Here's another early film from the Cinephonie series (posted by YouTube user wmozart) that probably dates from the early 30's. This one is an interpretation of Karol Szymanowki's Fontaine d'Arethuse performed by legendary violinist Jacques Thibaud and pianist Tasso Janopoulo with dancers Sabine Earl and Michel Gevel.
Previously: Link to Alfred Cortot Cinephonie film
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Sunday, January 28, 2007
10,000th Visitor
Today at 10:46am, a visitor from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania entering the site via a Google Blogsearch query for "piano", and staying 8 minutes 12 seconds, became the site's 10,000th visitor.
Many thanks to those that have visited The Collaborative Piano Blog in the last 14 months, whether regular or first-time visitors. Your interest and input has made this site a success not only for myself, but for the entire collaborative piano profession, a new but not-so-new corner of the classical music world that is still in many ways inventing itself, its meaning, and where it might go.
Many thanks to those that have visited The Collaborative Piano Blog in the last 14 months, whether regular or first-time visitors. Your interest and input has made this site a success not only for myself, but for the entire collaborative piano profession, a new but not-so-new corner of the classical music world that is still in many ways inventing itself, its meaning, and where it might go.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
The best seat in the house?
Byron Janis writes in the Wall Street Journal about the vicissitudes of playing in various types of performing spaces, from the pianist's point of view. A snippet:
Link
As you are rehearsing on stage, you wonder why you have spent so much time at home fine tuning the pedaling, the dynamics, and the tempos when they will all need altering in this new acoustical environment. These last-minute adjustments remain one of the concert pianist's major challenges. Whatever sound we hear on stage governs our performance and, one could almost say, becomes our "co-creator."
Link
Friday, January 26, 2007
Cheap classical music ideas in Toronto
The Torontoist (recently nominated for a 2007 Bloggie award) lists ways in a recent posting to see the TSO, COC, National Ballet, and various recital series without paying full price. Read the comments as well for additional ideas.
Link
Link
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Oops!
Some recent posts from My Other Life had me on the floor: an unbelievable Messiah blooper, as well as two YouTubes of assorted opera bloopers.
Bathroom Divas publicity eblast
E-blast.jpg)
This is a publicity eblast I received this evening. Pictured in the photograph: wincing on the left is Daniel Lichti, biting right index finger beside him is Liz Upchurch next to Mary Lou Fallis with hands in protective position over ears, being comforted by a cringing Tom Diamond.
Sunday, January 21, 2007
The Extreme Piano Guide, or 30+1 Ideas to Improve your Practice Time
Here are some ideas, links and products to inspire and jump-start your practice sessions, presented in no particular order and intended to be read at leisure.
1. Create a list of goals to determine what you need to accomplish and how to go about doing it. Knowing what you desire to accomplish at the piano, whether learning/perfecting repertoire or preparing for festivals, auditions, or exams can help you create a plan of action as early as possible that will help you organize what needs to be done and how to go about doing it.
2. Find the best time of day to practice, then try to utilize that time on a regular basis. Some of us concentrate best in the morning, while others prefer the evening. Going to the piano right after school may an idea to get your practice muscles going before doing other things, such as homework, dinner, and computer time.
3. Find the best place to put your piano. Rooms without television sets or computers provide the most distraction-free environments and mean that there will be less family traffic.
4. Get your piano tuned. A piano in good tune and regulation will sound better and be a lot more inspring than one that isn't tuned.
5. Minimize distractions. Time spent at the piano is your time and you have the right to tell others to leave you alone while you perfect your art. Don't answer time-wasting phone calls--rather, let the machine pick up or have someone take a message. Phone calls are infamous time-eaters.
6. Take a look at your teacher's notes from last lesson. Most teachers will write down in a notebook or progress sheet the pieces covered in each lesson and what to focus on during the week. Paying attention to your teacher's notes can save valuable time spent puttering and steer you toward what needs to get done during the week.
7. Create a weekly plan. What do you need to get done during the week and what are the steps to get there? Creating a concise list of weekly goals puts your daily session into perspective.
8. Create a long-term practice plan using Remember the Milk. Remember the Milk is a simple yet effective task management system which, although still in beta, is one of the most highly-rated programs of its kind on the internet. One of the features of RTM is that you can also have reminders sent to you via email or SMS.
9. Figure out what you are going to play first. Do you start with technique? A bit of sight-reading? Hanon exercises? Or jump right into your pieces? If so, where do you start, the beginning? Trouble spots? Running the piece? Slow practice? Where you start a practice session can often set the pace of what get accomplished. Find what works best for you.
