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Tips, free lessons, and inspiration

How I'm practicing Jazz Vibraphone in 2023

1/14/2023

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​The teacher practices Jazz
 
Last weekend I went to my first jazz jam with my Vibraphone aka my Malletkat GS Grand. We were a quartet of Tenor Sax/Flute, Vibes, Bass, and Drums. I survived with my dignity intact, but I’ve a few discoveries and confessions to share.
  1. My skills on the piano are not necessarily transferable to the vibes.
  2. My four-mallet chord playing will need further work.
  3. I was unable to execute the solo lines I could hear in my head.

On the plus side, I knew all the tunes from years of playing and teaching jazz piano plus my jazz time and feel is strong.

Here is the practice regime I began to follow to improve my jazz experience.

Tune: Satin Doll by Ellington/Strayhorn
  1. I practiced the melody, by ear, with the original recordings on YouTube. I discovered that after 45 years, that I’m dragging some notes. They are now corrected; I’m locked into the sax melody.  
  2. I reviewed the piano licks played on the head by Duke Ellington.
  3. I figured out bits of his piano solo.
  4. I practiced all the broken chords like I instruct my students and I quickly discovered that this took a lot longer than I anticipated.
  5. I practiced what I’ve learned by playing along on YouTube. 
  6. I’m ready for another piece next week.  My goal is to learn a tune a week for 52 weeks. 
  7. I'm continuing with my mallet study books to develop my manual skills. 

If I can help you with your jazz piano journey, call me. 

David

BTW: In the era of Ai content generation, a human wrote this blog. 
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Less stress in piano lessons

12/18/2022

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This week an adult student came to class in a state of agitation. They were frustrated that they didn't have time this week to practice, and they felt embarrassed.

Five things to consider.
  1. You do this for fun.
  2. Sometimes the only practice that week will be at lessons.
  3. This is not a race.
  4. You are not a child.
  5. I gave guilt free piano lessons. 

I said, "John, think of this hour as an oasis without responsibilities". That worked, he had a fun lesson. He even sent a thank you email after class. 

David
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This week's artwork

12/4/2022

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From whiteboard notes and exercises I sent to students this week. 

​David
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The problem with YouTube Jazz Education Videos

11/30/2022

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Super video demonstration but...

Let's consider the assumptions he is making about you the student/listener. 

  1. You can play your instrument.
  2. You have experience playing music in multiple keys. Though jazz is mostly in C, F, Bb, Eb, and Ab and related minor keys, he goes farther afield.
  3. You can play jazz.
  4. You can play by ear.
  5. You are familiar with the seminal recordings he references.
  6. You are familiar with the songs he is playing.
  7. You understand musical rudiments, including key signatures, intervals, time signatures, transposition, cadences and much more. 
  8. You have advanced solfege and piano skills so you can play bass lines and sing the melody over it.
  9. You understand harmonic theory and are able execute chord progressions in time, with a beat, and use the appropriate jazz facial expressions.
  10. You know of Ray Brown and his significance.
  11. You understand following terms and their musical significance: melody, bass lines, transposition, diatonic, tonic, major 7th intervals, root-7 root-6 movement, Bebop shells 3rd and 7th, the tritone, 5ths, half-steps, interval inversions, 5 in the key of G, lineage of the tune (?), perfect 4ths, non-diatonic ii-Vs, half diminished, 3 of a key, original "changes", "Miles, " Ab7#11 chords, keys, closely related keys, major 3rds, major scales, circle of 5ths, root movements, ii-V of IV, bridge, "key of music."
  12. In Peter’s defense, he offers practice suggestions around 9 minutes mark. 
  13. On the other hand, as all Vloggers do, he downplays the complexity of what he is doing. Sigh.

What is my job?

I prepare students to understand and execute what he is talking about. The first thing we will do is assess your situation and then we'll draw up a logical plan. 

