Thank You!

If you spent a little time with the Town Hall Estates Residents after your child's performance you know how much they love to hear them play. But most of all they enjoy the hugs, because they love children!

I think I could hear one of them singing each time a student played "The First Noel" , did you hear it too?

Thank you for having them practice, and bringing them to the nursing home. I was very impressed with their willingness to sign up to play and most of all their excitement!

I was very pleased with each student's composure when nerves took hold of their fingers or a wrong note got in the way. This happens even to professional pianists and they handled it exactly the way professionals do. Keep on playing as if nothing has happened. Please share this with them especially if there were any broken hearts or tears.

Have you tuned your piano this year?

If your child is practicing on an acoustic piano, you must make sure that your piano is tuned. Especially those students that are required to use a "practice CD".

Do you service your car regularly?

Do you clean your house regularly?

Has your child complained about the weird sound your piano makes?

Your piano needs to be tuned at least once a year...

Call your favorite piano tuner soon or pick up a business card at my studio.

Where Does My Tuition Go?

Congratulations on choosing to participate in music lessons! Music has been found to enrich the
lives of all who participate in its creation or in its enjoyment. When you choose to take music lessons, you are choosing to learn a skill that will benefit you and bring you joy your entire life! No price can be put on such a beautiful art as music. Yet, obtaining the skill will certainly require assistance from a professional—your music teacher. Your teacher has chosen to make music her business and their occupation. As with any business, costs are calculated to both ensure that the highest quality product is given and that the business makes enough profit to continue providing their services.

What does my yearly tuition cover?
All independent music teachers (IMTs) differ in methods of operation. However, the tuition of
nearly all teachers covers the following:

• Time spent with the student.
Lessons, performance classes, group lessons.
• Time spent in preparation for the student.
Trips to the music store, lesson planning, bookkeeping, development of curriculum, etc. It has been cited by professional music journals that for every hour enrolled in piano lessons, you are investing in at least 2 hours of the teachers time!
• Your teacher’s training and experience
• Recital costs and preparations
Programs, refreshments, facility rental.
• Professional organization memberships
Memberships are maintained by the teacher to enhance their teaching skills and provide the student with opportunities for festivals, competitions, and performance events.
Professional journals
Publications to assist the teacher in keeping current on new teaching materials and trends.

Studio expenses
Copying, computer software, incentive programs, instruments, tunings, repairs,
newsletters.
• Music books and CDs, materials purchased by the teacher to keep costs low for students.
• Property taxes, self-employment taxes, insurance, business licenses, retirement
The IMT has no corporation to assist in providing health and life insurance by matching funds. Tuition helps cover the increased living costs of your self-employed teacher.
• Continuing education
Lessons and classes that keep the teacher current on methods and techniques
• Certification costs
IMTs pay to be re-certified every five years provided they have met all the continuing education and studio requirements. This keeps the teacher accountable to a professional organization.
• Book and music club memberships
This enables many discounts to be passed to the students.

This information is used by permission from http://www.wendyspianostudio.com/.”

Music Conservatory - Costa Rica

This is the building for music students at the SDA university in Costa Rica, UNADECA, the only SDA university in Central America.

I was shocked! This used to be the home of one of my friends! (The house I grew up in is also now a classroom). Now it is the music department - no renovations. Ok, ok, maybe some new paint here and there. Ironically, it is located in front of my parents home in Costa Rica. Just like my home and my studio in Keene...

What is most shocking is that this music department owns 2 out-of-tune upright pianos that have probably been there since my youth, a couch, a few chairs. The building includes 2 more empty rooms and a restroom. This is very sad. This is the school (not the building) where I learned to play the piano, sing and love music. Why is music not a priority in our schools, Costa Rica or Keene?

I hear the old folks complain about the lack of people to play for church. Are they paying for someone to teach the new kids? I hear them complain about the quality of music and how everyone is now singing with a track. Who is teaching them otherwise?

Ok, so for alumni weekend I rehearsed with a group of ladies and it was good to remember the music we sang 20+ years ago (yikes!). But why have we all gone away and "improved" ourselves while leaving nothing for those who come after us? My first thought is to move back to Costa Rica and help pick up the pieces. There is so much to do. I wonder, will I forget about this when I return to my own studio in August in the hustle and bustle of my own teaching?

