The Piano Pedagogy Blog

The Gilmore--KeysFest 2011

2011-01-14T20:24:00.000-08:00

Gilmore--KeysFest 2011

Asperger's Syndrome And The Piano: MTNA E-Journal Article

2010-11-18T13:17:00.000-08:00

Asperger's Syndrome and other autism spectrum disorders are challenges that some music students face. Aspects of this condition can prove to be difficult for music teachers, and some characteristics can be potential strengths, based on the propensity for people with Asperger's Syndrome and autism spectrum disorders to exhibit a singular focus for an activity such as music study. Be employing particular tactics when working with students with Asperger's Syndrome, teachers can provide students with an important educational experience and find for themselves a new skill set for teaching students both on and off the autism spectrum.

Please see the November issue of the MTNA E-Journal where I share my experiences from a multi-year study with students with Asperger's Syndrome:

Full Version (requires membership in MTNA to view): http://mtnaejournal.org/publication/?i=52544&p=&pn=

PDF Only Version Without Videos (for non-members of MTNA): http://mtnaejournal.org/publication/repo7/7797/52544/52544.pdf

Report from the 2010 MSU/CAMTA Piano Teachers' Retreat

2010-08-16T09:27:00.000-07:00

The 1st Annual Piano Teachers' Retreat was a major success for all involved! Thank you to the planning committee of Gail Lytle Lira (http://gaillytlelira.com/), Beverly Brouwer, and Elaine Yanz for their tireless hard work and planning.

30 teachers from around Michigan were in attendance over the two days of activities which included a presentation on technical fundamentals by Deborah Moriarty, chair of the piano department at MSU:

masterclasses:

private lessons, ample practice time, and a sold-out concert by Professor Moriarty and myself of works for piano duo and duet. Keep an eye on the Piano Pedagogy Blog for news about next summer's Piano Teachers' Retreat, and email me at polischu@msu.edu if you are interested in securing a spot for 2011.

Upcoming Performances and Presentations, 2010/2011

2010-08-13T18:38:00.000-07:00

Hello from East Lansing! We've had a beautiful and warm summer here at Michigan State, and are gearing up for an exciting 2010/2011 academic year at the MSU College of Music.

I'll be making the following appearances during the fall, winter, and spring months. If you are near any of these areas, and are interested in attending, I would like to meet you. Please send me an email for further information.

-Recital with Melanie Helton, voice, September 13, 2010, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

-Chamber Music Recital, (program TBD), October 8, 2010, "Absolute Music" Chamber Music Series, Absolute Gallery, Lansing, Michigan

-"200 Years of Chopin," featuring George Vatchnadze, Panayis Lyras, Alan Nathan, Minsoo Sohn, Deborah Moriarty, and Derek Polischuk, "West Circle Series," October 28, 2010, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

-Recitals with Jeff McCray, Professor of Bassoon at the University of Nebraska, October 30 and 31, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, and Grand Valley State University, Grand Rapids.

-Performing, judging and presenting in Nashville, Chattanooga, and Greenville Tennessee, November 4-7, 2010

-Recital with Justin O'Dell, clarinet, December 5, 2010, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

-Recital with Melanie Helton, voice, January 21, 2011, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

-"Happy Birthday Mozart," "West Circle Series," January 27, 2011, featuring Richard Sherman, Dmitri Berlinsky, Yuri Gandelsman, Suren Bagratuni, Deborah Moriarty and Derek Polischuk, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

-Bartok Concerto for Two Pianos, Percussion and Orchestra, February 5, 2011, with Michigan State University Symphony Orchestra, Wharton Center, East Lansing, Michigan

-Chamber Music Recital, (program TBD), February 11, 2011, "Absolute Music" Chamber Music Series, Absolute Gallery, Lansing, Michigan

-Presentation for the Metropolitan Detroit Musicians League, "Creative and Stimulating Lessons for the Adult Beginner," February 28, 2011, Evola Music, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

-Chamber Music Recital, (program TBD), March 18, 2011, "Absolute Music" Chamber Music Series, Absolute Gallery, Lansing, Michigan

-Solo Piano Recital, April 22, 2011, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

Auditions at MSU for the 2011/2012 academic year begin at the end of January. Please send me an email if you are considering becoming a part of our exciting musical community.

-Derek Polischuk

2010 MSU Piano Retreat: Detailed Schedule and Registration

2010-06-08T14:49:00.001-07:00

The August 4th and 5th Piano Retreat for teachers is approaching quickly! Please see the current schedule of events for this exciting opportunity at the MSU College of Music:

August 4

9:30-10:00: Breakfast Reception

10-10:30: Introduction of Materials/Philosophies and History of teaching technique to

developing pianists; Derek Kealii Polischuk

10:45-11:45: Masterclass, 2 teacher/performers; Deborah Moriarty

11:45-1:00: Lunch/free time

1:30-2:30: Technique Development Workshop; Deborah Moriarty

2:45-6:00: 30 (or 60) minute lessons with Deborah Moriarty and/or Derek Kealii

Polischuk (lessons are open for observation)/practice time

6:00-7:00: Dinner/free time

7:30-9:00: Recital featuring Deborah Moriarty and Derek Kealii Polischuk

August 5

9:30-10:00: Breakfast Reception

10-11: Early Concerto Repertoire; Derek Kealii Polischuk

11-12: Masterclass, 2 teacher/performers; Derek Kealii Polischuk

12-1: Lunch/free time

1-6:30 (or 60) minute lessons with Deborah Moriarty and/or Derek Kealii Polischuk

