Tag Archives: music lessons

How to Play D.C. and D.S. in Sheet Music – Da Capo and Dal Segno

You have probably seen Da Capo’s and Dal Segno’s in your music before and you might wonder about how to approach these. I have seen a number of occasions where signs like these are ignored or misinterpreted by students and it’s something that you should definitely be aware of and plan for. For more information about repeat signs and their importance in your music please view our previous video: The Importance of Repeat Signs in Music.

Repeat symbols are placed within scores to save paper but interpreting them can be a real challenge sometimes. Especially if you are sight reading, you might not have time to sit down and really analyze a piece of music, so learning how these repeat signs work and what they mean is very important.

D.C. – Da Capo

This symbol is a signal to go back to the beginning of the music.

D.S. – Dal Segno

This symbol tells you to go back to the sign.

This is the symbol you will want to look for:

But here is the real challenge. How you deal with these symbols if you already have repeat signs in your music?

Generally, unless the score says otherwise, you will want to play the repeats the first time through the section but once you go back with the D.C. or D.S. you will no longer play the repeat signs. If this is confusing don’t worry, it is! If you have the time to digest your music it’s going to be a lot easier but having to play it the first time through might be a challenge.

To make matters even more difficult, there might be additional instructions in your music. As I stated before, symbols and repeat signs are used as a way to save paper. So, even if they are confusing it’s much easier than flipping through dozens of pages of a score. Make sure you go over your music and understand the repeat signs as necessary.

So remember: if you are going back with a D.C. or a D.S. you will ignore the other repeat signs in your music (unless otherwise noted in the score).

Are Thirty Minute Music Lessons OK? 30 Minute Music Lessons

This is a very common question and something that is extremely important when it comes to music lessons. Whether it’s for budgeting or attention issues, the idea of a shorter lesson can be intriguing to many parents.

If you find yourself thinking, “I’m not sure my child can even pay attention for thirty minutes”, then it’s probably best you don’t have them take music lessons until they are older. If they can’t be attentive with someone guiding their work for thirty minutes, then how can you expect them to practice on their own? It’s probably best to hold off on lessons for the near future and come back to it when they are ready. There isn’t some magic age at which children are ready for music lessons but if they are old enough to go to school and do homework on their own, they could be ready for music lessons with a private teacher.

There are always some exceptions to the rule. If you have a young child starting lessons then maybe thirty minutes is the best option – or better yet having two thirty minute lessons each week. It’s also important to have personal involvement with them outside the lesson and help them through their practice sessions. Once they are of school age and can handle homework, you probably won’t need to sit in with them on a regular basis. It’s also important to be encouraging to them; don’t fret over simple mistakes as learning and practicing music should be an enriching experience and you want to avoid harsh discipline.

Another concern for some parents is that longer than thirty minutes could be too intense for some children. The truth is, it’s exactly the opposite! Let’s say you have a student who has issues with something like rhythm or hand position and it’s going to take some time to resolve. As a teacher, having a shorter timeframe to fix something like this will produce a much more hectic and frantic environment in which you are racing against the clock.

When it comes to thirty-minute lessons, there is not much time to achieve anything other than correcting wrong notes and assigning new material. It’s not until you get into 45-60 minute lessons where you can actually begin to analyze and explore the finer points of technique and study music theory. The longer lesson also allows for the teacher and student to build a better rapport with one-another which enhances the learning environment. After all, the most important part of a music lesson is the time you are not with the student – the independent practice time at home.

Your job as a teacher is to show the student what to do on a daily basis that will improve their playing – how to practice. You can’t be there every day so the little time you have must be spent teaching them how to work on their own. In this sense, the most important part of a student’s week is the time they spend away from their teacher. If a student can learn to work on their own and improve through self-correction and productive practice techniques, this is the mark of a very effective teacher.

So why are thirty-minute lessons so popular? It’s simple economics. Most music teachers will advertise cheap lessons as a way to get people interested. After all, a $25 lesson sounds a lot better on your wallet than a $50 lesson each week. The truth is, thirty-minute lessons are most often a compromise.

Many top teachers will offer lessons longer than thirty minutes. Some of them might even insist on longer lessons. Remember that the quality of the teacher is paramount in providing a better learning experience. You might pay a little more but the results could be well worth the extra time and money.

Thanks again for joining me Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com (949) 244-3729

Piano Lessons – Schumann – Scenes from Childhood – Part 2

Welcome to another part in my ongoing series featuring tips for Schumann’s iconic “Scenes from Childhood”. In part 1 of the series I talked about how this collection of pieces is a perfect choice of repertoire for intermediate to advanced students. Each piece has a distinct sound and feels to it so it gives students a wide range of music to learn as well as experience great composition.

Today I will be showing some tips for “Traumerei” which is a very classic piece of piano repertoire but also very elusive. This piece can really be overlooked by many students who don’t really understand the music in its full sense. There is a beautiful melody but it can be very difficult to know when to pedal. There is also a certain amount of freedom to how you can approach the piece as well.

Even though the piece requires the pedal, it’s always best to practice without the pedal. You should ideally be able to connect as much as possible together with only your hands before employing any pedaling. This is not an easy task and you will find it’s incredibly difficult to string much together with just your hands but this will help you understand where the pedal is actually needed.

The key to this piece is to bring out the singing melody – almost as if it were a vocal part. Every note should be smooth and distinct. By connecting as many notes as you can with your hands will allow you to get the desired effect – then adding the pedal will enhance the music.

The piece has a real ethereal quality to it. The piece has a very interesting composition and it really takes a mature student to grasp many of the finer aspects of the music. You should really do yourself a favor and watch various performances and listen to various recordings of this piece. It’s incredible to see how different performances can be for such a seemingly simple piece of music.

