A few weekends ago, I attended the annual state conference of the Michigan Music Teachers Association (MMTA), held October 10-11, 2025. The venue was Saginaw Valley State University — about 1.5 hour drive from home. I had the pleasure of serving on the conference planning committee this year, and was especially looking forward to seeing how the event turned out.
Continue reading “MichiganMTA 2025 State Conference”
Last week, I shared a review of the Yoto Mini, a screen-free audio player that has become an everyday fixture in my life as a parent and piano teacher. One of the best things about Yoto is how easy it is to create your own cards with custom playlists. Doing so allows me tailor listening for my kids and for the piano lessons I teach.
In this guide, you’ll find a clear, step-by-step process and two Canva templates to help you design artwork and build custom playlists for “Make Your Own” Yoto cards.
Yoto offers hundreds of excellent audiobook and music cards. However, Yoto’s “Make Your Own” cards unlock additional possibilities that are personal, flexible, and fun. Here are examples of what you can do:
Continue reading “How to Make Custom Playlist Cards for a Yoto Player”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.
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”
When it comes to piano technique, many pianists often think of exercises involving scales, arpeggios, chords, and more. However, at its core, technique is actually about sound – that is, being able to achieve a desired expressive effect on the instrument.
In piano teaching, technique exercises can provide young pianists with opportunities to explore different sounds and ways of using their bodies in an effective, efficient, healthy and comfortable manner. Unfortunately, pianist injuries are quite common, but by prioritizing student wellness, we can help turn this trend around.
Today, I want to share about a book I have been finding useful with my piano students over the past couple of years and now consider a go-to resource in my teaching. It’s called Technique Builders: Fundamental Study Patterns to Improve Piano Proficiency, by Hazel Cobb. In this review, you’ll learn why I recommend Technique Builders and how you can use it effectively in your piano teaching. (Bonus: Download my handy-dandy errata sheet at the end of this article!)
Continue reading “REVIEW: Technique Builders, by Hazel Cobb”
What do you do when a piano is too worn for use, but too costly to repair? Here are some ideas on how you can use an old piano.
Check out what how lovely this old bench looks with a fresh coat of paint! Continue reading “Ideas for Upcycling Old Pianos”
A few months ago, one of my adult students introduced me to a wonderful UK-based magazine called Pianist. As a piano teacher, I couldn’t be more pleased that my student found this magazine.
I reached out to folks behind Pianist magazine to request a few back issues so I could write this review. They generously agreed. I’m excited to share with you more about this magazine today!
My student has been so enjoying reading the articles in these magazines and learning pieces included in the issues.
UPDATE: Please visit this post for the latest 2022 RCM Piano Syllabus version.
Today, I’m sharing a project that I have been working on extensively for the past three weeks. I am very excited to have this project complete and be able to share it with you!
For the last two years, I have entered a couple of students in the Royal Conservatory’s Music Development Program (previously known as The Achievement Program and the National Music Certificate Program in the U.S.). It is an excellent program that I hope to continue to use with my students. Preparing for the practical exams has been a positive experience for my students.
As a newcomer to the MDP, I found it challenging to keep track of the technical requirements with my students. I found myself pulling out the MDP Piano Syllabus at every single lesson in order to clarify something or check if we were doing things right. And writing out the technical requirements on my students’ assignment sheets each week was time consuming, especially since I expected my students to review each previous weeks’ material. Continue reading “Freebie: 2008 Technical Requirements Charts for RCM/MDP Practical Exams”
Happy Valentine’s Day, my fellow teachers!
A reader recently shared this photo on the Color In My Piano facebook page, of valentines created using last year’s printable design. Love it!!
If you have photos of how your valentines turned out, I’d love to see them. 🙂
Remember the piano valentines I made last year?
I was wasn’t planning to design a new music-themed valentine this year — but when inspiration struck, I just had to design it!
Is it a heart, or is it a piano?! Well, it’s both! 🙂
This design is simpler and easier to assemble than last year’s design. Just cut out the heart shapes! If desired, you can attach a piece of candy to each valentine using a circle of tape. I made a bunch of these to give to my piano students next week.
The free pdf printable can be downloaded by visiting the Printables > Other Resources page, and scrolling down to the P’s for “Piano Valentine Printable 2.” Enjoy!
Piano Valentine Printable 2 (146.6 KiB, 15,793 hits)
I’ve added a new sign to the pdf pack called “Signs for Beginner Piano,” which I originally posted in September. This new sign shows the 2 mnemonics I use when I teach piano:
You can find the whole pdf on the Printables > Other Resources page, and scroll down to the S’s for “Signs for Beginner Piano.”
Our previous Forum Q&A post was about Christmas gifts for piano students. We received a LOT of responses — thank you! I will definitely be consulting that post again next year when Christmas rolls around!
Our new Forum Q&A is a topic suggested by a reader. She says:
“My New Years resolution in my studio is for myself and my students to sight read and prepare more duets. I would love suggestions on duets at all levels.”
So, please share in the comments of this post! What are some of your favorite solos or books for piano duet to use with students?
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