A Few of our Favorite Things!
Discover duets, chamber music, and traditional favorites arranged for every student at every level.
A Tritone Treat
Ready for this? Camille Saint-Saëns, born on this date in 1835, began composing less than a decade after the death of Franz Schubert, and only a smidge over that from the death of Beethoven. Yet this brilliant and prodigious composer lived to rebelliously storm out of the premiere of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring in 1913. […]
Gershwin’s Summertime
The South’s melting summertime humidity finds its musical counterpart in George Gershwin’s 1935 song “Summertime.” It’s a languid lullaby in the style of an early-1900s African American spiritual. Though the song’s legacy is so potent that over 25,000 artists have recorded it, “Summertime” originally cast its spell as an aria within Gershwin’s self-described folk opera […]
We’re With You!
September brings mixed feelings. Reluctance—summer’s disappearing. Eagerness—the possibilities in a new school year. “What About Us?” We’re thinking of all of you who are with us in the adventure of reaching minds and hearts through making music. And what about you? Still in the flurry of launching your new schedule? Still planning? Still choosing? Time […]
“Partner” Practice
Piano practice often seems like a lonely business. No partners. No other members of the band or orchestra with whom to make music. Yet, when you think about it, the hands themselves need to be partners. Unless they are a team, with each “member” playing its own role, the results may not be so successful. […]
Homage to Debussy
The music world honors Debussy this year, the 100th anniversary of his death. Pianists have always enjoyed playing one of his most beautiful pieces, Clair de lune. It is the third in a set of four pieces grouped under a title drawn from a poem by Paul Verlaine. The poet refers to dancing “masqueraders and […]
It’s Not Over Yet!
“Feel It Still,” in FunTime Piano Hits, gives students a perfect chance to stretch out the pleasures of summer. Those friendly relatives, this time D Minor and F Major, are captured in a kicky bass that includes a visit to G minor before settling back to D Minor. When the melody joins in, the bass […]
Surf’s Up!
Waves. The word immediately triggers images—motion, undulation, sweep, curve. It’s natural to describe waves as rolling in. The perfect wave is every surfer’s dream, the anticipation of the buoyancy supplied by the wave that carries you into the shore. Surfing the keyboard begins as early as Level 1. Learning to move into the keyboard with […]
New Disney Songbooks from Faber & Faber
In the words of Walt Disney, “There is more treasure in books than in all the pirates’ loot on Treasure Island.” This collection, arranged by Nancy and Randall Faber, offers musical treasure from contemporary to classic for today’s piano students. Enjoy teaching Disney hits from Coco, The Lion King, Frozen, Mary Poppins, Beauty and the Beast, […]
Drop It!
Flying fingers! Who isn’t thrilled hearing a rippling succession of notes? Who doesn’t imagine that playing a smooth and fluid scale is a pianistic ultimate? And who doesn’t assume that the fingers must, indeed, “fly?” Well, here’s a surprise, explained and demonstrated by Dr. Faber. The fingers themselves don’t need to be fast. They just […]
Lost… and Found!
Summertime, and the feelin’ is… relax. Maybe “get lost” a bit. Is there, perhaps, a lost boy—or girl—in your studio? There are many ways to define that kind of loss: attention, practice, motivation, interest. But instead of going to Neverland, let’s take a trip into FunTime® Piano Hits and amble along a leisurely bass line […]