  1. If needed, I will teach you to play your instrument. We will work through a solid canon of piano works that explore multiple keys. 
  2. I will teach you to play jazz.
  3. I will teach you to play by ear. Can you play jingle bells by ear? If so, great you are on your way. If not, I will help you get started. 
  4. I will introduce you to 100+ years of jazz recordings. If your knowledge is a bit spotty, start here: The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook The World | Jazzwise and Double Time Top 100 Historically Significant Recordings article @ All About Jazz. It is important to note the absence of early jazz recordings on these listings. Jazz has a history spanning 3 centuries, but jazz education seems stuck in, at best, a 30-year period from 1945 to 65. The first list has a number a modern recordings from the last 40 years. 
  5. I will help you get your theory together.
  6. We will do solfege together. I use both moveable doh system and the number system. Solfege is widely taught in Europe, but unfortunately not so much in North America. 
  7. We will study jazz harmony when you've got your theory together.
  8. Ray Brown is an important bassist.
  9. Working on steps one through nine will answer all the questions you may have from step 11 above.
  10. I will teach you how to practice.
  11. I will encourage you to get outside feedback and advice from other sources. 

Call me, 

David

BTW: in 2017, I studied with Peter Martin in Rome Italy. He's a great guy and a very skilled musician. When I grow up, I want to play piano like him. FYI.  I was in Rome studying jazz drumming with Greg Hutchinson. Greg played in Ray Brown’s last group. ​
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Learning 10 pieces music in 20 hours

11/29/2022

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Tonight, in concert band we will sightreading 8 to 10 new pieces of music that arrived last night and this morning. I am following this protocol to be ready.  

1. I immediately printed the music. 
2. I created a new YouTube playlist of the pieces. 

3. I studied the scores while listening to the musical recordings. I made note of the tricky bits. I did not necessarily listen all the way through, just enough to get a sense of the part. 
4. I put aside all the music I can easily sightread. It will be read for the first time tonight.  

5. I have made note of the tricky bits in the three remaining pieces: one measure in one piece, one section in another, and then put the third on the music rack for immediate attention later this morning.   
6. I wrote in the stickings on the two easier pieces in the trickly passages. 
7. I am preparing to practice the one tricky piece with my pencil, eraser, recording, drumkit, music ready at hand.  

 I will let you know how it turns out tonight.  

David 
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Reflections of a piano teacher.

9/4/2022

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I started part-time teaching in 1982 and in 2007 I went full-time. That is a few generations of students that have passed through my studio. What have I learned?

  1. Young children are capable of artistry.
  2. Not everyone is teachable.
  3. Talent is overrated. Most students don't work hard enough to discover if they have "talent". 
  4. I don't believe in talent.
  5. Preparing and taking piano exams is an efficient way to learn quickly and thoroughly to play the piano. 
  6. You can start music at any age and succeed with the right attitude and realistic goals.
  7. Successful students know what they want and why they want it. They've then put aside time and resources to get it.
  8. Impatience is a music lesson killer.
  9. A young adult trying to catch up to peers with a 10–15-year head start doesn’t understand how it works. That being said, I started piano in high school, and I’ve been a professional musician for 45 years. I didn’t catch up, but I did find my own way. 
  10. There is a direct relationship between parental involvement and a child's success.
  11. The Dunning Kruger effect is real. Successful students trust their teachers.

If I can help you get started, call me.

​David

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Wednesday, another day, another diverse set of pieces.

4/13/2022

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​Another day in the teaching studio and another diverse set of pieces. Someone stated that an average piano teacher teaches 600+ titles a year. I believe it. 
​
  1. Big My Secret from "The Piano" by Nyman. This was a dark moody start on a grey day. 
  2. Glasgow Love theme by Armstrong
  3. Sonata in G K283 by Mozart
  4. October by Tchaikovsky
  5. Sonata in A Major K 209 by Scarlatti 
  6. Decadent Sentimental Song by Manzano

​Up next: Music rehearsal with my friends, the pianist Jim Finlayson and bassist Rory Slater. I'll be drumming. We've been meeting every 2 weeks for years. It is always a highlight of my week playing tunes from the "Great American Songbook". Lots of Porter, Corea, Hancock, and Ellington.

