My students don't believe me when I tell them there is a book called The Perfect Wrong Note. Nor do they believe me when I tell them that mistakes are good, that mistakes make us better musicians. The desire for perfectionism is all around us in our modern society, from the need to produce a… Continue reading The perfect wrong note
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'
At the Piano with……Lucinda Mackworth-Young
What is your first memory of the piano? Aged four, coming down the stairs in our house to hear my ten year old sister playing the piano very fast. Then I knew that I wanted to play-the-piano-very-fast! Who or what inspired you to start teaching? The discovery that music, more even than dancing (I had… Continue reading At the Piano with……Lucinda Mackworth-Young
Are you practising enough?
See this table of practice times: 1 60-minute Practice per Week = 2 Months Progress in 12 Months 1 30-minute Practice per Day = 6 Months Progress in 12 Months 1 45-minute Practice per Day = 12 Months Progress in 12 Months 1 60-minute Practice per Day = 15 Months Progress in 12 Months 1… Continue reading Are you practising enough?
Guest post: Early Years piano teaching
by Rebecca Singerman-Knight Teaching piano to ‘early years’ children (3-4 years’ old) is not a prospect relished by many teachers. Most of them are probably considerably saner than I. Some, by choice, will not take children below a certain age – often 6 or 7. This may be a personal preference in that they would… Continue reading Guest post: Early Years piano teaching
Encouraging curiosity and self-evaluation in practising
Seasoned musicians, students in conservatoire and specialist music schools, and piano teachers know that productive and self-critical practise is the key to progress. Younger piano students often need clear guidance and signposts to enable them to learn how to practise properly. Sally Cathcart, a musician, piano teacher, researcher, and founder/director of the Oxford Piano Group,… Continue reading Encouraging curiosity and self-evaluation in practising
Making the music 3-D
This week Eli, one of my students who has been learning with me for about 4 years, offered a wonderfully simple, yet insightful description of how we play musically, and ways in which we attempt to "tell the story" or "paint the picture" in music. He called it "making the music 3-D". It came up… Continue reading Making the music 3-D
Creating a musical ‘scrapbook’
When I was preparing for my LTCL Diploma - and indeed whenever I start work on new music - I put together a 'scrapbook' of music and video clips, in effect for reference to help with my study. "Listening around" your repertoire is incredibly helpful, not just listening to other works by the same composer,… Continue reading Creating a musical ‘scrapbook’
A Student Concert in Brighton
Last weekend I had the great pleasure of attending and performing in a student concert organised by pianist and piano teacher Helen Burford. It's always interesting to hear the students of another teacher perform, and is a great way of exploring new repertoire and celebrating the pleasures of playing the piano. Held in the Quaker… Continue reading A Student Concert in Brighton
How to play…… Beethoven – Rondo from Sonatina in F, Anh 5
This carefree 'Rondo' is an excellent introduction to the piano music of Beethoven for the intermediate student, offering a taster of what wonders and variety there is to enjoy and explore in his Piano Sonatas. Composed c1785, the Sonatina in F, Anh 5 is in two movements, and displays many of the style traits present… Continue reading How to play…… Beethoven – Rondo from Sonatina in F, Anh 5
At the Piano With……GéNIA
I recently had the privilege of interviewing the Russian pianist, teacher and creator of Piano-Yoga® GéNIA (Evgenia Chudinovich). The interview took place at London's prestigious Steinway Hall and has been edited into six parts, each of which covers different aspects of GéNIA's varied pianistic and teaching life and career. Click on a video to watch… Continue reading At the Piano With……GéNIA
A Piano Teacher Writes... 