Tricky Corners: The Leaping Fifth Finger

September heralds the start of a new academic year and is therefore an appropriate time to begin my new monthly series, ‘Tricky Corners’. Those who read this blog will know that I particularly enjoy developing a student’s technique. This is all about re-training bad habits, transforming them into good ones, which takes time and care….

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Practising Fast and Slow

One thing about writing regular articles for magazines and websites is the alarming rate at which the weeks and months tick by, and it’s hard to believe that the Autumn is already upon us. In the new October/November edition of Pianist magazine (pictured below) you can enjoy all the usual articles and scores, as well…

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Pianists From The Past: Benno Moiseiwitsch

Pianists From The Past continues today with this most interesting article featuring Russian/Ukrainian born British concert pianist Benno Moiseiwitsch, written by British pianist and writer Daniel Grimwood. Over to Daniel… Why listen to pianists of the past? In my opinion, much of the musical landscape of the present is shaped by competitions, edited recordings, possibly…

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Why is My Piano Black And White? The Winners

Many thanks to all those who took part in my weekend competition. I have two copies of Nathan Holder’s new book, Why is My Piano Black And White? to give away to two lucky readers. Without further ado, the winners are: Denise Lynn Hill and Karen Newby CONGRATULATIONS! Please send your name and address via…

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Why is My Piano Black And White? A Weekend Competition

Today’s post has been written by guest writer, author, saxophonist and teacher Nathan Holder. In this article, he writes about his new book Why is My Piano Black And White? which is published by Why Books, explaining the concept behind it and why students, parents and teachers may find it useful. Due to be published…

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Pianists From The Past: Harriet Cohen

Pianists From The Past continues today with this interesting article featuring British pianist Harriet Cohen, which has been written by Japanese pianist Maiko Mori, who enjoys a busy performing career alongside teaching the piano at the University of Chichester. Over to Maiko… Harriet Cohen (born in London Dec. 2nd, 1895 – died in London Nov….

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Reverse Learning

My lastest article for Pianist Magazine’s newsletter, published in June (you can subscribe to the newsletter for free, here), focuses on a seemingly counterproductive concept: ‘reverse learning’.  But this can be a surprisingly useful tool, and I hope you might find it of interest.   Chances are that when you start learning a piece, you…

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Pianists From The Past: Edith Vogel

Pianists From The Past continues today with this fascinating article featuring Austro-Hungarian-born pianist and pedagogue Edith Vogel, written by one of her pupils, British pianist and piano professor Andrew Bottrill, who is head of keyboard at Latymer Upper School and professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. Over to Andrew… Recollections…

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Jackdaws Piano Courses 2020/21

As many will know, the Jackdaws Music Education Trust is a very popular destination for music students of all ages. Set in Great Elm, just outside Frome in Somerset (U.K.), Jackdaws offers an exciting array of instrumental and vocal courses every year, and, as the saying goes, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.  And I…

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Weekend Competition: the winners

Many thanks to all those who took part in this weekend’s competition.  I really enjoyed reading your lovely comments. The prize was a copy of the new Faber Music Easy Piano Anthology for two lucky readers. Those winners are: LYNNE CONWAY and TAMARA BARSCHAK CONGRATULATIONS! Please send your name and address via the contact page…

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