(lessons are open for observation)/practice time

6-7: Dinner/free time

7:30-9:00: Gala recital featuring teachers

Spots are filling fast! Please see the following registration form to secure a spot at the retreat:

2010 MSU/CAMTA Piano Retreat Registration

Name:

Email:

Phone:

Home Address:

Lesson Repertoire:

Early registration rates are available with registration by July 7

Attending (circle one):

August 4 only-$50

August 5 only-$50

August 4 and 5-$70

Rates for registration after July 7 are $70 for 1 day and $90 for 2 days

Please make checks payable to “CAMTA” and mail to:

Beverly Brouwer

3969 Raven Circle

Okemos, MI 48864

If you are coming from out of town, rooms are available at a discounted conference rate of $84.95 per night at the University Quality Inn (http://www.universityqualityinn.com/) which is very close to campus. Rooms must be booked by July 3 to receive the special rate. Mention Capital Area Music Teachers' Association when booking.

I hope to see you in East Lansing in just a few short weeks!

Derek

Smart Choices in Early Piano Repertoire

2010-05-20T11:19:00.000-07:00

Daniel Schmit, Master of Music student in Piano Pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music, demonstrates and discusses valuable repertoire for young students.

Piano Retreat at the Michigan State University College of Music

2010-04-22T18:03:00.001-07:00

Join Derek Kealii Polischuk, assistant professor of piano and director of piano pedagogy at Michigan State University, and Deborah Moriarty, professor of piano and chair of the piano area at Michigan State University, for a Piano Retreat on August 4 and 5. Piano teachers are invited to come to the MSU College of Music for a two-day workshop where they will have the opportunity to hone their own craft in piano performance by taking lessons with Professors Polischuk and Moriarty, participating in master classes, and attending workshops on current topics in piano pedagogy and performance.

Registration for the Piano Retreat is only $70 for two days and $50 for one day (with registration by July 4, 2010). Contact Professor Polischuk at polischu@msu.edu, or Beverly Brouwer at beverlly@comcast.net for more information.

The Piano Retreat is jointly sponsored by the MSU College of Music and the Capital Area Music Teachers' Association.

Interview on The Avocado Jungle

2010-04-15T21:05:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Tennessee! I'm wrapping up an exciting week-long residency at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and the University of Tennessee Chattanooga with a masterclass this morning at UTC for students of the brilliant Dr. Sin-Hsing Tsai and a recital this evening featuring works by Ewazen, Schubert, Chopin and Liszt. I was inspired by the musical excitement I experienced at UAH with students of Dr. Sarkis Baltaian during a masterclass, recital, and piano pedagogy lecture I delivered to his students and teachers from the Huntsville/Decatur area. I was excited to share my research about the relationship between rhythm skills and sight-reading in young pianists, and to engage in conversations with young and veteran teachers alike about effective ways to teach musicianship skills.

I recently had an interview with Jeremy Olsen, an extremely talented journalist with the Avocado Jungle about being a pianist and about two performances of mine they are hosting on their site. All portions of the interview can be found here: http://avocadojungle.com/author/jjbullfrog

I hope you enjoy!

Upcoming Events

2010-03-31T20:10:00.000-07:00

The crocuses are blooming in East Lansing, and it was over 70 degrees today for the first time in quite a while! Happy Spring!

Please see the following upcoming events I'll be participating in across North America that may be of interest to you. If you're able to attend, please send me an email, I'd love to meet you in person!:

-April 14th at 10:30am, Masterclass at the University of Alabama Huntsville (http://www.when.com/huntsville-al/events/show/88753815-piano-master-class-with-dr-derek-polischuk-michigan-state-university)

-April 14th at 7:00pm, Recital at the University of Alabama Huntsville. Works by Ewazen, Schubert, Chopin and Liszt (http://www.when.com/huntsville-al/events/show/88753811-guest-faculty-piano-recital-dr-derek-polischuk-michigan-state-university)

-April 15th at 2:30pm, Piano Pedagogy demonstration at the University of Alabama Huntsville

-April 16th at 11:00am, Masterclass at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

-April 16th at 7:30pm, Recital at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Works by Ewazen, Schubert, Chopin and Liszt (http://chattanoogan.com/articles/article_172301.asp)

-May 27th, paper presentation at the Multidisciplinary Research in Music Pedagogy International Conference at the University of Ottawa (http://www.musicpedagogyconference.uottawa.ca/)

-August 4th and 5th, retreat for piano teachers at the Michigan State University College of Music

-August 6th and 7th, paper presentation at the 2010 National Group Piano and Piano Pedagogy Forum at the University of Texas in Austin (http://www.mtna.org/Programs/NationalGroupPianoandPianoPedagogyGP3/tabid/453/Default.aspx)

Cornerstone Schools on CNN

2010-03-17T08:39:00.000-07:00

The Cornerstone Schools are being profiled today on CNN. Current Cornerstone keyboard teacher Marina Ionescu, graduate of the Michigan State University College of Music, where she completed graduate work in piano pedagogy, is seen toward the end of the story working with students in her group keyboard lab. Enjoy, and be inspired!

