Laurie Richards
Trouble Starting Piece
Looking for some advice…I have student who stutters everytime he starts to play. He’ll replay his starting note numerous times before finally getting into the song. Once he gets going, he plays well. But if there’s a break in his playing, or the start of…
Teaching Advanced Pieces
Hello, I’ve got three students whose private music, found and sourced by themselves, is Moonlight Sonata. Two are teenagers in FDN 2 and 3 and one is early in TFMM and in FDN 8.The teenagers use youtube tutorials. All love the piece and I admire…
When to Start Accompaniment 2
I would like to ask your advice on exactly when to start Acc. 2. As you know, the pre-reqs obviously include Acc 1: all triads in all keys, ratios, inheriting all contemp chords, ability to identify and transpose I, IV, V in all keys, ability…
Transcribing Ties and Dotted Notes
I am at the end of the Reading Rhythm TTM in my own learning process and have a question about transcription. I see that ties and dotted notes (like all the other ingredients) include the step of “Continuing to process transcriptions into MOR.” As someone…
Students Missing and Getting Behind
This was my first summer teaching groups, and it has been frustrating to say the least. With vacations and such, it just doesn’t work. It’s not even about the money because I can convince the parents to pay no matter what, but then the students/parents…
Starting Lessons with an Experienced Student
I am pretty brand new – only taught 2 lessons so far. I have just got off from a phone conversation with a Dad. He has pretty much decided to have his son (7th grader with 5 years of traditional lesson) taking lessons from me.…
Scheduling
I’m starting my third year, and my studio just grew from 20 to 27. At the smaller size I had smaller classes, designed not only around age and ability but also around each family’s schedule. My scheduling process has been to ask each family what…
Scales
I am going deeper into “scale” with my more advanced students in the Development Levels and in Accompaniment 2. Having come from a very extensive classical musical training, I understand scale, key signature, and advanced theory. However, a student has asked me, and I ask…
Regaining Control of Parents and Students
I have finally gotten good at teaching SM and the studio is quickly growing. My biggest problem is still left over from being a traditional studio. Coaches are not doing their jobs 50% of the times. They won’t sit down at the piano, they won’t…
Reading Rhythm Insight
I am in my first go-round of teaching Reading Rhythm. I think it’s going alright, and I have looked through the ECL archives, etc, but I still just would love to hear more ideas from you all of how exactly it looks in your studio,…