The Musician in Me

In the land of many hats, this week the piano teacher is also a guest clinician, board member, Discretionary Funds Committee member, Holy Week musician (that's a few extra services and rehearsals), artist practicing oboe accompaniments, and Judge Education convention session planner.

I am excited to have been asked to be give a key note address in August, present at
the state convention in June, perform with an oboeist for Thursday Musical, help with a Senior Recital, interview a new student, judge out of state, judge IN state, submit an article for possible inclusion in Clavier Companion, demo my blocks invention at the Piano Pedagogy conference, and I said yes to all, because I love to do new things. Look at it this way-there will be lots to blog about!

And regular life goes on too...

In the land of home maintenance, I am now the owner of a new washer and dryer. New carpet is on order. The television at the repair shop can not be fixed, they say. Heavy sigh. I can think of oh so many ways I would have rather spent the money. But if you are the person who thinks break-downs come in threes, I should be all set!

They say April showers bring May flowers. This last week has felt like a torrential downpour! but oh, oh, oh, it's all good. AMEN!

Pity the Meek for They Shall Inherit the Earth

This quote by Don Marquis met me when I went online this morning. Needing more clarity on "meek", I was directed to these definitions:
1. humble in spirit or manner; suggesting retiring mildness or even cowed submissiveness; "meek and self-effacing"
2. very docile; "tame obedience"; "meek as a mouse"- Langston Hughes
3. evidencing little spirit or courage.
Then I went to a Bible Study where we discussed the holy Thursday event of Jesus washing feet. I work with children every day and tell them, "You are my future! I'm so glad".
Do all of these ideas live in harmony or in tension with each other?

Monday Vocabulary Words

Today was a day full of learning new music words. I seemed to have a question every lesson about something in the score. Last year, I wrote a matching game for my young ones, written in words they might understand. I've un-scrambled them for you here. Feel free to scramble them back up and use it at your studio!

Memory- I can play it from my heart, without the book.
Accuracy- I can play without too many note mistakes.
Notation- Sometimes the same as accuracy. I aced the notes, rhythms, and the special details like staccatos and fortes.
Rhythm- I’ve got the beat.
Tempo- I went the speed that the composer liked.
Steadiness- I stayed at the speed the composer liked
Technique- My fingers are strong and curvy.
Tone Quality- I “spoke up” through the piano; people could hear my playing in the back of the room.
Articulation- The little extras like staccatos and accents that make the song alive.
Balance- My melody was standing in front; my chords or the rest of the piece was sitting behind my melody.
Dynamics- I played LOUD and quiet and in between so the audience could hear the difference.
Phrasing- I breathed at the end of the musical sentences. Holding my breath is too hard!
Ritardando- Sometimes shortened to rit., it means Woah, slow down here.
Stage Presence- I had fun and was proud to play. I took a bow and smiled at the audience. I looked and sounded GOOOOOOD!
Style- I made my mom cry or my dad dance, I made the piece come alive.

Planting Seeds

Do you see yourself as a music leader? Can you start to envision yourself emerging from following, moving forward to share and bring others into worship? What does that mean to you? What is worship?

Our mission church held a “playshop” retreat on Saturday from 9-3. We called it play, because it certainly wasn't work, yet it was demanding and exhausting. It was an amazing event; 19 people shared their time, energy, music and passion. We had a short lecture on what worship in the 21st century is becoming, we shared why we were there. It was such a holy time. As much as I would like to focus on the spiritual event that took place, I will today focus on the music aspect of that great day.

The rhythm of most of the music we learned on Saturday had an insistent beat; if I were to write it down in 4/4, it was 2 dotted quarter notes, quarter note. Simple, singular and driving. It was challenging to some, others were innately gifted. The presenter had brought several instruments I had not ever had the privilege to play, and one I had never seen. Later in the day, we used the guitars, keys, voices of our time, it was such a mix of musical styles and time periods.