Teaching Pulse Naturally

2009-12-21T14:58:00.000-08:00

Daniel Schmit, Master of Music student in Piano Pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music, presents ways to reinforce the concept of pulse in a student's playing.

Unique Opportunities in Piano Pedagogy at Michigan State University

2009-12-07T12:59:00.000-08:00

The study of piano teaching comes to life at MSU. While concepts for teaching all levels of students are covered in both undergraduate and graduate level courses in piano pedagogy, hands-on experiences are always available. Piano pedagogy students have gained experience by teaching both group classes and private lessons to all levels and ages of students under the supervision of Dr. Derek Polischuk, Director of Piano Pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music.

Beginning group piano students shine at their first recital with their teachers Allie Nisbett and Dan Schmidt who are both students in piano pedagogy at Michigan State University. These classes are taught at the beautifully appointed Timberlane Campus of MSU's Community Music School (http://www.msu-cms.org/):

Lansing's Capital Area Music Teachers' Association is fully integrated into the musical life of the University through workshop, festival and competition opportunities including a winners' concert on the stage of MSU's Wharton Center for Performing Arts. Listen to the beautiful cacophony of so many young pianists warming up on 8 beautifully prepared Steinway D's in place for last May's Piano Monster Concert featuring MSU's piano faculty:

Michigan State University's Piano Pedagogy Department strives to make a positive contribution to communities in need across the state of Michigan and to populations undeserved by piano teachers. Each semester, students from the piano pedagogy department at MSU visit The Cornerstone School in urban Detroit to give masterclasses to talented young pianists in a thriving group piano program directed by MSU Piano Pedagogy alum Marina Ionescu. Watch this video of portions of Gina Yi's effective and passionate teaching from the November 2009 visit:

Allie Nisbett demonstrates a great way to practice the legato touch away from the piano:

Dan Schmidt proves that passionate teaching often happens at quick speeds:

Cornerstone students are inspired almost as much as MSU Piano Pedagogy students are:

For more information about Piano Pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music, please contact Dr. Derek Polischuk at polischu@msu.edu.

Christmas Greetings from Sandor Magyar

2009-12-07T12:30:00.000-08:00

Sandor Magyar performs a beautiful arrangement of "Coventry Carol" as distributed by The FJH Music Company:

New Blog from a Washington Piano Teacher

2009-12-07T12:25:00.001-08:00

Jeffrey Pettijohn, a piano teacher in the Seattle area, recently contacted me about his new blog: http://jeffreypettijohn.com/blog/. While this project is just getting underway, I look forward to upcoming articles and hope you'll take a moment to visit.

Derek Polischuk performs Mozart on WKAR Radio

2009-11-28T21:18:00.000-08:00

Listen to WKAR Radio on Monday November 30th at 11am Eastern Time to hear my performance of the Mozart Piano Concerto in D Minor K. 466 with the MSU Symphony under the baton of Leon Gregorian from earlier this fall. WKAR can be streamed at http://wkar.org/, or can be found at 90.5 FM in much of lower Michigan.

Article about MSU's Piano Teacher Training Program

2009-11-11T12:02:00.000-08:00

Please see the November and December issue of the MSU Community Music School Newsletter, which includes an article about MSU's Piano Teacher Training program.

Musical Understanding through Sight Reading

2009-11-02T13:29:00.000-08:00

I am a relatively new resident of the community in which I teach. There are a wealth of talented piano students in my town thanks to the extremely strong contingent of piano teachers, excellent public schools, and solid familial structures that encourage and support private music instruction in Mid-Michigan. I have taken on several students between the ages of 11 and 16 who have all exhibited talent and positive outlooks on practicing. Auditioning these transfer students has been an incredibly enlightening experience. I’d like to describe two of these students in order to hopefully illuminate an opportunity I have noticed for piano instruction.

Student A is extremely intelligent, hardworking, and has a calm personality. This 13 year old is a very successful and capable pianist and violinist, although his demonstrated ability does not come naturally. Student A has a very small frame and tinier than average hands, so a good amount of our time is spent on developing and refining technique and strength at the keyboard. In spite of these minor shortcomings, his musicianship is exceptional. Student A has a vast working knowledge of music theory and formal structure, is able to quickly discern vital characteristics of music we listen to, and, perhaps most importantly, is an outstanding sight-reader. This student understands the direct correlation between quality sight-reading and ease in learning, as well as the practical/real-world applications of being able to realize a piece of music in an instantly artistic manner. Furthermore, Student A also takes genuine joy in sight-reading new music, and in a likely related skill, gets new repertoire up to performance standard quicker than many of my college-age students.

Student B is a natural talent. This 15 year old has an effortless approach at the keyboard, and has hands built for creating a wide variety of tone colors through his strong bridge. Student B performs with passion and excitement, and also has an outstanding work ethic that translates into an extraordinary amount of practice hours a week.

