August news: 1,000 hours, new music folders, AI
Welcome to the August Newsletter
Hello fellow musicians and pianists!
So, got time for a quick sit down and a catch up?
1,000 Hours
Looking over my calendar, I’ve recently just passed 1,000 hours of teaching since I started Pianism about a year ago!
They say it takes 10,000 hours at least to truly get good at anything so I guess here’s tothe next 9,000!?
Thanks again to all of you who have been with me and continue to enjoy your lessons and improve. It’s truly an absolute privilege for me to do this for a living.
Branching out…
As you might notice from the change on my banner, this newsletter is branching out a little and will now cover all my Pianism students, as well as those who’ve recently started up singing or guitar lessons with me.
While content will no longer be exclusively piano-focused, and hopefully will explore music more broadly, there will still be lots and lots of piano, don’t you worry.
New music folders
After a fair amount of research, in search of the perfect music folder, I discovered the Snopake Reorganizer Pocket Display Book. I know, the air is electric as I even write this…
I, for one, am very excited, as I’ve spent some time thinking about the best way to do it.
In the coming weeks I’ll be putting a bunch of these together for my students. I’ve been using one in my own practise for two weeks now and it’s been a game-changer.
I’ve divided the sections into into:
Repertoire – All the songs and music that I’m currently trying to learn and make part of my performance rotation.
Technical – Exercises and studies to help improve my technical and physical skills, such as scales, etc.
Theory – Anything related to music theory, music history, and the elements and structures that make up music and how and why sounds are put together according to different musical styles and traditions.
Sight Reading – Daily sight reading exercises, probably the most essential practice in further developing the ability to read music and develop musicianship.
Composition – everything from fully composed pieces to works in progress, sketches, practise games and other improvisation prompts.
On the inside pocket you can find:
Monthly Practise Log – This is where you can note down all the hours I’ve practised this is month and when, my practise goals or targets (such as 10 hours a month, etc.), as well as keeping a record of all upcoming lessons. All the data on hard copies can then added to the Practice Log on the Student Portal, to be shared between tutor and student.
Practise Planner – This is where I can write down a more detailed plan for what I want to work on this month or for the week, and how much time you might want to allocate to each activity.
Listening & Reading Recommendations - It’s really, really important to listen to as much music as we play. If something comes to mind that I really think you should really check out, I’ll put it here.
Growth Chart – A simple progress report for parents and students, with a few overarching goals for the year. We often don’t take enough stock in the skills we acquiring and the progress we’ve made, and this is a good away of doing it.
Additional features include: a beautiful binding system which means the folder easily lies flat on a music stand; the almost instant ability to rearrange pages and sections; inside pockets for storing other paperwork; and you can even write on clear plastic material and then rub it out afterwards. Add on a little loop for your pencil or pen, and its an absolute winner.
As I mentioned to one of my students, I feel like one of those people who works for Good Housekeeping reviewing thousands of electrical appliances in search of the perfect blender…
The rise of ‘sad classical piano’
Thanks to the few of you who passed on this article from the Guardian on the indomitable rise of ‘sad classical piano’, which picks up on some of the points I raise in the last Sunday Listen when I looked at ‘The Hourglass’ by Ben Crosland.
You can read the original article here: https://www.theguardian.com/music/article/2024/aug/08/piano-minimalism-classical-spotify-chill-playlists-nils-frahm
Music and AI
One of the reasons I left doing part-time work in art and design and went to music teaching full time was that I really began to feel how AI was shaping the industry for the worse.
Will AI have the same effect on music? Yes and no. It’s very complicated and I’m not remotely qualified to answer, but this article does a good job:
How AI is changing music | Vox
Music production is getting easier. Does that make it better?
For me personally, AI-generated music is probably the least successful out of all of its various, often janky attempts at modelling human creativity. It will be used as a productivity tool, like anything, but I don’t see it replacing rock stars or songwriters.
But one prospect I hadn’t considered is the growing burden of royalties on capitalistic streaming firms, which – motivated to maximise profits for shareholders – will inevitably want to junk real artists in favour of their own proprietary AI-generated music. So the future integrity of streaming, like Youtube and Instagram, will deteriorate over time as a platform for search and discovery.
Ultimately, this might be good news for actual performing musicians and people who love music, as there may be a neo-Luddite pendulum swing back to live concerts and buying actual records again (as streaming doesn’t pay anyway). However we need a better infrastructure (places to play music) and legal protections (getting paid properly) first.
The Student Portal
I’ve been doing lot of work behind the scenes on the Student Portal. Until recently, I’ve not really had the time to fully configure everything properly, but it’s now in great shape and something that hopefully students will really start to use.
Of note:
I’ve now made most my lessons and teaching schedule public, so it’s now easier for students to see when I’m available and when I’m not, particularly handy for re-scheduling and make-up lessons. Make sure you’ve checked the ‘All Events’ box when looking in the Calendar. Please look ahead to September, as my August schedule is not demonstrative of how busy I get outside of holiday times.
All your Repertoire has now been added to your account. This means you can now see in one place any piece or study we’ve looked at in lesson, and all your current ‘in progress’ work, a living, ever-growing monument to the many fantastic hours of work you all put in.
I’m slowly adding more of my sheet music to the Lending Library, as in time I’d like to offer students the chance to check out books. There’s also a number of free books and pdfs available in Online Resources as well, if you’re curious.
The accounting system is now completely up and running, so it’s easier to track what lessons are owed for, and how much you have left in credit.
Want to hear a piece you’re working as it’s meant to be played? Well, there’s a new section for recordings in Online Resources, containing audio files of much of the core material you’ll be working from, organised according to book. I’d like to also add slower tempo versions for practicing along to, as well as teacher duet parts.
Rotation, rotation, rotation!
I know I bang on a lot about this, but wrist rotation is incredibly important. Here’s a nice video explaining why:
As a sidenote: I’m not a massive fan of Tonebase – their business model is not brillant, and the whole thing is couched in the sort of status quo musical elitism that we really ought to be moving past by now. But some of their content is decent.
Giant Wall of Books RIP
Many of you will have noticed that I’ve clearly gone up in the world and can call myself the owner of some lovely new in built shelves in the music room.
This does mean that, sadly, the giant stack of books next to the piano is no more. I know to many of you that this giant stack of books became almost like a member of the family. It will be fondly remembered and missed.
What I’m Reading Now
A little round up of recent books I’ve enjoyed…
Why We Sing: A Celebration of Song by Julia Hollander
Full of lovely anecdotes and insightful advice on singing and the importance of songs to our emotional and spiritual selves.
Our Band Could Be Your Life by Michaael Azerrad
A superb musical history of the 80s/90s underground rock scene in America, when a sprawling network of bands, labels, zines, radio stations, and other musical communities completely transformed American rock music, which later paved the way for bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam. Even if you’re not into the bands, it’s an incredible document as to why grassroots music scenes and communities are so fundamental.
Just Being At The Piano by Mildred Portney Chase
A short, gentle primer from a pianist and practicing Bhuddist on the inner path we have to take as musicians, and why our awareness of of sound and what we are physically experiencing in the present is as essential as practising scales and reading music.
The Lark Ascending: People, Music and Landscape in Twentieth-Century Britain by Richard King
Cultural history looking at the link between Britain’s natural landscape and how it has shaped music, passing through Ralph Vaughan Williams, Brian Eno and Penguin Cafe Orchestra. Hits all my sweet spots.
Have a lovely Sunday!
Will