It’s been five weeks now since I saw my students face to face.  

It’s been a rollercoaster! I’ve learned that for some students things have needed to change a great deal and for others they haven’t.  I’m thrilled that almost all of my pupils has been able to make the tr...

What do children expect and hope for from piano lessons?

When I was very young I used to lie in bed listening to my dad play the piano. I imagined there was a massive concert hall downstairs with swishy red velvet curtains and a huge, appreciative audience. My mum also...

‘What do you do?’
‘Mostly, I teach the piano.’
‘Oh.’
And there the conversation ends as my interlocutor recalls her rather strict and musty childhood piano teacher and the grim lessons she endured until her parents realised that she was getting nowhere and lessons should...

Let me tell you about something that happened to me when I was 14 years old. Every Saturday I travelled to London to attend the Royal College of Music Junior Department. (I loved it and it was almost all a very positive experience!) Each year we auditioned for places i...

When I asked this question of various people all sorts of lovely answers came back with words such as:

enable, encourage, inspire, teach (!), make possible, set the direction, expert, thoughtful, playful, tactful, purposeful, engaging, patient, fun, caring, flexible, kn...

“Music is so powerful in our lives because it’s always there. People come and go. Jobs come and go. Relationships come and go. But music stays. Take comfort, no matter how crazy things get, music will be there for you.” (musiciansunite.com)

About 30 years ago I decided...

What do you remember about your first piano lesson? Your child's first piano lesson? 

My first lessons were happy occasions with my dad. I remember my first 'proper' teacher (sorry dad), Mrs Shepherd. She had a big oval ring on one of her fingers; she had the shortest h...

The new teaching term starts in just over a week. I have a big pile of shiny new books for most of my students. There is an air of expectation and, dare I say, excitement as we approach the new term. 

My head is buzzing with ideas - too many of them! This morning I...

...and, breathe...

Players of wind instruments have a bit of an advantage on the breathing front; their playing is dependent upon it. They also have a disadvantage; their playing is dependent upon it! 

In the orchestral workshop sessions I run, the wind players and I wil...

The most important thing in the quest for improvement and progress in learning an instrument is effective practice. As such, the most important role of the teacher is communicating with students how to practise effectively. Ideally, the student practises at home, comes...