Did you know your whole body is involved in playing music? Not just your fingers or vocal cords! When playing an instrument, your body becomes an extension of that instrument. Your fingers pluck strings or press keys, your mouth forms correct...
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Developing a good sense of time or beat is key for every musician. A good sense of time can be developed while we play our instrument or away from it. Focusing on time while playing your instrument can be difficult since there is so much to think...
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For as long as I can remember, I have been surrounded by music. My mom was always singing and dancing around the house, and I spent my weekends with a barbershop singer who was eager to teach me everything he knew. I really did grow to enjoy...
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The other day a student of mine asked if I could teach him the "Tony Stark" song. My heart fluttered as I turned to the piano, asking as coolly as I could through my excitement, "Oh, this one?" I plucked out the Avenger's Theme. My student grinned...
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Have you found yourself tapping along to music you like? That’s your motor cortex, auditory cortex, and your cerebellum helping you figure out the rhythm and moving your body to the beat! Maybe now you’re humming or singing along with the melody...
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There is no doubt that the most important factor for progressing with a musical instrument is practice. However, it is not easy to remember everything learned during each lesson. Whether it's a new song, new technique, a musical term, a correction...
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There are so many things going on in our fast-paced world that sometimes we end up missing the little things in life. It can be a real challenge to focus on the present moment and not be thinking about what happened yesterday or what will be...
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Learning how to practice is an important skill. There are so many different methods and ways to approach learning and practicing, yet, there are many musicians that are unaware of how to practice away from their instrument. As a pianist, most...
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Hi, students and parents of SAMA! As one of the newest members of the SAMA family, it's been truly an honor meeting so many new faces eager to learn the art of the violin. Part of that honor has been figuring out where all 50+ of my new students...
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When I first started learning how to play piano, I had no idea what classical music was. It wasn’t until my first piano teacher introduced me to pieces by Beethoven, Mozart and Chopin that I remember thinking, “Oh! I have heard that piece in a...
Read more Figuring out when and how much to practice can be daunting, especially if you are learning a new instrument. New students tend to overwork themselves if they are passionate about succeeding. They often get frustrated at their lack of immediate...
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When taking lessons, it can be a bit challenging to keep up with everything you are learning as well as finding time to just noodle around on your instrument. However, I believe it’s important to find time to sit with your instrument and just...
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