I have a suspicion that nearly every child goes through a time where he/she wants to quit piano lessons.  I think it’s almost inevitable that kids will want to swap practicing the piano for video games, basketball, dance, whatever really!

In order to prolong, prevent, or pull a student back to piano when this happens, I think several motivating factors should be in place in a studio.  Remember that personalities are varied, so it’s important to consider different personality “types” as you learn to help motivate your students.

1. Students should be taught to love music.  Of course, this is obvious.  But it’s important to understand what your student loves.  If a student isn’t enjoying lessons, a switch in music type can often do the trick. 

I had a student who was not practicing and had a really bad attitude during lessons.  One day he told me, “My mom said I can quit as soon as I can play all the hymns in the hymn book.”  I knew I had to act quick, because this kid has amazing talent.  He could have taught himself all those hymns and left piano in the dust.  But I just know he is destined for bigger and better things.  So I found some really challenging, really impressive sounding classical pieces.  He ate it up.  His attitude is better and he is one of my best practicers again.

(Harry Potter songs do wonders too!)

2. Students should feel a camaraderie.  Some students thrive when they are able to be social.  Piano, as you know, is a very individual activity.   Sometimes, students only need to know that they have friends in piano who are doing the same things in order to keep them going through the boring times.

I have heard of teachers doing group lessons once a month (something I’m thinking of), doing student only recitals (something I’m about to do this week!), and doing student parties.  All these activities bring students together in a fun setting where they can socialize in addition to develop piano talents.  Having these types of positive social experiences can help students want to stick with piano when they hit the almost inevitable slump.

3. Practice Incentives work wonders. They really do.  Kids love to work towards a goal, even if that goal is just a sticker on a chart.  Sometimes that sticker or prize can be the motivating factor in getting through a tough time.

I’m sure there are many more ways to keep students motivated.  But the point is that more than one type of motivation in a studio is valuable to helping students develop their talents.

What do you think?  What do you do to help motivate your students?

Ok, ok.  I’m being obnoxious.

But it’s a truth!  Repetition is so helpful and necessary.  Especially for a beginer.  Your brand new student may understand finger numbers after one lesson, but it’s very likely that without another reminder of finger numbers, that knowledge will become fuzzy.  Be sure to find time to bring early concepts into later lessons.

Subjects I find myself repeating and repeating with each student:

1. finger numbers
2. quarter notes, half notes, dotted half notes, and whole notes
3. middle C
4. Treble C
5. Bass C
6. correct hand position
7. names of keys
8. notes on staff

What subjects make you sound like a broken record?

There’s one thing you should know about me.  I do not like to play sports.  I will attend a sporting event only if it’s free or very very very cheap.  You will never ever ever ever catch me watching a sporting event on TV.  (OK, that was technically 3 things.)

Curiously enough, however, I LOVE sports movies.  I don’t know if it’s the triumph over adversity, the teams pulling together, or the feel good music combined with cheering and chanting, but I can always go for a good sports movie.

Recently, I watched Gridiron Gang with my husband.  Have you seen it?

Just when and where is this going to relate to music teaching, you ask?  Soon, I promise.  Stay with me!

Gridiron Gang is a true story about a juvenile detention center warden who decided to use football as a tool to keep his teenage prisoners from returning to the streets upon release from jail.  He miraculously got the approval of his superiors, and even more miraculously, found a high school league that would allow his team of criminals to compete.  Ultimately, he was successful in helping keep kids off the street after jail.  Some did return, but the majority went to school and got jobs and scholarships.

There is a scene in the movie which reminds me of piano teaching.  The coach, played by The Rock, comes out to practice in full football gear.  He looks ridiculous, as the uniform he is wearing is the same size as what the boys wear.  The players and other coaches stare at him and start to laugh, wondering out loud just what the heck (that’s a much more mild way to put it) their coach is doing in a too-small uniform.

He heads straight for one certain player.  This particular player is afraid to get hit.  Consequently, he gets tackled way too easily and way too often, costing the team valuable points.  He has the potential to be a star, but he can’t get over his fear of being hit.

