This is a series of five videos that demonstrate how I teach my piano students the major scales, scale fingerings, the Circle of Fifths, key signatures, and how to sight sing in each key using the PianoForte method, Major Scale book.

I have to begin this post with a confession. My children were terrible practicers. We couldn’t find a regular schedule that worked. We argued about it every day. I felt over-scheduled with dance and tennis and swimming, and I was exhausted.

Here in the UK music exams are a BIG deal. Everyone knows that music grades exist, people believe that sequentially passing these grades marks musical achievement

This piece called “My Pony” is from PianoForte Level 2. Students are learning to read the stave. This is a sample lesson on how to make this transition by singing moveable Do solfa.

In PianoForte Level Two students are introduced to the concept of the musical stave and Landmark Notes. Each landmark note is presented in a fun way to help engage students and make it memorable. This is a performance of “The F Song” which highlights Bass F.

When we approach piano teaching with singing, the thing we’re really doing is helping our students develop strong aural and audiation skills. Singing with our students helps them to hear and understand multiple layers of sound. It helps them to successfully interpret and perform the vast repertoire written for the pianoforte

Juliet and I share different ways to learn “The Mountains” from PianoForte Level One. Using basic Solfa syllables “So, La, Mi, Re, Do”, simple rhythm exercises with a focus on healthy technique.

Wise Owl is the final piece in PianoForte Level One. It gives students more experience singing and playing in the minor mode and can be performed in canon.

This piece highlights the solfa “Mi, Re, Do,” as well as “La and So”. This piece is also fun because we use the Bodhran for accompaniment.

Juliet and I share a performance of the piece “The Rabbit” from PianoForte Level One. This piece features the Solfa “La, Ti, Do” giving students a chance to practice the minor mode and that tricky semitone-the leading tone.

Juliet and I share this sweet little song from the first level of the PianoForte method. We demonstrate how we use singing to begin the piece, how it naturally supports beautiful technique and also how we sing the rhythm.

A few years ago I invented a challenge for my students to help them practice regularly. I had a bright idea to create a challenge based on the theme of “Gem Jars”. It has been so successful that it’s become a firm favourite in my studio and I’m pretty sure it’s here to stay FOREVER!

As a piano teacher, it’s easy to approach our lessons as though we are training young spies how to decode something secret: “here are some black and white keys, here is some notated music - let’s learn how one represents the other” This however, is not music. ..

Good piano technique is not a visual demonstration of beautiful or “correct” hand movements. Good technique is the skilled production of musical sound. It is an understanding and an imagining of sound variations.

“It makes no difference if a piano key is hit by a finger, fist or an umbrella.” Should our students have digital pianos? Should we turn students away if they don’t have access to an acoustic piano? Are we elitists on one side or poorly educated on the other?

Several years ago I stopped teaching my students to clap rhythm values. Instead we learn pulse and the rhythm gets layered on top . . .

Teaching piano technique cannot be ignored for the weeks or months that we might have to have lessons this way. I’m having to be inventive and I found a couple of tricks that are actually really helping