10. Get into the flow with Steve Pavlina's 7 Rules for Maximizing Your Creative Output.
11. Also from Steve Pavlina's site, read about creativity.
12. Read about Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's ideas on flow and creativity.
13. Read about Flow in Wikipedia.
14. Read Roy Palmer's account of Running in the Zone.
15. Allow yourself time to discover. Piano practice isn't just about work, but also about discovery, creativity, building, finding, digging, uncovering, and polishing. Piano practice isn't about satisfying others' goals for you, but finding what is important to you, going on the journey, and finding it.
16. Write a practice journal. This is the type of journal to be written and read by you alone unless you choose otherwise. You can talk about anything, whether it be your progress, goals, start/end times, thoughts on your time at the piano, inner battles, mental blocks, and breakthroughs.
17. Write a practice comic book. Print out a blank calendar, then draw a short sketch and caption detailing every day that you practice, go to a lesson, or perform. Do this for a while and you will have an illustrated and sometimes humorous record of your progress at the piano.
18. Divide and conquer. Can't concentrate for two hours? Break it up into smaller sessions. There's nothing wrong with going to the piano for shorter practice sessions if that means being more focused. For example: an early intermediate student practicing 30 minutes a day can easily divide that time into two 15 minute sessions. An advanced student practicing 2 hours daily can divide the time up into 1 hour, 40 minute, and 20 minute sessions.
19. Take breaks. Active brains need to take a break sometimes and so do muscles. Try taking a 5 minute break every half hour to recharge yourself.
20. Work on your sight reading skills. Sight reading isn't a cruel form of torture devised by piano teachers. Rather, think of it as a way to improve your looking, listening, and feeling while at the keyboard, as well a way to drastically cut down on the amount of time needed to learn a piece of music. (For even more inspiration, read my previous post on 10 Ways of Improving your Sight Reading Skills)
21. Read The Art of Practicing
by Madeline Bruser. This book can offer you a way into observing your approach to practicing, and how to integrate body and mind in order practice with ease.
22. Read Nancy O'Neill Breth's The Piano Student's Guide to Effective Practicing
. This six-page folio offers 58 techniques on how to approach practicing, as well as a guide on how to use them in your time at the piano.
Update 04/28/07:
Ms. Breth has recently published a companion volume entitled The Parent's Guide to Effective Practicing
.
23. Read Chuan Chang's Fundamentals of Piano Practice.
24. Read Yoke Wong's suggestions on piano practice.
25. Read the eHow article on how to practice piano.
26. Read Charles Moss' comments on required piano practice.
27. Read Martha Beth Lewis' article on suggested practice techniques. Be sure to take a look at the rest of this fine site--it's probably the largest and best compendium of piano-related information on the internet.
28. Read the article on suggested practice techniques on the Piano Education Page. The Piano Education Page is not merely a page, it also has much interesting information for both parents and students.
29. Run at least one piece before the end of the session. It's important not to lose sight of the forest for the trees. After taking things apart, it's always a good barometer of progress to play the entire work at the end of a session to gauge progress. If you still have problems at the end of a session, make note of them and try again at your next session.
30. Experience all that the arts have to offer. Go to the symphony, go to the opera, see a play, visit a gallery, read great novels, read or write poetry, learn to draw, take up dancing, learn to work with clay, learn to live with the arts. Your life will be made better as a result.
I hope these 30 ideas have helped you in your quest for success and fulfillment at the piano. In case all else fails, here is #31...
31. Take a day off. Everybody needs a break, including pianists. Go do something else today and come back to it with a fresh attitude tomorrow.
1. Create a list of goals to determine what you need to accomplish and how to go about doing it. Knowing what you desire to accomplish at the piano, whether learning/perfecting repertoire or preparing for festivals, auditions, or exams can help you create a plan of action as early as possible that will help you organize what needs to be done and how to go about doing it.
2. Find the best time of day to practice, then try to utilize that time on a regular basis. Some of us concentrate best in the morning, while others prefer the evening. Going to the piano right after school may an idea to get your practice muscles going before doing other things, such as homework, dinner, and computer time.
3. Find the best place to put your piano. Rooms without television sets or computers provide the most distraction-free environments and mean that there will be less family traffic.
4. Get your piano tuned. A piano in good tune and regulation will sound better and be a lot more inspring than one that isn't tuned.
5. Minimize distractions. Time spent at the piano is your time and you have the right to tell others to leave you alone while you perfect your art. Don't answer time-wasting phone calls--rather, let the machine pick up or have someone take a message. Phone calls are infamous time-eaters.
6. Take a look at your teacher's notes from last lesson. Most teachers will write down in a notebook or progress sheet the pieces covered in each lesson and what to focus on during the week. Paying attention to your teacher's notes can save valuable time spent puttering and steer you toward what needs to get done during the week.
 | Musician's Practice Planner A Weekly Lesson Planner for Music Students. General Music. Softcover. Size 8.75x11 inches. 80 pages. Published by Molto Music. (311358) See more info... |
7. Create a weekly plan. What do you need to get done during the week and what are the steps to get there? Creating a concise list of weekly goals puts your daily session into perspective.