The coach sets himself up in a defensive stance and tells the player to come at him and knock him down.  (Have you seen how big The Rock is?)  The kid, of course, is scared.  The coach tells him he has potential to be great, but he must overcome this obstacle and move forward.   After several attempts, the kid finally knocks The Rock flat on his back.  He is proud, but more importantly, he has overcome his fear and is a better player because of it.

How does this relate to music teaching?  Sometimes we ask our students to do really ridiculous and incredibly challenging things.  But we KNOW what our students need.  We KNOW that this really ridiculous exercise is going to improve some type of technique to make our students stronger players.  Sometimes the parents watch us and wonder what the heck we are asking their kids to do.  But we KNOW how to reach those kids because we are their teachers.  We are musicians.  And we understand that proper fundamentals are the only way to get the desired result- and sometimes we have to get a little ridiculous to teach those fundamentals.

I once donned martian antenna for a “Space Day” to get my students excited about learning and remembering space notes.  I often send my students home with really awful sounding warmups that cause parents to question if their children are truly practicing right.

What have you done to make a point?  When have you started something that seemed so backwards to your student, but ended up being just what that student needed?

She’s one of my best students- always practices, always on time, always has her books, always is polite and well mannered. 

It was such a reward to hear from her own mouth that she loves piano lessons!

My own mother “made” me take piano lessons.  I desperately wanted to start lessons to be like my older brothers.  But after a year or two, I was DONE.  I wanted to play with my friends, not go sit in the house and practice.  Thank goodness my mom forced me to stick with lessons.  The piano is now one of my greatest joys!  (As well as a source of income!)

Did you want to take lessons as a child or were you forced?

I have decided, for the first time, not to require memorization at this recital.  I know it will take pressure off, but I wonder if it will mean that pieces won’t be as polished.

I know this subject has been discussed in many forums before, but I am interested to know how Piano Teacher’s Retreat feel about memorization at recitals.

Feel free to leave a comment about your reasoning behind your decision!

I am working hard on my Brahms piece you all helped me choose!  (Thank you, by the way!  I LOVE this piece).

I know many teachers don’t perform at their students’ recitals.  My teachers always did, so when I began teaching, I just assumed it was my responsibility as a teacher!  I didn’t realize I even had an option!  However, I am supremely happy I made my decision to perform at recitals.  My reasons are many:

1. I think it is good for my students to know that I can play the piano.  Oftentimes, I think they think I don’t know what I’m talking about when I ask them to do certain exercises.  Hearing me play reminds them that I’ve been there, done that, and have succeeded.
2. I think students need something to aspire to.  Hearing advanced music helps them with that.
3. It’s also good for my students’ parents to know that I can play the piano and they are getting their money’s worth.
4. My students get very energized after hearing me play. 
5. As selfish as this reason is, performing at recitals helps my abilities!  Performing forces me to practice and keep on top of my technique.

I know many teachers don’t want to steal the thunder from their students, so they choose not to perform.  However, I don’t think it steals the thunder if a teacher performs at the end of a recital.  It’s a nice way to close the recital, and also give students something to work towards. 

I watched a video the other day of a flamenco dance performance.  After the performance was over, the teacher performed alone while the students stood around her.  I was happy to see her abilities, and did not feel it took away from the students’ performance.

I still remember the recital where my teacher performed “The Flight of the Bumblebee.”  I went to my next lesson begging to play it.  Her performance gave me something to aspire to, and in no way took away from my good feelings about my own performance that day.

Even though I have my opinion, I would love to hear yours!

Feel free to leave a comment explaining your reasoning!

Here are my three (and only three) tips I have for practicing with a toddler.  Please share your tips if you have any!

1.  Set a specific time you will practice each and every day.  Making it routine will be good for you, but will also eventually help your child deal with your practice time.  Eventually, your child will come to understand that this is just what Mommy or Daddy does at this time of the day. 

2.  Start early!  Put your baby next to the piano and practice while your baby is a newborn.  Your child will grow up knowing that Mommy or Daddy plays the piano.  It’s just what’s done.

3.  Practice when your spouse is at home.  I practice while Daddy does bathtime.  I get 15 minutes of practice each night.  It isn’t ideal, but it’s better than nothing!

Sadly, those are my only tips!  Do you have better ones?  Please please share!