​Back to class


      7. Prelude in Db by Glière 
      8. Fantasia in D minor K397 by Mozart
      9. Pumpkin boogie by Faber
      10. Sonatina in C by Faber
       11. Drum rudimental warmups
       12. Never Going To Give You Up by Rick Ashley
       13. Theory class RCM 8 and Band Lab DAW

Now to the drummers

      14. Video game music
      15. 3/4 Scottish snare drum solo
      16. Free Fallin' by Tom Petty
      17. Rollin' in the deep by Adele
      18. Superstition by Stevie Wonder

Revised August 2022
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A typical Tuesday in my studio

4/12/2022

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Another day of teaching piano and drum set comes to an end. Here is today’s student repertoire.
​
Marching by Kabalevsky
Skating Waltz by Berlin
Love Me Tender by Elvis
Claire de Lune by Debussy
Les Baricades Misterieuses by Couperin
Chitlin’s Con Carne by Burrell
Etudes by Scriabin
Prelude and Fugue in Bb by Bach
Clementi Etude in E by Clementi
Serenade by Haberbier
Cancion by Mompou
Cottontail by Ellington
Kamado Tanjiro no Uta by Shiina and Ufotable
Watermelon Man by Hancock
Haunted mouse by Faber and Faber
Forest Drums by Faber and Faber
Dinah by Fats Waller
Never Going to Give you up by Ashley
Street of Dreams by Ella
Scottish ¾ March
It’s Only A Paper Moon by Nat King Cole
Meditation by Jobim
Night train by Forrest

​
Time for a beer. 

Revised August 2022

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Where I fell in love with Classical piano.

3/27/2022

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I spent the summer of 2001 making music on the Mediterranean near Santa Pola, Spain in a small apartment overlooking the sea. I fondly remember the sun, the heat, the paella, the wine, the flowers, and the nightly walks along the seaside promenade. 

Now to the story.

I had had big plans of dragging my portable piano to Spain. At the check-in counter in Toronto the agent promptly rejected the piano in the lovely crate I had built. The airline won’t let me check it as baggage because they said it was as big and heavy as a coffin. Dejected I sent it home in an in-law’s car trunk. As luck would have it, I had another in-law in Spain with an old unused Casio keyboard of sixty-five keys, one pedal, a stand, and books of Bach and Chopin.

I set up that keyboard in a window with the ocean view. Then I started playing during the long afternoon siestas. Bach, Chopin, and I quickly fell in love. Apparently so did my new neighbors who, unbeknownst to me, heard me practicing hours on end through that open window.

Back in Canada I started asking about for a “Classical” piano teacher. A professor from McMaster University recommended Leon Karan. I set up a lesson. It didn’t go well. I banged through some scales and thumped out my Bach. Though I was embarrased and humiliated, Leon was kind. After I recovered, he said, “you are of course going to do your ARCT?” “I am?” Five thousand hours later I earned an ARCT diploma in piano pedagogy and won a national scholarship. Thank you, Leon, for your patience. You changed my life.

David

Revised August 2022

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Stretching your limits is good

1/24/2022

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We all do it. So go for it. 

​David
Revised August 2022
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Learning Jazz on the xylophone

1/12/2022

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I've fond memories of listening to New Orleans Jazz as a kid at home. Al Hirt, Louis Armstrong, Pete Fountain, the lot. Music that gives joy when you play it. and joy when you listen to it. 
​ 
​
"Sugar" was released in 1926 by Ethel Waters, you can listen below. Over the Christmas break, I've been learning to play jazz on the xylophone. Who knew it was so much fun? This is my version on xylophone with piano accompaniment. 

If you would like to have as much fun as this on the piano, call me. 

​David
Revised August 2022
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Preparing to play jazz piano in public

11/28/2021

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Yesterday fourteen piano students got together in a jazz club and jammed with a bassist and drummer. What a blast!

Here is some feedback from students:
  1. You cannot over prepare.
  2. Bring legible charts, on brilliant white paper, because lighting and/or print size is always an issue in a jazz club.
  3. iPads have a nasty way of going dark at the worst possible moment.
  4. Playing at workshops, in front of fellow students, is a safe place for dealing with your nerves.
  5. No fancy arrangements or complicated charts; keep it simple until you gain experience.   
  6. Playing from memory leads to more security on stage because you can look up for visual cues from the other musicians. Readers often have their heads down and are subsequently unaware of the clues and musical cues from the other musicians.
  7. It was fun!
 
