El Sistema is a fascinating project that provides “a network of children’s and youth orchestras, music centres and workshops in Venezuela, in which more than 250,000 children and young people are currently learning to play an instrument.” The soon-to-be-released DVD by the same name documents the history and effect of this incredible program. Naxos of […]
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Monday Mailbag – Lesson Games
You have a lot of games. Do you do them just with the student at their lesson or do you incorporate these games into group lessons? Do the students enjoy doing these games during their lessons? How do you do that? Yes to all of the above! 🙂 Ask any of my students and they’ll […]
Beginning Hymn Improvisation
When I was in my early teens, I distinctly remember wishing that I knew how to improvise so that I wasn’t stuck playing only what was printed on the page. But I had no idea how or where to start. In particular, I saw people playing from a hymnal, but adding all sorts of cool […]
A Revolutionary View of Dynamics
Okay, so maybe the term “revolutionary” is a bit over-the-top, but not by much. My whole understanding of dynamics was altered recently as I sat in on my brother’s cello lesson. His teacher explained that in each piece, my brother should utilize the full dynamic range of the instrument, executing each dynamic marking in relation […]
Monday Mailbag – Quick Easy Games to Start Off the Lesson
In reference to this post, one reader asks, “Do you have other ideas for the above listed categories that you put on popsicle sticks? What do you usually have ready to use?” There are tons of possibilities, but I’ll just give you one example for each category: 1. Chords – Hold a Chord Spelling Bee! […]
Around the Blogosphere
Wow, the whole week just passed me by! I spent a good deal of time this week fighting with one of my websites – a most unpleasant use of time, but I’m happy to report that after some prayer, digging through the open source forum, and tweaking some code, I have emerged the victor! 🙂 […]
