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Twenty years of teaching experience combined with supporting opinions of musical colleagues and research across all fields of education reinforce the fact that success in learning is a collaborative effort among teacher, parent and student. Each has a role to fulfill and invaluable contributions to make. Piano lessons encompass both technical training at the keyboard and the growth of musical emotion and expression. Expressing the musical ideas and feelings of the composer is a musician's goal and is the reason for music study.
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The Role of Music Education and Music Educators
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Many people feel that they have a talent for the piano and music making which is exemplified by a desire to sit at the piano and explore its tonal possibilities. Attraction and exploration are strong motivators in music study and natural talents are a great asset. However, it is through diligence and consistent, well guided study that one goes beyond the exhibition of an ability to a high level of competent, skillful accomplishment. A teacher provides the planned course of instruction and practice that leads the student toward musical achievement.
It is a teacher's responsibility to develop both short and long term goals for each student. A student's age, their intellectual development and maturity, the musical abilities they exhibit naturally or have attained through study as well as those skills evaluated to be lacking or in need of strengthening are factors that direct a teacher's choice of repertoire and music education materials.
It is equally important for a teacher to be engaging and to build enthusiasm in each student. This is achieved by selecting appealing material for study. We are fortunate to have at this time an abundance of published music and instructional books to choose from. Over three hundred years of piano compositions and writings on keyboard technique and musical interpretation are enriched by present day teachers, performers and scholars.
Often students' musical frame of reference is formed by the media of television, film, et al. As familiar and pervasive as they are, the musical themes and their arrangements taken from these sources are not a substitute for the ingeniously created and carefully graded repertoire that forms the core of the piano curriculum. A responsible music educator addresses the technical and musical needs of each student with music that will contribute to their sustained personal and musical growth.
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In no small part, children are the products of the priorities that their parents present. Structuring a practice schedule as part of a child's daily routine elevates music study from an optional activity to an important pursuit. The child's practice space should be free of household or sibling distractions.
Ideally, a parent should sit and supervise all or part of each practice session. If this is not possible, a parent should check their child's assignment book. The directions for practice in the assignment book summarize instructions given in detail during the week's lesson. By asking questions that express interest in the learning process, parents can prompt children to explain their knowledge and exhibit their abilities. Details in the music that are to be practiced and the techniques for practicing them have been demonstrated by the instructor during the lesson. If student or parent is unclear about what is expected, they should contact the instructor via phone or email for clarification.
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Make a daily schedule for piano practice just as you do for school homework and other planned activities. Be regular and consistent in pursuing daily and long term practice goals. Beginning students practice a minimum of 30 minutes and intermediate students practice a minimum of an hour. Students concerned with learning, understanding and achievement devote more time to music study.
Every student should keep a practice journal to record the time and duration of each practice session. Additionally, the amount of time spent on each segment of practice (scales, etudes, repertoire, sight reading, etc.) should be notated.
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- Practice patiently to achieve short and long term goals
Short term goals will be what the student seeks to accomplish at each daily practice session. Places in the musical score that are circled and cited in the assignment book for special attention during practice are the short term goal markers for measuring one's musical progress. Longer term goals are preparations for the next week's lesson or for upcoming performances. These goals are based on written, verbal and demonstrated instructions given during the lesson time. Some music is assigned with the intention that it can and should be learned in a short period of time. It should be understood that longer musical works or assignments that contain difficult techniques and challenging musical concepts need more time to be absorbed.
Students should focus their efforts on details in the music that present the most challenges. This often requires them to begin practicing somewhere in the music other than the first measure. Solving the difficulty of a rhythm, fingering, physical coordination or musical connection creates a more assured performance of that particular composition and builds the necessary skills for further musical accomplishments.
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- Develop good listening habits
Piano study is primarily the correlation of attentive listening and choreographed movements at the keyboard. Learning to listen for a wide variety of pianistic sounds and developing the physical means to produce them is the focus of much instruction. The instructor guides each student in training their perceptions on certain qualities of sounds and sound relationships in the music. It is the responsibility of the student to apply what is learned in each lesson to the shaping of the music into a polished performance that reflects technical poise and musical understanding.
The development of good listening extends beyond the practice room. In order to become a better listener, students should hear good performances of good music and take every opportunity to experience great performances of great music. Hearing piano music performed on recordings or on a concert stage provides a standard of measurement upon which to base one's own work and progress. Seeing the music recreated in live performance is a stimulating experience and can inspire students to excel.
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- Understand the importance of musical repetition and drill
Sports activities are very much on the minds of students and their families. The processes for training in sport through repetition and drill are emphasized by coaches and accepted by those wishing to become skillful. Everyone knows of the golfer who daily practices the same shot to achieve consistency of form and accuracy. Another example is the basketball professional who routinely practices the same shot at the same distance from the basket one hundred times to accomplish the correct movements and the desired results.
The study of a musical instrument requires individuals to repeat passages of the music they are practicing in order to establish aural perceptions and physical movements. Repetition during practice is a mindful activity. If a student is required to repeat a segment of the music in sets of four or eight, concentration is necessary to listen for the appropriate sounds. Pauses between repetitions are important in allowing the student to evaluate each sound and how it is physically produced.
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