Summer Trial of Piano Lessons: A Huge Success!

Summer Trial for Purcellville and Loudoun Area Piano Students:  www.piano2go.com

Our Popular Summer Trial is a Smashing Success!

It's high time for me to review the success of our 6-lesson summer trial program.  So far this summer, we've enrolled 10 students in our summer trial (1 60 minute student, 1 45-minute student, and 8 half-hour students), all of whom found Piano 2 Go's summer program on Google. Also over the summer, we lost a family of 4 students in July who moved out of the area, 5 students in June who were away too much over the summer or simply don't attend through the summer, and two families who deducted a family member from their enrollment.  That's a loss of 11 students, or roughly 22% of my class roster at the time.  I also expect 5 - 10 hours of student absences a week, due to students traveling or attending summer camps.  I know from experience to expect this every year, but what does a piano studio owner do with the extra time on her hands?  The summer trial is a great way to turn the vacancies and vacation cancellations into opportunities for new customers.  New customers get to experience my dependability and assess teacher-student compatibility before signing on to a longer-term relationship.  The program is also discounted (1 free lesson and I waive the travel fee) so families love the value!

Lessons can take the format of summer camp if desired, and we can do fun projects such as learning top-40 pop songs, doing 12-bar blues duets and jazz jams with the teacher, and supplementing with rhythm games and hand drum accompaniment.  I can even tote my Roland speaker along and teach kids improvisation while accompanied by YouTube backing tracks.

So what happens in the fall?  I will be able to place most of those who are available for low-demand times right away (pre-3pm and weekends) and those needing prime-time slots (3pm - 7pm) are usually be happy to wait a few months for a regular slot.  In the meantime, I e-mail my weekly cancellations every Sunday, and students on the wait list can pop into those times until a regular, recurring time slot is available.  This system has been working beautifully for the summer months, and families are happy to select from the weekly cancellation list.  In fact, there hasn't been one week my summer trial students haven't found a cancelled time that works for them each week.  I've even been able to offer several trial students a regular, recurring time.  

So I'd say our summer trial program has been a huge success!  I've been having a great time getting to know new students this summer and look forward to incorporating as many new faces as possible into the fall schedule.  Next year, the only thing I plan to do a bit differently is to offer a 4-lesson trial as well, for those who join up later in the summer.  So bookmark our website (www.piano2go.com) and look ahead for our 2018 summer trial programs!  

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For more information on Piano 2 Go's mobile lesson service or summer trial program, visit our website at www.piano2go.com!

Ethnic Pluralism in Composing? Yes!

Ethnic Pluralism in Music:  A Song's Journey from Klezmer to Hindu

(image courtesy http://www.jazzguitar.be/melodic_minor_modes.html)

I've been replacing my social media time with composing time at the piano.  A while ago I dove into a Jewish Fakebook for a Hanukkah party.  At the party, I found myself deeply enamored with the music, as my friend John sat by and translated the Hebrew for me.  But it was the energized sadness of Jewish music that stuck with me for weeks -- and apparently, its influence has infiltrated my composing.

So when a recent bout of insomnia hit, I resisted the urge to dip into the fomenting cauldron of social media addicts.  Instead, I hit the piano with a tune that was hopping around in my mind.  (I've actually cut back my social media time dramatically, an accomplishment facilitated by my investment in a "smart" flip phone.  Aye, it's pretty dumb by Apple standards, but it has helped me eliminated wasted time and replace it with artistic productivity.)

Back to the tune...

My intent was to compose something for a student.  I have always had a vision of composing a piece for every student and having the students perform my compositions in recital.  But I often get off course and the piece gets complicated; too complicated for a beginner.  This could be something I just have to accept.  But, nonethless, the piece became very interesting as I complexified it (that is one of my favorite made-up words).

My creation became a whimsical, syncopated dance of Klezmer Band meets Blues Pianist (of course, it is easy to take any Jewish minor piece for a detour into the blues scale, since the minor pentatonic is only one note shy of the blues scale).  As I allowed the piece to become a little more wild, it journeyed into some very long 7th chords stacked with 9ths and 11ths.  Finally, it landed on a very strange jazz chord (D-F#-G#-C) which gave me quite a stir!  I quickly discovered a delicious scale to marry with this chord, but I had no idea of what scale I'd stumbled upon.  I knew it looked familiar but I couldn't put my finger on it.  Later, at a piano lesson, I explained to my student that it looked like the A melodic minor (ascending) but it started on the 5th, so maybe it was Myxolydian Melodic Minor.  