8. Create a long-term practice plan using Remember the Milk. Remember the Milk is a simple yet effective task management system which, although still in beta, is one of the most highly-rated programs of its kind on the internet. One of the features of RTM is that you can also have reminders sent to you via email or SMS.
9. Figure out what you are going to play first. Do you start with technique? A bit of sight-reading? Hanon exercises? Or jump right into your pieces? If so, where do you start, the beginning? Trouble spots? Running the piece? Slow practice? Where you start a practice session can often set the pace of what get accomplished. Find what works best for you.
10. Get into the flow with Steve Pavlina's 7 Rules for Maximizing Your Creative Output.
11. Also from Steve Pavlina's site, read about creativity.
12. Read about Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's ideas on flow and creativity.
13. Read about Flow in Wikipedia.
14. Read Roy Palmer's account of Running in the Zone.
15. Allow yourself time to discover. Piano practice isn't just about work, but also about discovery, creativity, building, finding, digging, uncovering, and polishing. Piano practice isn't about satisfying others' goals for you, but finding what is important to you, going on the journey, and finding it.
16. Write a practice journal. This is the type of journal to be written and read by you alone unless you choose otherwise. You can talk about anything, whether it be your progress, goals, start/end times, thoughts on your time at the piano, inner battles, mental blocks, and breakthroughs.
17. Write a practice comic book. Print out a blank calendar, then draw a short sketch and caption detailing every day that you practice, go to a lesson, or perform. Do this for a while and you will have an illustrated and sometimes humorous record of your progress at the piano.
18. Divide and conquer. Can't concentrate for two hours? Break it up into smaller sessions. There's nothing wrong with going to the piano for shorter practice sessions if that means being more focused. For example: an early intermediate student practicing 30 minutes a day can easily divide that time into two 15 minute sessions. An advanced student practicing 2 hours daily can divide the time up into 1 hour, 40 minute, and 20 minute sessions.
19. Take breaks. Active brains need to take a break sometimes and so do muscles. Try taking a 5 minute break every half hour to recharge yourself.
20. Work on your sight reading skills. Sight reading isn't a cruel form of torture devised by piano teachers. Rather, think of it as a way to improve your looking, listening, and feeling while at the keyboard, as well a way to drastically cut down on the amount of time needed to learn a piece of music. (For even more inspiration, read my previous post on 10 Ways of Improving your Sight Reading Skills)
21. Read The Art of Practicing
by Madeline Bruser. This book can offer you a way into observing your approach to practicing, and how to integrate body and mind in order practice with ease.22. Read Nancy O'Neill Breth's The Piano Student's Guide to Effective Practicing
. This six-page folio offers 58 techniques on how to approach practicing, as well as a guide on how to use them in your time at the piano.Update 04/28/07:
Ms. Breth has recently published a companion volume entitled The Parent's Guide to Effective Practicing
.23. Read Chuan Chang's Fundamentals of Piano Practice.
24. Read Yoke Wong's suggestions on piano practice.
25. Read the eHow article on how to practice piano.
26. Read Charles Moss' comments on required piano practice.
27. Read Martha Beth Lewis' article on suggested practice techniques. Be sure to take a look at the rest of this fine site--it's probably the largest and best compendium of piano-related information on the internet.
28. Read the article on suggested practice techniques on the Piano Education Page. The Piano Education Page is not merely a page, it also has much interesting information for both parents and students.
29. Run at least one piece before the end of the session. It's important not to lose sight of the forest for the trees. After taking things apart, it's always a good barometer of progress to play the entire work at the end of a session to gauge progress. If you still have problems at the end of a session, make note of them and try again at your next session.
30. Experience all that the arts have to offer. Go to the symphony, go to the opera, see a play, visit a gallery, read great novels, read or write poetry, learn to draw, take up dancing, learn to work with clay, learn to live with the arts. Your life will be made better as a result.
I hope these 30 ideas have helped you in your quest for success and fulfillment at the piano. In case all else fails, here is #31...
31. Take a day off. Everybody needs a break, including pianists. Go do something else today and come back to it with a fresh attitude tomorrow.
Saturday, January 20, 2007
Practice room wisdom
A series of mini-articles about playing the piano by James Boyk offer wonderful glimpses of the day-to-day process and growth of practicing. A sample:
Link
You're wondering why that melody has "bumps" even though you're playing with care? Notice how some notes are longer than the rest? Look at how it moves mostly in 16th-notes but here and here it has dotted eighths. If you listen carefully, you'll notice that the bumps come on the first notes after the relatively long notes. Play them just a touch softer and all will be well.
