Piano

Before you start playing any instrument, a little bit of music theory is helpful and necessary. This article will give you a basic understanding of musical notes. To explain musical notes, we’ll take a look at notes on a keyboard because it nicely lays out the notes in two categories—white keys (natural notes) and black keys (sharps and flats)—and, as you move from the left side of the keyboard towards the right side, presents keys from low to high. White Keys vs. Black Keys (Natural Notes vs. Sharp and Flat Notes) As you can see, there are white keys and … Read more

There are piano tuners and then there are piano technicians, also known as piano doctors or piano surgeons. Anyone can tune a piano with today’s technology, and virtually anyone can advertise themselves as a piano tuner. Neither piano tuners nor piano technicians go to four year universities to get their training like most other professions. So, what exactly is the difference between a piano tuner and a piano technician and who do you want working on your piano? A piano has over 3000 parts. Tuning the piano is rather minor when you consider this. A piano tuner does one thing, … Read more

In this article, I focused on grouping together Italian musical terms according to grammatical categories and then showed how we can take ownership of their combinations in a more creative way, rather than just learning them separately by rote. This article explains the same terms from the grades I – V (ABRSM) but in a different way, namely showing how they share roots with English words. This will help you grasp and remember Italian terms much more easily.  In the left column, I listed the Italian terms in alphabetical order, you will notice that some terms have been left out, … Read more

The piano is a fascinating instrument for many of us. Concert pianists make it look so easy to play the piano.  But once we sit down and try it for ourselves, we realize that it’s more complicated than it appears. Keep in mind though, we need to start somewhere. Playing the piano offers us a world of endless opportunities in the music world, plus it comes with mental, physical and emotional benefits. Regardless of your age, whether you are a parent who is contemplating whether your child should take piano lessons, or you are getting back to playing the music again,  this … Read more

“You are to sing if you wish to play!” Chopin: The Poet Pianist and His Preludes The Romantic era (1800-1900) was a new age for the piano. It was finally in this era that the pianoforte, or as it is more commonly known today, the piano, evolved into its modern design, which challenged this first generation of modern pianists to compose new music. Chopin, one of these inventors, created a completely new method of piano playing. His core belief? Three hours of practice a day was the maximum amount. Anymore than that and your brain is no longer engaged, only … Read more

Want to impress your audiences, even with your simple piano skills? Give one of these easy, yet iconic melodies a go, with the help of our piano instructors Alwyn & Michelle Huang. Grab your keyboard and start practicing!   Flower Dance by DJ Okawari Topping the list is a soundtrack composed and produced by DJ Okawari from Shizuoka, Japan! Mixed with oriental melodies, this pop song creates a lasting nostalgic feeling. Learn how to play Flower Dance made easy by our piano instructor with basic 4/4 time signature and light left-hand accompaniment. Always by Yoon Mi Rae From the 2016 … Read more

Schumpeter’s, an Austrian-born American economist and political scientist, theory of creative destruction suggests that new technology continuously replaces old technology. Smartphone apps are a prime example of this, replacing many commonplace items we have used to make our lives more convenient. While in the past, we might have had to carry around a pocket bus schedule , we now can access bus information on apps. Likewise, the humble alarm clock has been replaced by the native clock apps in smartphones. Piano learners have not been left out in this tech revolution. Here we introduce 6 essential apps to supplement your … Read more