Next up February, Covid willing.
If you'd like to join us, call me. 
​ 
David
Revised September 2022

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​The worst excuses not to start music lessons

9/21/2021

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PictureWaltz night at Massey College.
  • I have no talent.
  • My hands are too small.
  • I tried teaching myself, that was a bust.
  • I have no rhythm. 
  • Let me address excuse number 2 first. The doctor’s assistant told me today that her hands were too small. “See she said” as she extended her hand. (It was the same size as mine.) “How do you play with those hands?” “Easy, a teacher showed me.”

Number 3 is the saddest. “I tried teaching myself “. Trying to teach yourself from YouTube or some half-baked app is like trying to teach yourself to drive a car from YouTube. Let that sink in for a moment. A teacher will make you a plan, sequence the material for you, respond to your concerns, and inspire you.

Number 1 and 4? " I have no talent; I have no rhythm." I take ballroom dance classes with my wife. She is a natural and trained dancer. I’ve no talent or rhythm. But I’m having fun every week. Nobody cares, not even my wife. We are having way too much fun dancing to worry about my lack rhythm or talent.

If I can help you overcome the resistance, call me.

David Story
Revised September 2022

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How do I practice?

7/14/2021

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I practice piano and drums daily, except Sundays when I rest. This summer I'm practicing bass. My student Barb asked me, "how do you practice?" This is what I said. 

  1. I prepare to practice. My music and instruments are at hand and ready to go. As is my metronome, recordings, recorder, and pencils.
  2. If the piece is new, I listen to the reference recording before commencing.
  3. I plan out how I will play the piece. I consider fingering, dynamics, articulations, and the appropriate motions required to realize my artistic vision.
  4. I warm up and stretch.
  5. I use a metronome, most of the time. All the time when I’m on the drum kit.
  6. I record myself as I practice. First, it helps keep me honest. Second, it helps me decide what and why I'm repeating the passage in question.
  7. I practice piano technique and drum rudiments. Technique is like muscle; it must be maintained.
  8. When I listen attentively to music, I ask myself, “what’s going on here?” I often write out what I hear. To date I have transcribed 100+ drum pieces alone. And countless jazz and pop piano excerpts. 
  9. When learning a new piece, I practice slowly with dynamics and articulations place. I don’t add these later after "I've got the notes".
  10. I’m patient, I trust the process. 

Have Fun. 
​
David Story
Revised October 2022
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Eric Liang, jazz student.

6/28/2021

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This guy did the work and then fearlessly put himself out there.

David
Revised October 2022
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I went to my first proper “Classical” piano lesson in my forties.

5/21/2021

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Background.
I learned piano haphazardly as a teenager. When I attended Berklee College of music the piano teachers never talked about “playing” the piano, only what to play.  Later in my professional work as a commercial musician the playing demands were not too strenuous.

Skipping ahead.
In my early forty's I spent a summer in Santa Pola Spain with a small keyboard and a book of Bach WTC book 1 and Chopin Waltzes. Every afternoon after lunch while the world took a siesta, I would explore the music on this tiny sixty note plastic keyboard. It was a magical experience. Upon returning home, I started asking around for a piano teacher. Leon Karan’s name came up a few times, so I called him. He answered with his warm Russian accent. Yes, I will see you. An appointment was made.

“Mr. Story, please play for me a c major scale.”
Gritting my teeth and tensing my body as hard as I could, I dug in and roared up the piano. He looked at me sympathetically.
“Please play your piece for me.”
I’ve no recollection of which piece I played but I do remember his concerned reaction. I was humbled. 

“You are of course going to do your ARCT?”
“My what?”
“ARCT, you are a piano teacher. You have a duty to your students.”

Four years and five thousand hours of practice later, I graduated age 47. It was the most difficult and rewarding thing I’ve ever done as a musician. It was truly a marathon, but to mangle my metaphors, I felt like superman. 

If you'd like to feel like superman/woman, call me. 

