Category: Resources

Early Childhood Music, Games, Group Classes, Resources

Early Childhood Music Online Resources

Joy Morin

I’ve been digging around online lately, looking for early childhood music resources.  (Yes, I’m sorry – I’m still on this kick!)

Look what I found!  TONS of great links:

Songs / Sheet Music

Resources

Collaborative Piano Humor

Joy Morin

In this delightfully humorous post, Billie Whittaker shares some collaborative piano humor.  She shares some humorous tendencies she has observed in collaborative pianists — such as having advanced photocopying skills, and possessing strong opinions on the ‘use of plastic music protectors’ debate.  She goes on to share some of her own quirks — such as keeping a metronome in her purse at all times (I’m not the only one!!).

I’m so glad to hear I’m not the only one who does these things!  =D

She also shares this joke:

A pianist and singer are rehearsing “Autumn Leaves” for a concert and the pianist says: “OK. We will start in g minor and then on the third bar, modulate to B major and go into 5/4. When you get to the bridge, modulate back down to f# minor and alternate a 4/4 bar with a 7/4 bar. On the last A section go into double time and slowly modulate back to g minor.”

Check out the whole post here.  Also a must-see: A Brief Guide To Page-Turners.

(via The Collaborative Piano Blog)

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/candelabrumdanse/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Early Childhood Music, improving as a teacher, Resources

Music & Movement: Inseparable!

Joy Morin

One of the reasons I’ve been considering offering early childhood music classes is because I am a firm believer in the strong relationship between music and movement.  As an undergrad, I took two semester of Dalcroze Eurhythmics which I found incredibly useful.  We learned movements that fit different meters and learned to respond expressively to music through our movements.  I think students would have a much easier time developing a good sense of beat and rhythm if they could learn it naturally through movement.  Even complex concepts such as 3 against 2 seem more natural when approached through movement rather than a purely theoretical approach.

Besides, movement is fun!  =)

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kwanie/ / CC BY 2.0

Memorization, Resources

Practice Tips @ “The Practice Notebook” blog

Joy Morin

I was recently introduced to “The Practice Notebook” blog, created by flautist Zara Lawler.  She has tons of excellent tips for practicing efficiently, no matter what instrument you play.  Most notably, I found some excellent blog posts about her method of memorizing music.  In my experience, many teachers have their students memorize their pieces, but very few teachers actually teach how to memorize.  I am thrilled to find this blog that lays out a specific step-by-step method.  I am taking her suggestions to heart as I prepare my piano pieces for my midterm next week!

I hope write my own post with my own tips for memorizing music as well, but specific to piano music.  Watch for it coming soon!

repertoire / methods, Resources

Links page has been updated

Joy Morin

The Links page here at colorinmypiano.com has been updated!  I’ve created a new category devoted to sites with free sheet music, preferably for piano.

My personal favorite:

IMSLP / The Petruccit Library

This site contains TONS of sheet music pdfs of the great classical works!  Just this week, for example, I was looking to round out one of my student’s “musical diet” by giving her a piece from the Romantic Era.  After browsing around on the IMSLP site, I came across the Burgmüller Etudes Op. 100, which includes some lovely little pieces which were among my favorite pieces to play when I was a kid.  Examples: “Arabesque,” “Grace,” “Progress,” “Innocence,” and “Ballade.”

Do you have a favorite site where you print free sheet music?  Please let us know and I’ll add it to the list!

Resources

Great deals on Henle Editions this month

Joy Morin

Just wanted to pass on this info I received in an email this week:

Henle is a great edition especially for Bach and Beethoven.

Personally, I plan stock up on their wonderful vinyl covers to protect my books. I also want to try out this book of various classical pieces which looks like a great value for intermediate level students.  🙂

Resources, Technology

Free New Age Piano mp3s

Joy Morin

I recently came across an interesting site containing free mp3s of new age solo piano music.  What a great resource to pass on to my piano students!  It’s important for students to listen to a wide variety of music, but often they are only exposed to pop music.  New age piano music is bound to tickle the fancy of most students — especially since it’s free.

To download onto your computer so you can listen or upload to your mp3 player, right-click on the blue arrow beside the track you wish to download and select “Download linked file.”  Then open the file in iTunes (or whatever media player you use).  Enjoy!

Resources

Easy Improv Activity @ Music Matters Blog

Joy Morin

I apologize for the lack of posts recently — this week is the last week of classes at college, and next week is final exams.  It’s a busy time of the semester!  I will try to get back on track soon. 

I wanted to send you over for a look at Natalie’s description of an improvisation activity she enjoys doing with her students.  (As you may recall, I am particularly interested in improvisation lately, because it is the topic of the paper I’ve been working on all semester. I hope to share more of my findings soon, perhaps over Christmas break.)   This improvisation activity sounds simple enough to adapt for all ages.  I look forward to trying it with my students soon.