Enjoy Music

How Do You Find Left Hand Piano Notes

2015-11-23T22:58:00.002+13:00

An 8 year old piano student was playing a piece with several different right hand notes and a left hand note. When he came to play this left hand note he had difficulty finding and hence playing it. I asked him “If you are at home and can’t find this note what would you do to help you? How Do You Find Left Hand Piano Notes.”

His response:

1. Ask my sister ( who also learns the piano )

“Anything else,” I asked.

2. Look at an earlier page

3. Look on the computer

I asked him, “What would you type in to find this note?”

He said “piano notes”

I suggested “left hand piano notes”

And he then said “images”. So you would click on the images tab.

So I suggested he do all of the above before this before next lesson.

So how did he find left hand piano notes in the lesson?

Before I carry on with this I would like to mention that there are two main possibilities as to why a student finds it difficult to find a piano note.

1. Difficulty in Reading What The Note Is On Sheet Music

Notes are written on or above or below the stave which are the 2 sets of five lines, one for the right hand and one for the left hand. We call the notes written on the lines… line notes and notes written between the lines… space notes. The positioning of these notes tells the reader exactly which key to play. And you learn all of this step by step, in your process of learning the piano whether you are doing it yourself or with a teacher.

There could be a number of reasons why a student has difficulty in finding a left hand piano note. These can be:

~ not playing much or at all between lessons – probably the most common reason

~ learning difficulty eg dispraxia , dislexia

~ being young. There is a lot of learning going on for a 5 and 6 year at school. Maybe they can’t remember which hand is right and which is left and therefore get muddled at finding and playing these notes correctly.

2. Not knowing or remembering which key represents which note.

Notes are given names and these are the first 7 letters of the alphabet. In music we call this The Musical Alphabet. The notes A B C D E F G are found in relation to the black keys eg all C’s are found directly to the left of the group of two black keys. Students learn this step by step.

So basically when you read sheet music you need to look at the positioning of the note and play the key it represents. Sometimes people can remember the key to press down from the positioning on the stave, but they cant remember the name of the note. Sometimes people know the name of the note but play it in the wrong octave eg the left hand note is a G and the student plays a G up high where the right hand plays.

Finding the Left Hand Piano Note With The Student:

I followed point 2….finding the note from a page earlier in the book.

I thought this would help the student more if he could work it out himself rather than me just play it to him and he copy …like in point 1, which was Ask His Sister ( or in fact you could ask anyone in the know) I could not do point 3 as there was no internet, but if I could here is an image which could help.

Here is a picture from an earlier section in the book.

All the student needs to do is look at his note in question, which is the top image of this blog, and find the same picture on the diagram. Then look upwards to see the note name and then upwards again to find the positioning on the piano keys. Then I would get the student to play the note, play the piece on the same and then play the piece he is learning.

Some younger students have trouble tracking there eyes across from one place to another. Some students have trouble if the note in question actually looks different than the note in a diagram. For example the note in the top diagram looks different than the note in the same position on the diagram I found from the computer. You see notes are played for different time lengths. And therefore there needs to be a sign to tell the musician how long to play a note for. The note in the top diagram is a four count note, whereas the note in the computer diagram is one count. And this confuses some students. It is just a learning process to remember this.

After we have looked at earlier pieces I will then explain that there is another way to learn how to find the left hand piano notes. And that is to use sayings. Look at the picture below and the sayings underneath. Work from the bottom space or line note upwards. The note names are highlighted in red.

Line Notes:

Always Always

Fruit Ferraris

Deserve or Drive

Boys Boys

Good Good

Space Notes:

Grass

Eat

Cows

All

You can come up with your own one.

So once you have found the positioning of the note from the sheet music to the keys then you play it in context with the exercise or piece you are playing. And then carry on learning more pieces.

This Book has the piece in question which my student is learning and more.

To help the memory Repeat Often On Different Days of the Week and those left hand piano notes will be as easy to find as the right hand piano notes.

Happy Playing

Christmas Carols And Songs

2015-11-23T22:11:00.000+13:00

Christmas is an annual celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ and is celebrated by many people around the world with a holiday on the 25th December.

There are many traditions associated with Christmas and one of them is the singing and playing of Christmas Carols and Songs.

So what is a Christmas Carol?

Firstly the word “carol” is defined as a “joyful song” or “dance in a ring”. It is usually a religious song expressing joy and simple faith and is linked to a particular religious feast.

It is said that the first carols were sung by angels, who announced the birth of Jesus Christ. And a great number of carols were written to show the great joy and happiness the singers felt when they thought about Jesus and the Christian religion.

The carol as a Christmas song developed in England during the 14th and 15th centuries. Most carols nowadays are sung at Christmas Time so they are called Christmas Carols.

Many carols have lilting cheerful tunes, which would be easy to dance to. Many are tender and gentle, like lullabies to the Infant Jesus, whilst others are solemn like ordinary hymns.

People enjoyed singing carols door to door, in church services, Carols by Candlelight or to hear them in concert.

The form of most traditional carols consists of a number of verses with a chorus or refrain repeated between each verse.

Here is a list of some Traditional Christmas Carols and Songs sung at Christmas Time.

Angels of the Realms of Glory:

This was written by James Montgomery and sung to a variety of tunes. It was first printed 24 December 1816 and sung in churches after a reprint in 1825. Listen to a version to the music by Henry Smart.

Away in a Manger:

This is a newer Carol written by James R. Murray, published in 1895 with the music composed in the 1895 by William J. Kirkpatrick in 1895.

Hark The Herald Angels Sing:

Charles Wesley wrote this song in the 1730’s. Later it was set to the music of Mendelssohn and was finally published in 1856

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen:

This was was first published in 1833. The author of the lyrics is unknown but it is thought they date back to the 15th Century.

O Come All Ye Faithful:

This was composed by the Englisman John Reading in the early 1700s.

O Little Town Of Bethlehem:

This is a newer Carol composed in 1868 by Rector Phillips Brooks of Philadelphia following a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The music was composed by Lewis Redner his church organist.

Silent Night:

This was composed in 1818 in Austria by Franz Xaver Gruber. The lyrics were written by Joseph Mohr. The simple words could be sung to the accompaniment of a guitar because mice had gnawed into the bellows of the organ making it unplayable. Many arrangements have been formed all around the world since.

The First Nowel or The First Noel:

This is a traditional English Carol with the origin unknown. It was published in 1833.

The word Noel is French and means Christmas. The English spelling of the word is Nowell and so the title can be either spelling.

It Came Upon The Midnight Clear:

This carol was written by Edmund Hamilton Sears in 1849 and composed by American musician Richard Storrs Willis in 1859.

Jingle Bells:

This song is the most popular secular Christmas Song.

This song was originally published in 1857 by James Lord Pierpont (1822–1893) using the title “The One Horse Open Sleigh” and it used as a winter song and for Thanksgiving. In 1859 it the name changed to Jingle Bells for publishing.

It was so popular that it was sung at Christmas time as well and has become one of the best known and commonly sung American Christmas songs in the world. However it took many years to become popular. It started to become popular for Christmas with phonograph records and later on radio and the recordings of well known artists such as Bing Crosby and the Andrew Sisters. There is no mention of Christmas but it is now associated with the Christmas and holiday season.

I would like to point out that the simplicity of the tune makes it an easier tune for beginner instrumentalists to learn and hence becomes the first introduction to playing Christmas Music to learner musicians.

Deck the Halls:

This is a Welsh traditional Christmas carol from the 16th century but is sung the most in America The first publication of the English lyrics were in the late 19th century.

O Christmas Tree:

This is a traditional German Christmas Carol with composer and author of lyrics unknown. It tells of bringing a tree in side and decorating it with candy, baubles and bells which started in the 19th century.

The Holly and the Ivy:

The author and composer of of this traditional British Christmas Carol is unknown.

I Heard The Bells on Christmas Day:

This carol is based on the poem called “Christmas Bells” by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, in 1863.

Good King Wenceslas:

This popular modern carol tells a story of a miracle performed by that King “on the Feast of Stephen” 26th December. The words were written by Reverend John Manson Neale in 1853 and is set to the tune of an old spring carol composed in the 1500’s. It does not mention Christmas.

Joy To The World:

This popular American Christmas Carol was written in 1719 by Isaac Watts with the music believed to have been composed by George Frederick Handel.

We Three Kings of Orient Are:

This popular American carol was written by Rev. John Henry Hopkins and published in 1857. It is one of the most frequently sung Christmas Carols today.

Ding Dong Merrily on High:

This is a joyful carol written by English composer George Ratcliffe Woodward (1848–1934), and first published in 1924. The text was originally in Latin and the composer is unknown.

While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night:

This carol was written by written by Nahum Tate in the early 1700’s and is commonly sung to 2 tunes. This carol tells a story of how the angels came to the shepherds on the hillside.

We Wish You A Merry Christmas:

This is a popular 16th century English carol with the author and composer unknown.

If you like the idea of singing or playing Christmas Songs like the ones mentioned then you can click on the image to the right of this blog and further up to look at some Sheet Music.

Maybe you would like to to listen to the youtube Christmas song examples in this blog and whilst Shopping For Some Christmas Theme Products by clicking on the top image…all from the comfort of your couch!!

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The Background Behind The Name “SONATINA”

2015-11-23T22:05:00.001+13:00

An example of a Sonatina for flute. Click Picture for Flute Information

People have their own names and then give themselves a “pen” name or another name depending on what it is for eg writers often give themselves another name for their books. I have given myself an internet name called “Sonatina”. This blog is about the background behind the name “Sonatina”.