David
Revised October 2022

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Gary's Jazz Journey

5/7/2021

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"Spending winters in the sunshine, reading, playing golf and socializing seemed a wonderful way to spend retirement.   With both of us being music lovers, our sound system is always on all day with great music ranging from Classical, Jazz and some pop.  But I felt something was missing and it wasn’t snow.  My wife encouraged me for years to take music lessons.  I was not too keen because my memory of lessons was the Nuns whacking my fingers with a ruler insisting, I keep my lazy fingers off the keys; that ended in 1958 when I got my Grade 8 piano.  But the seed was planted.  I decided to look on the net for a music teacher near Burlington and came across David’s website. This really looked interesting.  During our cocktail hour that night, I said – when we get back to Burlington, I am going to take Jazz lessons from this David Story guy.  On April 23, 2013 my life changed.

Of course, I thought I would be rattling off Jazz tunes within weeks; grief!  As time progressed, I realized how complex Jazz really is, especially soloing; how do they do that?   Practice, practice, practice every day and soon I started to see the tunnel – no light yet!  After a few years of toil and trouble, something that sounded akin to music emerged; I encouraged my cousin to take lessons from David.  Then, 4 years ago, David encouraged us to attend the Jamey Aebersold Summer workshop in Louisville.  There we were for 6 days: 2 old guys, jamimg in groups, attending classes and intense listening, from 7am to 10 PM.  Hardly time for a Scotch closer at night!  At last, all those lessons from David were clicking into place like a Rubik’s cube. We went back the next summer and did it again.  Then, David encouraged me to try and get a group together to Jam.  The pressure was on; my 2 songs would not cut the mustard.  More practice.  An advert in Kijiji did the trick; we ended up with an exceptional drummer, bass, guitar – and me.  We met every week for 3 hours until covid.

My lessons continue.  The Jam will continue after we all get our shots.  I am still amazed at what some practice along with amazing guidance and encouragement from David has done for my life and continues to do so.  Not bad for an 80 year old!"

​Gary.
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Gary's First Jazz Lesson 2013

5/6/2021

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Update October 2022: Gary is still at it. He's been playing jazz, in multiple bands, each week now, for years. Go Gary!

​David
Revised October 2022
60 jazz chords fully notated
File Size: 217 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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Getting Started Making Electronic Music in 2021

4/22/2021

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Synthesizer 1972 The ARP2600
Setting out to create your own music has many satisfactions.

​But first a story. 

I'm 13 years old, and an overly confident self-taught guitarist. I head off to music camp in Kirkland Lake Ontario in the summer of 1972. Harry Forbes, the guitar instructor, was kind and tolerant. Good thing because I sucked.

One day I spotted a strange looking keyboard in the corner of the room.
Q: "What is that, Harry?"
A: "It's an ARP2600 synthesizer".
Q: "What does it do?"
A: "It does this"
Me: "Holy *D*D(#KD+!"

I was hooked. I've never looked back. 

So why create your own music?
​
1. Personal expression
2. Participate in the sound of our time
3. Keep the "play" in playing music alive
4. Creative exploration and discovery
5. Learn new instruments
6. Join an online community of music makers
7. Become a rich and famous DJ
8. Collect gear

Electronic music has its own terms. 

Now...................................Before

Producer                           Composer
DJ                                    Musician
DAW                                 Score paper

How to get started.

The cheapest way is to explore phone apps. This can be expanded with the addition of a specialized keyboard that attaches to your phone. $100+
​Next up, purchasing a USB keyboard and a Digital Audio Workstation and pair of audio speakers. $500+
​When you want to go all in you will need a USB interface to plug in mics and instruments, USB keyboard and a Digital Audio Workstation, microphones, yards of audio cables, a pair of specialized audio speakers, a specialized desk, and a room to put it all in. 

I can help you get started, call me. 

​David
Revised October 2022
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Synthesizer 2013. Not it's not mine.
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Royal Conservatory of Music Teaching Online Course

3/23/2021

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Over the duration of the classes, I've learned many new things about teaching online. As a result, I've upgraded and tweaked my technology and lesson plans. Who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks?

