Edge of Glory

During my after dinner jam session tonight, "Maggie Gaga" asks me to teach her to play "Ra ra, ah ah ah-" She catches on pretty quick because she loves A minor (the key in the book, not sure if it's the real key). However she needs to be patient to listen first and play after. A good lesson for ready play. We're still working on that.

My Lady Gaga Piano Play Along and CD from Hal Leonard arrived today, and I played my best to follow along with Bad Romance, Born This Way, and Love Game. The best part about the CD is the orchestra track with or without the keyboard demo, you just play and try to keep up. My daughter and her friend were pretty excited and they kept me motivated to play on, and when I stopped cuz I got lost on the roadmap, they said, "C mon, why did you stop! Keeping going!" (Funny, who's the mom here eh?)

She asks me, who's playing piano on the CD? For lack of a better explanation I just tell her it's Lady Gaga without the singing. Next came the track for The Edge of Glory. What a beautiful song, but I didn't know it at all, but the girls are singing their hearts out. Wow, I just looked it up on youtube and came across this really awesome clip by a classical player.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aFnalWhHvk

They're listening to music all day long, probably Hot 89.9 and whatever the nanny plays on the radio, but it's music of our time. I used to play all the Baby Mozart CD's for her wakeup, lullaby, playtime collections, you name it. She could even recognize certain Mozart sonatas that were played on her baby brother's baby mobile machine. But What I learned today is the best way to get her to the piano is to just play something she likes, obviously Lady Gaga!

Who do you think is the most talented music composer or performer of our time? This is 2000-something I'm talking about, not Bach or Beethoven or Mozart. Stefani Joane Angelina Germanotta (aka Lady Gaga) comes to my mind. She writes her own words and music, and her fashion style, music performance, costumes and stage presence is so fascinating altogether. Or perhaps Hans Zimmer who writes all the big movie scores (Batman Dark Knight); or JohnWilliams who wrote all the music for Star Wars and more.

Music Listening 101

My Pre-Twinkle Level Suzuki students have a daily listening assignmeng, to listen to their Suzuki Book 1 CD everyday.  I even gave out a colouring sheet with 100 stars so they could colour in a star for every day of music listening to achieve the "100 Days of Twinkle Little Star Listening" Award.  Dr. Kataoka also recommends that piano teachers listen to quality piano music as well, lest they start sounding like their own students. I read somewhere that she recommends Rubenstein; I like his playing for the rich, buttery tone so smooth.

I`d like to write about active listening to other great piano performers from throughout the ages. I attended a Royal Conservatory of Music Teacher Professional Development Seminar today and one of the excercises we did as a group as part of the Pedagogy Session presented by Dr Christopher Hahn was the Ìnspiration Through Recorded Performance listening excercise. He played recordings of selections from RCM repertoire (Grade 9 to ARCT Levels) and we had to identify the name of the composer, the name of the work (with opus, K, Hob, BWV number etc), the name of the pianist and describe some outstanding features. Here is a synopsis.

1. Bach Invention No 1 in C Major, played by Angela Hewitt
Outstanding features: Clear voicing, precise tempo, sparkling clarity. Hear the imitation in the voices, driving rhythm, nuance in the structure.

2. Bach Prelude in D BWV 850, played by Wilhelm Kempf
Outstanding features: He is best known for playing Beethoven and Schubert. Precise bass line like a sewing machine, yet fast feathery light and continuity in the right hand. The left hand pulse is secure, dance-like and lyrical.

3. Haydn, Sonata in C Major hob 1560 3rd Movement, played by Lang Lang
Oustanding features:  Animated, dynamic contrast, untamed, exciting and dramatic. It reminded me of background music to an animated cartoon, a deer darting about in and out of the forest.

4. Beethoven, Sonata in G minor opus 49 no 1, played by Glenn Gould age 20
Outstanding features: clear melody, LH supportive, discreet, long phrasing, lyrical and very melancholy. Makes your heart ache a little bit.

5. Schumann, Scenes from Childhood, Countries and Far Away Places, played by Benhold Mosievich
Outstanding features; slow and controlled, hesitation, robato like. The classic way of performing with the LH slightly preceding the right hand. A singing melody and rolling accompaniment.

6. Shumann, Scenes from Childhood, Countries and Far Away Places, played by Fanny Davis, 1861 - 1934. She was a student of Clara Schumann, often described as a wild woman yet when she played many would describe her as the spectre of Clara Schumann, playing with discipline and assertiveness.
Outstanding features: a bit confused texture,  triplet rhythms are odd and inconsistent, non-sentimental and robotic. Perhaps we were too enamoured with the previous performance and interpretation.

