by Rebecca Grooms Johnson This method offers a flexible combination of lesson books and web-based materials. The four core lesson books (Levels 1A, 1B, 2A, and 2B) can be purchased as hard copies (which are mailed to the home address) or as downloadable PDFs. The hard-copy packages are moderately more expensive. Both hard-copy and downloadable Less...

Tales of a Musical Journey, by Irina Gorin with assistance from Olga Lukantsov, is presented in the form of two chapter books for young children ages four to seven. Author Irina Gorin writes, "Books 1 and 2 cover the span of the first year of study and will sufficiently prepare the students for classical repertoire."1 The characters in this fa...

Method reviews return! In 2009, Clavier Companion began a series of reviews exploring all of the major piano methods published at that time. Two years later, the series concluded and we had covered twelve major methods! (You can access these articles collected into a special digital issue on the claviercompanion.com website.) Since then there have ...

Attendees of the 2015 National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy will have the exciting opportunity to hear guest artist Sean Chen—a brilliant pianist who was the first American in sixteen years to win an award (the third-place Crystal) at the 2013 Van Cliburn competition. Among his many other accomplishments and honors, Sean was also awarded the 201...

Technique is such a broad term— thousands of pianists with different physical approaches to the instrument play well and (hopefully!) without injuries. But often when we discuss injury-free techniques, we are talking about advanced pianists playing extremely demanding repertoire. Very few of us, however, will ever teach students at this level —a gr...

In the last twenty-five years a great deal of much needed attention has been given to musicians' injuries. It seems, however, that an overwhelming majority of the conference sessions and articles on this topic only address the potential injuries of advanced pianists—either at the collegiate or artist levels. In th...

Most of us have, at some point in our lives, been urged to be the best that we can be—to work the hardest, study the longest, practice the most. But what if you hear that the person against whom you are competing for a job or important gig is taking enhancement drugs that allow them to need less sleep, stay more focused, and become mentally sharper...

This issue continues Clavier Companion's survey of piano methods.1 Each article in this series has three sections—an introductory synopsis by the Associate Editor, two articles written by teachers who have used the method extensively in their studios, and a response from the authors of the method surveyed in the previous issue. We hope that you fin...

This issue continues Clavier Companion's survey of piano methods. Each article in this series has three sections—an introductory synopsis by the Associate Editor, two articles written by teachers who have used the method extensively in their studios, and a response from the authors of the method surveyed in the previous issue. We hope that you find...

This issue continues Clavier Companion's survey of piano methods1. Each article in this series will have three sections - an introductory synopsis by the Associate Editor, two articles written by teachers who have used the method extensively in their studios, and a response from the authors of the method surveyed in the previous issue. We...

We have all heard it from our beginning (and sometimes more advanced) students-that awful, wooden, unmusical playing. What can we do to fix it? If we tell them to crescendo to a certain note and then get softer, they stiffly climb up and down the dynamic ladder, and it sounds even less musical! Can musical playing be taught, or do some st...

Have you ever had a student who just couldn't sit still and listen? Have you ever had a student who couldn't focus on what you were saying for more than a few seconds? Have you ever had a student who got frustrated easily? Are these rhetorical questions? Of course they are! Anyone who has taught for several years has perhaps dreaded the sight ...

from the series: Issues and Ideas: Perspectives in Pedagogy Rebecca Johnson, Editor Over the years, I have received requests to teach students with various disabilities. I have always refused because I felt ignorant and ill-equipped to work with children who have these kinds of challenges. However, about a year ago I accepted into my studio a ...

from the series: Issues and Ideas: Perspectives in Pedagogy Rebecca Johnson, Editor One of my favorite comics in the Columbus Dispatch is called "Zits." As you might surmise, it is about a teenaged boy and his often befuddled parents. Occasionally, when his mother is particularly at a loss she opens a door in his forehead and peers in to see w...

Editor's Note: In our Summer issue an interview with Karl Bruhn introduced many of us to the concepts of Recreational Music Making (RMM) and some of the research that supports it. After reading the article, you may have said, "Sounds great, but how would I begin incorporating these concepts into my teaching?" In this issue, Brenda Dillon share...

The keynote speaker at the 2005 National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy was Karl Bruhn. This dynamic musician gave an exciting address on his work with Recreational Music Making (RMM). Mr. Bruhn has collaborated with Barry Bittman, M.D. - a leading researched in the field of mind-body medicine, who is actively leading a series of research projects...

When pedagogy professors get together, they often compare notes on the content and structure of their courses. But what do the students think? How do they and their learned professors know that they are getting the information and experiences that will truly prepare them to be successful piano teachers? I have asked three former pedagogy ...

As I have taught over the years, I have come to trust and rely on certain composers. I know that these composers write high quality music that my students will enjoy playing. But how do these composers start? Were they successful from the beginning? Did they ever get a rejection slip from a publisher?  One of the best of the long term, "tried ...

from the series: Independence Day: Music Reading Adult beginners seem to challenge everything we think we know about teaching. From the books used to the rate of skill development, adult learners are different from children. One thing we can do to understand our adult learners is to put ourselves in their position by becoming students ourselve...

In the last issue, students and parents responded to the question, What makes piano study a positive experience for you or your child?, and I invited readers to read the comments and to form their own conceptualization of recurrent theme(s). As I searched for common themes, it seemed to me that the major one was that the teachers of these children ...