Improvising With The Brand New Student

                                          Periscope #12
                    Improvising With a Brand New Student

First off, here is a student who really gets in the groove with the Pop Song Improv. You can find more information here.  Isn't he great! Pardon the upside down view.

          

   You can improvise with even a beginning student. The key of Gb major works wonderfully. Your student can use any of the black notes on the keyboard. They all sound great. If they are stumped and are shy to begin, show them how to put fingers 2,3,4 on the three blacks keys and move from key to key. Encourage them to move into different octaves. As the teacher, play a slow 4/4 time arpeggiating the Gb chords. Get acquainted with the various ways to arppegiate the chords formed from the scale.

     Here I have listed the degrees of the scale, the boxed in letters are the scale names, and following the scales names are some possible notes to arpeggiate. I use a sequence that starts with Gb, the first degree of the scale, then goes down to Eb, the sixth degree of the scale, moves lower to Cb, the fourth degree of the scale, then moves up to Db, the fifth degree of the scale, and goes back home. You can also use an extended sequence with minor chords in the second degree, listed on the second row.
   Some huge benefits of improvising are:

1. You can see how well your student feels rhythm if they fit within your accompaniment.
2. You learn to really listen and feel the student's musical sensibility.
3. You can help them develop a melodic ear.
4. Improvising is relaxing and soul satisfying. 

If you watch a sample of my Periscope video, below, you can hear a story of parent feedback after listening to her child improvise with me.

                          

   If you would like to see the accompaniment to this improvisation written out, here is a sample.

Next week on Periscope I'll demonstrate a different improvisation pattern with add ons. This becomes just 5-8- minutes of my lesson time but can really energize my students.

 I am on Periscope on Tuesdays at 10:30 PST and my screen name is GabriB. I hope you will visit me.

Also check out Elizabeth Gutierrez on Periscope. She does teachings tips in 10 minutes on Tuesday mornings at 8:00am CST and I really enjoy her insights. Her handle is @pianoprof88 and she has a great blog. 

     Periscope is a free app by the Twitter company that allows you to broadcast all over the world. There is no time limit. Viewers can participate by typing messages and questions and by sending hearts for content they like. The recorded broadcast is viewable for 24 hours after airing.

                                                                 

Improvise An Irish Dance For St. Patrick's Day

                                          Periscope #11
                    Teach an Irish Dance for St. Patrick's Day

                My inspiration for daring to teach improvisational playing is Forrest Kinney. He has produced some wonderful books that give ideas for improv patterns in all styles of music. He magically appeared at my dinner table one evening, unexpected and unannounced, and open my eyes to the joy of creating music. Read about it here.

  So today, here is a pattern for an Irish Dance. The parameters on on the picture below and watch the Periscope video to put it together.

                           
                 
                              

Next week on Periscope I'll demonstrate a different pattern with add ons. This becomes just 5-8- minutes of my lesson time but can really energize my students.

 I am on Periscope on Tuesdays at 10:30 PST and my screen name is GabriB. I hope you will visit me.

Also check out Elizabeth Gutierrez on Periscope. She does teachings tips in 10 minutes on Tuesday mornings at 8:00am CST and I really enjoy her insights. Her handle is @pianoprof88 and she has a great blog. 

     Periscope is a free app by the Twitter company that allows you to broadcast all over the world. There is no time limit. Viewers can participate by typing messages and questions and by sending hearts for content they like. The recorded broadcast is viewable for 24 hours after airing.

                                                                 

My Teaching Manifesto

Vulnerability is not winning or losing it is the willingness to show up when you can’t control the outcome. 
– Brene Brown

The Living Brave semester is half way through and I am processing what I know and yet don't know about showing up, especially in thew arena of being a piano teacher and musician. The arts are vulnerable places for children and adults. So often, our creativity is squelched in music and art because someone gives us the message that we aren't good enough. Here is a manifesto I wrote as an assignment for class.

My Daring Greatly Teaching Manifesto

I am most curious about what could happen in my teaching career if I stay vulnerable and continue to try new things. I desire the courage to be seen as I am, not as I would like to be, which means that my weaknesses will be visible. In my heart of hearts, I know I am a good musician and teacher. Being brave to be "back on the floor again" when I try new technology or new musical skills is how I want to dare greatly. I am most passionate about being connected to my students and inspiring them to be curious and brave.

Simple Improvisational Composition

                                            Periscope #10   

     Simple Composing, Stealing a Common Bass Line
    
Wow! This is my tenth Periscope. I am finally figuring out how to make a better video. Periscope is very improvisational. People leave comments which surprise and delight. All of the interactive part makes me less anxious to have a polished presentation. What happens, happens and it is gone in 24 hours, unless you save the video to post on the blog.

     Speaking of improv, that is my subject today. How many of your students love Heart and Soul? Why? It is a piece with a pattern, they can play it as a duet, and it has room to improvise new parts. Let's steal the baseline of Heart and Soul and compose a new piece on different difficulty levels so that most students can try this at home.