Despite their minor differences, it is safe to say that both of these students are very talented and are highly skilled performers. The major distinction between these two students came during the final portion of their transfer audition, a basic sight-reading test. Two identical examples were given: a homophonic vocal accompaniment, and a two-voice polyphonic baroque excerpt[i]. Student A performed both examples with minimal pitch-reading and rhythm realization mistakes, and performed these examples at logical tempos. Most importantly, Student A attempted to perform these examples in a musical manner in as much of a performance style as he could muster.

Student B encountered difficulties in all aspects of this diagnostic. In the first example, Student B made frequent mistakes with the key signature of both examples, stumbled in his realization of a 6/8 pulse, and abandoned usual practices to achieve a convincing performance including pedal coloring, dynamic control, and phrasing. When asked about his priorities with this task, Student B commented that he was “only concerned with the notes.”

Both of these students have been studying with me for 9 months. Student A has consistently demonstrated the ability to learn music quickly and thoroughly. While the “end-product” of Student B’s learning continues to be compelling, pianistic performances, he almost takes twice as long as Student A to get to this point. Additional problems exist with Student B’s musicianship, including pulse-feel and consistency, key area familiarity, and rhythm recognition.

I have noticed this correlation between sight-reading ability and musicianship ability for years now, and have sought to address deficiencies in musicianship skills through sight-reading exercises. I have developed a five minute sight-reading drill for the beginning of each lesson that forces a student to quickly assess and analyze an excerpt in a practical way that will lead to a better reading. The improvement in overall musicianship skills in all of the students I have used this approach with has been much more rapid and complete than those I had previously introduced music theory to with more conventional approaches. The following is an example of how one of these drills might run:

1) Place a piece of music in front of the student, explaining that you would like them to begin playing almost immediately as if they were performing (these directions may initially be met with some trepidation, but once a student is more familiar with the progression of this activity, this may disappear).[ii]

2) Provide immediate feedback on the student’s realization of the score through self-evaluation. “How do you think that went?” “Did that sound like you thought it would?”[iii] “Were there clues on the page that helped your performance?” “Were there any clues that you missed?”[iv]

3) Provide additional feedback through suggestions that the student may have missed in their self-evaluation. Attempt to couch your practical performance suggestions in the language of music theory: “How could we make your 6/8 feel more like a subdivision of 2 big beats?” “Do these four sharps mean E major or the relative minor? What is the relative minor of E major?” “Do the different harmonies in this excerpt give us an idea of how we should use the pedal? Does the motion of the melody also help us figure this out?”[v]

4) Have the student perform the excerpt one more time, attempting to implement some of the suggestions you discussed with him or her. Provide positive feedback for those things that the student improved upon, reinforcing the concept of efficient improvement.[vi]

This exercise can be adjusted for ability level by choosing age and ability-level appropriate material. As you can see, this five-minute exercise can become a microcosm for the greater feedback and improvement loop that you may be wishing to develop in your students’ larger piano studies. This activity is not only a practical application of functional piano skills, but also a venue for discussing musicianship skills in a way that synthesizes these skills with actual music making.

[i] Pieces I often use for this test include the “Salti di Terza” from Lesson 1 in the Practical Method of Italian Singing by Nicola Vaccai and the “Bourree” from the Suite in E Minor for Lute by Johann Sebastian Bach.

[ii] “Jumping in” is an important approach to reinforce in this step. Your student should begin to understand that it’s possible to be fearless and confident when reading new music, while at the same time careful.

[iii] This question is particularly helpful in assessing a student’s audiation skills during an audition.

[iv] The reinforcement of self-evaluation helps a student development the skills of healthy self-criticism, active performance-listening, and self-teaching for their own practice.

[v] Guided questions rather than outright suggestions help a student further supplement the repertoire of questions they might ask themselves during the course of reading new music or more extensive practice of more familiar repertoire.

[vi] Reinforcing only positive aspects of the student’s performance at this point is key to establishing a system of learning something right the first time, rather than fixing those things that are “broken.”

Upcoming Performances and Presentations

2009-10-01T06:57:00.000-07:00

Happy Fall from East Lansing! The 2009-2010 academic year is underway here at the Michigan State University College of Music with many exciting events and opportunities happening on a weekly basis. Look for frequent updates and new articles on teaching piano here throughout the year.

-Recital with Janine Gaboury, horn, October 11, 2009, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

-Presentation at Michigan Music Teachers' Association State Conference, "Using Video Technology to Improve a Student's Awareness," October 12, 2009, Bay City, Michigan

-Preview Lecture for The Ahn Trio Recital, "The Art of Learning Brand New Music," October 15, 2009, Wharton Center, East Lansing, Michigan

-Recital with Melanie Helton, voice, October 23, 2009, "Absolute Music" Chamber Music Series, Absolute Gallery, Lansing, Michigan

-Mozart Piano Concerto in D Minor, K. 466, October 24, 2009, with Michigan State University Symphony Orchestra, Wharton Center, East Lansing, Michigan

-Recital and Masterclass, January TBD, 2010, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio

-Recital with Paul Roczek, Professor of Violin at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, February 4, 2010, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

-Presentation at Vivace Music Club, "Improvisation in the Classical Style," February 8, 2010, Evola Music, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan

-Recital with Janine Gaboury, horn, and Phil Sinder, tuba, February 28, 2010, MSU Music Building Auditorium, East Lansing, Michigan

-Recital, Masterclass and Piano Pedagogy Presentation, April 14, 2010, The University of Alabama at Huntsville, Huntsville, Alabama

-Recital, Masterclass, April 16, 2010, The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, Chattanooga, Tennessee

Auditions at MSU for the 2010/2011 academic year begin at the end of January. Please send me an email if you are considering becoming a part of our exciting musical community.

