Simpedia

Gordon Harvey, Australia

In response to some questions I have read, here are my replies.

“…I’m assuming that I should do a brief description of the program at the beginning to introduce Simply Music..not sure how long, how much?…”

I think it’s valuable to talk about SM, at the very least from the point of view of preparing the audience for the nature of this particular concert. You can talk about the purpose of Simply Music and how it’s reflected in the kind of music and the kind of playing the audience will experience at the concert. It might be relevant to briefly talk about what people might expect at a concert in a traditional environment, and how this concert will be different. When they hear the word “concert” or “recital”, most people will probably think of some serious, perhaps formal, event, showcasing serious performers who might be working towards a career in performance, academic achievement, or something similar. And of course, this is a common intention, consciously or otherwise, of traditional music lessons. This is clearly not the intention of a Simply Music concert. Instead, it’s more about everyday people sharing their love of music, and sharing some songs that they love to play. Many of the songs may be pretty simple, and will be well within the students’ comfort zone. Your students will have lots of other songs they can play, and probably lots of songs that are more advanced, but the concert is not about showing off how advanced they are, or unveiling to the public their one great project for the year.

“… Nerves! How do I handle the fears and nerves of these little ones? So many are just plain afraid they will make mistakes. I want to encourage them with the right words…I think it is perfectly ok to stop, and start again, but is that the way I encourage them?…”

The major factor alleviating nerves is having a piece that’s comfortable for the student, and well prepared. Even with the best preparation, nerves are quite normal, and I think it’s important for the student to know this. It’s okay, and people will love them no matter what. I also say it’s okay to make mistakes, and I point out that maybe 50% of the time the audience don’t even notice wrong notes, especially if the student just keeps playing without breaking their rhythm. I also let them know I’ll be there close by to help if they get stuck (although I can’t remember ever having to do so), and I don’t even mind if the student gets halfway through and wants to stop.

On the day, you can ease the nerves just by making the event as relaxed as possible. I like my concerts to be informal, kind of like a lesson shared with lots of friends. I like a venue with a semicircle of chairs, perhaps little kids sitting on the floor at the front, and I like the piano at the same level as the audience, rather than elevated on a stage. Of course, you’ll also have primed the audience to be hugely supportive and enthusiastic. I recommend students arrive 10-15 minutes early to have a quick play on the piano, just to get familiar with its particular feel and sound.

As each student comes up for their performance, I have them introduce themselves and say what they’ll play, then, as the audience provides a round of encouraging applause, they take plenty of time to get settled, make sure they’re correctly positioned and are totally ready before they play. Make sure they don’t rush back to their seat as soon as they’re finished! They have to stand there until everyone’s stopped applauding. I tell them that’s the scariest bit.

We just conducted a couple of concerts which were very successful. At thedebrief at their next lesson, several of my students expressed surprise at being less nervous than they expected. It’s amazing what people can draw from when they need to.