Link
The Young Collaborative Pianist Part II
What time in a pianist's development is the best to introduce the rewards of working with others? I have always argued that the earlier collaborative experiences are offered, the better, even if a pianist never intends to follow a career in the collaborative arts. I know I hold the minority opinion among piano teachers, but I've always felt strongly about the value of making music with others of similar interests.
Nancy O'Neill Breth, in her presentation to the 2005 MTNA National Conference in Seattle, argues for the importance of finding appropriate collaborative repertoire at an early stage in a pianist's development:
She goes on to list high-quality repertoire at various levels (although only of the chamber music variety rather than vocal), as well as info on publishers and websites.
I disagree with Breth's statement that "the difficulty of finding interesting chamber music pieces appropriate for early level players is an important reason that teachers hesitate to introduce young students to ensemble playing." No need to be diplomatic--the reason that most piano teachers don't introduce their students to chamber or vocal collaboration at an early age is that they don't know of its importance or simply don't care about introducing it, content to have their students play solo repertoire only. The teachers who recognize that playing with instrumentalists and singers is important at a young age will find appropriate music, get an ensemble together, and have their students reap the benefits of these activities.
Nevertheless, Breth's MTNA paper is part of a growing corpus of information on the importance of finding ways of introducing pianists to ensemble playing, as well as the repertoire and process to make it happen.
The Young Collaborative Pianist Part I
Update:
s55ael in St. John's writes about setting up a studio with the long-term goal of introducing collaboration:
Nancy O'Neill Breth, in her presentation to the 2005 MTNA National Conference in Seattle, argues for the importance of finding appropriate collaborative repertoire at an early stage in a pianist's development:
Typically, piano students begin playing chamber music only after they have studied for years and are ready to attempt Mozart or Beethoven trios. Yet practicing with other people can be a lot more fun than practicing alone. When pianists start playing chamber music, they gain an additional reward for their hours of solitary practice. And in turn the ensemble playing deepens their musical skills and understanding.
She goes on to list high-quality repertoire at various levels (although only of the chamber music variety rather than vocal), as well as info on publishers and websites.
I disagree with Breth's statement that "the difficulty of finding interesting chamber music pieces appropriate for early level players is an important reason that teachers hesitate to introduce young students to ensemble playing." No need to be diplomatic--the reason that most piano teachers don't introduce their students to chamber or vocal collaboration at an early age is that they don't know of its importance or simply don't care about introducing it, content to have their students play solo repertoire only. The teachers who recognize that playing with instrumentalists and singers is important at a young age will find appropriate music, get an ensemble together, and have their students reap the benefits of these activities.
Nevertheless, Breth's MTNA paper is part of a growing corpus of information on the importance of finding ways of introducing pianists to ensemble playing, as well as the repertoire and process to make it happen.
The Young Collaborative Pianist Part I
Update:
s55ael in St. John's writes about setting up a studio with the long-term goal of introducing collaboration:
Having only set the studio up recently (less than 18 months ago) I don't focus on yet on having students work with each other due to the majority of my students being 8 years of age or so and in the first two years of playing. However, when they bring their pieces back to me prepared well, we *always* perform it as a duet. I have found the Faber Piano Adventure series have beautiful and creative duet arrangements. I'm looking forward to when the studio has developed enough in skill level and number of students to start pairing them and I will certainly use my contacts from all my accompanying to pair instrumentalists/singers of other teachers. And lastly, it makes a huge difference, I strongly believe, for the piano teacher to be an active performing pianist.
Friday, January 19, 2007
Winterreise with Alexander Dobson and Yannick Nézet-Séguin
Baritone Alexander Dobson will be joining forces with conductor and pianist Yannick Nézet-Séguin in a performance of Schubert's Winterreise on February 3rd at Toronto's resonant and art-filled Haliconian Hall on 35 Hazelton Avenue. Tickets are $20 for this Linden Leaf production.Contact info: 1-877-548-0899 or linden leaf presents [at] gmail dot com
Link to some cool Winterreise links on a previous post
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Relaxing classical music?
Miles Hoffman's recent article in the LA Times (Thanks, Well-Tempered) about the recent tendency to market classical music as "relaxing" has got me thinking. Does selling an entire genre of music somewhat falsely as a colossal chill-out constitute selling out the entire genre? Many classical music stations sell their product as something that can bring you down from the stresses of big-city living into a kinder, gentler place. Take a look at the blissful target-marketed listeners on the photos from Toronto's 96.3FM as they listen to music on expensive headphones and recline in fashionable interiors.
However, does that marketing approach constitute an approach to classical music that is harmful or wrong? I would argue no.
Take another look at the 96.3FM site. In spite of the somewhat saccharine pictures, the site offers requests, suggested recordings for building collections, a classical glossary, on-air listings, contests and trivia, a guide to arts events in Toronto, reviews, local events, an online community, adverting info, and live feeds in four different formats. In short, it is a highly functional and attractive site that invites its listeners to come back again and again to feed their newfound classical music habit, exactly the kind of thing that the classical music industry should be doing.
