5 Tips to Help Develop the Fourth & Fifth Fingers

Wishing you all a happy and restful bank holiday weekend. Today’s post was first published in Pianist magazine’s April 2020 newsletter (you can subscribe to this newsletter for free, here). I’ve written before about these pesky fingers! The fourth and fifth fingers can be tricky to control and they require patience to develop, and,  if…

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Pianists from the Past: Lamar Crowson

I hope you continue to be safe and well during this difficult period. It’s time for a guest feature article. My Pianists from the Past series is proving popular, and today’s post has been penned by British pianist Julian Jacobson,  who is professor of piano at the Royal College of Music (in London, UK) and…

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The Bridge Position

Today’s post features my latest technique article for Piano Professional (published by EPTA or the European Piano Teachers Association). If you aren’t aware of this organisation, may I suggest visiting their website for more details (please click here). This article highlights the Bridge Position, which is generally considered an important assumed hand position for pianists….

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Pianists from the Past: Margaret Bonds

My Pianists from the Past series continues today with a fascinating article written by British pianist and musicologist Samantha Ege. Samantha is a leading interpreter and scholar of the African-American composer Florence Price.   Her PhD on Florence Price, and publications on women’s music networks, have shed an important light on classical practitioners from underrepresented…

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No Pain, No Gain?

How many times have you heard this phrase? A fair few, I would imagine. It may be true for some activities, perhaps those where grit and determination are necessary in order to achieve the desired outcome. But this phrase certainly does not apply to the activity of playing the piano. Yet, increasingly, pianists suffer from…

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Pianists From The Past: Raoul von Koczalski

Today’s Pianists From The Past post, which is the second in my series (you can view the first, written by pianist James Kirby, here), has been written by Japanese concert pianist and artistic director of Mousikos, Yuki Negishi (pictured at the end of this post). She highlights Polish pianist Raoul von Koczalski, a pianist who’s…

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Quarantine or Paradise: an interview with GéNIA

As the COVID-19 health crisis continues to dominate our everyday lives, many artists have taken to online forums, and particularly social media, in order to continue their work. With this in mind, Russian pianist, composer, teacher and writer, GéNIA (Genia Chudinovich) has established a new interview series, ‘Quarantine or Paradise’, where she will speak to…

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A Happy Easter and a Master Class

A very HAPPY EASTER to you all. During this dreadful time, I hope you’re feeling well, and you are able relax and enjoy this holiday period, whether with your family or in self-isolation. Let’s pray for those who are currently suffering this terrible disease, and continue to support and celebrate the tremendous work undertaken by…

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Pianists From The Past: Viktor Merzhanov

I’m really excited to announce a new series on my blog: Pianists From The Past. We all have our ‘favourite’ pianists; no doubt a smorgasbord of current performers intermingled with some who are, sadly, no longer with us.  But how often have you searched on YouTube, or elsewhere, only to ‘discover’ a pianist you may…

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6 Favourite Piano Resources

Many of us have been practising ‘social-distancing’ for a week or two already, and whilst not an especially enjoyable or uplifting experience, for me it has provided some much needed respite from the weekly lessons (although these are now all online), workshops, classes and piano courses, and work-related meetings. I love my work, but it’s…

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