Tag Archives: ABRSM

Thinking happy thoughts

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Yes, why not? After all when we wake up every morning we have a choice: we can either say it’s going to be a good day or it’s going to be a bad day. Guess which one I always focus on…anyways, some small but happy nuggets were tossed my way recently, probably by my guardian angel.

First off I had a talk last week with the administrator of the music school I teach in. Turns out that there was this parent who was adamant that his son learn under me. The administrator said that the parents didn’t want any other teacher, ever since they saw me judging at the recent Piano Idol. And um…I was very flattered, and touched. No I wasn’t turning peacockish, but sometimes when you give your all to your music students and don’t find any gratitude returning, it can be pretty disconcerting. This was a nice change. Anyway, the parents pleaded with me for the whole of last month to please, please find a slot to fit their son in, and I eventually relented…I just couldn’t turn them down. So now I’m teaching their 9 year-old son, who is already preparing for his ABRSM Grade 6 practical exam next year. One happy pair of parents, and one happy teacher.

Another thing that made me smile recently was reconnecting with my MO (male offspring). Last week we went for a very nice lunch at one of the shopping malls here, and then we both hit the bookstore. It was nice, bearing in mind that teenagers normally don’t want to talk with their folks. I guess it’s sort of tuning in to each other’s wavebands or frequencies—just finding that sweet spot. So that was nice for me. And I hope it was nice for him too.

On top of that, I had another surprise coming from him. A few days ago he unplugged his Linksys wireless USB adapter and told me to keep it, since his final exams for the year were just around the corner and he wanted to focus on studying instead of browsing the web. I felt like the dad in Zits (the comic strip), my mouth was wide open and I was totally speechless–all I can say is, this MO does possess some responsibility after all (smiles).

Right now I’m typing this in Starbucks—muahaha!! My Dell Studio 15 is great, but be warned—the thing is heavy (around 5.5 lbs or 2.5 kg). Using a backpack (recommended!) instead of a shoulder bag makes it better, but still it did cause my shoulders to ache, or is that a sign of old age, LOL. Then again, it’s super to get out of the confines of home and blog elsewhere…just have to filter the other customers out. And mein gott, the coffee isn’t what I’d call cheap; no I won’t be doing this too often. However, I gotta admit, it is enjoyable.

The only drawback is that I believe my desktop is shedding tears. A friend said that I’d definitely be abandoning my desktop for this girl…and it looks like she’s right. But don’t worry, my dear desktop—I won’t leave you, hee hee!

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Back to Basics

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Being a piano teacher of classical music and a cocktail pianist allows me to have one foot in each camp. I’ve been teaching piano for over 25 years now, but one of my philosophies has always been this:

If you want a student to do something, you have to be able to do it yourself.

Nowhere is this more true than in the realm of practicing the piano. It’s easy to dish out orders to your students when you’re “in command”—things like “Play with more feeling please,””Could you bring out the right-hand melody?””You ought to practice more carefully” etc., etc.

I teach mainly the ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music, UK) Piano syllabus, so students do the usual scales, exam pieces, aural, and sight-reading. Modesty aside, I have prided myself on being able to do what I ask my students to do. So when it comes to choosing exam pieces, we pick them and then agree on both of us learning them. Then I do some practice on the pieces myself, so that I can show the student what I want. I’ve always tried to be hands-on, Lord knows how many times I’ve asked students to get up from the piano bench and plunked myself down on it.

OK, that’s the usual stuff, but lately I’ve been digging up some past repertoire and asking myself “Hey, when was the last time I tried out this piece?” Over the years I’ve been playing so much jazz and standards that regrettably, I’ve left the classical stuff behind. I haven’t abandoned it totally—nope. And I still have a humongous collection of classical CDs that gets played in my car. It was only after this year’s Piano Idol that I decided it was high time I revisited this old friend.

So I dug out some old repertoire. I’ve started with my regimen of scales and Hanon exercises, followed with repertoire like:

  • J.S. Bach: Prelude and Fugue No. 5 from the Well-Tempered Clavier, volume 1
  • W.A. Mozart: Sonata in G major, K283
  • Chopin: Fantaisie Impromptu
  • Ravel: Prelude from Le Tombeau de Couperin
  • George Gershwin: 1st Prelude

And guess what? I’m having a whale of a time! I haven’t touched these five pieces for years and years but when I started on them, it was like, “Wow! Good to see you again!” Unlike Jazz and popular music, everything on the page has to be strictly followed, which is why I sometimes think playing classical music is like living in a military camp. Be that as it may, I’ve got to try to play out the composer through the music, doing the proper technique and all the stuff that I’ve been telling and imploring my students to do over the past decades.

My Yamaha Clavinova digital piano has been my faithful ally, since it has the touch of a grand piano, never goes out of tune, and most importantly allows me to record my performances on the spot. This is great because I can play it back immediately and spot my mistakes (I have to be able to criticize myself too). So there you have it. Now excuse me while I go back to play the piano. Ciao for now!

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Piano lessons: Part 2

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OK, confession time. Probably my number one on the hate list during all those years of piano lessons was sight-reading. I could never do it well, even with the advice given by my piano teachers. And it only seemed to get worse as I went up the grades for the ABRSM examinations.

It wasn’t until I went to England to do my A-Levels that I realized what I had missed out. I was at the West London Institute of Higher Education (now part of Brunel University) and doing a 2-year Foundation course in Music. I looked right and looked left, and there were students sight-reading like there was no tomorrow. I felt very tiny then Worried. At that point in my life, I resolved to improve my sight-reading by sheer hard work and determination. After a short span of time, I noticed that my sight-reading skills had improved, and it was getting easier and very rewarding to be playing chamber works with other students.

I was also very interested in Jazz and Popular Music, so sight-reading sheet music and scores was no longer difficult. The acid test was sight-reading church hymns, with their typical 4-part SATB (Soprano, Alto, Tenor and Bass) arrangements. I still do this today, and modesty aside, I never look at the hymns I’m supposed to play in church until I get to the organ and prepare myself.

So for my students and for anyone else lamenting about having to go through sight-reading hell, here are a few simple tips to make it easier:

  1. Sight-reading, like practice, should be done daily. The more often you do it, the faster you’ll learn the ropes and improve.
  2. If you are a poor sight-reader to begin with, start by first sight-reading easier material. Say you’re at Grade 4 level, start by reading Grade 1 or Grade 2 pieces. This is not embarrassing or humiliating; in fact, you will build up self-confidence by doing so.
  3. ALWAYS try your best to read the notes quickly. Let your eyes look ahead at least a bar, and maintain a steady pulse (using a metronome would be advantageous here). Go with little sections at a time.
  4. Don’t restrict your sight-reading to only sight-reading books. Grab any music sheets, scores, whatever, and work on them.
  5. How quickly you’ll improve depends on how often and how much you do it. Remember this: sight-reading is a wonderful gift to have. And you don’t have to worry about losing it once you have it (but remember to keep doing it though).

Here are some good sight-reading links:

Best of luck!

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