I hope you have enjoyed a relaxing festive holiday and I’d like to wish you all a very Happy New Year. 

Tenth Anniversary

2022 is an important year for this blog, because on January 28th, it will celebrate its tenth anniversary. When I started this ‘project’ back in 2012, I was in a very different place. Having endured an illness, I had taken time out from my work and, once recovered, needed to re-establish myself – but I had no idea how I was going to do it. My intention was to write, teach, and compose. Having already written a little book So You Want To Play The Piano?, which was published by a small independent publisher (not something I can recommend), I needed an outlet to continue writing in order to attract the attention of major publishers and build an online audience.

Blogging

Writing regularly on a website or ‘blogging’ was still in its infancy in 2012. Once this site was set up, I had the daunting task of posting articles. At first, I updated the site two or three times a week. I frequently published short, punchy, sometimes irreverent posts. These posts were mixed with longer, more in-depth articles. The longer articles focused on some aspect of piano technique or piano playing. But after much experimentation, I eventually found it more effective to post just once a week.

YouTube and Social Media

As the site developed, so different facets were added. I received a video camera as a gift and established a YouTube channel. I decided to publish a series of ‘vlogs’ or short films. These were mostly just comments about practising the piano and were published both on YouTube and on this website. This approach encouraged a larger audience. Publishing videos can be useful for this reason. Social Media was also less popular in 2012. However, it has proved to be another vital ‘tool’. Posting on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Linkedin, and in various Facebook groups, has been crucial as well. For those interested in ‘statistics’, Linkedin is the most useful site for me.

When the ‘vlog’ series reached its conclusion, I was still keen to use my camera. I curated around fifty interviews with many celebrated musicians and teachers. This collection is known as The Classical Conversations Series and Music Talk Series. These filmed interviews were amongst the first of their type. I spoke to classical musicians informally on camera. In a short space of time, these interviews became extremely popular. Indeed, they helped build my reputation and, increasingly motivated, I felt able to move on and focus on different projects.

Moving On

‘Moving on’ is a favourite expression. I firmly believe that if we keep doing the same activity for too long, we become stale and ineffective, therefore moving forward feels like a natural progression. This is why I switched from my interview series and I started writing more detailed posts about practising and piano repertoire. By this time, publishers were knocking on my door. So You Want To Play The Piano? was re-written and republished by Alfred UK. I also compiled a piano anthology for Faber Music – The Faber Music Piano Anthology.

I was eventually approached to write a column for Pianist Magazine, which I have now done since 2014. I’ve also written many feature articles for Piano Professional Magazine, published by EPTA (European Piano Teachers’ Association).

Play it Again: PIANO

Out of the blue, Schott Music contacted me. They asked if I would read and comment on their new method book series, Piano Junior. The task turned out to be thoroughly enjoyable and they clearly appreciated those comments, because as a result, I was invited to write their new series for adults returning to playing the piano. Play it Again: PIANO is a four-book series. After copious writing and editing, Book 1 and 2 was published in 2017 and Book 3 was published in 2019 (Book 4 was published in June 2025).

The series has gone from strength to strength. It has now sold thousands of copies worldwide. Schott and I have toured the Far East extensively promoting these books. We have countless future plans for 2022 and beyond. And for those in China, watch out for the new Chinese edition. The blog has proved an efficient means of highlighting my workshops and presentations. It alerts teachers, students, and readers to where they can attend such an event. Whilst blogging helps establish an online ‘presence’ it doesn’t necessarily sell books in the volume that one might expect. In my experience, this is best achieved by touring and presenting workshops.

Composing

This is an area which I had always wanted to explore. Over the years, I did a little here and there. Suddenly, I had the fortunate opportunity to publish a few educational piano pieces with a small publisher. Not long after, Schott Music offered to start working with me as a composer. My work now features in their Edition Schott series. It’s an incredible honour to work with this fantastic publishing house. This blog has given me the chance to write piano pieces for readers, which they can download and play immediately. Many of you have commented on how much you’ve enjoyed the pieces as well as the numerous competitions and giveaways that I have hosted here, too.

Last year I was delighted to compile and write three pre-Grade one syllabuses for the London College of Music Exams. Again, this was partly due to this website. I had co-written the LCM’s previous syllabus ‘performance notes’ for a previous syllabus and the former head of syllabus content contacted me after he had read several of my blog articles.

Teaching

Developing a successful piano teaching career is no easy task. Qualifications, experience and commitment are essential, but results play a significant role, too. Over the years, I’ve tutored a multitude of piano courses in the UK and abroad. This experience has introduced my books to a new audience. It has also enabled me to help students quickly and efficiently, often over a period of just a few days. I have documented both facets on my blog, resulting in more work.

Statistics

They play an interesting role. One can’t help noticing how statistics go up and down depending on disparate factors. Anyone who writes online will (or should) have access to their ‘stats’. As websites are viewed across the globe, it’s interesting to note where most of the views or ‘hits’ originate. My audience is mainly based in the USA, UK and the Far East. I observe the stats daily, but have never been overly concerned by their numbers, however, this site has (at the time of writing this article) accrued nearly 1.2 million hits. 

Writing over a period of ten years, as any ‘blogger’ (not a word I like) will attest to, is an inordinate amount of work, and not something to be undertaken lightly. I blog for free and I don’t monetise the site at all. It takes a while to yield results, but if you are determined and enjoy writing, then it can be most rewarding. Some use a blog as a ‘marketing’ tool. Others blog to record their life’s events. Some blog because they love writing regularly. My blog has become a personal website. I like to keep my online information housed under the same roof.

Looking to the Future

Will I keep writing? Yes! I’ve moved into yet another different phase. I am introducing more guest posts. This is something I have done for the last couple of years. It’s wonderful to be able to spotlight musicians and writers, and encourage them to tell their ‘story’, or write about a piano-related subject close to their heart.

Readership

I couldn’t have kept such a blog alive for this period of time without you – the reader. I’m sincerely grateful to you for subscribing and reading my work every week. If you haven’t subscribed as yet, you can do so on the home page. Just scroll down to the footer and insert your email address. If I haven’t covered a topic which interests you, just write and let me know. Are you an adult pianist? Or are you returning to piano playing? If so, join my new Adult Piano Returners group on Facebook for some lively piano discussions. If you want to read the posts and articles published on this blog, you can browse them all by clicking on the blog menu on the home page.

Writing this blog has proffered so much more than I could have ever imagined. Here’s to the next decade!