Firstly, what is a Sonatina?

Secondly, why choose this name?

What Is A Sonatina?

A Sonatina simply means a shorter sonata usually lighter and easier but not always.

A Sonata is an instrumental composition for a solo instrument or solo instrument with piano accompaniment, in three or four movements in related keys and varying speeds and moods.

Why Choose The Name Sonatina?

1. I like names ending in “a”. The name “Sonatina” ends in “a”.

2. I play and teach several musical instruments and thought I would like a name in music for my “internet” name.

3. People learn and do things, whether it is work, a hobby, daily task or something else at different rates and each thing provides an individual a mood or emotion which can vary. I liken this to a sonata or sonatina where each movement has a different speed and mood attached to it.

When you learn things it is more effective to focus on one point ( or movement ) at a time.

Eg if you are learning a musical instrument, focus on the sound and fingering of one or two notes first. You can add notes of different time lengths one at a time next, then more notes and so on.

Eg if you are mastering “marketing your own business” then pick one platform first like blogging, facebook, instagram, you tube and learn it. Then move onto the others one at a time. Also break each main topic down and learn in bite sized pieces one step at a time. It is easier to think of bite sized pieces or points as each movement of a Sonatina.

Below is an example of a Sonatina, which I played on the flute.

This sonatina has two movements of different speeds and time signature. The first movement is Moderato and is in 4/4 time. The second movement is Romanze and is in 6/8 time. The feel and mood of the two movements are different with the Romance being faster and more dancelike.

So now, when you are learning a point or two on any given topic, think of it as a Sonatina. When you have learnt all the points (movements) of a topic ( piece(s) ) you may have learnt a sonatina or lots of related Sonatinas linked together.

Click Picture To Learn How To Play A Sonatina On The Piano

I truly believe in learning one step at a time on any particular topic so that one can Blossom and Grow and Reach Up High For The Stars

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Musical Terminology Involved In Learning And Playing Ode To Joy On The Piano

2015-11-23T21:59:00.002+13:00

Ode To Joy is the theme from the final movement of Ludwig Van Beethoven's ( 1770-1827) 9th symphony. It is a common tune for students of any instrument to play in their early years of learning an instrument.

I would just like to point out that a symphony is a musical composition for full orchestra, usually in four movements. So take a look at this “orchestral version” below.

To be able to read and play it and other tunes like it on an instrument you nead to have an understanding of the musical terminology involved.

This blog goes over all the musical notation, terms and sighs you need to know in order to learn and play Ode To Joy on the piano. I have numbered each musical term on the sheet music. So just look at the corresponding number with meanings underneath.

Stave or Staff

A staff or stave is represented by the 5 lines and 4 spaces and it is where music is written. On piano music you see two sets of lines.

1. Treble Stave: The treble stave is the upper set of lines on piano sheet music and is also used for some single line instruments such as the violin, flute and trumpet.

2. Bass Stave: The bass stave is the lower set of lines on piano sheet music and is also used for some single lined instrument such as the bassoon, double bass and cello.

A single line refers to one row of music.

A double line refers to two rows of music.

3. Grand Staff

This is when the treble staff and bass staff are joined together with vertical bow-shaped bracket called a brace, at the start of each line.

4. Treble Clef

This is a sign which goes at the beginning of the treble or top stave in the grand staff to indicate playing notes with the right hand or high pitched musical instruments.

5. Bass Clef

This is the sign which goes at the beginning of the bass or lower stave in the grand staff to indicate playing notes with the left hand or lower pitched musical instruments.

6. Bar Lines

These are the vertical lines you see at regular intervals on sheet music for the ease of counting and flow of the music.

7. Bar or Measure

This is the piece of music or notes seen between 2 bar lines.

8. Double Bar Line

This is a thin and thick bar line seen at the end of a piece to signify the end.

9. Time Signature

A time signature is represented by the two numbers seen at the beginning of a piece. It indicates how many beats or counts there are in a bar.

The top number indicates the number of beats/counts in a bar

The lower number indicates the type of beat there are ‘x’ of.

For example:

3 indicates there are three crotchet or quarter beats / counts in a bar

In Ode To Joy the time signature is 4, so there are 4 crotchet beats in each bar.
4

10. Bar Numbers

In some sheet music you you can see numbers above some bars. This represents the number of the bar in the piece. For example the 9 above the first bar of the third line represents bar 9. These numbers are particularly useful in a group setting if the group is to repeat a certain section of the piece. The conductor or equivalent can just say ” Lets practice from bar 9 to bar 30 or whatever “.

11. Key Signature

A key signature is represented by the number of sharps or flats written on the stave before the time signature. And this tells a musician what key the piece is in. Sometimes there are no sharps or flats written before the time signature.This means the piece is in C major or A minor. You get to know the keys and key signatures in your process of learning your musical instrument.

The arrangement of Ode To Joy above has a key signature of 1 sharp and is in the key of G major.

12. Slur or Phrase Mark

A slur or phrase mark is the curved line written above a set of notes. A slur tells a musician to play the notes underneath it as smoothly as possible. A phrase mark is is a long slur and at the end of the curve you can break the sound of the note before playing the next note for example pianists lift their fingers off the keys and wind players stop blowing through their instruments.

13. Moderato

Words above the stave and written notes like Moderato in Ode To Joy, indicate a speed to play the piece. These are usually Italian words. Moderato means 108 – 120 beats per minute between andante and allegro. You can measure the timing or beats per minute with a metronome.

Dynamic Markings

These are written below a stave or in the middle of the grand stave to indicate how loud or soft to play the notes. In this Ode To Joy example there are three examples.There are of course more dynamic markings in music.

14. f is forte and means loud.

15. mp is mezzo piano and means moderately soft.

16. The 2 lines which start off at a point and get bigger is a sign to tell the musician to get gradually louder.

Another way to indicate getting gradually louder is with the Italian words cresc. or written in full crescendo.

17. Accidentals

These are indicated by sharp, flat or natural signs written just before the note within the piece of music.

There are three accidentals in the given Ode To Joy as indicated in bars 11 and 12. There is D sharp, D natural and C sharp.

These signs and terms are a lot to take in when you are first learning to read piano sheets so they are there to keep referring to. Sometimes they are found at the beginning of tutor books or throughout tutor books as you are learning them for the first time.

As you play lots of exercises and pieces on the piano you will find that you will know them well and can then concentrate on learning the piece at hand such as Ode To Joy on the piano.

Below is the piano playing of the sheet music represented near the top of the blog.

Are you keen to know more.

Then This and This will help.

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Recorder Notes With Letters

2015-11-23T21:56:00.000+13:00

To understand what Recorder Notes With letters are, then you need to know what a recorder is, what are notes and and letters and the fingering of them on the recorder.

What Is A Recorder?

The recorder is a musical instrument made of wood ( see photo above ) or plastic. It is basically a hollow tube in two or three sections, with a mouth piece at one end, an opening at the other end and holes. They come in different sizes ranging from small, high sounding ones to larger, lower sounding ones. Each recorder is either in the key of C or key of F, which means that the letters for each hole will be different between the two keys. For example the lowest note for recorders in the key of C is C and the lowest note for recorders in F is F. Both are fingered the same. Read about the sopranino recorder and other types here.

What Are The Notes And Letters?

“Notes” refers to the different sounds which are produced on an instrument, in this case the recorder. They are represented by symbols. Examples of notes are seen in the picture below.

“Letters” refer to the names of the notes. These are the first seven letters of the alphabet,A B C D E F G. These note names are often referred to as is The Musical Alphabet.

There are other note names related to each of these seven letters. They are sharp notes ( # ) and flat notes( b ). Each musical alphabet letter has a sharp and flat note associated with it,that is, A# B# C# D# E# F# G# and Ab Bb Cb Db Eb Fb Gb.

Sharp notes raise a note by a semitone and a flat note lowers a note by a semitone. A semitone is the closest interval of sound. If you can visualise a piano with the white and black keys, then a semitone is the closest key to the right or left of a key. On a recorder you just have to know the fingering but the sound of a semitone is universal.

Take a look at a picture of 8 white keys on the piano from C to the next C up with sharps and flats.

Please be aware that there are sharp notes that sound the same as flat notes,for example, an A# sound is the same as a Bb sound.

A complete range of notes in an octave could go like the following two examples or the picture example above.

Ab A Bb B C Db D Eb E F Gb G or G# A A# B C C# D D# E F F# G

Each note name is a semitone away from the next note name. For example: Ab to A is a semitone and so on.

The musical alphabet repeats itself over and over again to the range of the musical instrument. The recorder family have a range of around two octaves. It can vary depending on recorder type.

What Is The Fingering Of The Notes On The Recorder?

“Fingering” refers to the pressing of finger tips or pads down on the recorder holes in varying configurations. When a musician wants to play a note or “letter” and hence a variation in pitch, then there is a fingering for that note. The recorder will have over two octaves of fingerings to represent each note name.

Please note that a recorder player produces a sound by blowing through the mouthpiece to create a vibration of air down the recorder.

What Is The Fingering On The Recorder For Each Note Name?

When you play any wind instrument the left hand goes at the top.
A recorder has a thumb hole underneath and 5 single holes plus 2 double holes on top.

