February 16th, 2009 by Lisa | No Comments »

How much do I have to practice – please tell me the truth!!!

The classic question of all classics is how much do I have to practice?  The honest to goodness truth is that the amount of time that you practice does not determine how fast you learn.   It is how often you practice that determines how fast you learn.   What do I mean by that?
First, the most [...]

February 10th, 2009 by Lisa | 32 Comments »

How to Play Love me Tender

Have you tried any of my exclusively formatted Instant Play Songs?
If you haven’t, then I encourage you to try one.  These songs are designed to allow you to play a song without knowing how to read music.  They are for “fun”, but they also serve a purpose toward learning how to read music.  The instant [...]

February 9th, 2009 by Lisa | 1 Comment »

Can the metronome replace counting out loud?

Counting out loud and using a metronome serve different functions.
Counting out loud teaches you how to apply the right amount of time to each different
type of note.  The metronome helps you count without missing a beat.
It is true you can us a metronome to help you keep the rhythm steady, but
if you don’t continue your [...]

February 6th, 2009 by Lisa | 1 Comment »

What are the piano pedals for?

There are three pedals that are standard on the piano, I will only address the the that is most widely used:
The DAMPER pedal is often called “the sustain pedal”. This is the pedal most commonly used and the only pedal option when you purchase a keyboard. When you have three pedals, it the [...]

February 6th, 2009 by Lisa | 1 Comment »

Is using stickers on the keys a bad habit?

I don’t encourage my students to use stickers. I can’t tell you of the countless times I have had a student rely on stickers too long and can’t play on any piano but their own.  It truly is a handicap to you if you mark your keys in any way.  It is true that it [...]

February 6th, 2009 by Lisa | No Comments »

How young can I start teaching my child?

Piano lessons for the very young

I would only recommend a parent to teach a two year old how to play the piano. A LOT of patience
and repitition on a daily basis, is required. A two year old would not benefit from a weekly
lesson, and the parent would be paying for a lot of repetition.

So, [...]

February 6th, 2009 by Lisa | No Comments »

Banging on the Piano Syndrome

Question from a student:
I am on Level 5 and happy with my progress.   However, when I listen to your audio support the sound is lovely and “soft” - I seem to play the keys much stronger and harder.   Do you have any tip(s) as to how I can train my fingers to be more gentle.    [...]

February 6th, 2009 by Lisa | 1 Comment »

Can I learn piano on a keyboard?

Many students ask me if you can use the lessons to
learn the keyboard. The answer is absolutely! The piano and
keyboard have the same notation structure. The only difference is
in the weight of the keys and obviously, how many keys there are.
If you are using a keyboard for learning, then I [...]