7. Clementi, Sonatina in G op xx no 2, played by a 6 year old prodigy
It was very cheerful, but we had to be forgiving of the slowing down for the trill and the hammering three repeated quarter note motif when we discovered his age.

I really like this format of active listening and the group discussion. My notes are taken from the collective collaboration. Perhaps I could engage this type of excercise at the next masterclass; we could listen to a recorded performance or discuss the performance live by the students present.

ARCT Repertoire Selection

Here is a list of sample repertoire for the ARCT Teacher's Exam and the ARCT Advanced Pedagogy

ARCT Piano Exam (Pre 2008 Syllabus)
Bach Prelude and Fugue in d minor (Book II)
Beethoven Sonata (Tempest Op 31 No. 2 or Pathetique)
Liszt Liebestraum 3
Debussy Golliwogg's Cakewalk from Children's Corner
Manual de Falla, Ritual Fire Dance (own choice substitution)

ARCT Piano Exam (New Syllabus 2008)
For the Teachers Part 1

One Bach Prelude and Fugue - Number 13 in F Sharp Major
One Grade 9 Piece - Mozart Fantasie in D Minor
One Grade 10 Piece - Copland Cat and Mouse
And two ARCT selections, the overall program to be contrasting


ARCT Advanced Pedagogy

Grade 7 – 10 RCM Repertoire 2008 Syllabus

* memorization of one selection

Grade 7

A - Suite No.8 in G Major, George Frederic Handel, pg 8

D - Rondo-March/ Dance/Song op 60 (choose one), Dmitri Kabalevsky

Study No. x Toccatina Op 8 No 1, S Maykapar

Grade 8

B - Sonata in G Major, op 49 no 2 (one movement), Ludwig van Beethoven, pg 28

C - Chanson triste, Vasili Sergeievich Kalinnikov, pg 54

Study No.x

Grade 9

B - Fantasie in D minor K397, WA Mozart, pg 28

D – La Saraband,Gabriel Grovlez, pg 92

Study No. x Study in A minor, op 61 no 13, Hermann Berens

Grade 10

A - Prelude and Fugue in F-sharp Major no 13 BWV 858

D - Claire de Lune no 3 Suite Bergamasque, Claude Debussy

E - The Cat and the Mouse (Scherzo-humoristique), Aaron Copland

Study No. x  Six Etudes Tableaux op 33 no 8 in G minor, Rachmaninoff

Halloween Dressup Fall Recital

It's about that time of year to start planning for the first recital; something informal and fun for the kids to gather and make their first performance of a recently completed piece.  An ideal date would be sooner than the weekend or week before Halloween to avoid conflicts with other parties.

The students could dress up in their costumes obviously, and a light reception of sweet treats prepared by the parents etc.  Possible costume ideas - Super hero theme, Musicland Characters: Yellow Cat, Purple Dragon, Green Elf, Blue Fairy, Red Giant, Orange Albert Alarm Clock or Brown Beethoven perhaps; a favorite composer, or even a personality representing the song to be performed.

Performance Pieces

• The students may be ready to perform one or all of the Twinkle Variations. It would be a good time to give out the Certificate for Completion of Twinkle Variations or the trophy for 100 Twinkle Variations.
• Perhaps siblings could present a Duet or Four-Hand Two Piano piece.
• The most advanced student would present his piece last on the program.

A Souvenir Edition Program could be delivered after the recital with the photos from the party.

Sample Program
Anna - Ecossaise, by Beethoven
Mary - Bridge to Avignon
Nicolas - Lavender's Blue
Bella - Twinkle Variation A - "Pepperoni Pizza"
Phillip - Haydn's Surprise, arranged by Sarah Lyngra
Axelle - Twinkle Variation A - "Huckleberry Jello"
Vanessa - Twinkle Variation A - "Pepperoni Pizza" and Twinkle Theme
Tim - Monkeys In A Tree, Boris Berlin
Rachel - Minuet in G, Bach; Play, Bela Bartok
Matthew - A Ball
Max - Shooting the Rapids, Alfred's
Martin - Twinkle Variation A - "Pepperoni Pizza" or Twinkle Variation B - "Ice Cream Cone"

I would probably run this Recital on the third Wednesday of the month of October, which would've been the regular Masterclass. Time permitting, might be a good time to play a round of Melody Bingo using candies!

After this first recital, it will be time to start planning for the Christmas recital.