The holes will be called the following:

Th = left hand thumb

1 2 3 ( for left hand 2nd 3rd 4th fingers )

4 5 ( single holes for right hand 2nd 3rd fingers )

6 7 (double holes for right hand 4th 5th fingers )

Here is the fingering for the recorders in the key of C.

B: Th 1
A: Th 1 2
G: Th 1 2 3
E: Th 1 2 3 4 5
C2: Th 2
D2: 2
D1: Th 1 2 3 4 5 6
F#: Th 1 2 3 5 6

C1: Th 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ie all holes covered for a lowest sound on the instrument.

Look here for the visual fingering of some recorder notes.

Recorders in the key of F have F1 as the lowest note, with all holes covered; equivalent to C1. So basically fingerings are the same for each key but the note name changes.

The first octave in the key of C is C D E F G A B
The first octave in the key of F is F G A Bb C D E

The Learning Process

People start learning the notes B A G first and play a variety of B A G pieces and exercises to help the process of remembering the fingering and reading the notes on sheet music. As the learning process continues then more notes/letters and fingerings are learnt. When you learn to produce second octave sounds the left hand thumb covers half a hole, like in the picture below.

A finger chart is available in tutor books as well as separate fingerings on pages throughout in the step by step learning process. To help you remember fingerings you need to Play Play Play with guidance of a teacher, tutor book or both.

With a knowledge of what a recorder is and what notes,letters and fingering are, you are on your way to playing great tunes.

Go Forth

and

Enjoy A Musical Experience On The Recorder

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Why Learn And Play A Musical Instrument

2015-11-23T21:52:00.000+13:00

There are a number of reasons why people learn a musical instrument.

Take a look at this article I wrote called “Eleven Reasons Why You Should Learn A Musical Instrument”.

I will go over point 11 in more detail. Here it is written out again.

Learning a Musical Instrument and hence playing music teaches you many things including:

~ the use of many parts of the brain

~ improved performance in all areas of the curriculum

 ~ skills in listening, memory, communication, coordination, concentration, critical thinking, team and social settings 

~ imagination and creativity e.g. improvisation and composition

 ~ cooperation and commitment e.g. in lessons and group playing

 ~ the development of self esteem and confidence

So learning a musical instrument stimulates and benefits the brain in many ways.

Take a look at this you tube video.

Wow, amazing information

It was intriging to find out that when you listen to music fireworks happen and multiple areas of your brain become engaged and active.

And it was more intriguing to find out that when you PLAY a musical instrument fireworks happen in your brain with a full body workout!!

So whenever I play one of my instruments it is good to know that I am stimulating the brain with an explosive workout. Now when I play flute in the Big Band can you imagine it…the whole room on Fire!!!

Let’s Look Further At The Brain

The brain consists of two hemispheres- the left hemisphere and the right hemisphere.

The left side has the following characteristics:

verbal, logical, structured, neat, analytical, good at languages, imaginative, more organised and systematic

The right side has the following characteristics:

Creative, intuitive, visual, outspoken, artistic, impulsive, daydreamers, disorganised

We use each side of the brain depending on what task we are doing. And it is believed that we draw on one side of the brain more than the other and you may have heard of people being right brained or left brained.

I found it intriguing to do several online right brain-left brain quizzes which are free to do. Realising your right and left brain tendency can help you interact and understand others- something useful for a music teacher.

Anyway Here is a video quiz

I took 3 more visual ones.

I found some of the questions in the tests difficult to answer because I could have picked 2 of the answers equally or an answer which was not given in the choices somewhere inbetween the given ones.

The answers were very interesting.

The video quiz told me I was more right brained.

My next quiz told me I was more left brained.

The 3rd quiz said I was more even ….very slightly more right brained

The last test gave a completely even result.

Music research says that a musician engages both sides of the brain using the analytical characteristic of the left side with the creative aspect of the right side. The left side of the brain processes information in a sequential step by step manner and hence in music the understanding of musical structure and motor skills. The right side of the brain focuses on visual imagery and hence in music the melody.

I am a musician and feel I possess a good mixture of characteristics on both sides including the ones mentioned in the previous paragraph so maybe the last two brain tests were more accurate

It is interesting to note that any activity that stimulates the brain increases its own functionality. Music is one of the few activities that stimulates the brain on both sides.

When you listen to music half the brain processes the lyrics of the song and the other half brain processes the music. So activities like walking and martial arts combined with listening to music with a steady beat will also aid the brain bilaterally.

When you play a musical instrument it requires and strengthens coordination between the hands on the instrument and visual ( reading music ) and auditory ( listening ) stimuli.

Children Learning Music

It is beneficial to brain development if a child starts learning music before the age of 7. Preschoolers can listen to music and feel the beat by singing and dancing and moving around. When a child listens and plays games to music this helps them use various parts of the brain simultaneously. It also stimulates their frontal lobes which are important in language and motor development. When children are ready to learn a musical instrument they will continue to stimulate the brain and benefit.

Would You Believe… This?

Do you think Nora’s brain benefits from piano playing?

Do you play a musical instrument?

If not why not fire up your brain today and learn Piano or Something Else.

To Sum It Up

…listening to music stimulates and benefits multiple areas of the brain but learning a musical instrument gives your brain a full body workout and has many benefits.

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Six Reasons To Learn The Piano Online

2015-11-23T21:48:00.001+13:00

You want to learn the piano and are weighing up the options of getting help with regular piano lessons from a teacher or an online piano course that you have heard about. Read six reasons to learn the piano online below.

1. You Live In The Country:

Your piano is sitting in a spare room collecting dust and you thought it would be a good idea to bring it to life and play your favourite tunes. But you live in the middle of nowhere and a long way from any piano teacher. Therefore an online piano course would be perfect. You can get to learn at a pace to suit you.

2. You Can Not Afford A Teacher:

Piano lessons with a teacher range in price, usually from around twenty dollars and upwards depending on the experience of the teacher. And people usually take a weekly lesson to keep the momentum going. So over a ten week period this can add up to two hundred dollars or more. An online piano course does not cost nearly that amount and you are able to ask for help at any stage throughout your learning experience from the creator of the course.

3. You Can Not Read Music:

An online piano course helps you learn to read music step by step with use of instruction books, audio files and DVDs. You learn at your own pace without being tied to a weekly lesson. And you can repeat sections or go over sections quickly.

4. You Learn To Improvise:

You may already know how to read music or you have learnt to read music through an online piano course, and you are keen to learn the technique of improvisation to add to your overall musical experience on the piano. You may just want to learn improvisation without having learnt how to read sheet music. Whatever your reason, you can learn improvisation with the use of your computer as fast or slow as you like through an online piano course.

5. You Learn How To Play Piano Using Chord Symbols:

One method of playing the piano is to play a melody with your right hand and play an improvised bass line with the left hand using chord symbols. What you see written on sheet music is a melody line using the treble clef and treble stave plus chord symbols written above it, like C or b min or A7 etc. Are you confused? Well an online piano course can help you out.

6. You Learn How To Focus On Practice:

The secret to being a good piano player ( or player of any musical instrument ) is the three P’s. Play Play Play or Practice Practice Practice. You could have a variation of this which is P R R which simply means Play Rinse Repeat or Play, Have a rest and then do it again.
An online piano course can help you do this in a focused way so you can achieve results fast.

These are just six reasons to learn the piano online.

If you would like further information then THIS may help you.

An Online Piano Course could be just what you need to help you play those tunes you have always wanted to do.

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Benefits Of Music For Life

2015-11-23T21:42:00.003+13:00

Music is everywhere and has been around at least 50,000 years or more. And if you just stop and listen… you can hear

~ the sweet rhythms of nature

~ bubbling brooks

~ babbling babies

~ chattering birds and animals

~ magical melodies of people singing and playing their musical instruments

Music has a range of benefits whether you play an instrument or just listen to it.

FOR A PREGNANT WOMEN AND FOETUS:

If a mother listens to music, especially classical music with it’s smooth melodious sounds

and soft rhythms, during pregnancy then this can

~ stimulate the brain of the foetus with scientific proof that the babies will have improved intelligence and creative ability.

~ create a greater connection between mother and child

~ lower stress for the mother as they feel more relaxed and can sleep better

After birth

~ A fussing child can be lulled to sleep with softly whispered lullabies sung by it’s mother – something which has been done for centuries

~ children are more happier and fulfilled if they grow up in a music filled environment

~ research indicates that children who learn music are more likely to become doctors, engineers, and computer professionals. Music learning develops areas of the brain responsible for language , reasoning and memory

People function better when they listen to music

~ They are more relaxed and many activities such as cooking, cleaning and work are more enjoyble.

~ When music is played in hospital waiting rooms and so on it reduces tensions and calms the mind.

~ It helps with:

– coordination: clapping, dancing, exercising to the beate

– self-expression: listening to a piece of music might inspire dance moves, a painting, creative writing….maybe even a blog or whatever hobby or interest you are in.

~ It has been well documented that listening to music has therapeutic values and can help heal people with mental problems, developmental and learning disabilities, Alzheimer’s disease, brain trauma, and hypertension.

~ Music has meditative properties and can be used for healing and exercising.

Scientists are using music to map behaviours and unravel the many mysteries of the human mind and consciousness.

Music quickly settles down anger and resentment. It helps us to overcome feelings of sorrow and loss, lifting the mind and spirit out of despair. It gives hope.

Singing hymns in a congregation lifts any heaviness from the mind and frees the soul and takes the devout closer to God.

