I’m pleased today to announce the release of a sequel — Set #2 of Composition & Improvisation Prompts for Piano! Below, I’ll tell you more about it and share a free sample page for you to try out with your students.
It was early on in my teaching career when I began helping my students compose their own pieces. It was fun, and I could see how my students were benefitting from experiencing the compositional process.
Still today, I enjoy being able to help students compose on demand throughout the year. I also love offering composition camps during the summer — it’s my favorite camp theme! (Some years we use this curriculum, and other years not).
Sometimes, students have a hard time getting started with a composition project. There are two main challenges I’ve observed in students:
- Getting inspired. Simply telling students to “go compose a piece” is too broad as a directive. It causes many students to become overwhelmed before even getting started.
- Learning how to create music that sounds like the topic they have chosen.
Those challenges were the reason I created Set #1 of the Composition & Improvisation Prompts for Piano back in 2013. This e-book containing 20 unique prompts is designed to help students not only find inspiration for their composition, but also them get started creating music that sounds like their chosen topic.
Each of the 20 prompts provides a topic idea, a brief written description, and an image intended to help inspire the student and generate enthusiasm for the project.
The “goals” listed on each prompt are designed to help the student successfully create a piece that will sound like the topic they have chosen. For example, for a piece about rain, students might be encouraged to use staccato sounds.
Some students enjoy following the goals exactly, while others end up rejecting some of the goals in favor of other options. In my mind, both results are a success — the prompt has served its purpose either way!
The purchase of the “Prompts for Piano” e-book includes a license allowing the purchaser to print from the PDF as much as desired, forever — as long as the printouts are being used with your own students. (And yes, you may also use this PDF with your students for online teaching purposes!)
I allow my students to browse the prompts and choose the topic they are interested in. I keep a printed set in my studio, but I’ve also uploaded the PDF e-book to the GoodNotes app on my iPad so that I can print directly from there. So convenient!
I’ve had a few teachers request a “Set #2” so they could have more prompt options for their students. I’m pleased to announce that Set #2 of Prompts for Piano is now available, with 20 all-new prompts!
Please feel free to download a FREE sample from “Prompts for Piano” Set #1 called “Monkey Business.” This free PDF is available on the Printables > Other Resources page (scroll down to the C’s for “Composition & Improvisation Prompt – Free Sample”), or by clicking the link below.
Composition/Improv Prompt - Free Sample (102.8 KiB, 17,080 hits)
Both “Prompts for Piano” e-books are available here in the Shop as an immediate download, for $16 each. If you are interested in purchasing both Set #1 and Set #2, you can purchase the bundle for $28 (save $4).
Thanks for checking out my “Prompts for Piano“!