Marimba Ponies

OK. Forgive me if you have already seen this! I have been accused of not watching enough T.V., so I was pretty excited to find this video on You-tube while searching for something else. I am especially amazed at the tiny fellow at the marimba. Enjoy!

Piano Camp Week 2

Summer Piano Camp - Week 1

This was one of the best weeks ever for Piano Camp! Thank you parents and children. Enjoy the slide show... (48 pictures).

Why Group Lessons?

Group lessons means working together! It is vital to realize that group piano lessons are not just several people in the room at the same time. Singing , dancing, drumming and playing notation games together are activities which capitalize on the psychology of group participation.

Consider these contrasts between group and individual musical learning:

*Singing with a group is relaxed and fun. Singing alone can cause anxiety since so much attention is fixed on accuracy.

*Beat and rhythm are best experienced as part of a group. How can one learn to move expressively to music or follow a conductor by only practicing alone?

*Dancing and drumming create a joyful dynamic within a group. Here, the group synergy produces a mutually-enhancing experience whose whole surpasses the sum of its individual parts.

*Motivation through peer interaction is most effective. Prompting from an adult clearly takes second place and self-motivation will come later with maturity.

*Thorough deep learning occurs as a result of the group's multi-track approach to singing, moving, listening and discussing. Private lessons often end up dealing primarily with a student's own technical challenges.

As a group approach to piano study, Musikgarten capitalizes on the child's love for participating in activities with other children. The beginning piano student longs to be part of a group, especially one of peers. The group setting creates an ideal learning environment for children, and is especially ideal for music learning.
(adapted from Music Makers: At The Keyboard Teacher's Guide year 2)

Just for Fun

Music for Toddlers

Just a few snapshots so that you may see the youngest students at Dorla's Piano Studio in action! Adrianna, Gabriel and Tomas shaking the egg shakers to the music (t00 loud for Tomas?).
Even dads join our class from time to time and it is a special treat to hear them sing with their little ones. Keep bringing your dads Tomas and Miscily!
Even Samuel (who will be 6 in May) enjoys this class. He is supposed to be my assistant in class...
The happy faces of Elizabeth and Adrianna.

Office Orchestra

Thanks to T'resa Weaver for sharing this video with me!

Keyboard Gymnastics

Ten piano students have just finished participating in two Keyboard Gymnastics events: Creative Project which is my favorite and Sight reading which is nobody's favorite.
The judge for this event was Irene Herr, Music and Drama teacher at KISD and former Keene Church choir director from when Ms. Dorla was not yet married (has it really been 20 years?)
Anyway, the students did a lovely job, their scores were good and I have kept their displays up at the Studio for this week, so that you can enjoy their hard work and maybe be inspired to participate next year.
Congratulations!

Brian Evans- " Awadagin Pratt"

Brandon Evans - "Scott Joplin"

Lauren Turk - "Music about Horses"

Kaylin Thurber - "Mozart's Letters"

Vincent Davis - "The Lion King"

Christopher Turk - "Music and Computer Games"

Jasmin Jones - "Jean Phillipe Rameau"

Veronica Jones - "Classics with a Twist: Interpreted in Art"

Conestoga Blues

This is a miracle piece. In the Fall of 2007 Tyler began studying this piece and he had the most difficult time getting the rhythm right. For weeks he tried separate hands, with the metronome, without the metronome, playing by rote, tapping his foot, etc. and nothing seemed to work.
I finally gave up and assigned him a new piece. And wouldn't you know? Tyler came back to the studio proclaiming that he could finally play Conestoga blues (Baily). I was doubtful, but I listened anyway, and was pleasantly surprised!
Congratulations Tyler on a job well done.

Canoe Song

The Singing Circle is part of every group piano class. This is where we learn the melodic patterns of the songs we will eventually play and one of the ways to get the music firmly cemented in our brains. In this video you will see Jared, Ismael, Mikayela, Kelsey and Taylor, paddling their canoe in duple rhythm, while singing a melody line and an ostinato (dip, dip and swing) which changes from girls to boys at my prompting. Did you understand any of this? Well, this class of 8 year olds knows this is the way to make music. Our next step down the road will be to transfer it to the piano.

Music for a Sunday Morning

As I write this it is 23 degrees outside with a beautiful blue sky and bright sun.
However, it is still COLD!
I invite you to grab a cup of something warm and delicious, click on the video below and listen to Sean Aqui (age 11) share a composition by Catherine Rollin titled Solar Wind.