Music reflects the culture of a society and strengthens bonds. It creates a camaraderie and oneness as seen in football matches, military training, and festivals. It can raise levels of excitement with its use to call armies to war by the beating of drums, to instigate raw emotions during revolts, and to drum up frenzy at football matches and rock shows.

Did you know that while classical music soothes and opens up channels in the mind, rock music can set pulses racing, and chants can send you into a trance. Music used differently has varied effects on human beings.

What effect does the following piece “All I Ask Of You” have on you? Comment below.

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Blogging For Success

2015-11-23T21:34:00.001+13:00

Blogging is one of the most popular things to do on the internet. It could make you well known, earn you extra income and hence bring you success. Do you like the internet, writing and success? Is your website traffic a little low? If you answered ‘yes’, then Blogging could be the answer for you.

So, What is Blogging?

Blogging was originally created as an online journal or diary where people express feelings and let other people know about it through the internet. These personal blogs continue to be very popular kinds of blogs. However, today, people write blogs on anything. For example, you can use blogs to promote art and photography, for advertising to sell products either yours or someone else’s product, to write short fiction or non- fiction stories and so on.

Where Are Blogs Found?

Blogs are found on blogging websites either free blog hosting websites to paid blog websites.

How do you get started?

1. You sign up to the blogging system that interests you either paid or free. Maybe you would like to start with a free blog to see you go. A paid blogging system has more features so that might be something to look into especially if it is to promote your business.

2. Write blogs on anything – fact or fiction.

You can write blogs to advertise products for sale. Blogging is great way to promote the products and bring traffic to your website.

Blog topics could be on:
~ stuff you don’t want and want to sell
~ new products you have created eg crafts.
~ other peoples products called affiliate products.

Affiliate products are found in many places. Many businesses offer an affiliate program which you can join, sell their products and earn a commision. There are also places like Clickbank which is basically a bank of affiliate products on a huge range of topics.

~ products or services on a website of yours. You may have a website which has products or services for sale.

What you do is write a blog about the product(s) you want to sell or the services you want to promote eg the affiliate products or the ones on your website or the services you want to promote, on your website or blogging platform. Then you add a link of the the website somewhere in your blog or at the end directing people to it.

For example Here Is A Link you may be interested in if you are interested in driving traffic to your blog and getting leads or people who are interested in your offer.

3. Post blog.

4. Sit back and wait for the readers. One week is a good length of time to check in and see what people think. Readers may leave a comment and recommend blogs to others.

5. Update blog website regularly with more blogs to keep readers interested.

What you do is write a blog about the product(s) on your website and add the link to this website somewhere in your blog or at the end.

How can you be successful?

To be successful you need to write good blogs. Some people are good writers and others have to learn the technique. You need to write what people want to read, add a little humour and maybe some own life experiences. Most importantly you need to get peoples attention by writing an eye catching first sentence. This will make people want to read more and then recommend your blog to others.You will get known on the internet and reap the rewards of success.

Just remember, in order to be successful you need to know what blogging is, where blogs are found, how to start and continue blogging and the art of writing good blogs to grab peoples interest.

So go forth and enjoy Blogging for Success.

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Strategies To Help With Timing When Playing A Piano Piece

2015-11-23T21:26:00.000+13:00

When you are playing a piece of music on the piano you may experience problems with timing and could use some help. This article will cover some problem areas and some strategies to help with your timing so you can enjoy your performance to the fullest.

During your learning process on the piano or any instruments you will learn note lengths and musical terms. The musical terms associated with timing are bars, bar lines, time signatures and counting. You will need to know these in order to play a piece in time.

If you have just learnt a new note or a new time signature or are struggling with a concept read on.

What Could Your Timing Problem?

You may

1. not understand or remember the note lengths, bars, bar lines and time signatures

2. have counting issues like:

~ not be counting at all

~ counting unevenly

~ finding counting difficult

3. be thinking about all the other factors about playing the piece, like getting the notes correct, dynamics, as well and thus the timing goes.

Strategies to Help Your Timing

1. Know Your Note Lengths

Here are some exercises to reinforce note lengths

Please note that counts and beats mean the same thing.

1. Copy the note lengths in the diagram below.

Write the note length name underneath.

Then write the note length or number of counts each note represents.

1 count 2 counts 3 counts 4 counts

Please note that there are other names for these notes which you may be more familiar with.

They are:

Crotchet = Quarter Note = 1 count

Minim = Half Note = 2 counts

Dotted Minim = Dotted Half Note = 3 counts

Semibreve = Whole Note = 4 counts

You can also do this with other note lengths you are learning or struggling with.

Copy them from your tutor book or ask your teacher.

2. Copy these note lengths and write below each note the number of counts.

Click On Picture For Answers

3. Draw 8 notes of the same note value, like the picture below.

Write the counting underneath each note, for example: 1 underneath the crotchet or 1 beat note, 1 2 underneath the minim or 2 beat note etc,

Click On Picture For Answer

You can draw all the note lengths you have learnt like this.

Clap and count.

Play and count with any key on right hand and then left hand.

Please note that you can count out loud or quietly. Have a go at both ways.

4. Create a Rhythm of Different Note Lengths

Draw 8 notes of different note lengths or place note length cards side by side as in picture below.

I would suggest to definitely draw the note lengths but if you can create note length cards then it provides another method of creating a rhythm.

Write or place the counting underneath each note, for example: 1 underneath the crotchet or 1 beat note, 1 2 underneath the minim or 2 beat note etc as in the picture below.

Clap and count

Play and count with any key on right hand and then left hand

Variation:

Create a rhythm using any note length with

1. 5 notes

2. 12 notes

3. you decide on how many notes

5. Draw the type of note needed

2 count note 4 count note 1 count note 3 count note

6. Copy the picture and draw a line from the notes at the top to the correct note value underneath.

Click On Picture For Answers

2. Know Your Bar Lines, Bars and Time Signatures

Bar Lines: These are the vertical lines you see on sheet music

Bars: A bar is represented by the music between the bar lines.Another name for Bar is Measure

Time Signatures:

These are the 2 numbers you see at the beginning of every piece of music.

Beginners start off learning time signatures 4 3 2 C

4 4 4

The top figure tells you the number of beats per bar

The lower figure tells you the type of beat that gets 1 count

So a time signature of 4 means there are 4 one beat notes in a bar

C as a time signature means common time and is another way of writing 4

Exercise:

From the picture below write down the time signature and how many beats to each bar underneath each one.Hint: the sentence in this colour above may help

Click Picture For Answers

3. Counting Per Bar or Measure

Once you understand and remember what bar lines, bars and time signatures are then you can count the beats per bar to help you keep in time.

So with a piece in 4 time, you count 1 2 3 4 in every bar or measure.

Every time you get to a bar line you start the counting at 1 again.

1. Exercises: to get used to counting and help with the counting issues as mentioned above.

Copy each picture in i. ii. and iii below and:

i. Write the counts in each bar

Click on Picture For Answer

ii. Fill in the bar lines.

Click On Picture To See Answer

iii. Add in the time signature at the start.

Click Picture For Answers

iv. Clap and Count out loud the exercises in i. ii, iii.

v. Play and Count out loud the exercises in i, ii, iii on any keys with your right hand or left hand or both.

vi. Create a Rhythm Using Rhythm Cards

You have seen my rhythm cards in the examples above.

My set consists of the note lengths, time signatures, bar lines and counts.

You can create these yourself by hand or on the computer.

A teacher can hand over a set of cards for the student to use within a lesson or a student / do-it-yourself-learner can use their own cards.

A teacher can give you criteria using the notes you know so far or a student/ do-it-yourself-learner can just decide on the notes to use.

For example

Create a Rhythm of ‘X’ number of bars with a time signature of ‘Y’ and the note lengths you know so far.

Let’s be more specific

Create a Rhythm of 4 bars using 3 time signature with time lengths of 1, 2, 3, 4 counts, like the picture below.

Add Counts underneath the notes using counting per bar.

Remember, the picture gives you an example. You need to create another rhythm.

Clap and Count the rhythm counting per bar.

Play and Count the rhythm on any note on the piano using the left or right hand or both.

4. Learn A Piece One Step At A Time

When you first meet a piece there is a lot to learn.

You have to learn to read the notes and note lengths and then add the other musical features like repeats, dynamics, accents and more.

So focus on one thing at a time so you don’t get confused with trying to get all aspects correct at the same time.

Here is what you can do

1. Know how to read your notes and locate which keys to press down on the piano.

2. When you are comfortable with playing the notes focus on your timing. Play slowly and count carefully.

As the notes become easier then the timing of these notes become easier with more even counting. If there is a difficult section, pull out and practise separately.

3. Then you can concentrate on the other factors of the piece.

5. Playing Lots

… of the exercises and pieces in your learning process and pieces you like. By repetition you get to know what the notes and musical features look like.

When you are first playing an exercise or piece:

1. Play slowly:

This helps you get used to the notes and counting of the piece, which is especially good for the non-countersto start counting.

I recommend playing at the speed of the hardest bar or section so the timing of the piece is more likely to be even throughout. This is great for the Uneven Counters. But focus on slow playing. Think of Dancers needing an even beat to dance to or Marching Girls having to keep in time.

2. Count out loud:

I have found with students that most keep better time when they count out loud.

3. Count to self:

You will not be performing your piece with loud counting so get used to silent counting.

The more you play the piece, the easier the notes will become to play and flow more easily in time with even counting.

People who have difficulties with counting need to understand and remember what all the features mean, do the suggested exercises above and play lots using the Learn A Piece One Step At A Time Strategy.