This approach is not too different than that of coffee houses that heavily market flavored coffees in order to get new customers in the door, who after some exploration will eventually develop a taste for classier estate varietals and espresso machines. Is flavored coffee a crime? Of course it is, but many of the people who initially try them will eventually make their way to the organic Sumatran.
(Interestingly enough, the LA Times article makes no mention of opera marketing, which makes heavy use of sex, violence, and power to sell a product that tells stories that are largely about sex, violence, and power. And opera is one of North America's most successful and fastest growing art forms.)
However, does that marketing approach constitute an approach to classical music that is harmful or wrong? I would argue no.
Take another look at the 96.3FM site. In spite of the somewhat saccharine pictures, the site offers requests, suggested recordings for building collections, a classical glossary, on-air listings, contests and trivia, a guide to arts events in Toronto, reviews, local events, an online community, adverting info, and live feeds in four different formats. In short, it is a highly functional and attractive site that invites its listeners to come back again and again to feed their newfound classical music habit, exactly the kind of thing that the classical music industry should be doing.
This approach is not too different than that of coffee houses that heavily market flavored coffees in order to get new customers in the door, who after some exploration will eventually develop a taste for classier estate varietals and espresso machines. Is flavored coffee a crime? Of course it is, but many of the people who initially try them will eventually make their way to the organic Sumatran.
(Interestingly enough, the LA Times article makes no mention of opera marketing, which makes heavy use of sex, violence, and power to sell a product that tells stories that are largely about sex, violence, and power. And opera is one of North America's most successful and fastest growing art forms.)
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
COC announces 07-08 season
Here it is:
Main stage productions
Marriage of Figaro (Mozart)
Don Carlos (Verdi)
Tosca (Puccini)
From the House of the Dead (Janacek)
Eugene Onegin (Tchaikovsky)
Barber of Seville (Rossini)
Pelleas et Melisande (Debussy)
Ensemble Studio productions
Don Giovanni (Gazzaniga, not Mozart)
Renard (Stravinsky)
Link to CBC.ca article
Canadian Opera Company home page
COC press release
Main stage productions
Marriage of Figaro (Mozart)
Don Carlos (Verdi)
Tosca (Puccini)
From the House of the Dead (Janacek)
Eugene Onegin (Tchaikovsky)
Barber of Seville (Rossini)
Pelleas et Melisande (Debussy)
Ensemble Studio productions
Don Giovanni (Gazzaniga, not Mozart)
Renard (Stravinsky)
Link to CBC.ca article
Canadian Opera Company home page
COC press release
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Alfred Cortot on film
I've always admired Cortot's Debussy playing. So what a surprise it was earlier today to come across this rare film from France of an enactment of Debussy's Children's Corner as played by Cortot. The film's credits list early film critic and Ravel student Emile Vuillermoz as well as avant-garde filmmaker Marcel L'Herbier as the creators. There is no date listed anywhere for this film, but it appears to have been made in the early days of talking pictures--early 30's perhaps? This also might qualify as one of the earliest "music videos" ever made. Enjoy.
  | Claude Debussy: Children's Corner Composed by Claude Debussy (1862-1918), edited by Maurice Hinson. Collection for solo piano. Series: Alfred Masterworks Editions. 32 pages. Published by Alfred Publishing. (AP.667) See more info... |
Vocal weight vs. Fach on Wikipedia
Still another find on Wikipedia--an article on vocal weight that covers similar ground to the article on Fach, but from more of a North American point of view. Notice the inclusion at the end of the article of the "baritenor" voice type that one finds in much French opera but absent from the German classifications.
Another thing to take a look at when viewing Wikipedia definitions is the discussion pages at the very top left of every page next to the article tab. For example, contrast the discussion regarding Fach (in which we find that the English article is similar to the German Stimmfach article and its links) to the discussion regarding vocal weight (in which there is some argument as to whether pop singers should be included as examples of classical voice types).
Another thing to take a look at when viewing Wikipedia definitions is the discussion pages at the very top left of every page next to the article tab. For example, contrast the discussion regarding Fach (in which we find that the English article is similar to the German Stimmfach article and its links) to the discussion regarding vocal weight (in which there is some argument as to whether pop singers should be included as examples of classical voice types).
Friday, January 12, 2007
Fachs aplenty
Yet another great addition on the Wikipedia site--an entry on Fach. For the uninitiated, a primer on how voices are pigeonholed categorized into faecher:
For the record, I've always found that the fach system can be limiting and encourage younger singers to seek out the repertoire they truly love in various genres and languages (with the approval of teacher+coach) instead of determining in which fach your voice lies and then learning the repertoire you're *supposed* to sing within that category.
