Posted by: clariniano on: July 23, 2009
I’m kind of conflicted on the practice of long tones, I know of at least a couple of pieces that have a sustained long tone (the end of the Finzi Carol from his Five Bagatelles for clarinet and piano, and the end of the Lullaby movementof Srul Irving Glick’s Suite Hebraique. On the other hand, students [...]
Posted by: clariniano on: July 18, 2009
In Canada, many schools own a set of musical instruments. However, there are several reasons why it’s better to own your instrument, and not use a school owned one. First, in some schools, as many as four (sometimes more) people share the use of one instrument. With wind instruments, ths can be a major concern, [...]
Posted by: clariniano on: July 12, 2009
Over the years I have been a musician and music teacher, I have made a number of things to assist in music learning and teaching, and so I thought I would finally write about them. Do you ever struggle to find a pencil when practicing or teaching music? A simple way to solve this problem [...]
Posted by: clariniano on: July 8, 2009
Look to see if they participate in any online forums. Typing in a teacher’s name and perhaps specifying location will often help you find out if the teacher gets involved. Look for articles they have written. My current piano teacher regularly wrote articles for a major music publication, and when I one day I saw [...]
Posted by: clariniano on: June 7, 2009
Although it was called a piano recital, it was not really one. First, a recital is one that features a soloist, and this concert had approximately 20 people performing. Second, a few people, including yours truly, performed on instruments other than the piano; there was also a violinist and also a percussionist at the concert. [...]
Posted by: clariniano on: June 2, 2009
There has been an alarming trend in the past few years for private music teachers to charge low fees for lessons. In some parts the fees for private music lessons, especially piano and guitar lessons, have become so low that babysitters and housecleaners are charging more money than private music teachers, without requiring study at [...]
Posted by: clariniano on: May 25, 2009
School-owned instruments are often in in poor shape, if not downright horrendous. They often have missing or loose screws, poor key alignment, deteriorating pads, broken cork tenons, sticky valves, dents, among other problems. Most schools generally fix problems only once a year, and then it often takes a relatively long time to get the instrument [...]
Posted by: clariniano on: April 25, 2009
Lessons in a music store Advantages: Tends to be the least costly for the consumer. Disadvantages: Distractions from the retail section of the music store. High turnover of teachers, because the store usually takes a cut from lesson fees, which are already often below market price. Some won’t let teachers take their students with them [...]
