Piano teachers tend to sit in a room all day. As one student leaves another appears and this repetitive cycle can go on for hour after hour. Some are happy with this status quo. Others admit to feeling isolated and ‘lonely’ during the working week. Many teachers work all day on a Saturday, too, leading…
Tag: EPTA
The Thumb
I’ve published articles in Piano Professional, which is the magazine published by EPTA UK (European Piano Teachers Association), for the past 8 years. My latest, which was published in Issue 54, focuses on the thumb. Thumbs. We know they form an important part of our hand, but how often do we focus on all four…
The Bridge Position
Today’s post features my latest technique article for Piano Professional, a piano teachers’ magazine published by EPTA or the European Piano Teachers Association. This article highlights the Bridge Position, which is generally considered an important hand position for pianists. I hope it’s of interest to both teachers and students. If you cast your mind back…
Painless Piano Playing Part 3
Today’s article is the third in a series written for Piano Professional Magazine (published by EPTA) and is the final article in the series. This technique article was featured in their recent winter edition. It focuses on painless piano playing, a subject about which I am passionate. I hope you find it of interest. You…
Painless Piano Playing Part 1
This post was initially printed in Issue 50 of Piano Professional. This magazine is for piano teachers and is published by EPTA (or the European Piano Teachers Association). My article focuses on an aspect of playing which I feel is extremely important: flexibility. In it, I concentrate on simple exercises which students find helpful as…
Approaches to Staccato Playing
I am a regular contributor to Piano Professional, the European Piano Teachers Association (EPTA) magazine. I really enjoy writing for this publication which focuses on providing piano teachers with helpful information. The following article was written for Issue 43 (published earlier this year), and examines various approaches to staccato. When it comes to tackling articulation,…
The Art of Polyphony: 12 Top Tips
Today’s post features an article I wrote for Piano Professional Magazine, an EPTA or the European Piano Teachers Association publication. It was published in June this year and focuses on a few practice suggestions for counterpoint (or polyphony). There are so many different ways to work at this demanding style, and my thoughts are based…
Top Tips for Practising Octaves
I wrote the following article for the EPTA (European Piano Teachers Association) magazine, Piano Professional, and I hope it may shed some light on this important technical topic. There’s a downloadable PDF with nine suggested practice tips and you can also click the link at the bottom of the article to view the original feature….
10 Top Tips for Tonal Beauty
The following article was originally published in Piano Professional magazine. This is an EPTA UK (European Piano Teachers Association) publication. It appeared in the most recent edition, Issue 37. You can read the original article by clicking on the link at the bottom of the page. I have compiled a list of ten top tips…
Resolving Tension in Piano Playing: Article for EPTA’s Piano Professional
Most of us know that too much tension can ruin piano playing. Reducing this tension usually requires time and lots of work. There are many ways to address the uncomfortable, tight feeling. This feeling often accompanies a fixed and tense disposition at the piano. The following article was originally written for the Piano Professional Magazine, an…
Improving Your Scales: Feature Article for Piano Professional Magazine
I have written about scales and arpeggios before here on my blog. The following article was penned for the Piano Professional Magazine (Issue 34: Spring 2014). It was published by the European Piano Teachers Association or EPTA, which is designed for piano teachers. For many years I wrote a regular feature article on technique for this informative publication. Hopefully…
Piano Master Classes
It was a delight to be invited to give a master class for EPTA (the European Piano Teacher’s Association) in Brighton last Sunday. The special event entitled ‘Young Pianists’ Performance Day’ was the first of its kind, and was superbly organised by pianist and teacher, Helen Anahita Wilson, who holds the Regional Chair for EPTA….