2016 - Oclef

5 ways to make memorizing music your strength

Oclef teamOct 24, 2016 Teacher No Comments

5 ways to make memorizing music your strength

One thing that always kept my attention when talking with fellow musicians was discussion about memory. For pianists it’s often the top thing on our minds heading into concerts. How is my memory? Sviatoslav Richter who was one of the greatest pianists...

2 questions you have to ask when looking for a music teacher

Oclef teamOct 21, 2016 Parent No Comments

2 questions you have to ask when looking for a music teacher

Parent

In most of the auditions and interviews I take these days, I don’t get many questions from parents. It’s strange to me that they wouldn’t want to know more before committing to learning in our studio. So I thought about what 2 questions...

Practice is tough

Oclef teamOct 18, 2016 Parent 2 Comments

Practice is tough

Parent

Practice is tough. I know. I’ve practiced over 30,000 hours since I started. Getting to the point where you feel more fluent with music than your own native language is a sign that you’ve found your calling. But when I hear from parents that,...

Can video recording change music education? (Part III of III)

Oclef teamOct 15, 2016 Music Education Advocacy, Teacher No Comments

Can video recording change music education? (Part III of III)

Music Education Advocacy, Teacher

In the first part of this mini-series on video I talked about video recording lessons and in part two I talked about how video can help parents and students at home. In the last part of this series we will be talking about the silent, yet intimidating...

Can video recording change music education? (Part II of III)

Oclef teamOct 12, 2016 Education, Teacher No Comments

Can video recording change music education? (Part II of III)

Education, Teacher

It’s pretty clear when you see a video whether or not something is right or not. So what does this mean for piano teachers? It means we get recorded a lot. On average, parents ask to record me playing 6 times a day (yes, I’ve been keeping...

Can video recording change music education? (Part I of III)

Oclef teamOct 09, 2016 Education, Teacher No Comments

Can video recording change music education? (Part I of III)

Education, Teacher

The feedback loop is one of the most fascinating aspects of learning. It’s a simple, but powerful process that happens hundreds of millions of times in our life. We learn We change We improve It’s this process and the forces that live in and...

“I did it because my friend did”

Oclef teamOct 06, 2016 Education, Music Education Advocacy, Teacher No Comments

“I did it because my friend did”

Education, Music Education Advocacy, Teacher

I hear this a lot. I’m a big believer in the positive use of peer pressure. There have been so many successful studies to show how social proof and peer pressure can change our behaviors and thoughts. One of the areas that education hasn’t...

Why do we teach?

Oclef teamOct 03, 2016 Teacher No Comments

Why do we teach?

Teacher

At the end of every teaching day, I’m exhausted. Just like any other job you love, you’re depleated emotionally, physically and mentally. Teaching music is particularly rewarding since you see your students grow and develop over the years....

How to see without looking

Oclef teamSep 30, 2016 Teacher No Comments

How to see without looking

Teacher

Some beginners have trouble with looking too often at their hands. You can tell early on in the lessons because when they start working on reading music, their eyes are always looking at their hands. It’s okay to look when necessary, but if they’re...

3 ways to improve your music student’s ears

Oclef teamSep 27, 2016 Teacher No Comments

3 ways to improve your music student’s ears

Teacher

One of the toughest things to teach students, is how to listen. Over the past few years I’ve really pushed students to listen and think about listening as much as possible. I find that it’s one of the best ways to help them improve. How do...