Several readers have recently written requesting a post on structured practice ideas for beginners. I scrolled through my archives and realised that I hadn’t written anything on structured practice for this vast and significant group of piano students. In order to redress the balance, I hope you find the following of interest. 1. Beginners, particularly…
Tag: Piano Practice
Selecting & Practising Piano Exam Repertoire: Trinity College London Grade 5
Continuing with my series surveying piano exam repertoire, today’s post examines Trinity College London Grade 5. List A offers a diverse and well-chosen collection of pieces. It includes composers such as Richard Jones, Anton Diabelli, Moritz Vogel, and Dmitri Kabalevsky. Each candidate must prepare three exercises. These are played alongside scales and arpeggios. These exercises…
Selecting & Practising Piano Exam Repertoire: ABRSM Grade 5
Today, I focus on ABRSM Grade 5. This continues my series examining effective exam programming. I will also share five tips for the suggested listed pieces. Some of my tips could be applied to similar repertoire. If you’ve already settled on your programme, you might be able to use some of the ideas mentioned here….
5 Tips for Practising without the Piano
I regularly contribute to Pianist magazine’s newsletter, which wings its way into our inbox every other month. My article always takes the form of ‘5 tips’. Last month’s tips were designed for those who fancy taking their practice away from the instrument. I hope they are of interest. Practising away from the instrument can be…
Selecting & Practising Piano Exam Repertoire: ABRSM Grade 4
Today I am continuing my series on selected exam repertoire. I’ve chosen three complimentary pieces from the ABRSM Grade 4 list. They are taken from the main syllabus, as opposed to the alternative syllabus. I have offered five practice tips for each one. I have also selected a recording from the many on YouTube. Minuet…
Selecting and Practising Piano Exam Repertoire: Trinity College London Grade 2
Today’s blog post continues my piano exam repertoire selection and tips series by exploring the Trinity College London Grade 2 exam. There’s a wide range of choice on this syllabus with a very definite emphasis on the living composer. I have chosen three pieces which contrast in style and genre. For me, this is an…
11 ways to kick start your practice routine: Evgenia Chudinovich (GéNIA)
Happy World Piano Day! Today’s guest writer is Evgenia Chudinovich (GéNIA). GéNIA has written for my blog before and you can read her very popular article here. She is a highly experienced pianist, teacher, author, composer, and creator of Piano-Yoga®. Here, she offers some practice tips for those in need of some inspiration. Have you…
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…
A few thoughts on the ‘Una Corda’
I’ve previously written about the Sustaining or Damper pedal here on this blog: it’s the foot pedal farthest to the right on a piano, irrespective of whether there are two or three pedals. Grand pianos tend to have three whereas uprights often have two. You can read my post about the Sustaining pedal here. Today,…
It’s all in the Preparation 4: 5 Top Tips
This is the final post in my series providing a few suggestions and tips to help prepare piano pieces. As I’ve already written in my earlier three posts, practising and preparing often causes issues. This is because there are many strategies or methods which are missed or not applied. This is particularly true during the…
It’s All In The Preparation 3: 5 Top Tips
This is the third post in my series intended to help those who would like a few tips on how to prepare and practice piano pieces from the very beginning. It can be beneficial to have a strategy, or ‘tried and tested’ method which can be used on a whole range of pieces and genres. The first two posts…
It’s all in the Preparation 2: 5 Top Tips
Last week I offered a few tips for those about to prepare a new piano piece. These tips were primarily concerned with pre-practice elements (you can read them here), and today’s post proffers a few more ideas which I hope may be of interest. Once you’ve marked up your score and have studied its structure, it’s time to get practising….