David Story Online Toronto Piano Teacher
*
  • Homepage
  • Safe lessons for adults in the age of Covid-19
  • Safe lessons for children in the age of Covid-19
  • Contact form, fees, calendar, policies
  • My teaching philosophy
  • Testimonials
  • Tips, Ideas, Stories, Free Lessons
  • About me
  • Student awards and compositions
  • Recommended resources and Free Music
  • Classical downloads
  • Jazz downloads
  • Jazz outline for beginners
  • Classical outline for beginners
  • Blog: The aging musician
  • Video Library of Piano Techniques
  • Drum Lessons

The art of piano playing: The 7 circles to Mastery

7/23/2017

0 Comments

 
The 7 circles to mastery. The following is taken from the YouTube video below. I am riffing on the ideas.

1.       Hearing
2.       Imagination
3.       Expression
4.       Technique
5.       Theory
6.       Analysis
7.       Finally, Practice at the instrument

Hearing: Good old-fashioned ear training. This is often an overlooked component in learning. Traditionally Classical piano students avoided this until a week or two before an exam. Not a great idea. It takes time to develop your ears. Well developed ears are of the greatest benefit because I believe we can only play what we hear.
 
·         Melodic playback for Classical students
·         Transcriptions for Jazz Students
·         Chord identification
·         Cadences
·         Chord progressions
·         Rhythm clap-back

Imagination: A tough one to teach. I believe a teacher must help the student trust their musical instincts. And, treasure them. Musical instincts are a result of the prior musical experiences of a student among other things.

Expression: Expression marks in a score are not suggestions for the novice. Be sure to work on them from the first reading. Do not make the mistake of thinking you can add them later after you “learn” the piece. Consider this, we all play like we practice. So, under stress (in an exam or performance) you will revert to your initial way of playing. Why? This is the way you learned it, spent the most time on. You perfected the piece in a monochromatic way. Flat and boring.

Technique or what is called the fundamentals: Change your attitude. Think of them as the FUN-damentals. I use them as a form of meditation. A chance to slow down and practice playing beautifully. Beauty is that combination of touch and time we learn through repetition and reflection.

Theory: Oh boy, another area most students practice the fine art of avoidance. The musicians we admire know what they are doing! If you want to have any chance of joining them, you need to understand what is going on. Form, harmony, melodic structure, intervals, historical context, the list of knowledge goes on and on. It all helps. I promise.  

Analysis: applied theory and the cornerstone of memorisation.

Practice: Learn to practice, read books on the subject, what YouTube, listen to your teacher. Learning to practice like a pro will save you years of fiddling around. And, it is way more fun because progress is faster.

​Please watch the video below. A wealth of knowledge. 
​
Cheers,
 
David
 

0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Author

    I'm a professional pianist and music educator in West Toronto Ontario. I'm also a devoted student and teacher of the drums. 

    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012

    Categories

    All
    Adult Piano Lessons
    Buying A Piano
    Children's Piano Lessons
    Classical Piano
    Goal Setting
    Hobby Overload
    Jazz Chops
    Jazz Piano
    Learning Classical Piano
    Learning Piano
    Learning Resources
    Motivation
    Music Practice
    Piano Exams
    Practice Organization
    Practicing Piano
    Starting Piano
    Stories
    Summer Piano Lessons
    Technique
    Theory
    Time Management
    Virtual Piano Lessons

    RSS Feed

                                                ©2020 David Story
                         Contact           Home         Mystery Link