Chord Study

Early lessons with the Tonic Chord lead young students to discover that it consists merely of the first, third and fifth tones of the familiar five finger position. As soon as this is apparent the tonic chord will be played easily by either hand in any key that the student learns, both in the keys given in the book and in their transposition.

It should be noted that (with the exception of the first presentation of I) the chords are played first divided between the two hands either as the lower part of a four-hand duet or as an accompaniment to singing. This process is similar to that in which the melodies with a compass of more than five tones are played with two hands before undertaking the difficulties of expansion and finger crossings. By playing the chords with two hands any tendency towards awkwardness and stiffness of the fingers is avoided and a relaxed condition of arm and hand is maintained.

Chord playing and the playing of chord progressions will be learned far more readily if the student concentrates on this one problem for a few lessons. Where it is necessary to divide the attention between melody in one hand and chords in the other the difficulties are far greater than when melody and chords are treated as separate problems. After two hand experience has clarified the chord progressions and made them familiar to the student, the next forward step of playing melody in one hand and chords in the other will be much simpler and less likely to be accompanied by muscular tension.

The chords are first taught by imitation, the teacher playing on the keyboard followed by the student. All keys are fingered alike, and are therefore equally simple according to the presentation process. Of course no analytical description or discussion of these harmonies is appropriate to this stage of progress. The student hears the effects and is shown how to produce them. Thereafter he expresses his harmonic feeling through the appropriate use of these chords in the selections in his piano books and in harmonizing assigned familiar melodies. The teacher should be careful in suggesting for harmonization only such melodies as may be accompanied by this very limited harmonic vocabulary.

The student is naturally eager to play pieces in which one hand has a melody and the other hand plays accompanying chords. Such pieces seem to a young student to be musically advanced and highly interesting, and his desire to play them should not be suppressed. The teacher, though, should try to postpone the more difficult step until the chords and chord progressions are made familiar through demonstrated playing. The best way to do this is to stimulate the interest in two-hand chord playing. This can be done in a few ways:

1. By having the student play accompaniments for the singing at home
2. By the student accompanying his own singing at home
3. By transpositions of the chord progressions into as many keys as possible
4. By inventing a variety of chord figurations

These varied experiences are interesting to the student, and will give him considerable drill in two-hand chord playing as a preparation for the more difficult steps which follow.

For more information about piano instruction NJ, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.

Tone Color

Varieties in tone color at the piano are produced by different kinds of touch, unequal distribution of power both in tones struck simultaneously and successively, differences in the moment of attack and release of tones, differences in the degrees of legato and staccato in sustaining tones, different uses of the pedals, and in other ways too subtle to discuss at this point. Still, in coloring the tone quality of piano playing comes largely through repeated experimentation at the keyboard, listening intently to the results of different ways of laying the same passage and contrasting passages. Careful observation of the playing of others and of the effects which they produce is a most helpful practice.

Above all, tone coloring is the result of aesthetic imagination, which conceives an effect and strives to realize it. The teacher should strive to stimulate his pupils to expressive playing through coloring the tone quality of their performance in accordance with the spirit of the music. The use of songs in the early study of piano playing is a great help in this work. The songs express mood. The children may first sing them so that the mood is reflected in the vocal tone quality. Then they can strive to color the playing with the same tone quality. Such imaginative coloring of the tone serves as the best background for the later more technical approach to the subject through varieties of touch, dynamics, phrasing, and pedaling.

For more information about piano classes NJ, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.

A Path to Learning Music

What's the best way to teach music? The word method means "way", and a piano teacher's method is the way she organizes her procedure, progressing step by step to the goal. Actually, method looks to psychology to tell us how to make learning progress with great satisfaction. The teacher's approach should conform with the student's level of emotional development. She needs to understand how and when to present, develop, drill and apply the successive steps of lessons. An example of this is that students may need to understand the concrete before the abstract, proceed from the known to the unknown, etc.

There really are just two aspects to method:

1. Method should accomplish the goals.
2. Method should lead to progress.

In the study of music, using a method guides the student toward the ability to play well, to read music fluently, to be well acquainted with musical literature, and more. It should inspire students to a deep pleasure and ear for good music - classical, jazz, contemporary - and a lasting love for it.

There are actually some piano teachers who insist on having no method. They want to use "common sense," to study each student and apply whatever means they believe is useful. Some may even resent the suggestion that they consider following a method created by someone else. These teachers don't really understand the meaning of the term "method," which simply means a plan, or orderly procedure, or progress to an end result.

What these teachers really mean is that they follow no published procedure. A teacher with an inventive and imaginative mind might develop processes adapted to her own personality. But these processes, however ingenious or effective, are only devices that in the end emphasize some aspects of piano without necessarily offering a well-rounded development of the whole subject of music.

The art of teaching piano really begins with using published procedure, whatever school of training is chosen. Then the confidence and ability that comes from her pianistic experience will lend authority to a teacher's practice. That can become a starting point for fresh discoveries in guiding piano students. Actually, piano methods are not static; experienced teachers are constantly improving their art.

In my experience, all accepted methods of teaching piano are good, whether Alfred, Thompson, Suzuki, or the like. A piano teacher who is both artistic and an excellent coach can make good use of any proven method to teach students how to play piano well and appreciate music. No single school of training is better than the other - the teacher makes the difference.

For more information on piano lessons NJ, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.

Attention and Distraction

Attention is a very fleeting thing. Paying attention and focusing means concentration on a single idea out of the many distracting visions that compete for space in our thoughts. If focusing for an adult is a challenge, just consider how a child's quick, diverse and shifting perspectives are like a kaleidoscope of colors each of which captures a child's interest.

The teacher's job is to keep the children attentive to the piano classes at hand. Instead of blaming a child for being inattentive, we really mean that he is thinking of something else than what we want.

A child can give only a few seconds of concentrated attention. His mind must have periods for recuperation between brief stresses of concentration. The more interesting something is, the easier it is to prolong his attention and give it greater intensity. It's also easier to return to a subject after some mental relaxation.

A music lesson must be varied, so that the student's mind is refreshed, lessens the child's mental fatigue, and keeps his attention alert. A change of topic during the lesson will awaken new interest and fresh attention.

Keeping the piano lessons varied also avoids monotony. To remain too long on one topic means loss of interest. It's also just as important, though, to relate the new topic to a prior experience in learning piano so the association rouses curiosity and interest, and thereby secures the child's attention.

For information about piano lessons NJ, contact Barbara Ehrlich Piano Studio.