Foundation Songs

Several years ago, I started having students expand on the She’ll Be Comin’ Round the Mountain Variation by suggesting that any of the four “Bottom-Right-Top-Right” moments could be doubled as a “berry” the way the 2nd of those moments is doubled in the formal “Blueberry…

• Last updated 2 months ago
• accomp, accompaniment, accompaniment pieces, FL3, foundation level 3, Laurie Richards, Level 3, new variation, She'll Be Comin, She'll Be Comin' Round the Mountain, variation, variations

Subsequent to Unmani M.’s post regarding “Shoo-fly” arrangement from Arrangements 3 (originally taught in Level 5), I thought I’d take a moment to revive a discussion from more than a DECADE ago about the fact that Shoo-fly is a BLUES piece 😎. For reference you…

• Last updated 6 months ago
• 12 Bar blues, alternate ending, arr, arrangement, arrangement names, arrangements, arrangements 3, blues, blues chords, blues harmony, blues songs, blues turnaround, ending, FL5, Foundation 5, foundation level 5, Foundation levels, foundation pieces, Foundation sheet music, Foundation songs, learning arrangements, reading arrangements, remembering arrangements, retaining arrangements, shoo-fly, structure, teacher preparation for arrangements, Teaching Arrangements, tips on remembering arrangements, unfolding arrangements in class, using music in learning arrangements

I find that my students who don’t like to sing often shorten the ends of phrases in Dreams, Dog, Sleeping, Fur Elise, etc. so they have to work at unlearning, then learning the correct rhythm by singing with me, reviewing the audio, playing with the…

• Last updated 1 year ago
• active listening, audio, audio recording, Audio recordings, complex rhythm, counting, counting as lyric, difficult rhythm, Dog, Dreams, Dreams Come True, external speaker, external speakers, feeling rhythm, Fur Elise, Fur Elise tempo, getting an even rhythm, helping students feel rhythm, how to play, improving rhythm skills, isolating rhythm, listen, listening, listening to audio recordings, listening to the audio recordings, managing singing, natural rhythm, play SH along with audio, play SH with audio, playing along with audio, playing with audio tracks, practice SH along with audio, practice SH with audio, processing rhythm, processing rhythms, rhythm, rhythm difficulty, rhythmically challenged, singing, singing along, singing in class, singing off key, singing off pitch, singing while playing, singing while playing struggle, single thought process, single thought processes, sleeping, speaking instructions out loud, STP, student lacks rhythm, teaching rhythm, using audio recordings, using audio tracks, using the audio recordings to learn songs, using the audio recordings to move ahead, voice, what to play

Here’s a project I’ve done which incorporates different strategies and programs, step by step (one of my favorite things to do): 1. Preparatory Learning: Teach the 4 LH positions of Greensleeves (before we get to Greensleeves). That’s the whole assignment. 2. Comp & Improv: Once…

• Last updated 1 year ago
• arrangement, arranging, C & I, comp & improv, comp and improv, comp/improv, Greensleeves, ideas for improvisation, improv, improv ideas, improvisation, improvisation ideas, improvising, Laurie Richards, preparatory learning

HI everybody – any tips for growing skills to line up fingers accurately to play fast passages like the beginning and end of Ballade? Of course – play slowly and gradually increase speed. That alone doesn’t seem adequate. I feel like all the things I…

• Last updated 2 years ago
• audio, audio materials, audio recording, Audio recordings, audio SHMs, Ballade, control the events, controlling the events, CTE, drills, exercises, external speaker, external speakers, fast playing, finger exercises, getting student to slow down, importance of playlist, keeping playlist alive, keeping playlists, keeping the playlist alive, learning slowly, Neil Moore, Neil's Responses (YouTube Videos), playing along with audio, playing fast vs slow, playing slowly, playing speed, playing with audio tracks, Playlist, practicing slowly, single thought process, single thought processes, slow practice, slow-steady-musical-even, slowing down, speaking instructions out loud, SSME, STP

I have an elderly student who can’t bend fingers 3 and 4 in his RH. We are adjusting songs accordingly. For Alma Mater Blues 3rd Section CAGE chord I, what would you suggest? C G E – fingers 5, 2, 1 – 100% C A…

• Last updated 2 years ago
• adapting, adapting fingering, adapting to student's needs, Alma Mater Blues, Alma Mater Blues 3rd Section, alternate fingering for chords, bending fingers, CAGE chords, changing finger, chord alterations, chord fingering, elderly students, finger adaptations, finger change, finger substitution, finger substitutions, finger switch, fingering, fingering chords, fingers, injured fingers, older student, older students, stiff fingers, switching finger, weak fingers

I have a student in her 70’s who is working on Walk at Eleven. We have been over all the clues many times (C to A to D to G, focusing on the notes a half step above or a half step below, etc.); despite…

• Last updated 3 years ago
• adult, adult lessons, adult student, adult students, adults, adults with memory problems, blues, blues songs, coaching adults, FL9, Foundation 9, foundation level 9, half steps, improvisation, improvising, it takes as long as it takes, Level 9, older student, older students, remember, remembering, remembering patterns, Robin Keehn, target notes, teaching adults, teaching half steps, Walk at 11, Walk at Eleven, walking bass

I just remembered a Jackson Blues variation I like to teach around Halloween that makes it sound a little creepy: RH – for each chord, move finger 3 down a 1/2 step (makes them minor chords – they don’t need to know that if they…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• blues variation, Dog, Halloween, Halloween Dog?, Jackson Blues, Laurie Richards, major vs. minor, minor chords, minor keys, Minuet in G, new variation, Nightmares, sleeping, Spooky Jackson, Spooky Minuet, variation, variations

(Over time, different teachers have faced situations in which a student finds it challenging to process the Alma Mater Blues rhythm. Here are Neil’s thoughts on how to handle such situations, video posted September 28, 2022. Below his video tip are two representative posts/questions within…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• Alma Mater Blues, BH, complex rhythm, control the events, controlling the events, coordinating LH and RH, coordination, counting, counting as lyric, counting rhythms, CTE, difficult rhythm, dosage, dose, doses, humpty, humpty dumpty, information processing, isolating rhythm, microdose, multiple thought processes, Neil Moore, Neil's Responses (YouTube Videos), physicality, processing, processing issues, processing rhythm, processing rhythms, rhythm diagram, rhythm diagrams, single thought process, single thought processes, small doses, smaller dose, smaller doses, STP, swing rhythm, swing rhythms

At the request of a family, I pulled together this playlist featuring all the Classical pieces students are introduced to throughout the program. Feel free to share if it is useful to you! Check it out! Have you ever wondered what Classical music pieces are…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• classical, classical music, Classical Pieces, curriculum, YouTube