The Good Pianist

Category: Music Teaching

  • Why choose The Good Pianist? (Part 1)

    Note: The views expressed in this post are strictly mine alone.

    Anyone living in a cosmopolitan city like Hong Kong and intending to enroll in piano lessons probably knows that there are thousands of piano teachers in this city. Which begs the question: how does one find a suitable teacher? What factors need to be considered? Or should one just plunge in and hope for the best?

    Generally, people who are looking for a piano teacher (either for themselves or their children) have one or more of the following in mind:

    • Price
    • Location
    • Availability
    • Qualifications
    • Experience

    Let’s look at each of these in turn.

    Price: This is probably the Number One question prospective students ask me first. All I can say is—don’t take pricing as the most important factor in making your decision. There are teachers who charge cheaper rates (perhaps they are just starting out and/or they don’t have much experience) and conversely there are teachers who charge more because they have been in this business for a long time. Of course, my advice would be to go with a teacher who has had a lot of teaching experience (more about this later).

    Location: This wields a lot of importance, as it would make traveling to and from the teacher’s studio less of a hassle. Hong Kong is blessed with a good and efficient public transport network. I’m pleased to say that The Good Pianist is located at a convenient spot in Tsim Sha Tsui. The nearest MTR is Tsim Sha Tsui station and many buses ply Chatham Road South, which is very close to my studio. If you’re coming by car, ample public parking is available nearby. There are also numerous cafes and restaurants if you need to eat or just to while the time away.

    Availability: The times that the teacher and student are available for lessons is another factor to be considered. Usually, this can be worked out in most cases and doesn’t present any problems.

    Part 2 will deal with qualifications and experience.

    Go to Part 2

  • Always a glimmer of hope

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    The piano teaching field is always unpredictable. Making a living out of it is a gamble, a risk. Like any other job, it has its ups and downs. I’ve had some wonderful students in the past but as my piano professors used to remind me—everything has a beginning and an end. No student, no matter how wonderful he or she is, is going to remain with a teacher forever. It’s a little sad when some students drop out for one reason or another; more so if they do so suddenly and I feel they have potential. Sometimes I click with a student, sometimes I don’t. And yes, at times they surprise me with stuff…like this new student who sent me this text. She was just shy and didn’t have a high opinion of herself, so I tried my best to coax her out of it by reassuring her that her piano playing would blossom and improve, given time. Getting this text from her meant a lot to me…at least I’m helping one student along and restoring her dignity to herself—she thought she’d lost it but it was always there, inside her…waiting to emerge.

  • Yamaha Piano Challenge 2012

    After a hiatus of almost two years I’m back in the judge’s chair—this time for the Yamaha Piano Challenge 2012. Mrs. Fong asked me to judge the Finals together with fellow judges Razif, Soo See, and Mei Ling. The format was different compared to Piano Idol, with categories ranging from YPC1 (Beginners) to YPC12 (Advanced) and there were winners for each category. All in I think there were around 60+ contestants, and there were two sessions—one in the afternoon and another in the early evening. We had an early dinner around 5 pm. I brought my Canon EOS 550D along with the Speedlite 580EX II so here are some pictures.

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    (Above) The stage is set at the Penang PAC (Performing Arts Center). That’s the Yamaha GB-1 baby grand piano together with the Digital Music banner. This is a smallish hall which can accommodate approximately 300 people, but it has great acoustics. The piano sound seems to bloom on its own accord. This would be a great place for solo concerts. I took this picture handheld, resting my elbows on the judges’ table, taking a deep breath before pressing the shutter.

    (Below) Vincent was one of the guest stars of the day. He played Franz Liszt’s Liebestraum No. 3 in A flat major and Chopin’s Black Key etude, Op. 10 No. 5.

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    (Above) Adriana was the other guest star. She performed Chopin’s Etude Op. 25 No. 1 and Debussy’s Prelude from Pour le Piano. Both these talented pianists are my students and I’m extremely proud of them. They each won the Piano Idol in the past.

    (Below) A candid view of the junior contestants in the afternoon session with their certificates of participation.

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    (Above) For the Senior session the piano was moved to a different angle but the sound was still great. A slow shutter speed emphasizes the dexterity of this contestant.

    (Below) A cross-section of some of the winners in the Senior category.

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    (Above) Here I am, posing with Vincent after the whole show was over. The Speedlite 580EX II is fantastic; this was taken using direct flash and yet it handled the lighting conditions extremely well, exposing both of us just right.

    (Below) I could recognize some budding talents today. Here I’m posing with Yeu May, the Level 8 winner. She played a scintillating Chopin waltz—I’d love to have this 15 year-old for a student.