Conclusion

To Help With Your Timing When Playing A Piano Piece You Need To

KNOW YOUR NOTE LENGTHS,

KNOW YOUR BAR LINES, BARS AND TIME SIGNATURES

COUNT CAREFULLY AND EVENLY

LEARN A PIECE ONE STEP AT A TIME

PLAY LOTS

TO HELP WITH THIS

DO EXERCISES AND ACTIVITIES

If you have been learning on your own and are struggling This May Benefit You.

Maybe you play another instrument and you have difficulty in Timing and would like to start learning the piano then This May Interest You.

Learn A Musical Instrument To Stimulate The Brain and Help With Memory

2015-02-13T15:36:00.000+13:00

Take A Look At This Video

The brain does not mind which instrument to pick.

If you are not sure which instrument to pick take a look Here or Here.

Playing an instrument is great relaxation to while away some hours at home by yourself or with a friend. It also provides a social outlet to play along with others and enjoy making music together. You get to rehearse regularly together and there may be possibilities of performances to show off you skills to friends and family.

If you have a piano or keyboard at home not being used, then why not give it a go. I do give lessons in my home town but chances are you don't live there so you could benefit from an Online Course which is basically the cost of 1 hours tuition from me. You get to learn at your own rate and there is support whenever you need it. And you can always Facebook message me for help anytime.

To finish up with please enjoy this performance for two flutes, a cello and a piano.

2014-10-14T00:13:00.003+13:00

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How To Play The Second Octave E On The Flute

2014-10-10T01:22:00.003+13:00

So you have been playing pieces on the flute using the first octave notes and are ready to move on to the second octave sounds. Firstly, I will label all first octave notes with a 1 after, all second octave notes with a 2 after and all third octave notes with a 3 after. Eg G1 and E2 and C3

To begin with the second octave notes from E2 to C#3 are fingered exactly the same as the first octave notes from E1 to C#2. All D’s and D#’s have different fingering throughout the flute register.

To produce those second octave sounds you need to increase the speed of the air that you are blowing by making the size of your embouchure smaller. Imagine a hose with water flowing out. If you squeeze the hose to make a smaller diameter where the water can flow out, what happens? Yes, the water comes out faster.

You need to do the same with your lips so that the air comes out faster.

How Do You Do This?

All you need to do is move your jaw forward to direct the air more outwards and squeeze the sides of your lips together to get a smaller lip hole.

Let’s do a little exercise to get the feel of your jaw moving forward.

Jaw Exercise:

1. Place your hand about 5 cm away from your lips such that when you blow straight across then the air is in the middle of your palm.

2. Now blow onto your palm as if you were playing lower octave sounds.

The air should be felt below the middle of your palm.

3. Now move your jaw or lower lip forward and blow onto the palm of your hand.

Where does the air land on your hand?

To get second octave sounds the air needs to be directed higher on the far side of the flute embouchure hole. If you can feel the air on your hand above the middle then you are on the right track.

The distance between the middle of the palm and the point at where you produced the lower octave sounds is the same as the distance between the middle of the palm and the point where you get the second octave sounds.

So the movement of moving the jaw forward and squeezing the lips together is what you need to produce the second octave sounds. As you move up the octave from E2, then you will need to make the lips smaller. Producing E2, F2 are fairly similar. Then from G2 upwards just do subtle movements to produce the sound.

Now that you know what to do, it is a matter taking action with the three P’s.

PLAY PLAY PLAY

Exercises:

It is a good idea to play some exercises slowly to get the feel of your new note.

Firstly play 2 note exercises, like D2 to E2. You can make it like a siren sound where you repeat the pairs of notes. D2 E2 D2 E2 etc.

Then you can play notes around and on D. Just make up your own tunes.

Pieces:

Secondly you will want to play pieces with your new note E. You can pull out the note before the E2 in the piece and do siren sounds with that note and E2. And you can pull out the note after the E2 and do siren sounds with that note and E2. And then this makes it relevant.

You can move on to higher notes as each second octave sound gets easier to produce.Here is a Flute Book which has pieces using notes spanning 2 octaves.

Here is one tune from the book.

Just remember to keep on PLAYING on different days of the week and you will be racing towards the third octave sounds in no time.

How To Play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and More On The Flute

2014-10-10T00:43:00.001+13:00

You are 7 and your class is having a soiree at the end of term where everyone is expected
to do an ‘item’ whether it be individually or in small groups. It can be anything like
reading a poem, telling a story, performing a musical instrument, talking about your
craft and so on. You have been learning the flute and have decided to learn and play
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star as your performance.

So how do you learn and play this?

You need to:

1. Know Your Instrument:

This involves:

~ putting the flute together

~ making a sound on the flute

I gather if you want to play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star then you can already make some
sounds

~ knowing the fingering to the notes required in the piece

~ caring for your instrument so it is in top form for your performance

2. Know everything that is required to read the sheet music:

This would be:

~ the range of note names

this piece uses the notes F G A B flat C and D second octave.

~ the range of note lengths

this piece uses 1 and 2 count notes

~ time signatures:

a time signature is the 2 numbers at the start of each piece telling you how many counts there
are in the bar and what type of note gets the count.

this piece has a time signature of 4

- meaning 4 crotchet beats in the bar.

~ how to count correctly to keep in good timing with a steady beat:

So in this piece you would count 1 2 3 4 l 1 2 3 4 I 1 2 3 4 l etc

~ dynamic signs:

these are the signs to tell you how soft and loud the notes are to be played

You start off learning

p: piano: soft

mp: mezzo piano: moderately soft

mf: mezzo forte: moderately loud

f: forte: loud

This piece is to be played mf ie moderately loud

At this stage of learning you will aware of what a stave, treble clef, bars and barlines are.

Just in case you have forgotten then they are:

Stave: the 5 horizontal lines the music is written on

Treble Clef: This is the sign at the very start of every line of music.

Flute music is written using the treble clef.

Barlines: The vertical lines seen at regular interval throughout the music

Double Barline: This is seen at the end of every piece of music.

Bars: The music ( notes and rests) seen between 2 barlines.

3. Learn The Piece:

When you learn any piece of music you

~ play the notes accurately with correct fingering

~ get the correct timing and feel of the beat

~ add the extras like dynamics

4. Practise:

In order to get the piece up to performance standard then you need to practice.

This involves lots of repeated playing on different days of the week.

Any difficult parts, if you have them, need to be pulled out separately and repeated to
make as easy as the other parts.

For example in Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, you may find going from C to D second
octave to C difficult. Just pull those 3 notes out, C D C and repeat 3 times daily. You can
of course play it more times as necessary.

Look Here for more details on practising techniques.

5. Performance:

It is the end of term and Soiree Time Classroom Style.

Are you prepared?

Have you done enough practise?

Is your flute in good condition?

Take a look at How To Make The Most Out Of Your Musical Performance

Good Luck

Enjoy your Success

And Everyone Else’s

It Is Time To Celebrate

This is an outline you can apply to learning any piece of music.

Look Here for more pieces to play

How A Beginner Gets A Sound On The Flute

2014-10-10T00:32:00.000+13:00

So you have hired, borrowed or purchased a flute and you want to learn how to make
a sound and play beautiful tunes. The first step is to make a sound. So how is this done?

Let’s have a look at five points.

1. Breathing:

I ask students, especially the younger ones, “what happens to your tummy when you breathe
in?”

Most students will reply…….actually, what do you think they say?

…They usually say, “the tummy goes in.”

Then I ask them what happens to a balloon when you blow into it?

They reply,” It gets bigger.”

I then tell them that when you breathe in, air goes into your lungs and they get bigger, just
like the balloon, and so your tummy goes out.

Let us understand this further.

The diaphragm is the dome shaped muscle at the base of the abdomen. When you breathe
in, the diaphragm goes down, the lungs fill with air and the abdominal muscles move
out. The arrow is pointed to the diaphragm in the picture blow.

When people say “breath from the diaphragm”, you breathe deep and you need to be aware
of the tummy moving out and then moving in when you breathe out.

It is important be aware of your breathing in order to produce a good sound on the flute.

To Enhance Your Awareness:

i. Place one hand on your tummy and one hand on your back about the same position.

Then breathe in and out and focus on the movement of your tummy.

Does it go out and in, out and in? I hope so. Even your back goes out a little when you
breathe in.

ii. Lie on the your back on the ground.
Place some books on your tummy.
Breathe in. Do the books rise? Well they should.
Breathe out. Do the books come down? Yes they do. Good.

2. Lip Hole Size:

The size of your hole should be no wider than the width of the flute hole and not too big.
After blowing and practising you will get the feel of a suitable size because you will
hear your sound improving. If the hole size is too big then you lose too much air and the sound
will be weak. And you will not be able to blow so many notes in a breath.

To find a hole in your lip, firstly say MMMMM, then P and purse your lips such that the
corners feel like they are going down, kind of like the opposite to smiling.
Alternatively you can put a straw in your mouth and squeeze it. Feel the lips surrounding
the straw completely. Then remove the straw keeping the oval hole shape within the lips.

Then position your lips on the flute hole, headpiece alone to begin with and then the whole
flute, and blow.

3. Positioning of Lips on the Flute Hole:

The lower lip needs to cover the flute hole about a third. To get a feel for this, place a finger
underneath your lip such that the lip goes over a little. Then pick up the headpiece of the flute
and place the hole underneath then lip. Have a look in the mirror view your placement.

