Making Friends with Fiddly Fiorature
Over the past couple of weeks I have had a few requests for advice on how to handle the flurries of little notes we find in the music of Chopin.…
Zen In The Art Of Plate Spinning
I am sure we have all seen that circus act where the showman puts a few plates on some poles, sets them spinning and then adds more plates to more…
Freeing Up Space
I have had quite a lot of feedback from last week's post on the benefits of speaking aloud to ourself as we practise - it seems that many of us…
Thinking Aloud
The first time I listened to a recording of Glenn Gould it was late evening and I was alone in the house. I swore I could hear someone singing along…
The Summer School for Pianists
Over the past 40 years, the Summer School for Pianists has established a unique place amongst an ever-growing number of summer schools being held each year throughout the British Isles. It combines…
The Practice Tools Workshops
Piano playing and piano teaching can be lonely, solitary activities and it is all too easy to feel isolated and cut off from peers and colleagues. There is something very…
Five Tips for a Flatter Finger
I have just returned from a weekend's tutoring on The Piano Teachers' Course (EPTA) UK, where I am one of a small team of principal tutors responsible for delivering the…
Changing Our Mind
Piano performance is far from easy, and there will be setbacks as well as rewards along the way. Strong emotions such as excitement and disappointment are part of the story.…
Fancy Footwork – Pedalling Resources
I have just written a series of three articles on pedalling for Pianist Magazine, the first of these (Issue 83) hit the newsstands this week and should be available internationally.…