Technique
Scott McBride Smith, Editor
My dear friend Ingrid Clarfield sent me an E-mail the other day. "I'm so impressed you actually took a course to study something new!" she wrote. I was kind of impressed with myself, too, if you want to know the truth. But it wasn't easy.
I have long been dissatisfied with the outside-the-lesson musical experiences of my students. For one thing, few people sing anymore. The repertoire of folk songs, camp songs, college cheers and old-fashioned popular songs that my mother sang to me has apparently been totally forgotten. Trying to explain a melody in a piano piece to a child who has never sung is tough. So is relating the feeling of movement in music to students who spend most of their time sitting at a school desk or in front of a computer.
So I decided to see what I could do in my own independent studio to rectify this situation. With a group of like-minded colleagues, I took three intensive courses from a marvelous expert in music for young children, Cathy Mathia, of East Dallas Children's Music, a trainer for the Musikgarten method. Piano lessons? There wasn't a piano in the building. Instead, we spent six-plus hours a day singing, dancing and storytelling, and learning how to creatively share these activities with young children. I got a cramp in my thumb taking notes, but it was worth it.
I came away from
the sessions deeply convinced that if we care about the overall
health and well-being of our students, piano lessons simply must
include more than just piano. I'm happy to report that the three
authors in this issue's column agree with me and share some great
ideas to enlarge the musical experiences of your studio. Piano
technique is more than just fast fingers-it's anything and everything
that helps a student perform music more completely. Be sure to
give the writers' ideas a try!
from Neil Rutman's article
To listen or not to listen
What "away from the piano" practice techniques can be recommended for young students? Undoubtedly that hinges on what a teacher considers practicing, but for my students, the most valuable "away-from-the-piano" musical study consists of a consistent and enjoyable diet of CD listening. And I'm not talking about the Dixie Chicks! Assigned listening to age appropriate pieces from the repertoire will distill in their musical psyche and can transform their piano skills.
How many of you have ever encountered a talented 16-year-old, who on picking up a piano piece, whether it be Brahms or Ellington, has the all-too-frequent misfortune of making them both sound alike? Oh, YES you have!! They follow the score parrot fashion, almost as though playing on a computer keyboard--no atmosphere, commitment, or any of that sparkle that makes great music. These students have no emotional point of reference for that Brahms or Ellington piece--just the score in front of them. So the teacher has to explain everything from scratch to an often non-comprehending mind. . .
Neil Rutman is a laureate of the Kappell, Cleveland, Busoni, and Concert Artist Guild International Competitions, has performed from Avery Fisher to Queen Elizabeth Halls, and has recorded for Centaur and ASV. He is currently Artist in Residence at the University of Central Arkansas where last year one of his students distinguished himself by winning the East West Artist Audition in NYC. A boxer by avocation, Dr. Rutman also coaches the University boxing team.
from Timothy Schorr's article
A multi-sensory approach
At the earliest levels of study, when students undergo a rapid rate of mental and physical growth, teachers can use a variety of "away-from-the-piano" practice techniques to reinforce important musical and technical concepts. Exploring the fundamentals of note and rhythm reading, pulse and meter, dynamics, phrasing, and articulation from many different points of view is essential. This process will actively engage students in the learning process and enable them to better comprehend and assimilate new ideas. . .
Timothy Schorr is Assistant Professor of Music and Coordinator of Applied Piano and Pedagogy at Viterbo University in La Crosse, WI. An advocate of both solo and ensemble literature from all musical periods, he is an active recitalist, clinician, and adjudicator. He holds the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, where he taught in the Preparatory Department for seven years.
For the other Samplers from this issue
