Back to School & What’s in Store!

It’s back to school for many of us for many of us after what we hope was a lovely summer break! As always, we have an exciting line-up over the coming months with our online events programme resuming, new content features and many other updates. This week we bring you some useful “back to school” resources and a preview of what we have in store!

Back to School Resources

The following are some of our resources that you might find useful as you embark upon the year ahead:

• Learning pieces – If you’re learning (or teaching) a new piece then why not try our free email course which introduces a process, principles and practice tools for more efficient and effective learning. You might also find William Westney’s new series Making Friends With the Notes useful or take a look at Graham Fitch’s recently completed set of video lessons for Schumann’s Album for the Young.
• Examinations – We have an extensive library of piano examination resources featuring hundreds of video lessons on prescribed repertoire and preparing for examinations. We’re also busy producing video lessons for repertoire from the new 2025 & 2026 ABRSM syllabus and will also be running a series of workshops on the syllabus. Click here for further information.
• Technique – Our technique library contains a vast array of resources to help you develop the piano technique required to realise your artistic aspirations at the piano.
• Music theory for pianists – A knowledge of music theory enables you to learn repertoire faster and to interpret it more authentically.  We’ve recently published and presented several courses and online workshops to help you build your knowledge of music theory. Click here to find out more!

Upcoming Content & Features

The following are some of the highlights of what we have in store for the remainder of the year:

• New video lessons on popular pieces and hidden gems by Graham Fitch and Fred Karpoff plus further instalments in Julian Jacobsen’s series of walk-throughs of Beethoven’s Sonatas
• A new course on mastering intermediate technique by Fred Karpoff
• The next units in Lona’s Kozics Harmony, History & Style course, starting with music from the classical period
• A mini-course on sharing your playing with others presented by Dr. Adina Mornell
• More lessons on works from Bach’s Well Tempered Klavier in Beate Toyka’s “Step into the ’48“

Online Events Survey

Many thanks to everyone who participated in our online events survey and congrats to our winners! Your time and input is very much appreciated and we were delighted to receive many detailed responses which will be invaluable in helping us shape our programme.

Next online Events

Our events programme kicks off on 12th September with a presentation by Lona Kozic which serves as a wrap-up of the first unit of her Harmony, History & Style course. In this session, Lona will explore the use of dissonance in Bach’s Goldberg Variations and offer an opportunity to ask any other questions arising from the course before we move on to Unit 2 focussing on the Classical Period.

We’re also pleased to welcome a new contributor to our platform and events programme. Performance psychology expert and pianist, Dr. Adina Mornell will be presenting a mini-course on how research in music psychology can help you hone practice methods, improve your musical memory and be your own best friend during performance. This kicks off with an introductory presentation “I Played It Better at Home!” on 25th September (further information is available here).

With the new ABRSM 2025 & 2026 Piano Syllabus now available, we will be running a series of workshops on different aspects of the syllabus in conjunction with our friends at the Piano Teachers’ Course. These will start off with a set of three workshops showcasing on a selection of repertoire from all grades by Graham Fitch. Don’t miss these events whether you’re a teacher, planning on taking an exam or looking for some ideas for new pieces to play!

Our Practice Clinics will resume in Autumn and if you are an Online Academy subscriber and would like to submit a question for our next clinic, please sign-in to your account and use the link provided on your dashboard.

Lastly, if you haven’t signed-up to our email newsletter yet, click here to receive further news and updates on these and other initiatives!