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    I have to commend Mr. and Mrs. Fong for organizing these competitions. They really foster and encourage the upcoming musical talents in our midst. I’m looking forward to more in the future.

  • Congratulations, Adriana and Vincent!

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    Two students of mine—Adriana and Vincent, recently participated in the Steinway & Sons Malaysian Youth Piano Competition 2011-2012. I received some good news today that they have made it through the audition stage. Now it’s onward to the semi-finals where these 10 shortlisted contestants will battle it out for the finals in Kuala Lumpur on March 22, 2012. Five will be chosen from this stage and then the first prize winner will go to Singapore to compete in the Regional Finals. If they make it through that they will then go to Hamburg, Germany to compete in the Grand Finals.

    Congratulations, Adriana and Vincent. Now I’m going to roll up my shirt sleeves and work you two—stay focused and on course!

  • Student Spotlight: Tan Bao Xiu

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    Following on the mini interview with Annabelle, here’s Bao Xiu’s version of it. I first met Bao Xiu when she was auditioning for the first Piano Idol. Since then I have seen this reticent young lady mature in her piano playing; she’s yet another very obedient student. It’s really students like her that make my piano teaching life less stressful (and believe me, as far as I’m concerned piano teaching can be stressful) So on with the interview.

    When did you start learning piano with Mr. Yeoh? How old were you then?
    Ummmm…I don’t really remember so clearly…. It was sometime in early 2010 I think, when I was…14?

    What certifications have you achieved in your piano so far?
    Eh, if you count the Yamaha piano exams that’d be quite a lot of certs….but for ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) exams I’ve done theory till grade 6, and I just took the practical grade 8….but since I haven’t gotten the results for that yet, I guess it doesn’t count? (Ed note: Bao Xiu scored a Merit for her Grade 8 piano exam taken in July 2011)

    How do you find Mr. Yeoh’s teaching?
    Hmmm. Honestly, (and I really am being honest here), he’s quite an awesome teacher. He’s got lots of stories to tell, about basically anything. But—he can be very strict sometimes…. I wouldn’t actually use the word mean though, cause even though he gives me intimidating tasks (like lots of sight reading), it actually does help me quite a bit.

    Have you enjoyed your piano lessons so far?
    Well yes, except for times when he starts playing some piece on the piano straight from memory like it’s the easiest thing in the world….then I feel pretty disgusted by his amazing piano playing skills (ESPECIALLY when he’s sight reading something!)

    What would you have liked Mr. Yeoh to focus more on? Less on?
    I don’t really know…. I guess he keeps a good balance of everything. And he knows exactly what a student’s strengths and weaknesses are….so….yeah.

    Has Mr. Yeoh made you more interested and motivated to learn piano, or less?
    Uh, honestly, I’ve never really liked playing piano that much, it’s like, a natural thing….but after learning with him I’ve definitely built more confidence in my playing 🙂

    Any other comments, complaints, etc. will be welcome here.
    Hmmm. I don’t know what else to say 😛 Oh yeah, he’s a technology geek too. So I would conclude by saying he’s a high-tech piano teacher/storyteller! 😀

    Bao Xiu’s interests and hobbies include dancing, drawing, reading novels, and photoshopping.

    Thank you for your time in doing this interview, Bao Xiu. I’m sure you’ll do very well in your recent Grade 8 piano exam.

  • Student Spotlight: Annabelle Ch’ng

    Annabelle started learning Grade 6 Theory with me barely four months ago. I’ve found her to be a very affable and hardworking person—she takes whatever advice I give to her. She’s also a piano teacher here, and I like the way she laughs whenever I give her a mock admonishment. Just like Regina, I asked her whether she’d mind doing a mini interview with me. Here are her responses.

    When did you start learning theory with Mr. Yeoh? How old were you then? I started lessons with Mr. Yeoh on 5th April 2011. I’m 29 years old.

    What certifications have you achieved in your theory so far? Grade 6 ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music)

    How do you find Mr. Yeoh’s teaching? I am IMPRESSED by the way he taught me during the very first lesson (and until now). He has everything in his mind, he doesn’t need to look at any book to teach me. I’ve never had a music theory lesson like this before. He asked me to jot down my own notes which I find to be very useful and it really helps me to understand things. He has been very patient with me as I’m not a smart student, and I thank him for that.

    Have you enjoyed your theory lessons so far? I’ve enjoyed my lessons very much!! In fact, I enjoy every lesson!

    What would you have liked Mr. Yeoh to focus more on? Less on? For now, I would say everything that I need to answer in the exam. Probably questions 4 and 5.

    Has Mr. Yeoh made you more interested and motivated to learn theory, or less? The answer is MORE!!! I never get bored during his lessons.

    Annabelle likes to read novels during her spare time. Thanks again for doing this mini interview, Annabelle.