The Fach system is a convenience for singers and opera houses. A singer who is identified as being of a certain Fach will usually be asked to sing only roles that belong to that Fach. This prevents a singer from being asked to sing roles which he or she is incapable of performing. Opera houses keep lists of available singers by Fach so that when they are casting roles for an upcoming production, they do not inadvertently contact performers who would be inappropriate for the part.
Thursday, January 11, 2007
Introducing my teaching site
Everybody seems to have websites in development or in beta these days and I'm no exception. My current construction project is a teaching site made with Google Page Creator, with the aim of eventually amassing a large number of resources and links to create a first rate companion site for my RCM studio. It's only basically a front page right now, but I intend to create a large amount of content for it in the next few months.
Link
I'm somewhat reticent about studio websites. I know they are supposed to be the wave of the future, everyone will one day be accessing music education via the web, etc., etc. but at the same time, most private studio sitessuck don't have the information and resources that would really make them an asset to the profession, but rather stop at a bio, pretty picture, and recent accomplishments. Here are some of the truly great private studio and artist sites on the web that not only advertise the offerings of their creator, but actually move the profession forward with some genuinely useful information and resources:
The Martha Beth Lewis Piano Home Page
Not only is it her studio's home page, but it also happens to be probaby the single source of information on piano pedagogy on the internet, with exhaustive sections for teachers, parents, and students, all within a simple and homemade format.
Laura Claycomb's Young Artist Corner
Every singer has great pictures and an impressive bio and some even have great video and sound files, but Laura Claycomb's site has one of the most honestly written and down to earth guides on how to succeed and develop as a professional singer one is likely to find, free from hubris and out-of-date personal anecdotes one often finds in the genre.
Wendy'sPianoStudio.com
This is the website of a teacher that genuinely cares about the development of her students and the art of teaching. Complete with articles, resources, links, student projects and contests, her personal handouts and teaching materials (some of which requires registration), and a complete chronicling of every aspect of her studio's operation, the online presence of this site gives Wendy Stevens a huge presence in Kansas. If you're a parent or student in the Wichita or Topeka areas and have visited this site, why would you even consider other studios?
So the bar is set rather high after looking at these sites. Stay tuned for more goodies on my newest website project--maybe the RCM will even let me use their logo.
Link
I'm somewhat reticent about studio websites. I know they are supposed to be the wave of the future, everyone will one day be accessing music education via the web, etc., etc. but at the same time, most private studio sites
The Martha Beth Lewis Piano Home Page
Not only is it her studio's home page, but it also happens to be probaby the single source of information on piano pedagogy on the internet, with exhaustive sections for teachers, parents, and students, all within a simple and homemade format.
Laura Claycomb's Young Artist Corner
Every singer has great pictures and an impressive bio and some even have great video and sound files, but Laura Claycomb's site has one of the most honestly written and down to earth guides on how to succeed and develop as a professional singer one is likely to find, free from hubris and out-of-date personal anecdotes one often finds in the genre.
Wendy'sPianoStudio.com
This is the website of a teacher that genuinely cares about the development of her students and the art of teaching. Complete with articles, resources, links, student projects and contests, her personal handouts and teaching materials (some of which requires registration), and a complete chronicling of every aspect of her studio's operation, the online presence of this site gives Wendy Stevens a huge presence in Kansas. If you're a parent or student in the Wichita or Topeka areas and have visited this site, why would you even consider other studios?
So the bar is set rather high after looking at these sites. Stay tuned for more goodies on my newest website project--maybe the RCM will even let me use their logo.
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Periodic Table of Visualization Methods
Since I've been talking about this fascinating visualization tool for the last day or so, I might as well post the link here. Visual-literacy.org has an extremely useful Periodic Table of Visualization Methods that is a great way to visualize your way through a problem in multiple modes when all else fails.
(Via BoingBoing)
Is there anything like this on the market for musicans and their practice issues? As a matter of fact, yes. Hal Leonard has a 6-page folio for piano students entitled The Piano Student's Guide to Effective Practicing by Nancy O'Neill Breth, an excellent tool worthy of a closer look in a future posting.
(Via BoingBoing)
Is there anything like this on the market for musicans and their practice issues? As a matter of fact, yes. Hal Leonard has a 6-page folio for piano students entitled The Piano Student's Guide to Effective Practicing by Nancy O'Neill Breth, an excellent tool worthy of a closer look in a future posting.
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Bathroom Divas season 2 premiere announced
The Bathroom Divas website has recently been updated to reflect the second season of the show and its premiere date:
Saturday, February 10 at 9pm Eastern on Bravo!Canada
Definitely a show to see. The first season of Bathroom Divas ended up being the most watched show in the history of Bravo!Canada. Although sworn to secrecy, I can say that this season's version will offer more of the same fascinating process but with new twists and turns and a great new cast of singers.