-Derek Polischuk

Monster Piano Concert

2009-04-28T20:53:00.000-07:00

Happy Spring from East Lansing! It's the last week of what has been a very exciting semester in the piano department at the Michigan State University College of Music which, in addition to the stimulating piano pedagogy activities outlined in previous posts, was also recently highlighted by a visit from renowned pianist and pedagogue Russell Sherman, Distinguished Artist-in-Residence at the New England Conservatory, who gave an inspiring performance of the Liszt Transcendental Etudes and a moving masterclass last week.

We're celebrating the end of the academic year with a rousing "Monster Piano Concert" this Sunday at 3pm at the Wharton Center on the campus of Michigan State University. Eight pianists, including me, Panayis Lyras, Deborah Moriarty, Alan Nathan, Ron Newman, Kyomi Sugimura, George Vatchnadze and Ralph Votapek, will be performing 8-piano arrangements of great works. Here's the program:

Brahms:

Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80

Bach:

Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring

Aria

Sheep May Safely Graze

Wagner:

Tannhäuser Overture

Saint-Saëns:

Danse Macabre, Op. 40

Dvořák:

Slavonic Dance in D major, Op. 46, No. 6

Slavonic Dance in G minor, Op. 46, No. 8

Chabrier:

España

Joplin:

The Entertainer

Stoptime Rag

Sousa:

Stars and Stripes Forever

Additionally, three of my students, Albie Feeny (1st prize in the 9th and 10th grade division), Nolan Feeny (first prize in the 5th and 6th grade division), and Rachel Symanzik (first prize in the 3rd and 4th grade division) will be performing movements from classical period Sonatas and Sonatinas as winners of their respective divisions in the Eileen Keel competition held earlier this semester. This performance will also be at the Wharton Center, and will begin at 2pm. Tickets are available from Wharton Center's box office by calling (517) 432-2000, or (800) WHARTON. Here's a link with more information: https://www.whartoncenter.com/boxoffice/performance.aspx?pid=684

I hope you'll join us---judging by our rehearsal last night, this should be a lot of fun!

Graduate Seminar Update

2009-04-01T19:49:00.000-07:00

We are now almost 3 months into our Graduate Seminar in Piano Pedagogy with student-subject Melody Gruber, so it's been a while since you've had the chance to see her progress. Please see the following clip for highlights of some of Melody's very quickly progressing playing, as well as some beautiful teaching by Justine Sasanfar and Ann Chen, both students in this Seminar.

MSU Piano Pedagogy Masterclasses at the Cornerstone School

2009-03-05T04:28:00.000-08:00

On February 26th I accompanied four students from the Piano Pedagogy program at Michigan State University to the Cornerstone School Nevada campus in Detroit Michigan. The Cornerstone Schools are private schools in urban Detroit with flourishing academic and arts instruction under the guidance of passionate and skilled teachers, and through the support of business leaders and private and corporate donors in the Detroit metropolitan area. Cornerstone is certainly an inspirational model and a beacon of hope in a part of our country that desperately needs this. Please see their website: www.cornerstoneschools.org

A flourishing class piano program exists at Cornerstone, taught by Sarah Boyd and by Marina Ionescu while Sarah is on maternity leave. Marina is a graduate of the piano pedagogy program at Michigan State University. Sarah and Marina have done an exceptional job of teaching technical fundamentals, musicianship, and artistic sensitivity to each of their students. My piano pedagogy students tried to add an additional level of finish and polish to some of their performances through a series of masterclasses for students in 6th, 7th and 8th grade piano. Please see the following video for a few highlights:

This is my second time taking my students to Cornerstone, and I cherish this opportunity for them to practice the art of giving a masterclass that is in many ways an entirely different skill than teaching a private lesson. In meetings that preceded our visit, we discussed the ways that skillful masterclass teaching is unique, including limiting the discussion to large musical principles, engaging students, teachers and observers in the audience while at the same time addressing the needs of the performer, and providing the performer with an opportunity to immediately find inspiration in on-the-spot improvement in what can be a stressful and high-stakes experience.

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What are your experiences with masterclass teaching? What are some of the characteristics of a truly great masterclass?

Jazz Transcriptions as Repertoire

2009-02-10T21:26:00.000-08:00

Our jobs as piano teachers have many dimensions. We train ourselves to properly teach our students a vigorous and effortless technique. We act as mentors to our students in both their musical lives and their larger existence as a young person in a confusing world. We provide our students with positive performance opportunities. We attempt to help our students be good stewards of their musical talent by cultivating it in a way where they might share it with people who don’t get to hear music often. Yet, too often, we negatively influence our students’ musical horizon by not allowing them to explore, discuss, study and perform music they listen to that might not be from the standard classical repertoire.

