Over at The Well-Balanced Pianist website, Dr. Tereasa Dybvig has some wonderful before-and-after pictures of students demonstrating posture at the piano. Let me tell you, a picture truly tells a thousand words! I’ve never before seen such a clear demonstration of the effects of incorrect posture. Bench height, distance from the piano, and having feet flat on the ground really do matter. Take a look! (Scroll down about halfway to get to the pictures.)
I found a very interesting chart at musicedmarket.com today, comparing what are probably the top 5 most popular piano methods:
Although this chart is probably somewhat outdated (for example, Alfred has recently introducted their new Premier series), there is still valuable information to be found. The chart compares the reading approach, rhythm/counting approach, Technique sequence, format/layout, and more. And the chart is available for download in both pdf and Microsoft Word document form.
Also available at musicedmarket.com:
Have you ever had a student who has a particular interest for learning familiar tunes? The internet is becoming a wonderful resource for easy piano arrangements – which you can commonly download and print for free. One site in particular that I have turned to frequently for my students is a site called G Music Theory by Gilbert DeBenedetti. His arrangements were perfect for a student I once had who wanted to be able to play some of her favorite songs. So I assigned a few of these “just for fun” pieces for her to learn on her own. It was a big hit – she loved them.
When you visit his site and click on Free Piano Music, you’ll find that he has a large amount of music sorted by difficulty (from Beginning to Intermediate) – including some duet music. What a great resource for those adults or little ones who want to learn to play their favorite tunes!
Be sure to check out the rest of the site – there are a number of music theory worksheets and other resources available as well.
Looking for an additional way to earn some money? Would you like to accompany musicians for recitals/rehearsals, but are looking for more ways to get your name out? PianoAccompanists.com makes it easy for musicians in your area for find you. Simply create a login and profile, and then musicians can easily find you by searching by zip code. Check it out!
Need ideas for what to give all your music students this year for Christmas or to reward them after a performance? Trying to stay within a budget? How about making grab bags full of music goodies! Your students are bound to be thrilled with this music-themed gift.
First, buy a package of cellophane favor bags – music-themed ones if you can. They are usually located in the party favors/decorations section at the store. Dollar stores often carry them as well. A good deal will cost from $1.00 to $3.50 for a package of 20 bags. If you cannot find favor bags, you can also use small gift bags – but it will probably cost you a little more. Continue reading “Making Grab Bag Gifts for Music Students”
This site is a great place to send your students who are working on Classical repertoire. Personally, I’ve been able to use the NAXOS site to listen to pieces I’m currently working on, but I’ve always had free access as a college student. (Otherwise you have to pay to use it.) But ClassicCat.net is free, plus it often allows you to not only listen to the mp3’s, but often to download them also! Continue reading “Link: ClassicCat.net”
One of my favorite blogs I follow is Susan Paradis’ Piano Teacher Resources. She does an amazing job creating colorful worksheets, games, etc. on her computer and she puts them up on her website to share with other teachers. A couple months ago, I had the opportunity to try out her Music Bingo game (complete with boards and calling cards) with a group of my students. This version is suitable for elementary level students. For even younger students, Susan Paradis has created a simpler version, available here. 
Did you know that iTunes offers free downloads each week? If you use iTunes on your computer (you can download it here) and if you have an account on iTunes that allows you to download, you can access free mp3’s to add to your music library. They usually showcase a different genre of music each week (sorry, Classical music doesn’t come up very often) and often showcase a new up-and-coming artist.
Here’s how: Visit the iTunes Store (available right inside of iTunes) and scroll down to the box called, “FREE on iTunes.” Click there. You will see (usually) three songs near the top that you can click on, and listen to a 30-second clip of the song. Decide if you like it, and then download it! Happy listening. 🙂
Click here to visit my eHow article on this topic.
Are you a frequent eHow user? My husband and I both have accounts on eHow, where you can write your own “How to” articles and make money. The money you make is based on how many times your article is read by others, and the money is safely deposited into your linked PayPal account. Don’t expect to make a ton of money, but if you keep up on it, it may be enough to cover your website hosting expenses each month. (That’s my current goal!) Below is a link to the article I wrote that summarizes the information from my most recent blog post, about conducting student interviews:
eHow article: How to Give the First Music Lesson: Interviewing the Student
If you haven’t tried using eHow before, give it a shot! There’s lots of great articles to browse through, and it is fairly easy to write your own articles.
Do you find yourself telling students how much easier it would be if they learned to recognize intervals on sight when they are sight-reading? Here are two new free, printable worksheets, designed to help students who have difficulty distinguishing between different intervals on the staff. The first one is for younger students who have just begun reading staff notation. It teaches and quizzes the difference between unisons, 2nds, and 3rds. The second worksheet is a little bit harder, adding 4ths and 5ths into the mix. Enjoy!
This worksheet is designed to teach/quiz the student in identifying the intervals unison through 5th, in both treble and bass clefs. The top line gives an example of each type of interval, and the rest of the page is dedicated to quizzing the student on identifying the interval.
To download, visit the Printables > Worksheets page and scroll down to the I’s for “Intervals Unison through 5th worksheet.”
Intervals Unison-5th Worksheet (40.6 KiB, 20,344 hits)
See also: New Worksheet: Intervals Unison-3rd
Do you find yourself telling students how much easier it would be if they learned to recognize intervals on sight when they are sight-reading? Here are two new free, printable worksheets, designed to help students who have difficulty distinguishing between different intervals on the staff. The first one is for younger students who have just begun reading staff notation. It teaches and quizzes the difference between unisons, 2nds, and 3rds. The second worksheet is a little bit harder, adding 4ths and 5ths into the mix. Enjoy!
This worksheet is designed to teach/quiz the student in identifying the intervals unison through 3rd, in both treble and bass clefs. The top line gives an example of each type of interval, and the rest of the page is dedicated to quizzing the student on identifying the interval.
To download, visit the Printables > Worksheets page and scroll down to the I’s for “Intervals Unison-5th.”
Intervals Unison-3rd Worksheet (39.0 KiB, 21,829 hits)
See also: New Worksheet: Intervals unison-5th
Here’s a link to a site where you can print some crazy musical scores. Somebody sure had a sense of humor. This would be a great gift to send home with your students on April Fools Day. :]
Your Cart is Empty
