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Tuesday, December 24, 2013

Of Christmas Parties Old and New

My previous teacher, present colleague and longtime friend used to hold the best Christmas parties each year. All of her students were invited, and we so looked forward to the homemade doughnuts, Christmas cheer and carol singing around the piano. I was telling her granddaughter the other day how much I enjoyed these parties and how they became a part of my holiday tradition-- I would even come back from University to make the snowy drive up to her house.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Sounds of the Season

Well, the holidays are creeping up on me. I'm really tired from trying to prepare for them, and even though I keep running around doing things I don't feel as though I'm getting ahead! I do enjoy this time of year though-- all of the get togethers with friends and family, the fun winter activities and of course an abundance of festive sounds. I love to listen to holiday music while I'm working away at home. And when I take a break I play through some of my Christmas piano music. Last week I read through one of my all-time favourites: A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

A Composition Project: Duets Part 3

Ok, here is the final instalment in my primary duets project: it's a little ditty called Sneaky Snakes. I wanted to compose a duet that incorporated some sound effects, namely because they are fun! Some sound effects I have come across recently include drums, hand clapping, foot stomping, vocal sounds, snapping, and tapping or knocking on the piano itself. But I wanted to use something different.

Friday, November 29, 2013

Canada Music Week Recital 2013 (ORMTA Owen Sound Branch)

Our recital was one week ago today, and I think it went really well! Altogether we had 22 students play a wide variety of Canadian works.  A couple of fun duets were showcased, and even some brave adults played to the very appreciate audience.  Everyone played so well and confidently, and it was a great way to share all the hard work we'd done this fall.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Canada Music Week/Blue Snowball Mic Trial #2

November 17th to 23rd, 2013 is Canada Music Week... it's a week to celebrate, support and promote everything to do with Canadian music.  Yay!  This friday our local registered music teachers group (ORMTA) is hosting a student recital in celebration, and the program features twenty different Canadian composers.  Stay tuned for highlights from this recital...

But for this post I am choosing to feature one of my favourite Canadian composers, Alexina Louie.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Inspiration Comes Easy

I like to take walks.  They're usually in the morning (the best time of day, I think!) and always down my road.  When we lived in town I would do my walking downtown-- there I would see interesting people and storefronts, run some errands and maybe grab a coffee.  Now that we've moved out of town I see and hear a giant waterfall, chat with my hubby on his way to work and do tons of thinking about my music.

Friday, November 8, 2013

A Composition Project: Duets Part 2

As you may know, I am working on completing three piano duets by the end of November.  I got the idea for my second duet as I was exploring the website of Canadian composer and teacher Rebekah Maxner.  I was ordering a fantastic new book from her called Madge's Notebook- A Piano Tribute to The Hunger Games and while exploring the site came across a duet called Jolly Pachelbel.   In this duet the teacher plays Pachelbel's Canon while the student plays Jolly Old Saint Nicholas.  It's a really cool arrangement!

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Making Learning Fun

Lately I've been on a kick to gather some really fun supplementary materials to use in my studio.  It started out with simple worksheets to send home or complete in the last few minutes of a lesson.  Now I'm collecting a whole "tickle trunk" full of colourful games, flashcards, exercises and seasonal/themed pieces that I believe add a spark to each lesson.

Saturday, October 26, 2013

A Composition Project: Duets

I'm currently working on composing a few elementary level duets.  My goal is to compose three duets by the end of November.  Since I have never attempted to compose a duet before I thought it would be fun to share how I got started and the result: my first duet!

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Blue Snowball Mic Trial #1

So for some reason the GarageBand app on my iPad mini isn't supporting my new usb mic (and I even bought a special adapter cable for it!) so I had to move my computer in order to use the mic today.  I had the piano tuned less than a week ago and the microphone seems pretty foolproof, so I hope it sounds good!  I could definitely use a crash course in GarageBand but that is another story...

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Music for Yoga I

When I do yoga I like to play music from my iTunes library.  It's usually from my classical playlist, but recently I've started adding music to a special yoga playlist.  So whenever I hear something that works particularly well for the meditative aspect, rhythmic breathing, or pose flows involved in my routine I add it to the new list.  I know this list will continue to grow, which is why this post is called Music for Yoga I.


Tuesday, October 1, 2013

My New Mic

So I got my fancy official letter today from CFMTA and (cue drum roll) my honorarium!  And I've already decided what I'm going to buy with my prize money: a professional-quality USB microphone called the Blue Snowball. I got my inspiration for this purchase from an invaluable music blog called Pianoanne (I love you Pianoanne!).  
I can hook up this cool-looking gadget to my iPad and start recording pieces with Garage Band right away.  

Monday, September 16, 2013

Ensembles are fun!

On August 28th my friend and colleague Irene and I attended a fun workshop at Debra Wanless Music Studio called Ensemble Fun.  Irene and I have been playing together for a couple years; we try and make an effort to get together regularly, and are always working on something new and challenging.

I have loved playing duets, trios, duos, and double duos since I was a kid.  I have only great memories of ensembles: playing ridiculously fun music together and laughing a whole lot.  The bonus is that ensemble playing is good for musicians!

At Debra's workshop we learned about the history of piano ensemble, choosing ensemble partners, rehearsal tips and of course repertoire.  We read our way through tons of new Canadian ensemble music, then got to go shopping at the end.  What a fun morning!

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

The Start of Fall Term

Today was the day.  Some teachers will wait for students to "settle in" at school before starting back with piano lessons.  But not me! I like to start back with the first week of school.  In fact the sooner the better!  I have so many new ideas and goals rolling around in my head that I really can't wait to start sharing and working on them.

I've had some time over the summer to get lots of new music games and worksheets ready, plus I'm trying out this fabulous set of books called Northern Lights by the Canadian National Conservatory of Music.   My friend and colleague Irene and I decided to purchase the entire series this summer while at the music symposium Summer Sizzle.

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Summer Sizzle 2013

From July 21st to 23rd I attended a fantastic piano pedagogy symposium called Summer Sizzle.  This is an annual event held in Mount Forest, Ontario that brings together music educators, musicians, composers and students alike.

The workshops covered topics such as Memorization, Interpreting Modern Scores, Teaching Tricks, and Teaching the Highly Tactile Learner.  The practitioners were both engaging and inspiring, and I came away with a wealth of information and ideas. I can't wait to get going in the studio this fall!

Alyssa at Drum Fit class!

Saturday, July 20, 2013

End of Term Recital

This being the first post on my new blog, it seems fitting to share with you the exciting start of summer.  On June 13 the studio-- along with the students of my friend and colleague Irene Enns-- presented a Junior/Intermediate Piano Recital to finish off the term.  This recital reflected all the hard work and commitment each student demonstrated this year, and besides my living room being a tad crowded I think everyone enjoyed themselves!

Everyone signed their name.