I’ve been spending quite a bit of time lately with my Songza playlist tuned into 60’s, 70’s and 80’s music. As much as the pop music of today gets my kids dancing around the living room… nothing gets them bopping like the good old stuff. There’s just something about “Old School” music that works… still! Even though this music is certainly less “fancy” than the music being produced today, even at it’s simplest it’s still just good.
Now-a-days we spend much of our time looking to the future; searching for the next big thing. It can get overwhelming as SO many ideas are thrust at us each and every day. I’m completely guilty of continually reinventing my piano teaching practices – I love what I do and I just can’t help but want to be get better and better. But sometimes being better also means zeroing in on the basics, because sometimes it’s the simplest things that work the best.
Look Back In Time For A Moment
In my own teaching I’ve often found it to be worthwhile to occasionally take a step back and remember my own piano lessons as a kid; to consider what it was that made it “work”. While I certainly would not trade my own innovative approach to teaching piano lessons for anything, there are a many lessons we can learn from our own piano lessons.
1. It’s all about personal connections. You may have the fanciest iPad apps to use in your lessons, but it still comes down to the fact that you need to connect with your students. I absolutely adored my piano teacher. I looked up to her. I wanted to be her! The teacher/student relationship is truly the most important part of the lesson experience.
2. It’s all about the music. My piano teacher lived and breathed music. It was all she talked about; and she talked about it with great enthusiasm. It was contagious. As a result, her favorite pieces became my favorite pieces; I got excited about the music she was excited about. And while I myself have many other interests, it is important for my piano kids to see that I truly love to play the piano; that it is a genuine source of joy for me. Most of us are in this profession because this is so… so let that shine and inspire your piano kids with your passion.
3. It’s an important tradition. My piano teacher taught mostly classical music and while I am a huge advocate for varying your piano kids’ repertoire to continue to be relevant, I’m also a big proponent of continuing on the classical music tradition. Without our influence as piano teachers, our kiddos may never have the opportunity to ever hear this music, let alone play it. My classical-music-only diet didn’t give me jazz improv skills, but it certainly did create an appreciation for classical music. It’s important for piano teachers to find ways to inspire piano kids to appreciate and understand classical music.
4. It’s an experience. Piano lessons for me were more than just a weekly activity, they were truly an experience. My piano teacher had two Westie Terriers that would greet me at the door. She’d sneak me scotch mints with a wink from a crystal bowl when I’d done something particularly well. She’d surprise me with a coveted invite into her “private” living room to play my piece on her harpsichord. Almost everything in her house and studio was pink, angel-themed and covered in flowers in spring, leaves in fall and lights at Christmas.
It was the little things about my lessons that made them a part of my life that was as familiar as my home life. It was the little things that made my piano teacher my superstar. A sterile and business-like studio doesn’t have the same effect as a personalized environment where your piano kids learn about you and your quirks.
What “Worked” for You?
My own piano lesson experiences shaped me as the piano teacher I am today. So much of what my piano teacher did influenced me to either do the same, or to adjust and adapt. So, we’d love to hear from you! What is your favorite memory from your piano lessons as a child? What was it that made your lessons “work”? What do you continue to do yourself that your own piano teacher did? Share in the comments section below.
Lavinia Livingston says
I grew up on a farm in Texas where weekly my Mom would drive me into town (pop. about 200) to my piano teachers’ home for lessons. I thought her house was beautiful compared to our farm house….3 bedroom, 7 kids. Her house had knickknacks and pretty little dishes set on shelves and rugs on the floor.
Today, her home is the home of my nephew who had no idea it was the place where all his uncles and aunts had taken their piano lessons. The house has been updated and added on to but when my sisters and I visited the first time we walked into the living room and straight to the opposite wall and said, “This is where the piano was!” Yes, I teach differently than she did but she instilled a love of music so strong that I can’t live without it.
