This page features all the posts published on this blog. You'll find over 850 articles on various topics relating to the piano and music education.
Last week’s post, ‘The Pencil’, garnered a lot more interest than I had anticipated: it was really intended as an irreverent end-of-term topic that had been on my mind for a while. If you’d like to read it, please click on the button below: Subsequently, several teachers have written about the issue of ‘enticing’ students…
As the academic year draws to a close and teachers look forward to the refreshing long summer break, there is a natural tendency to reflect, focusing on elements that have brought particular joy throughout the year, as well as those that, perhaps, have been less successful or have caused upset in some way. I’m exploring…
I’m currently music store Presto Music’s ‘Author Focus’ of the year, which means that Presto will be publishing a video about my work every month on their website. I recorded these videos over the Easter holiday and you can hear the first one, published in May and serving as an introduction to the series, by…
In this month’s Pianist magazine tips article, I suggest ways to sharpen mental focus, helping to optimise both our attention span and concentration. We all know that feeling, don’t we? We are happily traversing our way through a favourite piano piece and then all of a sudden and seemingly out of no-where, we’ve lost our…
Piano courses are becoming increasingly popular, particularly those focusing on the adult piano ‘hobbyist’ market. It makes sense: this demographic probably have the most money to spend, and they also have more time to hone their piano chops, especially retired pianists. And they can be excellent players and attentive students. Like many teachers, I’ve taught…
The Opus One Summer Music Festival is establishing itself as an international platform for young musicians. The programme, running in July this year, welcomes upwards of 30 participants, from small children to young professionals, and offers solo masterclasses, chamber music workshops, and public performances across London as well as in Paris, France. Founded initially as…
Over the past few weeks, I’ve adjudicated at two competitions and one competitive festival. It’s a favourite part of my role as a music educator and I wish I could do more of it. Two of the three competitions were ‘live’ events where I was the sole adjudicator, and the third was online, where I…
I’m currently music store Presto Music’s ‘Author Focus’ of the year, which means that Presto will be publishing a video about my work every month on their website. I recorded these videos over the Easter holiday and you can hear the first one, published last month and which serves as an introduction to the series,…
Today’s guest writer is pianist, teacher and composer Alison Mathews. Over the past year, Alison has compiled and edited a very special publication called ‘Seeds of Hope’: a collection of elementary level piano pieces featuring Middle Eastern themes with a focus on nature, growth and hope. Each work in this volume has been written by…
My latest ‘Tips’ article for Pianist magazine’s website was published just a couple of weeks ago and focuses on repertoire for advanced level players. You can read the first two posts in this series by clicking on the button links below: This is the third and final part in a series delving into suitable repertoire…
I’m pleased to be the featured author and composer this year at Presto Music. For this series, entitled ‘Author Focus’, Presto Music will publish a new video every month over the next twelve months featuring my work, books and music. In each video, I discuss various aspects of my career, including teaching beginners, talented young…
I recently held a piano performance class for some of my students. We do this several times a year if possible, because it serves as useful practice and preparation for their piano exams and festival performances. At this class, which consisted of just a few students, we discussed our ‘influences’: what, if any, had my…