Call me, 

​David
Revised November 2022
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What did my piano students study last week

11/29/2020

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  1. Polonaise in G minor, Bach
  2. Sonatina in C, Clementi
  3. Russian Folk Song
  4. In the Spirit, Norton
  5. Chinese Kites
  6. Allegretto, Schubert
  7. 2nd Movement Sonata #1, Beethoven
  8. Fugue in Bb, WTC1, Bach
  9. Say so, Dojo Cat
  10. Sonatina in G, Clementi
  11. Autumn Leaves, Jazz Standard
  12. Take the A train, Duke Ellington
  13. Bye Bye Blackbird, Jazz Standard
  14. C Jam Blues, Dave McKenna
  15. Come See the Parade, Piano Adventures
  16. Do You Want to Build a Snowman?, Frozen
  17. Starfish At Night, Crosby
  18. A Little Joke, Kabalevsky
  19. Sneaky Sam, Bober
  20. Czerny Opus 821
  21. Various Christmas Carols
  22. Tir-tone substitutions in Jazz Harmony in "Can't Help Lovin' That Man
  23. I Need Your Love, Calvin Harris
  24. 1000 Years, Perri
  25. Pirates of the North Sea, Piano Adventures
  26. The Queen's Royal Entrance, Piano Adventures
  27. Blues Train, "I used to play the piano" book
  28. Scottish Folks Song Arranging 
  29. Chopin opus 69 no. 2
  30. Shout for Joy, Albert Ammons
  31. Prelude in Bb, WTC 1, Bach
  32. Sonata in G, 3rd movement, Haydn
  33. All want for Christmas is you, Carey
  34. ​Sonatina in G, Beethoven, 2 movements
  35. Etude by Kabalevsky
  36. The Rising Sun, Telfer
  37. Turkish Bazaar, Mrozinski
  38. Dundas Blues, Story
  39. Grade 9 Music History
  40. Grade 9 Harmony
  41. Bourree in F, Telemann
  42. Elements of creating a Jazz Solo
  43. Fur Elise, Beethoven
  44. Christmas time is here, Peanuts
  45. Skye Boat Song, Scottish Folk Song
  46. Mussette, Bach
  47. ​Hanon
  48. More Dojo Cat
  49. Fly Me To The Moon, Sinatra
  50. Sonatina in C, 2nd Mov't, Clementi
  51. Satin Doll, Strayhorn
  52. Aria In G, Telemann
  53. Solfeggio in D, Bach
  54. Happy Time Jazz, Mier
  55. Somewhere New, Dow
  56. Like A House On Fire, Dow
  57. Largo, Doviak
  58. Into The Unknown, Frozen
  59. More Christmas Carols and Songs
  60. Sleeping Beauty Waltz, Tchaikovsky
  61. Cathryn goes to Hollywood Duet, Story
  62. Invention in C, Bach
  63. Chopsticks duet
  64. Rigadoon in A Minor, Babell
  65. Rondo in C, Hummel
  66. Solfeggio in C minor, Bach
  67. Brother John, Folk Song
  68. Got Those Blues, Alfred Publishing
  69. Mazurka in A minor, Chopin
  70. It's A Small World, Disney
  71. Step in Time, Disney
  72. Sonatina in G, Clementi
  73. Masquerade Niamath
  74. Making Love Out Of Nothing At All, Air Supply
  75. When The Saints, NOLA classic
  76. I Fee Good, James Brown
  77. Sonatina in C, 1st mov't, Clementi
  78. Never will I marry, Jazz Standard
  79. Waltz In C#minor, Chopin
  80. Merry we roll along, Folk Song
  81. Let's Waltz, Pearce
  82. Haunted mouse,Faber and Faber
  83. Owl in the night, Rollin
  84. Row Row Row Your Boat
  85. Waltzing Elephants , Bastien
  86. Thunderstorm page Rahbee
  87.  
    David 
     

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First Performance Jitters and the Power of Chutzpah

11/28/2020

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I'm 15 or so, I've been playing a year or two. I "practice" in quotes all the time. She is cute, she sings, she needs an accompanist for the church strawberry social. I step up. I'm waaaaaay over my head. But keen to impress.

We practice, I survive. But I am about to learn the difference between the practice room and the stage. In hindsight I imagine it is like the difference between basic training and real combat.

It's a beautiful day, they haul a small piano outside on the grass. The back of the piano faces the singer and the audience. We step up. I am soooo nervous, so underprepared that my right leg starts to bounce uncontrollably, audibly, banging the underside of the piano. People are looking around for the source of the noise. I'm deadpan behind the piano.

It mercifully ends.

Lessons?