When I got back home I looked it up.  Lo and behold...imagine my suprise that the Jewish romp-turned jazz tune had led me to a Hindu scale (also called a Mixolydian b6 or Mixolydian b13 or Aeolian Dominant Scale).  My scale was an E Hindu Scale.  This scale deceptively looks like a major in the beginning but suddenly turns minor in the last few notes.  Now my Eastern European-Jewish composition was flirting with Indian and American Blues scales...how cool is that?  Actually, I am quite enjoying it and can't wait to finish and share!

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Jennifer Warren-Baker is the owner of Piano 2 Go, a mobile music service offering in-home and Skype instruction in piano and composition, as well as piano entertainment.  Her business is headquartered in Purcellville, Virginia, USA.

How Do I Get My 6-Year Old to Practice 30 Minutes a Day?

You just signed up your kid for piano lessons, and he's doing great with Twinkle Twinkle and Hot Cross Buns, but his teacher is demanding 20 - 30 minutes per day of practice. You're lucky you get 5 minutes out of your kid. Each of his songs takes about 20 seconds to play and you really don't want to hear that nursery rhyme 500 times. So how on earth do you get a beginner to put in 20-30 minutes a day? Here's what I do with my boys, and it's working great. They started their lessons with me a few weeks ago and are (to our delight) -- advancing rapidly. We know they are enjoying it because they are ASKING FOR MORE SONGS AND HARDER SONGS!  It's all about developing daily HABITS and WITHHOLDING THE GOOD STUFF until piano practice is complete. No, I don't put them on a 30-minute timer and lock them in the room. No, I don't hound them or hover over them constantly. So what is my magic formula to get the wee beginner at the piano 20 minutes every day?

1. Break up the half-hour.  Break it up into 5-minutes here, 5-minutes there, etc.  
2. Withhold screen time/ iPad, etc.  Whatever their favorite leisure activity is -- withhold it until piano practice is complete.  (I add homework and chores as additional screen-time pre-requisites).  I know one family who forbids screen time during the week and the kids must earn weekend screen time through music practice and homework during the week.  All the children play 2 musical instruments.  There is no TV in the house, only access to movies on a DVD player.  It's not my exact system, but it works great for them!
3. Practice the same time/s every day and stick to it.  My kids have to practice 5 minutes before school, 5-10 minutes after school,  and about 10 minutes before bed (when I try to jam with them if I'm home by their bedtime).  By enforcing these three times every day, they are getting to the point that they just go to the piano after they get dressed in the morning.  
4. Add a piano app as part of their practice time.  I use Piano Maestro to help my kids learn to read music.  It's phenomenal and they enjoy keeping time and finding the letter names on the keyboard.  
5. Have them perform their songs regularly for grandparents/ friends/ relatives on Skype, phone, or Facetime.  This is a great way to get extra practice out of them!  They LOVE to show off their skills to others, and the compliments from family members are a huge encouragement to them.

Hope that helps you get your 20 - 30 minutes a day!

For more information on piano lessons or piano entertainment in Loudoun County, VA, contact me at jennifer@piano2go.com or call 571-439-0136.  My website is www.piano2go.com.

Video Tutorial: Moving Up To Two-Octave Scales

Ever wonder how you will make the leap up to two-octave scales? This how-to video tutorial will help you by showing you patterns and tricks that you never noticed before! By the time students are in intermediate-level literature, one-octave scales are no longer enough. Students will regularly be encountering two-octave scales in their music. Staying in one-octave mode is only going to hold you back from achieving virtuosity at your instrument. Let me know how my video helps you in the comments below. I would also suggest taking a look at my 2-octave scale chart, which has been viewed by over 600 people! http://freethepiano.blogspot.com/2012/10/major-scale-fingering-made-easy-helpful.html

Spooky Halloween Classical Sampler - Level 2 Elementary

Classical music is full of spooky themes that children love!  A few weeks before Halloween, I throw out my lasso and rope in the practice slackers with some festive surprises.  If my students have a keyboard in their home, I point them to all their scary organ sounds.  I treasure the smiles on their faces when I crank up Bach's Toccata and Fugue with an organ sound!   

