Something has surfaced in my teaching quite a bit recently, and this is the subject of training accompanists. Typically, an accompanist is a pianist because the bulk of repertoire is written with piano specific accompaniments, or piano reductions of orchestra accompaniments. With a very few exceptions, this is the case in classically styled sacred music, probably even more so than it is in classical music itself. Then, when we consider the average church, most of them use piano or a keyboard instrument, where other classical chamber groups or orchestras may be lacking. With this in view, it becomes tremendously important for a ministry-minded pianist to learn how to accompany others in all sorts of settings from all types of music, whether it is classical rep, or the more common improvised accompaniment out of a hymnbook, or a choral arrangement, or the accompaniment for another instrumentalist.

There are many things to consider as an accompanist, with the biggest being that the accompanist must support, not dominate. This was always a bit of a challenge for me to grasp when I was first learning, especially when I was handed accompaniment parts for particularly exciting violin solos or vocal pieces. Nevertheless, this is arguably the most important thing for an accompanist to realize, for it is not only crucial in and of itself, but also effects every other part of how they play.

Moving on to the more practical side of things, some quick helps for learning to accompany are:

Count. A no-brainer? Maybe, but while most beginners are continually being hammered with repetitions of “1 2 3 4,” “1+2+3+4+,” “trip-l-et, trip-l-et, trip-l-et,” or the more appealing “straw-ber-ry, straw-ber-ry, straw-ber-ry” or some other such form of counting, more advanced musicians somehow loose track of this most important technique. Find the quarter beat (or other main beat) and stick with it. Tap your foot, nod your head, do anything to keep on track with the person you are accompanying.

Analyze. As the supporting musician, you have a very unique role. The music written to enhance the soloist is usually full of embellishments and ideas that duplicate those found in the solo or choral parts, but are often woven in so as not to draw direct attention. When preparing to accompany, spend some time with the score, and look to see how the accompaniment part and the solo part work together. Look for patterns that repeat between the parts, contrasting note values (maybe the solo has sixteenth notes and the piano is supporting by playing quarters or eighths), parallel vs. contrasting registers, etc. The more you know about what the other person is doing and how it relates to what you are doing, the better your prepared accompaniment will sound.

Listen. (A)  If you can find a recording of the piece you are to accompany, spend some time and listen to it. If your part is a piano reduction or a piece that has had orchestrations added to it, listen for what orchestral instruments are used to enhance the mood and musicality of the piece in its full edition. Envisioning a tuba or a piccolo will make a difference in how you approach relating portions of the work.

Listen. (B) When practicing with the one whom you are to accompany, develop the habit of listening to them, rather than to yourself. This takes work and sometimes a little mind-over-matter technique, but is well worth the effort.

Practice. Here again, this may seem like a no-brainer. You may be surprised, however, by the difference there can be between only ever playing with the soloist and taking time to study your own part between rehearsals.

 

Here are some of our favorite books for young string soloists, with each arrangement including a beautiful piano accompaniment. These make excellent practice for church pianists in training!

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Come, Christians, Join to Sing Composed by Kristin Campbell. SoundForth #228841. Published by SoundForth (S2.228841).

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Worship the King Easy Hymn Settings for Solo Violin and Piano. Composed by Kristin Campbell. Score and performance/accompaniment CD. Lorenz Publishing Company #30/2600L. Published by Lorenz Publishing Company (LO.30-2600L).

 

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Using the metronome is a relieving way to make sure that all rhythmic values are placed exactly as they ought to be in their interlocking system. But often we as teachers assume that students know how to use a metronome effectively in their practice, when in reality, they do not understand at all.

There is (almost) nothing that can raise a teacher’s blood pressure faster than having the metronome turned on and the student not staying with it. And it’s not just frustrating for the teacher (I was a student once…).

Teaching students to use a metronome is one of the most rewarding elements of practice to pass on. I like to start them with it early in a lot of cases, and always simply. Scales are an excellent tool for teaching metronome use. Teach your student a basic one octave C scale with just one hand (two hands for students who can handle it –but we’re taking the most basic approach possible). After they are comfortable and confident with the fingerings and notes of the scale, then have them play with the metronome, giving one note per click. 60 BPM is a good speed usually, but if it’s too fast, slow it down. The goal is to have each note played exactly with the click.

Eventually, you can teach the fingerings for a two octave scale, and then add the metronome to that. Now the student will be playing eighth notes and will have two notes per click. Ideally, the metronome will be on your original speed but again, slow it down if necessary.

