Vintage PA: Leaving People Better Than You Found Them
It's easy to teach when everything is going well, when families support each other, when children are perfectly behaved, when students are healthy. It's a lot tougher when parents are…
Scary But Not Dangerous
One of my adult students has chosen to work on Haunted Spot from Schumann's Forest Scenes. "I just don't know how to go about this," she said when she brought it in.…
PA Shorts: Do It Again…
The following funny struck a chord (voiced of course) with myself and many others when it went live last week. Most of us who are teachers have experienced both sides…
PA Shorts: Job Security
My college teacher told us over and over that his goal was to put himself out of a job! What??? Understanding was gradual for me. I needed his help and…
Playing With Wolfgang: A Romantic Accusation 2
“You’re a romantic!” said my teacher in a surprised voice, as though this explained everything he found perplexing about me. I had never been accused of being anything but a…
Leaving People Better Than You Found Them
It's easy to teach when everything is going well, when families support each other, when children are perfectly behaved, when students are healthy. It's a lot tougher when parents are…
Playing With Wolfgang: Random & Awkward Redeemed
I remember a feeling of complete frustration and incomprehension. It happened frequently during my undergraduate years. But two incidents really stand out from the rest. The music? Liszt’s Sonetto 104…
We Don’t Need No Stinking Board Games
“We don’t play board games in my studio.” I’ve been told this many times over the years. The reasons have varied. Piano learning is serious business. I don’t have time…