The far away edge of the flute hole should be slightly towards you so that when you blow
across the hole, the air splits and some goes down the flute and some goes out of the flute away
from you.

4. Angle of Air Into Flute:

When you start off learning the flute you play lower sounds.

To feel the angle of air into the flute firstly blow on your hand, which is placed in front of
your lips. Then blow straight across. Now move your lower lip in towards you such that the air
is now going lower on your hand about 2 cm. This is the angle you are aiming for when
blowing across the flute hole.

5. Blowing:

To get a good sound on the flute you need to have a suitable air speed to match the note you
are playing along with any dynamic, accents, articulations you are putting into the note and
suitable angle of air into the flute.

To start with you can try and make a sound from a plastic or glass bottle. Fizzy, wine and
beer bottles work really well. In fact if you get a number of these bottles together and fill them
up to varying levels , then you can play a tune!!

If you haven’t got a bottle on hand, go out and get one. You don’t have to drink all the contents.
But the less liquid you have in your bottle the lower the sound.

So place your lips at the edge of the bottle top, feel a hole in your lips and blow gently across
with a suitable angle of air as indicated above. You may have to adjust something to get the
sound eg you may have to blow more or less. Once you have a sound you can have a blow on
your flute.

Get a sound out of your headpiece first and then put it together for some sounds.

Place your lips on the flute hole, get a hole in your lips and blow across with an angle of air like
in the hand exercise above.

You may get a sound straight way. Or it may take you weeks to get a sound. If the sound isn’t
coming or is weak, work at changing something like your hole size, placement of lips on flute
hole, angle of air into the flute and speed of air. Another point to check is to whether your lips
are placed in the centre of the flute hole. If they are slightly to one side then that will stop
the sound from being produced.

Just keep playing, looking in the mirror if you can
and you will get a sound in no time.

Happy Fluting

P.S While you are working on your sound

it is a good idea to learn how to play

some notes using a flute tutor book.

How To Play In Time When Playing A Musical Instrument

2014-10-10T00:25:00.005+13:00

In order to play in time when playing a musical instrument the musician needs to know several factors.

These are:

1. how long each note is to be sounded for .

2. how to play all the required notes in the piece on their instrument eg which key to press on the piano, what fingering to use on a wind or brass instrument, where you fingers should be on a string instrument.

3. if reading sheet music ( as opposed to playing by ear )

~ how to read the notes from sheet music

~ what the musical terminology means eg bars, barlines and time signatures.

If you don't know something from the above, then you need to find out. This can be done by asking your teacher, referring back to the relevant sections in your tutor book or online through places like google or THIS and THIS

Once you have found out the information it is a good idea to play exercises and pieces around this information just found.

A musician also needs to Count Steadily. Sometimes people understand how long the notes are they a playing but their counting is uneven. It is common to rush the counting on long notes and to play slurs too quickly. Sometimes people don't count at all and just guess!!!

Beginners learn to count the notes by note length

During their learning process they get to know counting per bar. And to do this they need to know what the time signature is, and what bars and barlines are.

eg 4 is 4 counts per bar.

You count through the piece with repetitions of 1 2 3 4 ie 1 2 3 4 l 1 2 3 4 l etc

Musicians need to practise to remember

To help keep in time when you are playing through a piece you can have an external beat being sounded. You can:

1. clap and count out loud, the piece or section

2. for non wind instruments , play and count out loud.

3. play and move a foot or big toe in a steady beat

4. play and use a metronome

Do so slowly and build up to the required speed.

THIS

What Helps You Learn To Read And Play The Musical Note

2014-10-10T00:07:00.001+13:00

When you learn an instrument you are taught (either from a teacher or yourself) to read and play musical notes. It is important to know what a note actually is in order to learn and read them.

What Is A Note?

A note is a sign in music to tell a musician how long to play a sound for and which sound

to play on their instrument.

Note Lengths:

As a beginner you learn the 1, 2, 4, 3 count note lengths first and then branch out to other

note lengths.

They look like this:

1 count 2 counts 4 counts 3 counts

Note Names:

Notes are given names to tell the musician to what pitch to play. The musician will learn how

to play or find this pitch on their particular instrument. The notes are given names from the

first 7 letters of the alphabet, A B C D E F G. We call this the Musical Alphabet. And

then they are written on a set of 5 lines called a stave.

Pianists have 2 staves joined together by a long line, because they play notes with their right

and left hand at same time.

The position of the note on the stave tells the musician exactly which pitch of sound to play.

For example.

A C C A

Now we have the background on The Note let’s have a look at what helps you learn

to read and play these musical notes.

1. You learn note lengths and note pitch names slowly in a step by step fashion. When
you are presented with a new note or note length you will have exercise(s) and pieces to
play around this.

Look Here at How To Catch A Musical Note and Keep It Correct

Follow the sayings for line notes and space notes

3. Playing games and more can help in your memory of learning and playing these Musical

Notes.

Discover Ten Fabulous Ways To Have Fun With Your Musical Notes Here

One fabulous way to learn your musical notes is to play Dominoes Musical Style.

Below is an example of Note Length Dominoes. This is fun to play is a small group.

So all you need to do is follow the guideline of your teacher or if you are learning yourself

follow the tutor book, CD, DVD if the books come with them, and the above ideas to help

in your learning and remembering.

If you are a piano player looking for more direction to helping you learn to read and

play the musical notes then Look Here.

Enjoy your adventure to reading and playing your favourite tunes

Introduction To Learning The Piano and Keyboard

2014-10-09T23:50:00.000+13:00

You have decided that you want to learn and play the piano and you are a complete beginner.

Where do you start?

If you are learning an instrument then you need to have that instrument to play.If you have not got a piano or keyboard perched in a room somewhere, then you need to get one

There are two broad options to choose from, the electronic piano/keyboard or

upright/grand piano. Keyboards are cheaper, smaller and portable. But there is

nothing like the rich, solid sound of the piano to whip out tunes from the Great

Composers and beyond. Go to your local music shop to view and get advice. If you

know exactly what you want however you can take a look Here.

So you now have a piano or keyboard. Great!!

If you have a piano, is it in tune?

Your piano needs to be tuned every time its been shifted or at regular intervals. You

will need to find a piano tuner in your area. Maybe someone at the music store can

direct you to a reliable one.

If you have a keyboard, you will need to understand how it works by reading

the manual. Different brands of keyboards have different features and may be

set out differently. Even different types within the same brand can have variable

features.

Now…how do you play it?

Great question. There are three options:

1. Find a Piano Teacher:

You can go along to a weekly lesson for guidance.

It is useful to have someone to see and hear what are learning. A teacher can tell

you what you are doing well and what needs working on and give extra material to

help as required.

There will be variances on fees and payment.

2. Learn On Your Own:

a. You can buy a tutor book, CD, DVD and learn yourself.

This is a cheaper option than lessons with a teacher and comes with a one off fee.

You can learn at your own rate and it is convenient not to go out to a weekly lesson.

However it has it's disadvantages in that you do not get feedback and you may get

some bad habits and get confused.

b. With an Online Piano Course:

This is another option to be able to go at your pace. They generally have a one-time fee.

And as well as getting books, audio, video there is a online support service which is

used to answer any questions you may have. Take a look Here.

When you are learning the piano by any of the methods you need to learn step

by step. Every instruction is vital to get a complete knowledge. So do not skip any

lessons. Of course if you are learning from a teacher then it is harder to skip lessons

and it helps keep up the interest.

When you start learning the piano you learn sitting posture, hand and finger

position, finger numbers, note names, note lengths, the keys of the keyboard, musical

terminology and more…all step by step, from the simple pieces to the more complex

pieces as you move onto more notes and rhythms.

It is your job to get familiar with all of this so you can play your favourite pieces for

sheer pleasure and total relaxation.

And so you need to be guided into good practise techniques. You know, the idea to

learn the piano is to play and have fun. So in your learning journey take note of all the

pieces you like. And every time you go to the piano you can pull out a piece or 2 for

a warm up or warm down. And do your focused practise bit in the middle.

Take a Look Here for Practising Techniques For A Musical Instrument.

The amount time you play each practice session depends on your level of playing.

My Motto Is

Play Little Amounts Often

On Different Days Of Week

Repetition is the Key

Rather than one larger playing just before each weekly lesson

So what are you waiting for?

Contact a teacher for lessons.

Buy a tutor book,CD,DVD or

Purchase an Online Piano Course Here

And enjoy your amazing journey into the Art of Piano Playing

Learning The Piano Notes

2014-10-09T23:05:00.001+13:00

Are You Familiar With The Song Auld Lang Syne?

Great. Then you will be able to learn to play this song and more on the piano easily and
quickly. And this is simply done by learning the piano notes.

So what are the piano notes?

These are the black and white keys you see spanning right across from left to right. You
will see groups of 3 black keys and groups of 2 black keys. These repeat alternatively
as seen in the picture above.

Now the song Auld Lang Syne can be played on the black keys alone. Take a look.

NB I played this with one hand because I was filming using the other hand. But you can play
it easier to play with both hands.

On your first lesson at learning the piano, you find out that you give your fingers numbers
from 1 to 5 giving number one to the thumb.

Finger Number Saying

I'm the thumb. I'm number 1

How do you do, says number 2

Look at me, I'm number 3

Knock on the door, says number 4

I'm alive, says number 5

This is important to know because in piano sheet music you can put a finger number beside
a note so you play that note each time using this finger and this makes the piece easier to
play with the best finger progression.

