It’s December already and we all know what that means: Christmas time, for those who celebrate. After a busy term, which, for me, finished yesterday, it’s good to have some time to reflect on the past few weeks and look forward to the festive break. The Play it again: PIANO Prep Book (Schott Music), which…
Tag: Schott Music
Going backwards to move forwards
My article for last month’s Pianist Magazine explores this important practice idea. As a general rule, I’m a fan of piano exams or any type of ‘test’ which encourages a student’s progress. Most teachers are delighted when their student gets to grips with a piece or an aspect of their piano playing enabling them to…
Play it again: PIANO Prep Book
The piano is an intoxicating instrument. Those who have played in their youth often harbour a desire to return to it later in life. Piano ‘returners’ make up an increasingly large cohort of amateur pianists, and whether younger or older, it’s usually fairly easy to pick up again from where you left off. Progress can…
Summer Coaching at the RAM, RSL Awards, and More
Today’s post is a ‘round-up’ of my work over the past couple of months. Book projects are coming to an end for this current year. I have two more to be published before 2026. The first is a beginners’ book for ensemble playing. This is (probably) the final book in my Snapchats duets & trios…
The Art of Piano Education Awards and More…
April and May has been a busy time with some interesting work and the conclusion of projects which have been in the offing for a while. These have been satisfying and worthy endeavours and, as usual, I’ve loved my involvement with each one. During the last week of April I took a flight (on a…
Chasm: a new recording by Maiko Mori
Just before lockdown I started writing several piano pieces for four pianist friends. There’s nothing I enjoy more than writing music for my fellow musicians because one can compose a ‘bespoke’ work specifically suited to their particular musical skills. All four pianists had heard some of my music performed during a concert held at a…
Music & Drama Education Expo 2025
I’m looking forward to the Music & Drama Education Expo in London next week. This two-day event is held every year and has been through several transformations since its inception twelve years ago. According to its website, the Expo consists of ‘a mix of practical workshops, CPD sessions, seminars and networking for music and drama…
Composer of the Month at TopMusic
2025 starts with a bang! During January, I’m ‘composer of the month’ at the TopMusic.co which is an educational organisation founded and run by Tim Topham, a music educator who I had the pleasure of meeting when I visited Australia last Summer. Earlier this week ten of my elementary piano pieces were published by TMS…
Developing A Flexible Piano Technique: Hal Leonard Webinar
Piano technique can be problematic for many students. Questions surrounding this aspect of piano playing are more frequent than any other in my experience, and this is certainly true in my Adult Piano Returner Facebook group: if you have a Facebook account but have yet to discover this group which now has 31,000 members, click…
A Keynote Speech and an Asia-Pacific Adventure
On June 29th I embarked on my largest and certainly longest book tour to date. This one had taken considerable preparation and financial support from both Schott Music and Hal Leonard Australia. These trips are usually fun, inspiring, fascinating and educational, and this Australasian extravaganza was nothing short of amazing. The tour started in Singapore…
Asia-Pacific Book Tour
This weekend marks the start of my longest and largest ever book tour and I’ll be visiting Singapore, Australia and Hong Kong. I’ve undertaken many tours since the publication of my first series for Schott back in 2017. They are always a lot of fun, very engaging, and a great opportunity to connect with teachers…
Ghostly Piano Tales: New Music for the Elementary Pianist
The Occult I wrote Ghostly Piano Tales nearly two years ago after becoming increasingly fascinated by the stories behind ghostly legends. I’ve always been interested in the occult, having experienced the supernatural at work. Most memorable was a surprise ‘sighting’ during a rehearsal at a medieval church in London around 25 years ago. I’d gone…