I have found great pedagogical value in introducing my students to the recordings of the great jazz pianists. A quick google search for "jazz piano transcriptions" turns up music for Bill Evans, Bud Powell, "Fats" Waller, Jelly Roll Morton, Keith Jarrett, and Thelonious Monk. Noah Symanzik, a very talented middle-school student in my studio, has been studying a transcription and recording of "Dinah" as played by Thelonious Monk from the album "Solo Monk." Listen to an excerpt of Monk's playing, and then Noah's. Noah is doing an admirable job of playing in an authentic style, honoring the tradition of this great pianist and composer, while at the same time learning about a type of music that might be out of the realm of the traditional piano lesson.

I encourage you to think outside of the box when it comes to repertoire for your students with the hope of making them more well-rounded while at the same time continually stoking their motivation through the study of music that they truly love.

Dinah - Thelonious Monk

Meet Melody

2009-02-04T14:47:00.000-08:00

Melody Gruber is an undergraduate student in journalism here at Michigan State University and is kindly acting as the student subject for the graduate level Seminar in Piano Pedagogy for the spring semester here at the College of Music. Melody is a singer, and took violin lessons growing up, but is brand new to the piano. My students and I will be teaching her on a weekly basis from level two of the Basic Adult Piano Course from Alfred. We'll be supplementing this method with pop music she has requested as well as other works from the classical repertoire, and assorted technical exercises.

A student like Melody poses an interesting challenge for my students in that her musical ability and knowledge is coming from a childhood background in music. She's a beginning pianist, but certainly not a beginner. Please see the following video for a peek inside Melody's first two lessons. As you can see, her dedication, passion, and preparation are outstanding.

Do you have adult students like Melody in your studio? How does your approach to lessons with a student like this vary from your approach with students of other ability levels?

Presentations at Calvin College Symposium on Worship

2009-01-30T06:33:00.000-08:00

I'm speaking today and tomorrow at the Calvin Symposium on Worship at Calvin College in Grand Rapids Michigan. I'll be demonstrating some skills that have become important for pianists in the church to have as well as about how to teach some of these skills to our students. Information about all of the workshops available can be found here: http://www.calvin.edu/worship/sympos/2009/program.php
Walk-up registration is available: http://www.calvin.edu/worship/sympos/walkup.php

Have a wonderful weekend!

Piano Concerto Season

2009-01-26T13:30:00.000-08:00

Hello, and Happy New Year to all readers of the Piano Pedagogy Blog. Thank you for your readership, support, and especially your comments during the latter half of 2008. I look forward to 2009 being a time when this blog will become a venue for spirited discussion on all topics related to piano teaching.

Here's a highlight reel of some of the outstanding concerto performances some of my pre-college pianists are giving in preparation for the Michigan Music Teachers' Association Concerto Competition and Lansing Symphony Concerto Competition. I apologize for the poor sound quality---this was recorded directly to my Macbook. Preparing a piano concerto is such an incredible accomplishment for these fine musicians that teaches them an entirely different type of performance practice. Please enjoy Nolan, Albie and Jody's performances.

Christmas Greetings from Nolan Feeny

2008-12-22T15:54:00.000-08:00

Nolan Feeny, a young pianist from Okemos Michigan, performs "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" at River Terrace Church in East Lansing.

Technical Warm-Up Exercises for the Pianist

2008-12-16T07:46:00.000-08:00

Borah Han, an undergraduate piano performance major at Michigan State University and a student in my class in piano pedagogy, demonstrates and describes technical warm-up exercises that she recommends for the developing pianist.

Teaching Keyboard Geography

2008-12-15T18:04:00.000-08:00

Stephen Armstrong, an undergraduate piano performance major at Michigan State University, demonstrates a lesson plan and game for teaching keyboard geography to a young student.

Teaching Blues Piano

2008-12-14T19:44:00.000-08:00

Daniel Bachelis, an undergraduate piano performance major and a student in MSU's undergraduate class in piano pedagogy, shows how to introduce simple blues improvisations to your students.

Beginning Piano Students at the Keyboard: Introducing Large and Small Muscle Groups

2008-12-13T09:26:00.001-08:00

Justine Sasanfar discusses how to introduce the fundamental physical mechanisms that allow a student to healthfully and successfully make sound at the keyboard. Justine is a Master's Degree candidate in Piano Pedagogy and Collaborative Piano who played a stunning voice recital last night with works by Beethoven, Wolf, Debussy and Britten. I hope you enjoy her concise and refreshing instruction on the physical aspects of beginning piano technique.

Teaching 6/8 Meter to Young Pianists

2008-12-12T18:05:00.000-08:00

Peter Liu, an undergraduate piano performance major and a student in MSU's undergraduate class in piano pedagogy, describes his preferred method for teaching 6/8 to a piano student.

Preparing The Body For Practice

2008-12-11T18:50:00.000-08:00

Allie Nisbett is back demonstrating stretches and exercises that can be used by pianists to promote health and prevent injury. Stay tuned for more videos on topics in piano pedagogy from my students at MSU.

Memory

2008-11-28T11:15:00.000-08:00

Guest Blogger Allison Nisbett writes about a game she created for Kalil Olsen to help him with pitch and key identification. Allison is a Sophomore majoring in Piano Performance and Piano Pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music.

