It’s that time of year! An avalanche of leaves, of cornstalks and pumpkins—and of fast notes in A minor skittering wildly about the keys. An avalanche is sudden and overwhelming. Enjoy this riveting performance of Stephen Heller’s famous “Avalanche” by Ms. Kate Acone, from Piano Literature for a Dark and Stormy Night.…
Join your Friends at the Piano for sticker fun! The My First Piano Adventure Sticker Book contains over 400 “Stickers that Teach” — to reinforce concepts such as Keyboard, Rhythm, Treble and Bass Clefs, Piano Technique, and Composers. Have fun with themes for every season including animals, snacks, travel, holidays, and…
October is the perfect time to introduce supplementary repertoire and off-the-bench activities for your students. We are pleased to offer three free Halloween worksheets for students in Primer, Level 1 and 2A. Use with Achievement Solo Sheets Zoom, Zoom Witches Broom, Shout Boo! and They’ll Be Back, or with any Halloween repertoire.
Playing 5-finger scales has significant value for early-level pianists. Randall demonstrates how this innovative book helps students chart progress through all major and minor 5-finger scales, cross-hand arpeggios, and primary chords. Engaging teacher duets for each key are used for scale exercises. Students also enjoy improvisation activities for each key…
These aliens walk carefully, often repeating before they continue stepping up or down. Checking to see where the notes repeat prepares Patrick to play the piece. Imagining tiny Martians under his palms reminds him to play with a rounded hand position. Because his hands are in place before he begins,…
Establishing a natural, curved, strong, and flexible hand position is the basis of keyboard technique. Playing with a braced third finger is an effective approach. Both arch and fingertip are supported. Using a non-legato touch at the beginning helps direct the arm weight from the shoulder. “The Pecking Rooster” and…
Nancy introduces the “Birthday Train” song through playfulness and imagination. The twins gaze at the pictures in the lesson book and catch the excitement of Carlo’s birthday celebration. As the audio track is played, the girls are engaged with active listening, as they pair body movement with lyrics. From My First…
As Nancy guides the twins through imaginative play, they learn and practice their finger numbers. The girls are intrigued from the start, as they are handed brightly colored play dough to make blue and pink cookies! As they press their finger tips into the pretend cookie, every tap creates a chocolate chip…
This etude doubles as an arpeggio exercise as well as a preparation for the hand-crossing pattern within the “Maple Leaf Rag.” Philip is taught this etude by rote and quickly has it memorized so that he is able to focus on his technique. As he increases the tempo, he becomes…
How easily a princess can become a monster! Rests were introduced on the preceding page, and a tryout on the closed lid highlights the bits of silence after “monster” and “dungeon.” Since the melody has many skips, checking the finger patterns prepares David for the coordination required. A monster demands…