Planning this recital is bringing back memories of my first studio recital as a teacher.  My students were all brand new- the longest any had been taking lessons was probably about 3 months!  Every single one of my 9 or 10 students was in the primer level.  I borrowed folding chairs and thoroughly cleaned the house so I could cram all of my students and their parents into my tiny living room.  I spent hours making refreshments.  I arranged for a babysitter since my husband had to work.  I agonized over what to wear, and spent hours making sure I looked dressy and professional since I would be meeting several parents for the first time (i had only met one parent of each child at that time). 

And after all that preparation, the recital, refreshments, and pictures were over in less than 15 minutes!  Each student’s piece took 30 seconds or less, and there was very little “dead air” for walking back to seats since the seats were all right next to the piano!  I even played a part of my piece twice because I was so nervous, and that STILL didn’t add much to the total time!

It was quite possibly a little ridiculous, but it was also a lot of fun.   Even though my students were all fresh little newbies, I think it was great to get them out performing in front of people.  They had something to be proud of and were able to receive lots of praise and encouragement!

Have you ever had a ridiculous recital?  What about a disaster of a recital?

1. The Technical Giants- These students play every crescendo, diminuendo, and ritardando.  They hold every fermata and they use the pedal correctly.  Each accent, staccato, and slur is delivered appropriately.  They are able to do this because they pay attention.  They are actually reading their music and looking for directions.  However, the music is not necessarily “in” them.  They play correctly, but there is a certain amount of feeling lacking because they are so technical.
2. The Feelers- These students play beautifully.  They often don’t notice dynamic markings.  Even so, they typically end up playing them correctly anyway, because they naturally know how a piece should sound.  However, because they don’t pay close attention to reading, they may get wrong notes and wrong rhythms.
3. The Note Champions- These students play every single note and rhythm correctly.  Often, they are so good at the notes, that they speed through every song.  However, they don’t seem to care about dynamics and articulation.  They even get frustrated when asked to notice and pay attention to such things.

Do you have students that fall into these categories?  Do you have other categories when it comes to students “feeling” the music?

I have been trying to help each student feel and understand the music better, and here are 6 suggestions that have been working in my studio.

1. Listen to recordings of instrumental music during lesson time.  Provide a wide variety of music for your student to hear.  If your student will go for it, discuss the music.  (Many of my students get antsy when we start to discuss anything).  Give incentives if your student listens to classical music at home.  Even if your student won’t discuss the music with you, at least she is getting an exposure to the “feeling” of music.
2. Talk about the background of a piece.  I had a “Note Champion” learning “Moonlight Sonata,” by Beethoven.  Every note was, of course, correct, but she pounded the keys, never slowed down, and didn’t change her dynamics at all.  I told her why Beethoven wrote the piece:  He had been in love with a girl and wanted to marry her.  Her father wouldn’t allow the marriage, and she had to marry somebody else instead.  Beethoven was so overcome with grief, and to cope, he composed.  “Moonlight Sonata” is the result of his depression and grief.  My “Note Champion” thought that was a cool story, and that allowed me to talk to her about the “feeling” of the piece.  I asked her how she thought it should sound, and then we went through the piece together, finding areas for crescendos, diminuendos, and ritardandos.  She played with much more feeling after that.
3. Encourage your students to compose.  Some of my students who refuse to pay attention to dynamic markings will play a piece they wrote with a surprising amount of feeling.  You can print free blank sheet music at www.blanksheetmusic.net
4. If there are lyrics in a piece, have the student read them out loud before playing the piece.  Ask your student to describe the feeling.  Then, ask him to read the lyrics with that feeling.  If the lyrics are about a galloping horse, ask him to read the lyrics fast and choppy.  If they are about a flowing river, ask him to try and connect his words to make them sound smooth.
5. Pay attention to what kind of music excites your student.  Then, search for that kind of music so you can adapt it into lessons.  The more they play what they like, the happier they will be with the piano.  And the more willing they will be to try and improve.
6. Expand your own abilities so you understand what it takes to do something unnatural.  For example, I am a terrible jazz pianist.  I am able to “feel” a classical or romantic piece, but when it comes to jazz, my playing just falls apart.  So I am playing some easy jazz, trying to get the “feel” of that type of music.  It gives me much more empathy for my struggling students!

Do you have more tips for helping your students develop “feeling” while they play?