This is a memory game to help Kalil match the notes on the staff with notes on the keyboard. Kalil enjoyed the game, and it is a helpful way to practice away from the piano, not to mention a fun way to learn with other piano students. The game can be simplified, matching only one clef card to the keyboard card, or made more challenging, such as matching treble clef, bass clef, and keyboard cards all at once. To make the game more creative, once the game is over, students can use the notes on the cards they won to make up a melody. The goal of the game is not to name the notes, but to strengthen the student's correlation of the staff to the keyboard, and thus become a better music reader.

Improvisation and Creativity in Lessons

2008-11-16T16:43:00.001-08:00

Kalil Olsen, the student I've been chronicling over the last few months on this blog, continues to blow me away with his natural musical and pianistic instincts. At almost all of our meetings, Kalil with play something for me that he has composed in the past week. Kalil's ability to synthesize so many of the concepts we have been working on into these piano improvisations is remarkable. I try to work a bit of simple piano improvisation into each of our lessons. Watch Kalil and I jam in a minor mode:

I try to integrate many "unspoken" musical concepts into our improvising. In this clip, I try to get him to respond to harmonic changes, changes in mood, and formal elements. As you can hear, he's really listening!

Composing and improvising are Kalil's favorite activities on the piano. I spoke to my piano pedagogy class the other night about the importance of making each and every moment of a piano lesson a musical and engaging experience, and they have worked hard to create this for Kalil. We occasionally get so swept up in explanation and details sacrificing sheer joy in music making. I keep Kalil hooked with weekly moments like this.

Technique Talk in Holland Michigan

2008-11-07T19:45:00.001-08:00

I'm giving a talk this coming Monday evening at Hope College in Holland Michigan on teaching tone production to small children. If you're in the West Michigan area on Monday, I would love to meet you and discuss this important piano teaching topic.

http://www.hollandsentinel.com/news_community/x1772938684/MSU-piano-professor-to-speak-at-Holland-Piano-Teachers-Forum

Capturing the Sound

2008-11-04T14:21:00.001-08:00

Thomas Moss, a student in the Seminar in Piano Pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music, leads a pitch matching game that might be called "capture the sound." Our students just love this activity, and we've found that it has significantly refined their ability to differentiate between high and low sounds, as well as smaller differences in pitch level. Watch this brief video for a demonstration, and notice the sheer delight on the faces of our young students!

The Piano Pedagogy Blog featured on MusTech.Net

2008-11-03T18:49:00.000-08:00

The Piano Pedagogy Blog is now listed as #88 on a list of Music Education Bloggers featured on mustech.net. Check out this great site!

http://mustech.net/2008/11/03/less-than-two-months-to-go-for-the

Studio Recital Inspiration!

2008-10-27T18:33:00.000-07:00

My studio's recital on Friday night was a rousing success! The performances that my students gave were truly inspired. It's such an honor to be working with young musicians who understand the payoff of hard work at their instrument.

I use studio recitals as an exciting opportunity for my students to share the pieces they've polished with their peers, friends, and family in a safe and supportive environment. Without fail, these events prove to be excellent inspiration that leads to hard work and dedicated practice.

Please enjoy a few highlights in this brief video:

I try to arrange the order of performances in such a way where all levels of piano playing are mixed together. In this program, performances from my students at Michigan State were interspersed with younger students who might not be as experienced with performing. Kalil Olsen, the young student that my undergraduate pedagogy class has been teaching, performed right after two experienced pianists who played major works by Chopin and Schubert. I find that my students and those in attendance enjoy the variety and diversity of performances.

How do you format your studio recitals?

Studio Recital

2008-10-22T16:40:00.000-07:00

My studio is presenting a recital this Friday evening. If you are in the area, I'd love to have you join us. All levels of pianists will be presented playing interesting and thought-provoking musical selections. Please click on the following facebook event for further information: www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=44812500663&ref=mf

Moving Through The Sound

2008-10-15T15:32:00.000-07:00

Rachel is a very talented student of mine with a very natural and very strong physical approach to the piano. In a recent lesson, Rachel and I worked on the concept of "moving through the sound," that is, being sure that each note, phrase, and every movement at the instrument has an organic fluidity in the fingers, hands, wrists, elbows, and the even the entire torso to create sounds that are bold, but also singing. Please watch her first attempt at some of these concepts.

Bartok Redux in Undergraduate Piano Pedagogy

2008-10-03T07:46:00.000-07:00

Here's Kalil, from just a few days later, playing "Imitation and Inversion" one more time for Stephen Armstrong, an undergraduate piano performance major at Michigan State University. Notice how his sense of phrasing and line has improved---one of the goals my piano pedagogy class set forth for him during our last class.

Please excuse the jumpy video...I'm still learning how to edit movie clips correctly!

Imitation and Inversion

2008-09-30T11:32:00.001-07:00

Kalil is working on selections from Bartok's Mikrokosmos, Volume 1. Kalil, as well as many of my other students, are often fascinated by the analysis required to understand much of what is happening in these works.

