Piano

We've just added a new piano lesson that Christie recorded recently. Find it in the Intermediate Section or just click on the picture below to jump right to it!

We've just added a new piano lesson that Christie recorded recently. Find it in the Intermediate Section or just click on the picture below to jump right to it!

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Debussy’s Rhapsodie for Clarinet and Piano is the “mother of all contest pieces,” according to clarinet player Ricardo Morales.  It was originally written by French composer Claude Debussy for the Paris Conservatory as a contest piece.

It is an extremely beautiful and nuanced composition known for its multiple levels of dynamics that go from piano to pianissimo to pianississimo to actual silence.  The challenge is playing it as both a solo for a clarient audition, but also keeping in mind that Debussy subsequently expanded it to be performed with an eighty to eighty-five piece orchestra where many of these colors would get lost if you played it as you would a solo piece.

As a clarinetist, concentrate on the colors you want to portray.  For example the beginning is piano but it is immediately followed by dolce and espressivo.  So being expressive between the B flat and the C creates a nice “shape” to the notes while maintaining the more quiet piano feel.

Greetings everyone out there in Piano Land, we just added some new piano lessons from Christie! There are 6 new piano lessons in total, the first three are on Czerny's "Study in B Flat Major" , and there's another three lessons on Duvernoy's "Study in C Major". Find them all in the Intermediate Muscular Level 4 area or just click on the picture!

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American piano legend Van Cliburn has died at the age of 78. He is best remembered for winning the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow in 1958 during the height of the cold war. He was 23 at the time and became an overnight sensation, celebrated across the world. Click on the image to read a stirring tribute from the New York Times.

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Here's a great tip from Christie Peery for anyone learning to play piano, or any other instrument for that matter: slow down.  We all know fast playing can be a challenge, but so can playing slow because it forces you to really be deliberate in your playing and hear each note.  When playing a piano scale slow, you'll hear which fingers are weaker so you can focus on them to make sure each has an equally rich tone and attack.  

As Christie says, "one of the best ways to learn to play fast is actually by playing slow, because that's what's going to develop your muscles." So it's important to take the time to practice slow on your instrument; over time your muscles will strengthen and your playing (and speed) will improve! 

Here's a great tip from Christie Peery for anyone learning to play piano, or any other instrument for that matter: slow down.  We all know fast playing can be a challenge, but so can playing slow because it forces you to really be deliberate in your playing and hear each note.  When playing a piano scale slow, you'll hear which fingers are weaker so you can focus on them to make sure each has an equally rich tone and attack.  

As Christie says, "one of the best ways to learn to play fast is actually by playing slow, because that's what's going to develop your muscles." So it's important to take the time to practice slow on your instrument; over time your muscles will strengthen and your playing (and speed) will improve! 

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Looking for piano lessons for kids? Look no further! ArtistWorks piano teacher Christie Peery teaches a full method that's great for kids learning how to play piano. 

Here's one of Christie's students practicing "March of the Goblins", watching the lesson on his iPad and playing along. Look how happy he is!