Unexpected Review from a Student
Betsy, a teaching friend of mine, wrote to me recently and said that a student of hers played Twister at a winter recital and loved it. She said that it was a good piece for helping her learn to loosen up and let the notes flow. I was humbled and excited about this, but then she shared with me the program notes from this student. It is the highest compliment I think I could ever earn from a student. Here is what she wrote:
The composer of this piece is Wendy Stevens; she is a piano teacher herself and that is why I enjoy her pieces. She knows exactly what kids certain ages want to play for fun at their level. When someone plays the song to you it sounds too hard to play, but when you try it yourself you see that it is easy. This piece is also fun to play because the rhythm is so fun and bouncy. Whenever I plan this piece it reminds me of the Wizard of Oz!
I will treasure these words for a very long time. Thank you Maddy.
Read MoreNew Pop Book for Late Elementary
If you had asked me what songs were in my head last August, I would have sheepishly said that it was tunes sung by Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Train…just to name a few. Now lest I lose my diehard classical music friends in disinterest, let me encourage you to ask just about any of your students if they know who these people are. I’ll bet their eyes will immediately light up as they ask if you have any of their pieces they can play.
I know this book is going to be popular with my students, and I’ll bet yours will be begging to play from it too! The new book is called Contemporary Pop Hits and it includes the following pieces:
- All the Right Moves (Ryan Tedder)
- Baby (Justin Bieber)
- Breakout (Miley Cyrus)
- Hey, Soul Sister (Train)
- Love Story (Taylor Swift)
- Lovebug (Jonas Brothers)
- When I Look at You (Miley Cyrus)
I hope you’ll find this a useful book of arrangements to supplement your core curriculum and motivate your students to continue studying so that they can play all kinds of music that they love!
Read MoreReview of Tangy Tango
Don’t forget that I’m giving away 2 copies of “Tangy Tango” on Wednesday (AND there is an amazing product post and giveaway starting on Wednesday that you won’t want to miss!). See this post for information on all the ways that you can enter.
Susan Paradis has posted a review of “Tangy Tango” on her blog. She always does a wonderful job of describing a piece in details and what kind of students will like this piece. Thanks Susan, for your kind review!
Read MoreNew Piece and Giveaway: Tangy Tango
If you are looking for a flashy recital piece for a Level 1 student, Hal Leonard has just published a new piece of mine called Tangy Tango. This piece is perfect for the showy student or the student who wants to sound more advanced than they are. The teacher duet was particularly fun to compose, so I hope you’ll enjoy the piece just as much as your student.
Here is what Hal Leonard says about this piece,
The first recital will be a smashing success with a performance of this delightfully syncopated solo. The character of the little tango is further enhanced by the clever and stylistic teacher duet.
I’ll be giving away 2 copies of Tangy Tango next Wednesday! To enter your name, simply leave a comment when you do any of these things (no limit as to the number of entries you can have):
- Leave a comment below telling me what kind of pieces your current elementary students like to play.
- Blog, Tweet, or Facebook linking to this giveaway.
- Emailed another teacher about this giveaway post.
Thank you for your interest in this piece! I hope it meets a need in your studio. Don’t forget to read the latest article in the Composition Corner series. It was posted yesterday, so I don’t want you to miss the content because of this new post.
Read MoreNew Christmas Release from Kevin Costley
I wanted to tell you about a Christmas new release of my friend and frequent guest writer Kevin Costley. It seems to have been released a bit later than many Christmas books, but I know you’ll want to check it out for your students wanting to play a bit more than just a melody and chords this season.
This collection features arrangements of Kevin for the late elementary pianist. Below, you can see a sample from two of these pieces. The book is a new release published by and is available from FJH (800) 262-8744) though it is not currently listed on their website.
Read MoreA Musical Tribute to Abigail
Today is the birthday of Abigail Adams, wife of founding father John Adams. Ever since reading David McCullough’s book John Adams, I have been fascinated and inspired by this beautiful woman. Abigail was beautiful, witty and incredibly intelligent as evidenced by her many letters written to her husband John while he was away in Philadelphia and France.
Abigail Adams, masshist.org
One of Abigail’s biggest regrets in her life was her lack of education. Only a small number of academies in Massachusetts admitted girls during Abigail’s childhood, but her parents’ desire to protect her from the many epidemics that swept that part of the country kept her from attending. However, Abigail took much of her education into her own hands and learned to write well and think deeply because of her parents and grandmother. She once stated that her grandmother possessed a “happy method of mixing instruction and amusement together,” which makes me smile as a piano teacher!
Richard Cranch, who was to become Abigails brother-in-law also had a profound influence on Abigail’s education as he:
…put proper Bookes into my hands, who taught me to love the Poets and to distinguish their Merrits.
Abigail loved to read and would often get together with various people to discuss the books they had read.
One of my favorite one-word descriptions of Abigail is one which John assigned to her early in their courtship: “Saucy.” Abigail’s wit and and self-confidence earned her the title and I love that her spirit was indomitable!
American Portraits, halleonard.com
So perhaps it’s no surprise that Abigail was the inspiration for my American Portraits book. When I’m playing, “Letters from Abigail,” I envision Abigail seated at a small desk on the ground level of her house. The windows are open with the white curtains gently blowing in the wind and her children’s voices are heard outside in the distance. Abigail sits quietly, writing a letter to her husband John who has been gone for almost a year. She writes slowly, then lifts her head and glances outside of the window, hoping to catch a glimpse of her husband walking down the road toward her.
Listen to Letters from Abigail
I am currently reading Abigail Adams by Woody Holton and thoroughly enjoying this new take on her life. I would highly recommend this book for anyone interested in her life.
Happy Birthday Abigail!
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