When you play Auld Lang Syne on the black notes, each black key is given a finger
number. Here are the finger numbers using two hands. If you don't know the piece you
need to listen to it in order to catch the rhythm. Have a listen to the video above.

5 3 33 1 2 32 123 3 1 23hold 32 11 3 2 32 12 3 44 5 3hold

32 11 3 2 32 3 2 11 2 3hold 5 2 11 3 2 32 12 3 4 4 5 3hold

blue = left hand group of 2 black keys

blue = left hand group of 3 black keys

red = right hand group of 2 black keys

red = right hand group of 3 black keys

Then there are the white keys.

This is when we start to name the keys. In music, notes are named from the first seven
letters of the musical alphabet, namely A B C D E F G. So we name the white keys as
such. And because there are only 7 letters, they repeat across the piano from left to right.
Each letter is given to a key in relation to the black keys. You generally learn C first
when you learn the piano. All C’s are the white key directly to the left of the group of black
keys.

All F’s are the white key directly to the left of the group of black keys.

Can you find F in the picture above?

And so on.

Some say that learning the piano notes are difficult. But if you learn them slowly, one key at

a time, in a step by step order, using exercises and pieces as a vehicle in order to play the

pieces you love to hear then you will succeed. Follow your heart and inner desire.

You may be learning the piano with a piano teacher or by yourself with the aid of a

tutor book/DVD/CD.

You will be guided at your pace whichever method you choose. But you need to have your
own piano to do so. You need to touch the keys, make the sounds and enjoy your step by
step progression to the pieces you like. So if you have not got a piano you should start
shopping for one.

Will it be a cheaper keyboard?

Will it be a more expensive upright piano”

Will it be a mini grande?

There are many options, and your local music retailer can guide you.

Now you can use the technique of visualization to help in your learning of the piano notes.

Just imagine a piano and the keys on it.

If it helps, shut your eyes.

Visualise the note(s) or key(s) you have just learnt.

Finger the song you have just learnt in the air or table.

See yourself doing this.

This can be done anywhere away from or at the piano.

When you are learning the piano notes, you get to learn scales and chords from the most
simple ones like C and G and F major to the more difficult ones like D flat major or F#
minor. And this will lead from simpler pieces to more advanced pieces.

So you see, learning each piano note is not a game. It can be difficult task especially
for those who have memorization problems. Try to create a piano picture inside your mind
and visualize the note of each key. Do this everyday for a couple of minutes. Don't stop
until you have memorized the last key and note you have learnt. Retain the piano picture
inside your mind because this will be of very good use to you in the future.

However just visualizing the keys is not fun. You need to feel the keys, hear the sounds
and enjoy the amazing journey you are on.

Remember to reap the rewards of every little milestone and your fingers will be moving up
and down those keys in no time.

If you have been learning on your own and would like a little extra help then This could help.

Practising a Piano Piece

2014-10-09T22:21:00.002+13:00

It was time to learn a new piece of music. On looking at this new piece this young piano learner said it was too hard and wasn’t keen to learn it.

Now a piece such as the example above can be daunting to a 6 or 7 year. At this age they have so much to take in with their developing mind.

When you first learn a piece you need to break it down into sections and play it slowly in order to get the notes accurate and to focus on the requirements of the piece such as dynamics, accents, timing and so on. This is what we did and the student could play it and found it not too hard to play after all.

Anyway I decided to put myself in my student’s shoes and find a piece that was “too hard” to play and Practice It Using The Techniques Here. I am going to practice 30 minutes daily for 30 days. The practice days will be 6 days of a week and then 1 day off to recharge the batteries.

I chose the first movement of the Sonata No. 1 in C major by Mozart.

Here is the first page.

Firstly I will learn the notes of each hand separately.

Here is a section of the first page.

Right Hand

Left Hand

Where there is a harder bar or so I will pull it out and practice it more to make as easy as the other sections. I say to students, play harder sections at least 3X slowly and accurately.

In the right hand I found a bar with a turn on it, which needs extra work.

Here it is ~ the last bar on the second line.

Here is my Right Hand practice on it.

Here is my Left Hand practice on it.

NB I found I couldn't get a video of my left hand very easily whilst holding the camera with the right hand. So I aimed the camera at the music ...and it was very wobbly.

Once a piece is comfortable with separate hands you can play both hands together.

Here is Take 1. When I was playing this bar, I knew it was not accurate in the last half but had to analyse it after the take to see what I was doing wrong.

I corrected it in Take 2

Now, just to remind you that my first aim is to get the notes correct.

Any incorrect timing can be fixed more easily next, when I don’t have to think of how the notes flow together so much easier.

Dynamics, accents and more will come later.

I will do progress reports at weekly intervals.

And then the performance!!

This piece will undoubtedly need more work than what I am giving it but the idea is prove that practising makes things easier.

To finish up, please enjoy a You Tube version of Mozart's Piano Sonata 1 in C major.

All three movements are given. I am only practicing the first Movement at this stage.

If you like this piece and want to learn and play it then go here .

Mozart and the Sonata

2014-10-09T22:18:00.000+13:00

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was a famous Austrian composer, keyboard player, violinist, violist and conductor born in Salzburg 1756 and died in Vienna 1791.

He showed exceptional skill at playing the Klavier ( general term for a keyboard type instrument – piano, harpsichord, klavichord ) from the age of 3 and composing from the age of 5.

Mozart was a genius. His music combined both Austrian and German elements and he changed the course of the symphony, the piano concerto, the string quartet, the sonata and much more.

He composed operas, ballet music, symphonies, range of orchestral music, concertos, church music, songs, string trios, quartets and quintets, a range of other quartets and quintets for different instruments, piano and trios, chamber music, sonatas, a range of piano and organ music.

As I am learning a piano sonata, I will go over what a sonata is.

A sonata is an instrumental composition for piano or for other instruments with piano accompaniment, in several movements. So it is usually reserved for works involving no more than two players eg violin and piano, clarinet and piano or just piano. It originated in the 16th century and remains one of the most important forms for one or two instruments.

The sonata developed over the years with varying number of movements. The greatest development of the sonata came in the time of Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven with the Vienesse Classical Sonata usually in 3 movements. Haydn and Mozart sonatas followed a pattern of the first movement being Allegro ( fast ), Andante ( slower ) second movement being Andante ( slower at a walking pace) and the third movemnet being Allegro ( fast ). It is interesting to note that a symphony is a sonata for orchestra, a string quartet is a sonata for 4 instruments.

Most sonatas are written in sonata form or a variation of it.

Sonata form is commonly used in the first movement of a sonata hence it is sometimes called first movement form. The piece of music contains 3 sections – exposition, development, recapitulation in which two themes or subjects are explored according to set key relationships.

The piece I am learning is the first movement of the Mozart Piano Sonata No. 1 in C major. It was composed in 1777. Listen to it Here.

You can grab a copy of this sonata Here.

Or a copy of all 19 Mozart Piano Sonatas Here.

Go Forth and Master the Mozart Classical Sonata today.

Why Choose A Musical Instrument To Learn

2013-07-05T22:55:00.002+12:00

Music To Your Ears

Music is everywhere....radio, tv, movies, theatre, concerts, cd's, dvd's and more. Wherever you go , you are most likely to hear music somewhere, in some form, whether it be someone performing a solo or a group of musicians playing together. In fact many of these people have created their music on musical instruments and would have had a reason to learn them. The sound of music could be just you..... having a moment ......playing your favourite tunes .....on your chosen instrument..... be it the piano....or violin.... or tuba.....or guitar.......whatever.

So basically we get this Music To Our Ears by musicians playing musical instruments.Therefore it is useful to know what musical instruments are and the reasons people learn a musical instrument or two? This will help one decide on whether a musical instrument is right for you to learn.

This article covers an outline on musical instruments, eleven reasons why people learn a musical instrument, why I learnt a musical instrument ( or more) and some places to go to help you decide on what musical instrument to learn. Basically you will gather a picture behind the creation of Music To Our Ears which give people happiness by simply playing and/or listening to Music and which could inspire you to learn a musical instrument or to carry on playing a musical instrument.

Musical Instruments - An Outline

A musical instrument is an object which creates sounds and hence music when played by a musician.

There are many different types of musical instruments and these can vary depending where in the world you come from.

For instance you can play the :

Celtic drum and fiddle from Ireland
Spanish Guitar and Castanets from Spain
Harp and Singing in The Male Voice Choir of Wales
Bagpipes from Scotland
Koto and Taiko for Japan
Sheng San Xian from China
Digeridoo from Australia
Gamelan from Indonesia
Tabla Sitar from India
Conga Drums from Africa
Steel Drums from Caribbean

And you can find certain instruments in various group settings.

For instance the instruments found in a large orchestra consist of four main sections.
1. The String Section consisting of violins, violas, cellos, double bass and harp
2. The Woodwind Section consisting of flutes, oboes, clarinets and bassoons.
3. The Brass Section consisting of trumpets, tubas, french horns and trombones
4. The Percussion Section consisting of various types of tuned and untuned instruments e.g. marimba and drums

A metal band might consist of electric guitars, bass guitar, drums, keyboard, screamer/singer.

The list goes on.

Just remember there are many instruments which people can learn and play and that there are many varieties of groups to play in which involve different instrumentation.

Eleven Reasons Why People

Choose a Musical Instrument To Learn

1. Parents want to give their children an opportunity. Maybe they play an instrument themselves and want their children to share the pleasure that they get or had

OR

They have an instrument at home which needs dusting down.