The ultimate goal with rhythmic attention is to internalize rhythm so that it can be “felt.” Often, the best way to internalize something is to externalize it first. Encourage your student to nod their head with each metronome click. Foot tapping is another way to externalize, or counting out loud. Vocalizing a non-word syllable (da-da-da or something else) is also helpful. Do not encourage externalizing by extra hand motion such as bouncing the wrists, as this distracts from hand and arm technique and is not useful in the long run, and could also cause unnecessary tension.

There are many variations to this sort of practice work, so be creative and tailor these ideas to meet your and your student’s needs. Also, it usually isn’t imperative that a student master metronome work or perfect rhythm in all of their current music at one time. It’s a process, so set reasonable goals that can be achieved relatively easily.

 

From one of our favorite series for beginners who desire to play in church: check out Keyboard Treasury Vol. 2! This series is excellent, reinforcing technique and developing a taste for artistically arranged sacred music.

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Keyboard Treasury, Vol. 2 A Graded Hymn Anthology elementary piano solos. Composed by Peter Davis. Sacred. SoundForth #110221. Published by SoundForth (S2.110221).

 

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Many times through the course of my years teaching, I have had questions such as:

• How picky should I be?
• How many weeks on one piece is too long?
• Should I expect my beginners to play their pieces to the same degree of perfection as that of an intermediate or advanced student?
• If I only have time to work on a few techniques or ideas during the lesson, on what should I spend the time and how do I prioritize the material so as to evenly develop their skills?

While there are no perfect answers to these questions, there are tools we can employ to help us find case-by-case solutions. There are solutions to the innumerable student weaknesses a teacher encounters in a week, and some of them can be mind-boggling, especially for young teachers.

Of course, the goal is to be adept at seeing a problem, identifying where exactly it lies, and having ten different perfect solutions lying ready at your fingertips. But you really need this built-in resource long before it will have had time to accumulate from experience. So what is a young teacher to do? Or maybe you have much experience teaching, but have a hard time keeping up each student’s individual needs and weekly progress. (If you have more than 5 students, this is very likely!)

I recently came across this sister-resource to the Masterwork Classics series by Jane Magrath. The Practice & Performance series boasts “A student practice guide that accompanies the Masterwork Classics. Invaluable notes on technique, style and listening activities for every piece in the Masterwork Classics books, plus teacher’s notes and short lesson guides for each piece.”

These are designed to be used as a consumable practice guide with each student having their own, but I have found that owning my own copy instead works well. I can then study up on what they are going to be working on, and be better prepared to teach the material aurally. This way, I am able to break the information down and customize it to each student’s strengths and weaknesses. Also, it removes the need to hand a young student a relatively deep practice-guide that they may have a difficult time understanding and applying on their own.

 

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Masterwork Practice & Performance, Level 1-2 Edited by Jane Magrath. Graded Standard Repertoire; Masterworks; Piano Collection. Masterwork Practice & Performance. Masterwork. Book. 64 pages. Alfred Music #00-6582. Published by Alfred Music (AP.6582).

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Masterwork Practice & Performance Level 3. Edited by Jane Magrath. Graded Standard Repertoire; Masterworks; Piano Collection. Masterwork Practice & Performance. Masterwork. Book. 88 pages. Alfred Music #00-167. Published by Alfred Music (AP.167).

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Masterwork Practice & Performance, Level 4 Edited by Jane Magrath. Graded Standard Repertoire; Masterworks; Piano Collection. Masterwork Practice & Performance. Masterwork. Book. 80 pages. Alfred Music #00-169. Published by Alfred Music (AP.169).

 

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A musician’s posture is one of the most important physical aspects of their playing. It affects every part of an instrumentalists ability to relax (hopefully preventing injuries), articulate, breath, and play effectively. It can also have an influence on the musician’s longevity as an active musician.

Here is a tried and true exercise to insure good posture in yourself and your students. This has been proven effective for vocalists, as well!

Stand straight and stretch your arms up toward the ceiling. Then wiggle your fingertips – this is really important because it helps reduce unnecessary tension in the arms. Slowly begin to lower the arms straight out to the sides, and make sure the elbows do not bend. Keep wiggling the fingers!  Continue bringing your arms down until they are hanging at your sides. Your shoulders should now be in the “perfect posture” position.

This method works really well in helping teach young children and is far more effective than merely saying “stand/sit up straight,” or “put your shoulders back,” or other common directives.

 

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Check out our favorite book for elementary violin students. This makes a wonderful start prior to launching into the Suzuki books.

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Essential Elements for Strings – Book 1 with EEi Essential Elements. Instructional, Methods and Play Along. Softcover Media Online. 48 pages. Published by Hal Leonard (HL.868049).

 

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