotion by Kevin Olson, they have tons of fun!

Stay Tuned!
More is coming on my recitals and themes.  I would love to have input from any of you who would also like to share your recital successes!

written by Sally Ritchie

Looking Back

With a few months of teaching experience under my belt, I think it’s time to do a little reflecting on my experiences so far. Not only have I been teaching piano lessons, I am also in charge of the musical education of a group of sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students with wide ranging musical backgrounds. Teaching them has forced me to think about not only what I teach my students, but also HOW I teach them. As I learned from my undergraduate education classes, the instructional methods matter just as much as the lesson content. In my individual piano lessons, I can rely on method books to provide a reliable order for presenting material to beginning students. (I find myself appreciating more and more the piano teachers who design these method books.) However, even here, I end up making adjustments, and I am just working with one student at a time. When teaching in the classroom I also have a curriculum to work with, but it does not allow for differences in content knowledge and ability. So, what have I learned so far? Here are a few words of wisdom from the ever-growing knowledge base of Emma Veers, piano teacher:

Less is more, both in the classroom and in the piano studio. It is better to address one main point from a variety of angles than to try to address several points in one lesson. I still struggle with this when trying to work on a piece of music with a piano student, I want to fix all of the problems I see at once, but I often end up overwhelming the student. Not a good thing!
Too slow is better than too fast. While neither is great, it is better for a student to be confident and bored than totally lost. It is good to give students plenty of opportunity to practice a new concept, especially the idea of reading music. This works for individuals and group classes.
When working with a group class, introduce concepts in engaging ways. This way the students who already know the concepts will still enjoy the class, and they might even learn something new.
I am the teacher, and as such, I need to have confidence in my knowledge and my teaching abilities. If a student comes up to me and says, “I saw a boy playing piano on TV and he didn’t hold his hands the way you want me too,” this should NOT cause me to doubt my own methods. (True story, by the way.)

Slowly but surely, I am learning from my mistakes and gaining confidence in my abilities as a teacher. Just today I had a student come to her lesson full of enthusiasm because my practice technique of breaking the piece into small, two-measure pieces actually worked! It’s times like these that make me realize just how much I enjoy teaching . Stay tuned for more thoughts from this enthusiastic teacher over the next several months!

Not What, WHO

“It’s not what you know, it’s who you know.” As all college graduates should know, networking is the key to success in today’s job market. This is especially true for piano teachers trying to build a studio, because parents usually want someone they can trust teaching their children.   Although I don’t have many students yet, here are a few ways I have begun making contacts in the Denver area.

In college, I became a student member of Music Teacher’s National Association (MTNA). When I graduated and moved to Denver, I transferred my membership from a collegiate membership to an active membership in the Denver area. Little did I realize how beneficial this would be! A few weeks later, the president of the local MTNA chapter called me and welcomed me to the group. I attended the first meeting of the year, where I met several fellow music teachers. Many of them have offered to pass along my name as their own personal piano studios fill up.

In addition to networking with fellow music teachers, it makes sense to go where the students are….school! I have left my name and contact information with several of the local school music teachers.

Finally, my biggest connections have come through my church. Never underestimate the power of volunteering when making connections. At the beginning of the school year, I began volunteering my services as the music teacher to the 4th-8th grade students at Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran School. Two weeks later….ta-da! I was asked to take on five new piano students from the school.

The key to successful networking is to never give up; always be on the lookout for new contacts, especially in the world of music teaching. If you have any more networking suggestions for me; please let me know!

Guest Blogger, Emma Veers

Musings of a Beginner

Our guest blogger is Emma Veers.  She graduated from Wisconsin Lutheran College, Milwaukee, WI, in May with a Bachelor of Science degree in Educational Studies and minors in piano pedagogy and mathematics. Following graduation, she moved to Golden, CO, with plans to pursue a Master’s degree in Piano Pedagogy. In the meantime, Emma has taken on the challenge of setting up a piano studio from scratch in an area where she has few connections. Readers in the greater Denver area, feel free to help her out!


Although I’ve taken piano lessons continuously for the past fifteen years, I never realized the amount of work my teachers put into my lessons until I attempted to take on the noble teaching profession myself. Even my piano pedagogy classes in college did not fully prepare me for setting up my own studio and taking on paying students. Here are a few examples where experience proved to be the best guide.

In my first piano pedagogy class, my professor required that we put together a potential “studio policy.” However, writing down rules that I thought I might want to include in my future policy differed greatly from actually putting a policy into practice. Before putting a policy into practice, the teacher needs to have a means of enforcing this policy. (Teaching reminds me of parenting in this respect; don’t make promises or threats if you have no means of following through!) For example, when it comes to paying for lessons, I state in my policy that payment is due at the beginning of the month for the entire month. However, if a parent says “oh, I’m sorry, I forgot to bring my checkbook this week, can I pay you next week?” I have to trust that this parent will pay me eventually unless I have a solution in place, such as a late payment fee.

 Then there is the task of selecting method books to use. Unfortunately, this decision is complicated by the fact that many, many method books exist, each with slight differences that tend to trip up the unsuspecting rookie teacher. I learned this the hard way when I tried Hal Leonard’s new series “American Popular Piano” last year with a beginning eighth grade student. As I glanced through the series, I thought its hands on approach and use of popular sounding music would be perfect for motivating my student. Unfortunately, this series would have been easier to use as a supplementary series than a standalone series, and this made my lesson planning difficult. Oops!

Speaking of lesson planning, do experienced teachers actually write “lesson plans” for each of their students before each lesson? When I took piano lessons, it always seemed that my teachers would just open up to the next page in my lesson book and teach from that. However, now I need to write notes to myself before I teach each lesson, or I find myself blanking on what to say next.


These are just a few of the “surprises” I have encountered so far in my first year of teaching. Stay tuned for more as the year unfolds :)

Charter School

I have the opportunity to set up the music lab for a new charter school and am really excited about doing the research that will be required.  Since I am on the governance board for the new charter school, I'll have some control over what is included.   I would love input from anyone who has experience with this situation.

I have several contacts but one can never have too many suggestions.   It will be a wonderful opportunity to give a great experience to students who don't do well in the traditional classroom environment.

Sally Ritchie

Scoring

Points were given for each activity in our camp.  We had thought of using music money but my problem with that is that I did not want them equating their progress with money.  

We decided to use pony beads.   We gave them out throughout the camp........we actually didn't have any method for that other than the fact that everyone would get beads for each activity.  The winning team would get the most but each team got beads for trying.   The students really got into choosing their beads and stringing them on the necklaces that they wore during camp.   At the end, we gave ribbons to the top three bead-earners, but each camper got some small prizes.

Just a note here: next year I would have them leave their bead necklaces at the camp instead of taking them home to bring back the next day.  As I should have expected, two of the kids forgot their beads for the last day.  We did eventually get them back to use for next year.

And that brings me to a summary of camp.  Both Bradd and I were extremely pleased with the camp.  The students really were excited about it and we have had several requests to do it again next year.  Our administration was very supportive and would like it to be a regular part of the summer program  offered at school.  We have ideas for other camps and since now we will have their help to get the information to our students, we should have an even better turn out for next year.  It was probably best that we had this year with a smaller group (we had 24 campers) so we could see how it worked.  We will be doing a camp wrap up together to file our materials and thoughts as to what worked best and what didn't work as well as we would have liked.  We did many things that I haven't mentioned in the blog but anyone who would like to know more can contact us.

Sally Ritchie