Mikrokosmos is a collection of 153 piano pieces arranged in order of increasing musical and technical difficulty. Generations of pianists have studied these pieces to develop not only technique, but also their musical knowledge of sounds and compositional technique not typically found in beginning piano methods. Folk modality, pitch combination symmetry and atonality are found in many of these works, as well as irregular meter and other unique rhythmic aspects. Mikrokosmos is an underutilized teaching method in the contemporary piano studio that contains a wealth of very accessible musical materials that provide so much more than many modern methods.

In these videos, watch Kalil and I discuss the concept of musical imitation and briefly improvise using this concept. Also, watch Kalil perform "Imitation and Inversion" (#23) on September 25th. Stay tuned for a video of his performance of the same piece just a few days later in my undergraduate Piano Pedagogy course.

Further Finger Identification and Independence in Piano Pedagogy Class

2008-09-30T11:25:00.000-07:00

As my Piano Pedagogy class continues their teaching of "Pianoissimo" at the MSU Community School, they are realizing that drilling of rudimentary concepts such as finger numbers is an important topic to address a bit each class. Thomas Moss, a Piano Pedagogy graduate student, devised and executed an outstanding finger identification and finger independence exercise that utilizes a simple hand diagram on which our young students wrote their finger numbers.

MSU Piano Pedagogy featured on The Collaborative Piano Blog

2008-09-22T07:27:00.000-07:00

The Piano Pedagogy Blog was recently featured on The Collaborative Piano Blog. This is an excellent resource on all things piano written by Chris Foley from the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto.

Hand Position and Finger Independence for the Young Beginner in Piano Pedagogy Class

2008-09-19T12:23:00.001-07:00

MSU's graduate level class in piano pedagogy meets weekly to plan and teach a group class of beginning piano students. This class meets on Thursday afternoons at MSU's Community Music School, and is a fun introduction to the piano as well as an excellent training ground for teachers wishing to gain experience teaching very young students in a group setting.

In the first meeting of this semester, Justine Sasanfar, a Master's Degree candidate in Piano Pedagogy and Collaborative Piano, leads a fun activity that effectively demonstrates hand position, finger independence, and rhythm patterns in the span of just 1 minute!

Note Recognition with Kalil in Undergraduate Piano Pedagogy

2008-09-19T12:23:00.000-07:00

In week two of piano pedagogy class lessons with Kalil, Borah Han, an undergraduate piano performance major at Michigan State, works with Kalil Olsen on note recognition. As you can see in this video, Borah is an effective and friendly communicator. She's also a spectacular pianist! Kalil has Asperger Syndrome, a disorder on the autism spectrum that causes him to demonstrate some unique characteristics (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asperger_syndrome). As a possible result of this condition, Kalil exhibits particularly keen music performance abilities while having some trouble with concepts such as note recognition. His rhythm is very strong, he has a natural ability to create a range of sounds on the piano, and his focus during his lessons (which are observed live by 9 people!) and practice sessions is exceptional. At the same time, pitch reading has been a challenge that my students have decided to take head on.

This week, my class designed a system of sticker labels to help Kalil make a visual connection to landmark notes on the staff and keyboard. Using garage sale labels in three colors, my students helped Kalil place red stickers on the G of the bottom line of the bass clef and the A of the top line of the bass clef. Green stickers were placed on the E of the bottom line of the treble clef and the F on the top line of the treble clef. Middle C was marked with an orange sticker. We're hoping that such a system will create a connection of landmark keys with landmark notes in both clefs, as well as reinforcing the concept of distance and interval on the keyboard with the same on the clef. We look forward to seeing if this works! Stay tuned...

Introducing...Kalil!

2008-09-09T08:52:00.000-07:00

This semester, my undergraduate piano pedagogy class will be team-teaching Kalil, a student who has been studying with me for 2 months. As you can see from this video, Kalil has excellent musical instincts, strong rhythm, and a beautiful bold sound. Please follow his progress with us!

Piano Pedagogy Opportunities at MSU

2008-09-08T19:51:00.000-07:00

Thanks for visiting. I want to take a moment to make you aware of opportunities to study piano pedagogy at the Michigan State University College of Music.

The College of Music at Michigan State University is a premier institution with a track record of creating artists and educators who are making a difference in the musical world. Our College boasts world-class faculty, many opportunities to hear and participate in performances, and a connection to a prestigious public university. The undergraduate emphasis in Piano Pedagogy and Master's Degree program in Piano Pedagogy offer opportunities to study repertoire and teaching tactics at all levels, as well as hands on practical experience teaching both group and private lessons. Graduates of the Piano Pedagogy program at MSU have gone on to be successful teachers in many different arenas including colleges, private studios and in elementary and secondary institutions.

If you're interested in finding out more, please email me at polischu@msu.edu. Meanwhile, stay tuned for proceedings from our seminars in Piano Pedagogy as well as teaching tips and thoughts.

Welcome!

2008-08-29T18:00:00.000-07:00

Hello, and welcome to The Piano Pedagogy Blog!

Stay tuned here for posts from my piano pedagogy students at the Michigan State University College of Music and me about teaching piano. If you have any questions, please leave comments.

www.michiganstatepianopedagogy.blogspot.com

http://www.music.msu.edu/academic/degrees/pianopedagogyreq.php