1. "Superbia et ante ruinam" Pride goes before the fall. But the show must go on.
2. Never underestimate the power of shameless audacity in a show biz career.
3. It's harder than it looks. The magic of the performing arts is the illusion it is easy.

David

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A week with Aaron Goldberg, Wajanow, Poland 2018

11/21/2020

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Poland is a long way to travel to learn with American Jazz Masters Dena DeRose, Miguel Zenon, Aaron Goldberg, Mike Moreno, Ali Jackson, and Luques Curtis.

​It was worth every penny for such a transformational experience. Bonus, a beautiful country and people too.

Aaron Goldberg, pianist, was our ensemble leader for the week.

But first.

About seven years ago I first attended the Jamie Aebersold Jazz Workshop in Louisville Kentucky as a drummer. I was green but pumped. I was pulled out of the workshop on day one and sent to a room where two instructors waited. Bassist Bob Sinicrope started drilling me with questions. Who are you? Why are you here? Very direct.

I explained I was a piano teacher and musician from Toronto who now played the drums. I had attended Berklee College of Music back in the day… He cut me off. “Who did you study with?”

Ah, Ray Santisi.
“Ray Santisi, I’m his bass player!” We were instant friends.
Which brings me back to Poland and Aaron Goldberg.

After hearing us all play we were put into groups and assigned rooms to report to. A bunch of us showed up, nervously eying each other. Language was an issue. There were 5 Poles, 2 Russian teenager wunderkinds, 1 Chinese Rock Star, and 1 Canadian old guy. We all noticed the room was devoid of music stands.

Aaron walks in. He was a student of Bob Sinicrope! He calls the first tune: Body and Soul. No music. We sing as a group the bass line of the song after much discussion and negotiation. We get it. Then the singer, in halting English, explains it’s in the wrong key. Aaron gives us a new tonic note and low and behold we sing the bass line in a new key. He counts us in. Away we go. I’m glad I’m a drummer that day.

At the concerts during the week, we are the only group playing without music. We play with intensity and conviction born from pure terror. We nail it.

Aaron buys us a bottle of Bison Vodka at weeks end and salutes us all. 
​
Thank you Aaron for valuable insights and the vodka.

​David

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​5 steps to Jazz lesson renewal

10/12/2020

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Your teacher getting his groove back in New Orleans!
If you are feeling stale, try the following exercises.
  1. Transpose all or some of your repertoire into other keys. Which keys? The ones you will find on recordings. I recently learned to play Cherokee in 12 keys, no kidding.
  2. Sing the roots for the chord progressions from your repertoire, then transpose the progressions into another key. Strive to be in time and on pitch.
  3. Play transcriptions from YouTube of your current repertoire. Notice whether they are plays scales, broken chords, enclosures, or blues licks.
  4. Play along with master jazz musicians on recordings.
  5. Renew your knowledge of key signatures, the circle of 5ths and intervals from a theory textbook.
David
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​What have I learned from decades of teaching piano?

10/8/2020

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  1. Having a concise well thought-out goal before you begin lessons is critical. The goal need not be lofty. Just clear.
  2. There are no shortcuts. Some folks know this, others not so much. Those who methodically do the work over an extended period generally see the results they were seeking. They don't skip steps or areas of study. 
  3. Some folks understand skill is earned not bought.
  4. Focused students outperform the scattered every time.
  5. It is easier for some.
  6. Practice works, I am living proof of that. I just regret it took to age 43 to learn how to practice.
  7. The 10,000-hour rule may be a myth. But it is a good place to start.
  8. We can be inspired and sustain our long-term efforts from drawing on noble and ignoble reasons. For example, love and revenge seem to be equally effective to get and keep us moving forward in life and piano.
  9. Learning is more fun on a great instrument.
  10. Taking piano exams is difficult, thrilling, infuriating, and stressful. Costs lots of money too. I am grateful to have had the privilege to do it in my 40s. It transformed my life.

If I can help you, let's chat. 

Best, 

David
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    You've got to learn your instrument. Then, you practice, practice, practice. And then, when you finally get up there on the bandstand, forget all that and just wail.
    Charlie Parker

    Author

    I'm a professional pianist and music educator in West Toronto Ontario. I'm also a devoted percussionist and drum teacher. 

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