General, Printables

Best Piano Jokes

Joy Morin

I’ve just compiled list of kid-friendly piano jokes…read on below to check them out!

This compilation of piano jokes is also available as a pdf to give out to your students/parents, available on the Printables > Other Resources page.

  Piano Jokes (157.1 KiB, 19,753 hits)

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Why are pianists’ fingers like lightning?  They rarely strike the same place twice.

What do you call a cow that plays the piano? A moo-sician.

Where do pianists go on vacation? The Florida Keys.

What’s the difference between a piano and a fish?  You can’t tuna fish.

Why is an 11-foot concert grand better than a studio upright?  Because it makes a much bigger kaboom when dropped over a cliff. 

How did the piano get out of jail? With its keys.

Continue reading “Best Piano Jokes” →

Group Classes, Printables, Worksheets

Just Added: Hands & Fingers at the Piano Worksheet

Joy Morin

Just added: a new free worksheet, available on the Printables > Worksheets page:

Hands & Fingers at the Piano

This worksheet is suitable for use with new young beginners, either in the private lesson setting or in the classroom piano setting.  (I would not recommend using this worksheet with older students, because there is only room for little hands to be traced on this worksheet!)  In this worksheet, the student is instructed to trace their hands, and label the finger numbers on each finger.

Worksheet Objectives:

  • The student recognizes the left hand versus the right hand.
  • The student learns the abbreviations “LH” and “RH.”
  • The student understands the fingering numbering system for piano (1-5), for both hands.

Click here to check it out now!

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

Early Childhood Music, Group Classes, improving as a teacher, Music Camps, Rhythm, Teaching Piano

Teaching 2-Against-3 Using Movement

Joy Morin

In answer to a question a received last week, I thought I’d talk a little bit more about teaching 2 against 3, as I had mentioned in a post about teaching music through movement.

To tell you the truth, I have not needed to teach 2 against 3 very often so far, and when I have, it’s been in private piano lesson settings.  In the past, I’ve used a purely theoretical approach (similar to the method described in this article and this article) to teaching the concept, using tapping of the RH and LH, and have been only mildly successful.

However, I have experienced another method that works.  During my undergrad, I took a Dalcroze Eurhythmics course, and we went over a number of different meter and rhythm concepts, including the issue of 2 against 3.  Although I already understood the concept of 2 against 3 prior to that class, it was quite revealing to look at it from the perspective of movement.   Continue reading “Teaching 2-Against-3 Using Movement” →

Group Classes, Music Theory, Printables, Worksheets

Just Added: Sharps and Flats Worksheet

Joy Morin

Just added to the Printables > Worksheets page:

Sharps and Flats Worksheet

In this free worksheet, students will practice…

  • drawing sharps and flats in front of notes on the staff.
  • identifying sharped and flatted notes on the staff.
  • locate sharped and flatted notes on the keyboard.

This simple worksheet is a great way to check whether a student understands the concept behind sharps and flats.  I often send this sheet home with private students after introducing accidentals for the first time.  They are instructed to complete it on their own at home, and to bring it back the next week to earn a sticker.  =)

To download, visit the Printables > Worksheets page and scroll down to the S’s for “Sharps & Flats worksheet.”  Enjoy!

Announcements, improving as a teacher, Printables, Teaching Piano, Technology

Celebrating One Year!

Joy Morin

After browsing through the colorinmypiano.com archives and — alas! — it seems that we’ve missed our own anniversary!

Here’s a rundown of the history of the colorinmypiano.com blog:

  • It was on February 28, 2009 that I first conceived of this blog and wrote my first post: a welcome and brief statement of purpose.  I found my inspiration largely from Natalie Wickham’s Music Matters Blog and Susan Paradis’ Piano Teacher Resources.  My blog was initially a free wordpress blog, titled “Piano Teaching Blog” (or something similar).  At this point, I was running a successful piano studio of about 20 students out of my parent’s home, and finishing up my Bachelor’s degree in piano performance.
  • In May of 2009, I graduated with my Bachelor’s degree.  Over the summer, my husband and I moved so we could attend graduate school the next year.  Unfortunately, this meant I had to “give away” all my piano students and find new ones.  =)
  • On July 9, 2009, I decided that I was enjoying blogging enough to go full swing: I came up with the title “Color In My Piano,” bought my own domain name and a year’s worth of web hosting, and gave the site a whole new look. Continue reading “Celebrating One Year!” →
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

Words of Wisdom

Wednesday’s Words of Wisdom

Joy Morin

“Musical training is a more potent instrument than any other because rhythm and harmony find their way into the inner places of the soul.”

— Plato

Every Wednesday brings Words of Wisdom here at the Color in my Piano blog in the form of a musical quote or joke, intended to bring inspiration or humor to the middle of your week. Have suggestions? Send an email off to admin[at]colorinmypiano.com.

Announcements, Early Childhood Music

Early Childhood Music Classes

Joy Morin

Lately, I’ve been considering offering pre-piano music classes for children and their parents — someday, when I have a private studio in my home again (Right now, I teach piano privately through my university’s community music school.).  My goal in providing these classes someday is to better prepare young children (think ages 0-5, especially) for private piano lessons.  So, this semester, I enrolled in an Early Childhood Music class to learn about the various methodologies (such as Orff, Kodaly, Gordon, Feierabend, etc.) for teaching music to young children.

I’m excited to think about starting up these classes someday.  Here’s some things I’m been thinking about…

Things to consider:

  1. Location/space – large, open room.
  2. Parents’ presence – required or not?
  3. Materials – songbooks, musical instruments, colored scarves, rugs, cd player, etc.
  4. Class size – six to ten, perhaps?
  5. Ages – 0-18 mo., 18 mo.-3 yrs, 3-5 yrs.
  6. Class duration – 30, 45, 50, or 55 minutes.
  7. Sessions – 7- or 14-week sessions.
  8. Goals – music literacy; musical experience; aural development; building the parents’ & children’s repertoire of music to share in the home; music as expression; building of pre-piano skills; etc.

Types of Activities:

  • Songs with motions
  • Listening & responding with movement (classical, folk, jazz, pop, etc.)
  • Fingerplays
  • Chants
  • Musical games
  • Other activities

I think these classes will be fun!  And I’m hoping that introducing  such classes will give my beginner piano students a head start once they begin private lessons.  Has anyone offered similar classes in their piano studios before?  I’d love to hear about it.

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/89186997@N00/ / CC BY 2.0