Saturday, February 10 at 9pm Eastern on Bravo!Canada
Definitely a show to see. The first season of Bathroom Divas ended up being the most watched show in the history of Bravo!Canada. Although sworn to secrecy, I can say that this season's version will offer more of the same fascinating process but with new twists and turns and a great new cast of singers.
Heifetz masterclass video
This footage of a Jascha Heifetz masterclass at the University of Southern California shows Robert Witte playing the second (well, almost) and third movements of the Tchaikovsky violin concerto. Brooks Smith plays the orchestral reduction. Note the pointer that Heifetz uses to beat time on the desk--might that be a modded drumstick?
Note: Heifetz was also an excellent pianist, as this video shows.
 | Violin Concerto, Op. 35 - Violin/Piano Set of performance parts. By Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky. (Violin). String Solo. Size 9x12 inches. 52 pages. Published by G. Schirmer, Inc. (50258130) See more info... |
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Degree Program Updates
Here are some recent additions to the list of Degree Programs in Collaborative Piano:
California State University-Chico
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
University of Southern Mississippi
Wichita State University
The total now stands at 75 identified diploma and degree programs in the field.
California State University-Chico
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
University of Southern Mississippi
Wichita State University
The total now stands at 75 identified diploma and degree programs in the field.
Lotfi Mansouri interview in WholeNote
The December-January issue of Toronto's WholeNote Magazine contains a fascinating interview with legendary director Lotfi Mansouri in Pamela Margles' Recently in Town column. An excerpt:
Of all Mansouri’s accomplishments in Toronto, the one that has had the greatest impact is his idea for Surtitles, now used around the world. ‘As a stage director I was always frustrated when I would work very hard on detailed nuances, but nobody would know what the hell anybody was singing about. We were doing Poppea, one of my favourite pieces. It’s like a Shakespearean play, so you really have to understand every word. And I wanted to do it in the original Italian.’
‘One night I was home watching the Ring Cycle from Bayreuth on television with my wife. My wife was not a great Wagnerian, but suddenly she said, “You know, Lotfi, this really isn’t as dumb as I thought it was”. She had been reading the subtitles on the tv screen. All of the sudden it was like the apple falling from the tree. If they could put subtitles on the bottom of the tv screen, why couldn’t we put them at the top of the opera stage? And that’s how it all started. At the beginning I was just lacerated. Critics tore me to pieces. An editorial from London called Surtitles “the plague from Canada”. Now, of course, everybody’s using them.’
Vancouver International Song Institute
The University of British Columbia campus will be host to the all-new Vancouver International Song Institute this June 17-27, with an illustrious lineup of faculty and artists:
Singers--Benjamin Butterfield, Alan Corbishley, Tracy Dahl, Tyler Duncan, Nancy Hermiston, Phoebe MacRae, Lynne McMurtry, Lambroula Pappas, Susan Platts, and Stephen Varcoe.
Pianists--Allison d'Amato, Terence Dawson, Margo Garrett, Graham Johnson, Laura Loewen, Rena Sharon, and Erika Switzer.
Scholars--Ellen Dissanayake, Richard Kurth, Deen Larson, Michael Tenzer, and Susan Youens.
The VISI list of programs includes offerings for performers, teachers, and casual listeners and will be focusing on the English art song repertoire for its first season. Kudos to Artistic Director Rena Sharon and her team for putting together a much-needed art song festival in a somewhat opera-heavy world. The VISI home page invites you to:
Singers--Benjamin Butterfield, Alan Corbishley, Tracy Dahl, Tyler Duncan, Nancy Hermiston, Phoebe MacRae, Lynne McMurtry, Lambroula Pappas, Susan Platts, and Stephen Varcoe.
Pianists--Allison d'Amato, Terence Dawson, Margo Garrett, Graham Johnson, Laura Loewen, Rena Sharon, and Erika Switzer.
Scholars--Ellen Dissanayake, Richard Kurth, Deen Larson, Michael Tenzer, and Susan Youens.
The VISI list of programs includes offerings for performers, teachers, and casual listeners and will be focusing on the English art song repertoire for its first season. Kudos to Artistic Director Rena Sharon and her team for putting together a much-needed art song festival in a somewhat opera-heavy world. The VISI home page invites you to:
Discover song as…
philosophy
imaginal theatre
historical
artifact
healthcare therapy
anthropological wonder
physiological
phenomenon
intuitive collaboration
merged languages
biomusicology
storytelling
AUDIBLE SOUL…
Saturday, January 06, 2007
Repertoire lists on Wikipedia
One of the many useful additions to the internet's body of knowledge in the collaborative arts has been the large number of repertoire lists that can now be found on Wikipedia. Here are links to some of the more comprehensive ones I have found:
Piano Sonata
Violin Sonata
Violin Concerto
Viola Sonata
Viola Concerto
Cello Sonata
Cello Concerto
Clarinet Concerto
Piano Trio
Piano Quartet
Piano Quintet
Piano Sextet
List of compositions for piano and orchestra
There are several other rep lists for wind instruments and art song traditions that have not been included here as they are not yet complete enough. And to think that a scant 15 years ago these lists of works were painstakingly compiled and circulated via photocopies as a select body of knowledge circulated within accompanying studios. I still have copies of Gwendolyn Koldofsky's repertoire lists that have been handed down from studio to studio over the years...