We did some Latin American music. I don’t speak Spanish, but it really didn’t matter. The words were not hard to learn, and because it is repetitive, you get it quickly. Many people do not read music today in a traditional sense. Now everyone can participate in song. One of the statements the presenter said will stay with me a long time. “Where else do people come together to sing?” Karaoke bars are focused on one person. Choirs are trained to sing a certain way and are rather exclusive. School children sing in class, but what adults sing together? There is deep connectedness to life itself when all people raise their voices together: men, women, children, high, low, old, young, pitched, and non-pitched. Those lucky lucky villages where everyone comes together to chant and sing.

Imagine 19 grown people-put yourself among us, learning traditional African percussion instruments and singing in an African language. Although we were musicians we were taught orally and aurally, in the African way. Repeating the phrases over and over, harmonies started to emerge on their own. The percussion sounds filled our shoes and we started moving. We stood in a half-circle and the music seeped into our very skin. One woman’s short hair stood on end! The song was a call to worship, and it called us all.

I planted seeds of leadership and music on Saturday. It will be so fun to watch them grow. (Lola's pot-head hair has sprouted, sort of. It's pretty thin!)

Big week at the Studio

"Welcome back from Spring Break, you great students. I hope you practiced hard while I was off galavanting about the country."

This week was a rude awakening to the teacher more than the student. What do you mean there are only 7 weeks left of the musical school year? Will they get all these pieces ready in time? What was I thinking?

A few weeks ago, I took a step back to reevaluate some of the programs the Wolf Piano Studio uses. Many are near and dear to us, and have tremendous value in teaching and furthering their development. I have concluded that theory exams, the MMTA competition and piano exam, Federation Festival and the Guild Auditions are worthwhile, fun, and will stay in the studio.

After the Guild raised dues and enrollment rates again this year, I took a look at aspects of this program. What other programs are out there for an end of the year assessment? The presumption here is that an end of the year analysis of our progress is beneficial and needed. What do other music events cost and what do other student fees across other programs look like? What did families perceive the value of end of the year report cards to be?

Minnesota Program Options, as I saw it:

A. National Guild Auditions –it’s been a good program. Fee=approximately $32 per audition for a 10 piece program, includes technique, etc. a wide variety of dates, and is in our backyard. I'm the chair and run a site right here in town.

B. Minnesota Music Bridges – a newer, very creative MMTA outlet, $25, 5 total elements, takes place in St. Louis Park, mid-April. It brings in elements of the other arts; some students paint, draw, dance, recite poetry.

C. Piano Exams through MMTA. Sat. 5/16/09 is the only date, it’s at the U of M, cost is around $27.00 plus gas and parking, should have taken the MMTA Theory also. 4 memorized pieces from a list, some history, sight playing, and technique elements. Comprehensive but not for all students-it is a serious classical piano exam.

D. Upper Midwest Music Festival – 2 pieces for memory, very similar to our current Federation festival, $30.00, end of April. Too much like what we do already in January-and no cost savings.

Other event fees:

A. A Karate tournament - $50 per event entered, plus travel expenses. No critique.

B. Golf tournament - $35.00, no coaching, but you’re out there playing.

C. Scouting? Dance? Clubs at school? A sports season? I’m at a loss to make an even comparison for an individual event in which you, the student, are the focus, your progress is assessed for the year, a professional in the field is brought to you. The other music programs were of a similar price although the student played fewer pieces and drove a distance to it.

But then best answers came from my families! Most of the families that have used Guild for many years see that it is like no other, it “keeps the students engaged and learning in the spring”, we loved “the scope”, and “character building things go into the preparation and performance…it’s about so much more than piano, you know”. One former student wrote that her college acknowledged guild auditions. Another former student felt it prepared her for the big projects of college. Well said. I appreciated all the feedback, pro and con.

So here we are getting ready for the end of the year. Can we be ready? I believe it, but a little dessert doesn't hurt. A fruit tart and chocolate raspberry cake from "Pardon My French", a wonderful cafe just north of my studio.

Theme Thursday - TEN

Fingers, playing a huge Rachmaninoff chord! (Cody O. is our hand model today, working on this very Rachmaninoff Prelude! Thanks, Cody!)

No Joke

Look at my view this morning! I'm disgusted and want to crawl back into bed. Coming back from a vacation is hard work. The studio is a buzz-I'll write again soon!