Betty Dean says
I’ve been at this a long time…but I’m still learning! I teach both accordion and piano and I LOVE what I do. Teaching is, indeed, a learning process! I keep rediscovering that each individual student is just that! AN INDIVIDUAL! People (children and adults) learn things by absorbing different processes in different ways and at different speeds. (I’m also a strong advocate of Homeschooling for this reason. Teachers who are trying to teach 30 kids at once don’t have the privilege of designing the lesson to fit the student.) Being joyful while in the act of teaching and offering rewards for good efforts will make the students…OLD AND YOUNG…want to come back for more!
Virginia says
Reading this brought back lots of memories. My teacher didn’t give stickers, didn’t give prizes, didn’t have charts, etc. What he did have was a love for music and that’s what he gave me. I don’t ever remember a student quitting. Same students year in and year out. It was a privilege to have him for my teacher. Mr. Bigelow was in Fort Worth, Texas. I miss you!
Barbara says
My piano teacher had a very plain living room and piano, but she had a big smile and often held her infant son on her lap as she taught. Even he seemed to love the music. I was 9 years old and payed for my lessons out of my own babysitting money. I never forgot her smile and the way she could throw her head back and laugh with me as we played together. She made music seem as natural as breathing.
buffy says
After only having had about one year of lessons years earlier, I returned to taking piano lessons when I was 14. My teacher was in her 60’s and she was the first eccentric person I’d ever known. As a shy person, I was initially afraid of her, but I think the one on one attention I received, was the first thing that drew me in. What I really appreciate now (that she has passed on), was the way she’d set the stage/mood with her stories as I played my songs. First, I’d play what I had been practicing. Then, she’d sit and tell me a story, some random story, maybe something that happened in her past, like, boating on a small river as a child. After the descriptive and rather interesting story, she’d say, “Now, imagine you are on that boat, drifting down a river. Play the song again, and make it feel like you’re drifting down the river.” I never saw it coming, time and time again. I’d be so captivated just listening to her stories, because they were real experiences that I’d never encountered in my young life, but then “Shazaam!” she’d turn it into sort of a life/music lesson for me. She made me realize that music was more than just black dots on a flat white page, and more than something only to be had in her home at her piano. Music was something I could bring to life from my own experiences, or something I could incorporate into my life as well.
Brenda Weaver says
Oh how refreshing all these comments have been for me, and also brings back wonderful memories of childhood days. At the age of 10 1/2, had my first teacher during the summer only. Although I really liked Miss Oshel, I do not feel I learned as well from her. A couple of years later, I had lessons from an old lady about 45 miles away. She was super strict and you just were not allowed to be your true self in your music. Very rigid and no frills allowed whatsoever. I almost turned against piano lessons at that timeand soon quit. My 3rd and best teacher was our pastor’s wife and I loved her and learned well. I am 70+ years old now and still love to play and teach yet in my home. I had the privilege over years to play for many churches, a number of large choirs, ladies groups, quartets and anyone else who asked. I dare say I have had hundreds of students over the years and am so proud that many of them have, or still do play yet for churches, civic funtions, weddings, graduation commencements, etc.
That truly is rewarding for me. Thank God for all the wonderful teachers before us, and I pray we will be well remembered for the same down through the years to come.
piano father says
I clearly remember my three piano teachers. I had one piano teacher that conveyed a serious appreciation for music. He was tough and strict. My other two modern teachers did not convey the same appreciation.
My daughter currently gets lessons from an old school piano teacher and I would not have it any other way. She is also tough and strict and conveys a serious appreciation for music. But she is also very nice and cares a lot about my daughter. The best part of my day is working with my daughter each night on the lessons set forth by her teacher.
I sincerely thank all of the teachers out there who firmly embrace the appreciation for music and teach that to the kids. In fact I am envious of all of those teachers who have the privilege of having that impact.
Andrea says
How lovely that you and your daughter can share her practice time together! 🙂 Thanks for commenting.