Piano Sonata
Violin Sonata
Violin Concerto
Viola Sonata
Viola Concerto
Cello Sonata
Cello Concerto
Clarinet Concerto
Piano Trio
Piano Quartet
Piano Quintet
Piano Sextet
List of compositions for piano and orchestra
There are several other rep lists for wind instruments and art song traditions that have not been included here as they are not yet complete enough. And to think that a scant 15 years ago these lists of works were painstakingly compiled and circulated via photocopies as a select body of knowledge circulated within accompanying studios. I still have copies of Gwendolyn Koldofsky's repertoire lists that have been handed down from studio to studio over the years...
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Geographical visitor breakdown
Here are the top 10 countries of origin for visitors to the site from September 1 to December 31, 2006:
1. Canada (50.54%)
2. United States (33.94%)
3. United Kingdom (3.38%)
4. Germany (1.35%)
5. France (.58%)
7. Japan (.54%)
8. Netherlands (.54%)
9. Brazil (.50%)
10. Switzerland (.50%)
1. Canada (50.54%)
2. United States (33.94%)
3. United Kingdom (3.38%)
4. Germany (1.35%)
5. France (.58%)
7. Japan (.54%)
8. Netherlands (.54%)
9. Brazil (.50%)
10. Switzerland (.50%)
Most popular posts
The following are the most popular pages on this site from September 1 to December 31st, 2006, via data tracking from Google Analytics, excluding the front page and monthly archive pages.
1. 10 ways of improving your sight-reading skills
2. Degree programs in collaborative piano
3. Required and preferred skills for the collaborative pianist
4. Some ideas on how to learn a song or aria
5. Career options in collaborative piano
6. 10 ways to translate song and aria texts into English
7. What is Collaborative Piano?
8. The one-page guide to Collaborative Piano playing
1. 10 ways of improving your sight-reading skills
2. Degree programs in collaborative piano
3. Required and preferred skills for the collaborative pianist
4. Some ideas on how to learn a song or aria
5. Career options in collaborative piano
6. 10 ways to translate song and aria texts into English
7. What is Collaborative Piano?
8. The one-page guide to Collaborative Piano playing
Top recent incoming search words
The following are this site's top incoming 10 search terms for the period from September 1 to December 31, 2006, via Google Analytics.
1. collaborative piano
2. wendy hatala foley
3. christopher foley piano
4. collaborative piano blog
5. artist diploma collaborative piano
6. collaborative pianist
7. opera jeunesses oakville
8. doctor collaborative piano
9. piano blog
10. bathroom divas
A few conclusions. First of all, my wife seems to be more popular than I am on my own site, given the large number of people searching for her name and ending up here. Next, it seems like there is quite a lot of interest in post-graduate degrees in collaborative piano, both at the artist diploma and doctoral level. (I've also been contacted by a few pianists that have come to me asking for collaborative piano programs I recommend, which I am glad to oblige.) The largest average number of pages per visit are for the following search terms:
1. collaborative pianist (5.13 pages/visit)
2. collaborative piano blog (3.82 p/v)
3. collaborative piano (3.62 p/v)
4. bathroom divas (3.09 p/v)
5. doctor collaborative piano (3.00 p/v)
Bathroom Divas, of course is the Bravo!Canada reality show whose second season will be premiering in early February.
1. collaborative piano
2. wendy hatala foley
3. christopher foley piano
4. collaborative piano blog
5. artist diploma collaborative piano
6. collaborative pianist
7. opera jeunesses oakville
8. doctor collaborative piano
9. piano blog
10. bathroom divas
A few conclusions. First of all, my wife seems to be more popular than I am on my own site, given the large number of people searching for her name and ending up here. Next, it seems like there is quite a lot of interest in post-graduate degrees in collaborative piano, both at the artist diploma and doctoral level. (I've also been contacted by a few pianists that have come to me asking for collaborative piano programs I recommend, which I am glad to oblige.) The largest average number of pages per visit are for the following search terms:
1. collaborative pianist (5.13 pages/visit)
2. collaborative piano blog (3.82 p/v)
3. collaborative piano (3.62 p/v)
4. bathroom divas (3.09 p/v)
5. doctor collaborative piano (3.00 p/v)
Bathroom Divas, of course is the Bravo!Canada reality show whose second season will be premiering in early February.
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