Mindful adjective 1. attentive, aware, or careful (usually followed by of): mindful of one's responsibilities. 2. noting or relating to the psychological technique of mindfulness: mindful observation of one's experiences. The Mindful Pianist by pianist, teacher composer and examiner, Mark Tanner is the latest volume in the Piano Professional series published by Faber Music in… Continue reading The Mindful Pianist – Mark Tanner
Author: The Cross-Eyed Pianist
Frances Wilson is a pianist, writer, music and arts reviewer, music PR, and blogger on classical music and pianism under the pen name 'The Cross-Eyed Pianist'
Adventures in Interpretation
There is so much in music that is subjective and open to personal taste and interpretation. In order for us to play convincingly, we have to develop an interpretation that is meaningful TO US, vivid in all its details. Unless we are convinced by what we are doing, we are unlikely to convince our audience… Continue reading Adventures in Interpretation
Faber Music Piano Anthology
This attractive anthology contains a wealth of favourite piano pieces and gems of the repertoire, including Fur Elise, Gymnopedie No. 1, Solfegietto in c minor, La fille aux cheveux de lin, To A Wild Rose, and many other popular works by leading composers for the piano. There are also pieces by lesser-known composers such as… Continue reading Faber Music Piano Anthology
Practising the Piano Online Academy goes live
Those fortunate enough to have studied with acclaimed pianist, teacher and writer Graham Fitch will be very familiar with his intelligent, insightful, inspiring and highly accessible approach to piano playing. The internet allowed Graham to share his expertise and knowledge initially via his very popular and readable blog 'Practising the Piano'. This was followed by… Continue reading Practising the Piano Online Academy goes live
Piano Masterworks – a smart new app from Tido Music
Tido, in partnership with renowned music publisher Edition Peters, has created a smart new iPad application for pianists which takes the educational app to new heights. Tido has already developed the Mastering the Piano app with Chinese superstar pianist Lang Lang, and therefore already had a stack of tech and musical know-how with which to… Continue reading Piano Masterworks – a smart new app from Tido Music
Picture this
Using visualisation techniques in playing, performing and teaching Visualisation techniques have been used by sports people and sports psychologists for some time now to enable the tennis player or athlete, the golfer or cyclist to prepare for a match-winning shot or prize-winning sprint. The technique involves imagining an ideal scenario and positive outcome to achieve… Continue reading Picture this
Grade exams don’t make musiciansÂ
She can certainly play the 2015-16 [Grade 8] syllabus pieces A-C brilliantly......Can she play anything else? I’ll get back to you on that. This is a quote from an article about graded music exams by journalist Rosie Millard, who, by her own admission, is "a pushy music parent" when it comes to her children's music… Continue reading Grade exams don’t make musiciansÂ
ABRSM launches a new Diploma
Source: ABRSM Media release - 4 August 2016 ABRSM is strengthening its current diploma offering with the addition of a new performance qualification, launched today (4 August). The new assessment, the Associate of the Royal Schools of Music (ARSM), has been launched to provide learners with an opportunity to develop and demonstrate their performance skills… Continue reading ABRSM launches a new Diploma
Reflections on ten years as a piano teacher
Another term is over, and as my students depart for their summer holidays, I have time to pause and reflect as my piano teaching studio approaches its 10th birthday. I never intended to be a piano teacher. I worked for ten years in art and academic publishing after leaving university and I continued to freelance… Continue reading Reflections on ten years as a piano teacher
Mindfulness – the piano collection
I showed this new book from Faber Music to one of my teenage students and she exclaimed "Wow! That's so cool!". She told me she liked the design, the selection of pieces and above all the illustrations which one can choose to colour in between practise sessions. Mindfulness, a simple practice of meditation which encourages… Continue reading Mindfulness – the piano collection
A Piano Teacher Writes... 