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…
Tag: Piano Teacher
9 Tips for Success in Your Piano Exam
Selecting and Practising Piano Exam Repertoire is a new series on my blog, which will begin in earnest next week. Today’s post is in preparation, offering a few practice ideas to make piano exam study a more fruitful and rewarding affair. Some of you have written requesting information about piano exam programmes and how best…
5 Top Tips to Aid Memorisation
Pianist Magazine produces a newsletter which wings its way into a reader’s e mail box every other month. It’s brimming with piano news and information, as well as a few articles. I write a regular ‘Piano Tips’ feature, and today’s post presents the most recent, which focuses on memorisation. Memorisation is a hotly debated topic…
Around the Globe Piano Music Festival 2016
Colet House is located on the perpetually busy Talgarth road to the west of London, where it’s the home of the Study Society. Behind a perfunctory, inconspicuous door, lies a rather grand entrance hall which deftly transports visitors to a bygone era. I love places like this: the mystery behind the facade, the labyrinth of…
5 Top Tips To Improve Your Listening Skills
My most recent Pianist Magazine newsletter article contains 5 tips designed to cultivate and improve our listening skills, and I thought it may be of interest to readers. We might think we hear what we play, but often our attention is focused elsewhere; finding notes, reading the score, pedalling – the list is endless. But…
The Mindful Pianist: Mark Tanner
The Mindful Pianist is a book written by British pianist, author, teacher, composer, researcher, examiner and adjudicator, Mark Tanner. This volume forms part of EPTA’s, or European Piano Teachers Association, Piano Professional Series, and is published by Faber Music. I invited Mark to answer twelve questions about his life and diverse career as a musician. You’ve…
10 Top Tips To Pass Your Piano Exam
As the new term gets underway, many will be preparing for music exams at the end of the year. The aim of this post is to provide a few extra pointers and ideas for last-minute preparations Once the pieces have been learned, scales, arpeggios and technical work is all in place, how can students feel…
The Power of Repetition
Finding the appropriate practice tool for a specific issue can be a matter of trial and error. When all the usual methods have been exhausted or perhaps overused, it’s time to try new ideas and find a fresh approach to nail that awkward passage. Recently, I’ve been working with a couple of students who are…
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….
So You Want To Play The Piano?
My book So You Want To Play The Piano? has been completely revised, hugely expanded, and republished by Alfred Music UK. When I first wrote this book back in the Summer of 2011, I had a fairly clear idea of what I wanted to achieve, which was to help those who had never played the…
Why take a piano course?
At this time of year, countless piano courses are being held all around the world. The Summer provides the perfect time for such an event. Young piano students are generally on school holiday, and older students can finally use that last bit of holiday time from work. There are courses to suit every level and budget….
Perfect Pedalling
We all know there’s no such thing as ‘perfect’ piano playing but hopefully these tips might be helpful. The sustaining or damper pedal is one of the most important assets for a pianist. It adds another dimension to the piano timbre, and can provide a whole variety of sound layers. The most commonly used pedal,…