I arranged this medley as a classical sampler for the level 2 student.  Even a level 1 student may be taught these short themes by rote (I spell out the letter names and finger numbers on the back of their practice sheets as a back-up for memory failure). I included "spooky" themes by Bach, Chopin, and Grieg.  I put them all in A minor to minimize accidentals and utilize a familiar level 2 hand position.  If they decide they like what they hear, we can procure a more lengthy version later (often, they decide they want to play the whole song).  Add as many repeats as you like, and experiment with sounds on your keyboard!  SO FUN!!!

Download and Print

Halloween Piano Music, Level 2 - Jennifer Warren-Baker
www.piano2go.com, www.freethepiano.blogspot.com

For more information on my piano lessons in Loudoun County, VA, visit www.piano2go.com.  

Clocks (Level 2): Motivate with this Popular Piece by Colplay!

The older student in a practice slump.  We all know the type.  This is the kid who can be re-ignited when the sensitive piano teacher dishes up Coldplay.  This is a very keyboard-centric pop song.  The keyboard part is recognizable to -- I'd say, 95% of Americans, regardless of age.

I like to keep my arrangements at this level short and sweet (note:  I left out the bridge).  All kids need to get going again is a recognizable tune that they can relate to (the kind they would be willing to blast in their earbuds).    

Also....have the students write in the names of the chords.  It's a good theory exercise.

Enjoy!

Download The Full Sheet Music by Jennifer!

The Importance of Empathy in Teaching

It's not about me.  It's about the student.  I have to constantly remind myself to feel the student's emotional burden:

• THE FINE MOTOR STRUGGLE.  Remember the struggle of fine motor coordination:  it's hard enough to get those tiny appendages to do what your brain tells them to.
• PRESSURE TO IMPRESS.  Remember the pressure they're feeling to please and impress their teacher, and how bad they can feel when they're unprepared.
• IT'S JUST HARD.  Imagine how hard the task is for them, even though it may be incredibly easy for you.  Break it down as much as possible and present it many different ways when the student doesn't get it.

I also have to fight my urges to correct prematurely, interrupt a student's playing, and allow distracting thoughts to enter my consciousness.  I keep these two things in mind:

• HEAR THEM OUT WITHOUT INTERRUPTING.  Students feel like they're failing if you interrupt them a lot when they're playing.  Hear them out first, or until they get stuck.  Or -- just wait out the piece and do a stop-and-correct run the next time through.  
• BE QUIET AND FOCUS.  If the teacher is writing while the student is playing, or she's looking at her text messages, the student gets the idea that what they're doing isn't important.  S/he gets the idea that the teacher is not focused on him/her.

To make a task more attainable, remember that a verbal explanation that works for some students will not work for others.  You'll have to empathize with their learning style and adapt your approach:

• SOME KIDS NEED TO SEE IT.  Is the child a visual learner?  Draw something!  Show them!  Demonstrate!  Use highlighters and post-it flags to mark up their music.  I often teach scales with picture scales (pictures of the keyboard with fingerings).
• SOME KIDS NEED TO HEAR IT.  Is the child an auditory learner?  If a child plays by ear, listening to you play it or hearing a recording will work wonders.  Just make sure they're still learning to read music, so they don't become overly dependent on their ear.    
• DO THEY NEED TO PHYSICALLY FEEL IT?  Is the child a tactile learner?  Some students do better if I tap the rhythm on the back of their hand. Sometimes I have them place their hands on their thighs and tap out the right/left rhythm as it occurs in the treble/bass clef.  

Finally, I have to empathize with their life.  I have found it good to cut them some slack now and then for the stresses of life:  final exams, AP tests, holidays when their family was out of town, vacations, and school plays.  If I'm just a ruthless tyrannical teacher every week of the year, I'm not allowing my students to be human.  Furthermore, musicians often work in energy spurts just before performances.  As long as there is not an ongoing history of poor practice or regression, it's best to be understanding for a short period and do some fun diversions or review until their routine has normalized.  I try to keep in mind...

• What are their outside stressors?  
• How many activities is this child involved in?  
• How much pressure do they put on themselves? 
• Is there family stress?  School stress?  What's going on in this child's life that may be hindering their performance today?

Keeping all these pointers in mind builds trust between teacher and student.  The student knows you're on their side, respecting their idiosyncracies, struggles, and learning style.