I just updated one of the studio business forms from my Printables page for the 2025-26 school year. It is called the Lesson Attendance & Payment Sheet PDF. Even though I don’t personally use this sheet myself anymore (because prefer to charge a monthly flat tuition rate), every year I receive requests from teachers asking if I would please update it for the upcoming school year. And I’m happy to do so!
Continue reading “Freebie: Lesson Attendance Sheet Updated for 2025-26”
Hi there! Here is a quick blog post to tell you about a project I’ve been creating and testing for over three years: an assignment notebook I call the Musician’s Practice Planner. I’m pleased to announce it is now available for order in hardcopy!
Continue reading “NEW: Musician’s Practice Planner”[Click to read Day 1, Day 2, or Day 3.]
I began the morning by recording a podcast episode with my friend and conference roomie, Amy Chaplin of Piano Pantry. Click here to take a listen!
Then, I headed downstairs to attend a showcase session by Alfred Music. Davis Dorrough and crew highlighted a variety of their latest publications, including Rare Recital Treasures edited by Ingrid Jacobson Clarfield and Kevin Chance, a folio of early Florence Price works, Sandpaintings by Connor Chee, Saga Land by Elizabeth Swift (video game inspired pieces for early to mid intermediate levels), Take the Stage by Angela Marshall (creative performance pieces for early to mid elementary levels), and the Solo Celebration series by a variety of Alfred composers. I love hearing about what’s new!
Continue reading “Day 4 Highlights from NCKP 2025”
[Click to read Day 1 or Day 2.]
Once again, first thing in the morning I went to the exhibit hall to the make sure my Marketplace Table was arranged and ready for the day.
The conference schedule on Friday, July 25 began with a showcase session — presentations given by exhibitors. I attended the one by Hal Leonard. I always enjoy hearing the showcase sessions from the major publishers in order to hear about the latest publications. This session didn’t disappoint. I got to hear Glenda Austin’s incredibly expressive playing, highlighting her Solos for the Sanctuary series and Lyric Waltzes. Charmaine Siagian highlighted a new book called The Eugenie Rocherelle Collection in honor of Rochelle, who passed away earlier this year. Jason Sifford shared about his latest publication titled: “Play Piano Again” — an interesting book for adult students that pulls from the beloved music of John Thompson. And Brendon Fox talked about new releases in terms of classical piano publications.
Continue reading “Day 3 Highlights from NCKP 2025”[To go back to read Day 1, click here.]
Thursday, July 24 was the first official day of the conference, aside from the optional Innovation Summit the day prior. In the morning, I went to the exhibit hall to the make sure my Marketplace Table was arranged and ready for the day.
Last week, July 23-26, 2025 I attended the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy (NCKP) — an event held by the Frances Clark Center biennially in Lombard, Illinois, near Chicago. Here are some highlights from Day 1, Wednesday the 23rd. Hope you enjoy!
I drove out early Wednesday morning, leaving my home near Ann Arbor, Michigan at 4am. (Perhaps I am in the minority, but I would rather make a 4-hour drive in the early morning than the evening prior!)
This year, NCKP kicked off with a new event: an optional, one-day Innovation Summit. Because I had volunteered to be a discussion leader for the summit, I arrived around 7:30am to report for a brief meeting.
I hope your summer has been treating you well! I’ve been enjoying a slightly different schedule to enjoy more time with my little girls (now ages 5 and almost 3) and work on some creative projects.
For example, I’m pleased to announce that my Composition & Improvisation Prompts for Piano, Set 2 is now available in hardcopy!
It’s that time of year: recital season!
On Sunday, my students presented a recital of music around the theme of FOOD. Earlier this year, I had granted my two high school seniors the honor of choosing the theme, and that was the result. After the recital, we enjoyed a potluck meal together. Many of the families brought a food item that was related to the title of their student’s piece, which was fun.
We held our recital at the church where I am employed as part-time director of music. The church was recently blessed with a donation of a new piano: a Yamaha U1 with a Disklavier player piano system. (This is a story I hope to blog more about soon!) It’s a fantastic piano, making this venue even more ideal for our spring recital.
I was pleased that a few of my Ohio-based students were able to make the hour-long drive up to Michigan to participate in this recital. It made my heart happy to have my students together and get to hear some of my long-time students alongside the young ones.
One of my students was recognized with a Legacy Award — marking eight years of study with me.
My two senior masterminds behind the Food Theme – the one on the left was the new legacy student.
I’m sure many of you are in the midst of recital season in your own piano studio. Happy recital-ing to you!
P.S. Registration is open NOW for “Organize Your Life With Notion,” the acclaimed online Notion workshop with Amy Chaplin and me! Join us May 7, 14 and 21 from 12:30pm-2:30pm Eastern and we’ll help you unify your digital life in one place! Read more and register here.
Greetings and Happy New Year, my friends!
I’m pleased to announce that registration is now open for a three-day, online workshop about using Notion (a productivity and note-taking app) offered by Amy Chaplin and myself. In this workshop, Amy and I will teach you all about how to use Notion to create a custom digital workspace to organize your life and get work done. If you’d been around here for a while, you might have seen my past articles about Notion and how essential it has become to my workflow and life. I think it’s an amazing tool, and am pretty sure you’ll think so, too!
The dates will be on three Fridays, January 10, 17, and 24, 2024 from 1-3pm Eastern each day. Replay videos are included, and there is an optional follow-up session a few weeks after the main workshop is done.
Check out all the details and reserve your spot now HERE. (PS: Register now to take advantage of the early bird rate!) Hope to see you in the workshop on the 10th!
More reading:
A few months ago, I was inspired to see a Facebook post by my colleague Penny Lazarus, a piano teacher in Newburyport, Massachusetts, about her studio fundraising projects. Since starting these yearly projects back in 2010, she has raised over $20,000 total to support a variety of non-profit causes across the years. Wow!
Inspired by this, I just had to reach out and ask for more details and hear the story behind this unique practice. Penny was delighted to share about what she’s been doing with her students. We had an enjoyable conversation over Zoom, and Penny also wrote wonderful responses to my written questions. The result is this Teacher Feature post, a continuation of a series I’ve published off-and-on here on my blog over the years.
Without further ado, below is my interview conversation with Penny. I hope you’ll be inspired by her projects.
Continue reading “TEACHER FEATURE: Penny Lazarus on Fundraising Practice Projects”
One of my favorite late-Fall traditions is bringing out my books of Christmas carol arrangements for piano. Over the years, I’ve built a collection for both my own playing and teaching, storing everything in a sturdy wooden crate in the basement (which my husband kindly carries up each year).
When it comes to my personal playing, I tend to gravitate towards quieter arrangements with a contemporary, New Age-inspired sound and interesting harmonies — but I appreciate having arrangements in a variety of styles. Some of the collections in my library have been my go-to books for years, while others are newer finds that quickly proved their worth.
In the following article, I will share a list my favorite Christmas carol arrangement books that are perfect for personal enjoyment, holiday gatherings, or church services. If you enjoy playing beautiful arrangements of Christmas carols at the piano, as I do, this article is for you! I hope you’ll find something of interest that will become part of your go-to holiday repertoire each year.
Continue reading “My Favorite Collections of Christmas Carol Arrangements for Piano”
It’s early, I know! But the other day, I decided to browse on Amazon to see what I might find for a holiday gift for my students.
Is it necessary to give your students a gift during the holidays? Certainly not, but personally I do find joy in getting something small and fun to make my students smile.
Here’s what I’m thrilled to have found for this year: these accordion fold music ornaments!
Note: This blog post contains Amazon affiliate links. Thanks for supporting my work!
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