by Victoria | May 3, 2019 | Music Pedagogy, Music
The title here says it all. For any musician, the skill of sightreading is absolutely essential. It doesn’t matter if you are primarily a church musician, orchestra player, teacher, or something else – there is sure to come a time when you are handed music...
by Victoria | Feb 13, 2019 | Music Pedagogy, Music
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...
by Victoria | Oct 31, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
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,...
by Victoria | Oct 25, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
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...
by Victoria | Oct 16, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
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...
by Victoria | Oct 9, 2018 | Music, Music Pedagogy
Composers. That word sounds a little technical, if you ask me. Maybe it just feels technical. Or maybe it isn’t really technical at all. Maybe it’s just too historical for musicians like us who would rather sit with a violin under our chins or a keyboard under our...
by Victoria | Oct 3, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
Teaching practice techniques is one of the most rewarding things a teacher can do (or at least, that’s my opinion :)). When you teach a student how to practice, your teaching is no longer limited to the music he/she is learning. Suddenly, their potential to grow and...
by Victoria | Sep 25, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
Stop teaching your students how to play. Instead, teach them how to practice.
by Victoria | Sep 18, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
The words theory and technique are often lumped together in the world of piano pedagogy, especially when in the context of elementary and intermediate students. There are often books that are labeled for developing theory and technique together, which could be fine....
by Victoria | Sep 11, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
I don’t know about each of you, but there are some key things that I had to work through when I first began teaching music. Helps for new music teachers can be so valuable because these teachers are new. They don’t have 10, 20, or 50 years of experience,...
by Victoria | Aug 28, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
While attending a workshop on piano pedagogy recently presented by Dr. Susan Kindall, the students in the class were given the opportunity to describe in one word a good teacher by whom they had been positively impacted (these traits were not given exclusively as...
by Victoria | Aug 21, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
If you’ve ever heard elementary pianists play, you probably know what I’m talking about – that unmistakable beginner’s plunk (with which I was plagued myself as a young musician). For the first several months of my teaching experience, I thought primarily of achieving...
by Victoria | Aug 14, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
Question: My student acts like [she] doesn’t remember the things I asked [her] to work on at the previous lesson. What are effective ways to approach this? Answer: There could be multiple answers to this question. I will address three primary causes behind forgetful...
by Victoria | Aug 8, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
In my last article, Why Should I Learn an Instrument? I briefly referenced Psalm 33:3 where it says, “Play skillfully with a loud noise.” This verse has become an immense encouragement in my own journey of learning, teaching, and playing skillfully, and also helped me...
by Victoria | Jul 31, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
Why should I learn an instrument? It’s a good question: perfectly legitimate. It begs an answer. Perhaps it’s a question that your students will never ask you. They may not, after all, be able to summon the courage to face their teacher and actually put their thoughts...
by Victoria | Jul 24, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
One of the greatest joys is teaching music to little ones – the size person that sits on the piano bench and can barely reach the pedals, or whose violin measures an approximate 10.25 inches. I always find that these times gratify my love for adventure, and it...
by Victoria | Jul 17, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
Nearly every pianist will, at some point, fill the role of a church pianist. Even if it is not a long-term arrangement, every pianist should be prepared to serve in this capacity by developing certain skills. Here are the top ten skills that my church music...
by Victoria | Jul 10, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
Many times at the end of a long day of teaching I’ll sigh and wonder if my students will ever succeed as musicians. Always, this question is tailed by another that is just as haunting and perhaps even harder to answer: will I ever succeed as a teacher? After all,...
by Victoria | Jul 5, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
In my previous article, Thoroughly Equipping Music Students for Life – Part 1, I highlighted some of the primary ways in which piano students should be prepared for future ministry and occupation. In this article, Thoroughly Equipping Music Students for Life – Part 2,...
by Victoria | Jun 26, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
We often hear parents make statements about preparing their children for “real life.” As teachers, we need to be equipping music students for life, preparing them to take on the challenges they will face as an adult musician. Specifically, our students need to be...
by Victoria | Jun 19, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
What is legato for a pianist? We all know that legato passages are marked with slurs. And hopefully we all know that legato actually means “smooth;” not quiet, as is a somewhat common mistake among students. I remember as a young violinist that slurs made perfect...
by Victoria | Jun 12, 2018 | Music Pedagogy, Music
I had a conversation with a friend and fellow private teacher some time ago and, in the course of our discussion, she asked how I had learned about the various eras of music, and then how I approach teaching them to my students. The question caught me a little off...