    I call this C Pop Pock. It begins with a simple LH pattern. Bass C, A, F, G, this is the part that is stollen from Heart and Soul. The right hand has some rounds (repeated chords) of a C Chord and a dropped third to a second. (CDG, CDG)

     Setting up some boundaries helps my students be successful. The LH has a boundary of the pattern C,A,F,G, but with that boundary moving notes can be added. The RH has chords with a dropped second and those chords can be inverted, and moving notes can be improvised. I have tried this with a six year old, simplifying the right hand to thirds, C and E, as well as with an adult who had many add-ons. The video explains some add on improvisations.

          

         Next week on Periscope I'll demonstrate a different pattern with add ons. This becomes just 5-8- minutes of my lesson time but can really energize my students.

 I am on Periscope on Tuesdays at 10:30 PST and my screen name is GabriB. I hope you will visit me.

Also check out Elizabeth Gutierrez on Periscope. She does teachings tips in 10 minutes on Tuesday mornings at 8:00am CST and I really enjoy her insights. Her handle is @pianoprof88 and she has a great blog. 

     Periscope is a free app by the Twitter company that allows you to broadcast all over the world. There is no time limit. Viewers can participate by typing messages and questions and by sending hearts for content they like. The recorded broadcast is viewable for 24 hours after airing.

                                                                 

Have You Ever Used A Fake Book?

                                              Periscope #9   

                               What is fake about this book?
    
   A fake book is a collection of lead sheets intended to assist a performer learn new songs. Each piece contains the melody and chords above, so that the arrangement can be improvised and you can "fake" playing the real thing.  Fake books came about when musicians needed access to piles of music and these lead sheets were photocopied and past around among musicians. Copyrights were ignored and often poorly crafted chords were added above the melody. 

   Since the 70's, books have been copyrighted and cleaned up and are available for sale. Fake books have a place for musicians who accompany. I use them to accompany a group at our local care home where I do music with seniors who love those 40's and 50's songs. We scramble every week to find music and often the guitarists only have lead sheets.  
          Many lead sheets are sold on musicnotes.comand are less expensive.

   This week on periscope I reviewed the skills involved in playing from a lead sheet. I chose a song called "I'm Looking Over A Four Leaf Clover" and below you can see a few minutes of how a simple melody can become a full song. 

                           

Next week on Periscope is still undecided. I am there on Tuesdays at 10:30 PST and my screen name is GabriB. I hope you will visit me.

Also check out Elizabeth Gutierrez on Periscope. She does teachings tips in 10 minutes on Tuesday mornings at 8:00am CST and I really enjoy her insights. Her handle is @pianopro88 and she has a great blog. 

     Periscope is a free app by the Twitter company that allows you to broadcast all over the world. There is no time limit. Viewers can participate by typing messages and questions and by sending hearts for content they like. The recorded broadcast is viewable for 24 hours after airing.

                                                                 

Teaching From Lead Sheets

                                             Periscope #9   

                Just learn the melody and improvise the left hand

     Have you ever used just a lead sheet to learn music? As a musician I am called upon all the time to do just that. For example, yesterday I was playing the piano as a volunteer for a group called MusicMendsMinds. We do music with those suffering from Alzheimers, early dementia, and some residents from our local Care Center. When we arrive, the musicians scramble to come up with an agenda. The guitarists only use lead sheets so they hand me the music and expect I will be able to improvise. In periscope #9 I reviewed some steps to teach from a lead sheet.

1. Teach the right hand melody line
2. Review the chords written above the melody as block chords
3. For the easiest LH play only the bottom notes of the chord.
4. Play the melody and bottom notes of chords together
5. Try fifths in the LH
6. Harmonize the melody by dropping some notes from the chord under the melody
7. Play together
8. Try a different LH, such as, waltz broken chords or arpeggiated chords.

         Faber Piano Adventures uses a lead sheet in every level of their 2nd edition lesson books.

                          

Next week on Periscope is still undecided. I am there on Tuesdays at 10:30 PST and my screen name is GabriB. I hope you will visit me.

     Periscope is a free app by the Twitter company that allows you to broadcast all over the world. There is no time limit. Viewers can participate by typing messages and questions and by sending hearts for content they like. The recorded broadcast is viewable for 24 hours after airing.

                                                                 

Teaching Pop Songs- "Hello"

Periscope #8

My video is still available on Periscope until 02/17/16 10:30 PST  

"Hello, How Are You?"

What do you do if beginning students are itching to learn a pop song? You can meet their desire by giving a partial taste or the whole enchilada using a lead sheet. These are some things I covered on my last Periscope Video.

1. Some lead sheets are available at musicnotes.com
2. Start with teaching the scale of the piece
3. Teach chords and their inversions
4. Learn the melody line

                         This can take many weeks. I use this part of the lesson like dessert. 

5. Try melody line with chords leaving out the middle note, just fifths or just a single note. 

6. If they still want more sound, try hanging the chords under the melody. The melody note must be on top so find that inversion.The harmony doesn't have to be under every melody note.

7. This is not precision playing. Allowing exploration and improv.

   
   

 Next week on Periscope is still undecided. I am there on Tuesdays at 10:30 PST and my screen name is GabriB. I hope you will visit me.

     Periscope is a free app by the Twitter company that allows you to broadcast all over the world. There is no time limit. Viewers can participate by typing messages and questions and by sending hearts for content they like. The recorded broadcast is viewable for 24 hours after airing.