Thanks again for joining me Robert Estrin Robert@LivingPianos.com

Why Do They Write E Sharps and C Flats?

 

This is a really interesting question. Sometimes you will see E sharps or C flats written in music and you might wonder why they just don’t write F or B instead – after all, an E sharp is an F and a C flat is a B on a piano. So why add this level of complexity?

 

Let’s start by exploring the foundations of Western Music. For most of us the music we are familiar with is founded upon the principles in Western Music. Everything from Rock to Pop to Symphonies utilizes the same aspects of being built upon scales.

 

What are scales exactly? Musical Scales are a series of whole steps and half steps that have all the notes (letter names) in order. For example, here is a C major scale:

 

 

When you see these string of notes together you should recognize that they are Diatonic, which means they are all built on the interval of a second. In other words, one letter to the next letter, line to space, space to line consecutively.

 

For more information on scales we have a series of in-depth videos on this topic:

 

What is a Major Scale?

 

How Many Musical Scales Are There?

 

What is a Relative Minor Scale?

 

What is a Chromatic Scale?

 

What are Pentatonic Scales?

 

What are Whole Tone Scales?

 

So let’s get back to the topic at hand. Why is it a good idea to sometimes have E sharp instead of F or C flat instead of B written in your music?

 

Let’s say for example you had a piece in C-sharp major:

 

 

As you can see, it has all the same letters as a C major scale and we happen to have an E# in there as well instead of F. It would look pretty weird on paper if the notes were C# D# F F# G# A# B# C# wouldn’t it? In cases like the one above it is much easier to decipher the notes if they are written diatonically.

 

Let’s examine this same topic when it comes to chords. Chords are built on the interval of 3rds (for more information you can see our video: What is a Chord?). To put it in simple terms, chords are built upon the interval of a 3rd which are two letters apart – all lines or all spaces. So for example, here is a C major chord:

 

 

So if you had a C# major chord it would look like this:

 

 

And the same principle applies as the one above. It’s much easier to comprehend the chord written with an E# rather than an F. It makes more sense and is more digestible on the page. It is instantly recognizable as a chord.

 

Hopefully this clarifies the concept of why E sharps and C flats are (and other accidentals which are white keys) are easier to read than their enharmonic equivalent spellings.

 

Thanks again for joining us here at Living Pianos, if you have any questions or comments please feel free to contact us directly: info@LivingPianos.com or (949) 244-3729.

How to Practice the Piano Part 1 – Memorizing Music

How To Practice the Piano

3 Part Series

There are 3 separate skills in learning to play the piano:

• Memorizing

• Sight Reading

• Improvising

You can become quite proficient in one or two of these skills and be completely deficient in others. It is necessary to take a unique approach to develop each of these skills. The biggest mistake you can make is to not be clear as to which skill you are working on!

5 Steps To Memorizing Music

Sight-read through the piece once or twice. (First Day Only)

Begin To Practice: TAKE A SMALL SECTION AT A TIME.

A. Right Hand Alone Figure out:

1. Notes

2. Rhythm-Count out loud

3. Fingering

4. Phrasing

5. Expression

Play many times until memorized.

B. Left Hand Alone Figure out:

1. Notes

2. Rhythm-Count out loud

3. Fingering

4. Phrasing

5. Expression

Play many times until memorized.

C. Hands Together Slowly at First:

Play many times until memorized.

D. Go on to the next small section and learn it the same way.

E. As each section is mastered, connect from the beginning

How to Find Time to Practice Music

Time management is one of the most difficult things facing all of us and it doesn’t get any easier as we age. Finding time to pursue your passion – such as playing music – can be a real challenge and with our daily routines, it can seem almost impossible. I can’t make more time for you but I can provide some tips on how to find and schedule a time to practice your music.

Many people assume that because I am a professional that I must have all the time in the world to practice since it’s my career. Yet it is a constant challenge not just for me but for other professionals.

Likewise, I have a student who just entered the Manhattan School of Music on a scholarship and you would think that because he is at a music conservatory he would have plenty of time to practice; this is not the case even there!

Finding time to practice music is a challenge for everyone. Whether you are a professional, a student, or just a hobbyist; this is a challenge that everyone faces.

Setting a routine for yourself is going to be one of the best ways to schedule out a portion of your day and commit to practicing. If you force yourself to practice at a certain time and schedule your day around if you are much less likely to skip it. You must be strict with yourself and not let distractions get in the way if it’s time to practice you should practice! If you do this enough it will become a part of your day and if you miss it you will feel like you have missed a major part of your life. If practice is important to you then this is something you must do.

Use extra time for practicing – even if it’s only a few minutes. Maybe you have an appointment or a student and they are running late, use those extra few minutes to sit down at your piano and practice. It’s ok if it’s only five or ten minutes, practice is practice and every little bit can help. If you are near your instrument and have a few extra minutes you should definitely try and practice. Put down the smartphone or tablet or turn off the TV and just practice; you’ll be glad you spent those few minutes productively.

Practice your music mentally. I have a whole video dedicated to the subject of Playing Piano With Your Mind. This is a really important way of practicing your music when you can’t get to a piano. Whether you are on a plane, a train, in a car, or lying in bed, wherever you are that you can think about your music and analyze it mentally is a great way to practice. It might sound like a silly concept but this is a very powerful way to enhance your playing.

These are some ways you can improve your habits of practicing music and achieve much more with less time. If you have any comments or suggestions on this topic I would like to hear them. Thanks again for joining us, info@livingpianos.com (949) 244-3729