My mother played the piano and my father played the bagpipes, piano and organ and had a consort of recorders. They wanted to pass their love of music on to their family and hence gave all my sisters, brothers and myself an opportunity. I think we all learnt the recorder and piano. One sister learnt and still plays the clarinet, one brother learnt the cornet, B flat bass. Another brother added the guitar and I learnt the flute and later added the saxophone, keyboard and ukulele myself. Being a parent myself I have given both of my kids an opportunity. My son learnt the bass guitar, guitar and drums and is currently studying jazz at polytech. My daughter learnt the violin for a year and enjoyed singing in choirs a a few years.

2. Children want to learn because their friends play an instrument

This is exactly how my son got hooked with the guitar. At intermediate school around age 11 my son went round to a friends garage to hear this friend and another friend play drums and guitar together. He thought it was going to be another boring afternoon. However, there was a spare guitar at this place with just 2 strings. The friends showed my son 2 chords to play along with them. That was it ...hooked for life.

As for me, I enjoyed learning the piano at the same " time " as my friend. We were at the same level and had our lessons one after the other. This enabled us to have a combined time between our two lessons for about 10 or so minutes to play duets with each other and hence an opportunity to get together out of lesson time and have fun playing music together.

It is great playing music with other people and so if children learn because there friends do then this presents a great opportunity for group playing, friendship and fun.

3. The school orchestra or band are short of a particular instrument

for example bassoon or trumpets. You learn that instrument to fill the gap in the group.

I have not personally learnt an instrument for this reason. But I know of people who have e.g. a flute player I know took up the double bass. Maybe because with many people playing the flute it is harder to get into some musical groups like an orchestra. And with not so many people playing the large double bass then this presents greater opportunities.

4. You find that people in bands can play guitar, bass and drums, or that it is common for people to be able to play flute, clarinet and saxophone. You may be a flute player and have an interest in playing in orchestras for musical theatre. To save on space in the orchestra pit the parts are written for one player to play flute, clarinet and a range of saxophones.

This was annoying to me at one stage when I wanted to play the orchestra for a musical. I played the flute and saxophone but not the clarinet. I did think of adding the clarinet to my repertoire of instruments but have not done so yet. I may still.

I added keyboard and most recently the ukulele so I could not only have fun playing them but to earn money by teaching them.

5. You like the sound of a particular instrument and just want to learn that
instrument

The BAGPIPES are a magnificant instrument to learn especially if you like the idea of playing in a Pipe Band. You never know , you might be in demand to play at weddings, funerals, Scottish musical evenings or to play Amazing Grace to bring in the New Year.

My father started learning the bagpipes in his school years and I grew up with it's magnificent sound. He took them everywhere and enjoyed playing them to people. Hence he was asked to play at weddings, funerals, soirees, at New Year and whenever he could really. I would go along and enjoy the pipe band contests with him. My father taught me the recorder and I had lessons on the piano. I think I just wanted to learn a wind instrument and tried the oboe for half a year. I think I thought it was too hard so I changed to the flute. The clarinet was not an option because my sister was learning it!! And the bassoon well, too low in sound, too big and it requires a double reed to play...therefore too expensive. Though on saying this , not so many people learn the bassoon, therefore you could be in hot demand for your local orchestra or wind band.

6. You were given an instrument for a present or inheritance

OR

You were lucky enough to win one.

So why not give it a try.

My parents had the piano and recorders I learnt from and then bought then bought the other instruments my siblings and I wanted to learn. I suppose I inherited a piano from my husband's family which was very useful for when we moved into our first home. I used it for a number of years before I bought a piano from my sister who was upgrading to a baby grande. This piano had been used in a relatives home on my mothers side for years.

7. You have a particular instrument lying around the house not being used so thought it would be a great idea to learn it.

8. For Relaxation

You can while away the hours with an instrument at hand and relieve the stress of the day.

This is sooooo easy to do ...if you have the time.

9. You have the desire to play in a musical group such as a band, orchestra, chamber group or duets with a friend. This creates a great social environment. I play flute in a Big Band which meets weekly and a flute choir which meets fortnightly. T'is great fun. The Big Band plays regularly for dances and the flute choir plays occasionally as an item in concerts or at retirement villages. Since taking up the ukulele I have been interested in hearing them played well in the group setting. Earlier this year I had the opportunity to hear Great Britain Ukulele Orchestra in my home town. They were magnificent. Take a look.

10. As A Money Earner when you are good enough, by:

~ teaching it - this is great because it is a job with flexibility, that is, you work when it is suitable for you and the student. This is what I do. I always knew that I wanted to have children. And whilst bringing them up I wanted to earn a little money. So I thought that I could teach a student or 2 at home at a time to suit me ( and the students ). Therefore I obtained the qualification ( L.T.C.L ) in flute to do so. This involved a written and practical component and it ended up that I actually went for my L.T.C.L practical flute whilst I was seven months pregnant.I started with 1 or 2 students and added recorder as well. Later I added piano, then keyboard and lastly ukulele because there is a growing demand for ukulele playing in primary schools.

~ solo artist

~ accompanist

~ professional orchestra or band

11. Learning an Instrument and hence playing music teaches you many things including:
~ the use of many parts of the brain
~ improved performance in all areas of the curriculum
~ listening, memory, communication, coordination, concentration,critical thinking, team and social skills
~ imagination and creativity eg improvisation and composition
~ cooperation and commitment eg in lessons and group playing
~ the development of self esteem and confidence

I am sure I have learnt all of the above from playing my musical instruments...but that is in the eye of the beholder!!

Why I Learnt A Musical Instrument and More

1. RECORDER

My father had a mini consort of recorders which included a sopranino, several descants and a treble recorder all of which were made of wood. He taught me how to play, starting with the descant recorders. He had a variety of simple music which we would play in parts with other members of the family especially on holidays. I was always in charge of putting the recorders in the car at holiday time!! I later took group lessons. And now I teach it.

2. PIANO

My parents had a piano and all family members including myself took lessons - some longer than others. I had private lessons for nine years and enjoyed playing duets with a friend who had her lesson either before or after me . We spent a short while eg ten minutes,at the beginning /end of our lessons on duet learning.

3. FLUTE

I wanted to play in an orchestra and so learnt another instrument which took over from the recorder lessons I was having. As my sister was learning the clarinet I wanted to try a different instrument. After a two term attempt at trying to master the oboe I chose to learn the popular flute with group lessons and then private lessons. I got my wish of playing in an orchestra plus a variety of other groups over the years including varied sized chamber groups of different instruments, musical theatre orchestras, flute choir and a big band. After learning for a while I decided that I would like to earn some money at home teaching the flute whilst bringing up a family. So I sat the required examinations to gain the qualification.

4. KEYBOARD

I am teaching recorder, flute and piano through a school of music and the opportunity came up for the need of a keyboard teacher in my area. So I bought myself a keyboard, taught myself with the help of the music shop and other musicians and then started teaching it.

Did You Choose An Instrument To Learn?

You May Be Interested In The Following To Help In Your Decision Making

Flute or Something Else- What Instrument Should You Learn?

Learning To Read Piano Sheets
When you look at Piano Sheets, you are looking at notes, rests and musical terminology on the page such that you can read and play favourite pieces on the piano...

Five Interesting Background Facts on the Recorder
It is very relaxing playing a musical instrument ,like the recorder, on your own, with one other person or in a group. The recorder is a simple instrument which...

Instruments Which Play Music Using The Treble Clef
The treble clef is a sign in music placed at the beginning of the treble stave and is used for right hand playing in piano / keyboard playing and for higher...

Listening To Music

2013-04-15T21:12:00.001+12:00

Term ones teaching is coming to an end but I will still play and listen to music. In fact in the holidays I am going to be creative whilst listening to music. I am going to listen to a couple of albums of music...generally about 1 hour long and paint whatever comes to mind on a canvas. There will be no pencil outlines first...just the music and my imagination.

In fact I have already had a sneak try at this last summer holidays ..along with my son. We listened to 2 albums from the Beatles called Revolver and Abbey Road and came up with 2 completely different outcomes. The emphasis was having FUN and this is what we came up with. Mine is the top one!!!!!!

I wonder what I will come up with next time!!!!!!!!!

2013-01-27T22:45:00.001+13:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Time to .....

Learn An Instrument...but which one?

Find a Musical Gift or Something Musical for You

or just relax and listen to music

Are You Afraid of Heights!!

2012-05-11T13:58:00.002+12:00

Musical notes are written

1. on the set of 5 lines and 4 spaces called the Staff or Stave and

2. around the lines above or below the stave called Ledger Lines

If you insert a treble clef on the picture above, the first note is called D and is above the 9th ledger line. Doesn't it look high. The second note written on the stave is also called D and is a little scared of D1!!

Some people play instruments which use treble clef signs on the music. Others use the bass clef. And each instrument has a specific note range and hence the number of ledger lines varies . For example a flutes usual range of notes is three octaves starting at middle C. However it can produce a high G sound is on the 7th ledger line above the treble stave.

Reading notes on the stave seem easier because they are generally learnt first and hence a lot of music written and played for this range of notes. More experienced players get to play ledger lines but if you are not reading them much in the music you play then they are hard to remember . Is it an E or a G? this is more difficult when sight reading fast passages.I can fully empathise with D2 ( picture above )!!

Do you like ledger lines?

Are you afraid of heights?