It has
been a year since I launched this blog and about that long since I posted! Life
has been crazy and my priorities changed at about this time last year. I am
back, though. And writing this blog will hopefully stay high on my list of
priorities. Perhaps my ideas aren’t all that unique, but if I can help even one
teacher, parent, or student then I will be meeting my goal for this blog.
“Why
reinvent the wheel?”
Something
that I read recently reminded me to always be aware of how I can do my best to
help each student learn to speak and understand the language that is music
(see post on this). However, even though I am always trying to find new ways of helping my
students succeed, there is one teaching principle which has never failed me. Renowned
20th century pedagogue, Frances Clark, always emphasized introducing
new concepts in this order: Sound-Feel-Sign-Name. Regardless of learning
styles, I have found this to be the most effective means of teach new ideas to
students. This principle can be used to teach most musical (or not) concepts. And
while the order of introductions is set, the way in which you introduce each
step should be tailored to the learning needs of the student.
To
illustrate, I will use the example of the crescendo/decrescendo. Oftentimes, my
students are doing this long before the method books introduce this concept. I
insist on learning good phrasing skills from the beginning. So first, I would
play whatever little ditty my student is learning, shaping each phrase with a
crescendo to the climax and a decrescendo away from it. I would ask the student
to tell what they heard me do differently than they did (as an aside: this is,
in my opinion, the best form of ear training imaginable). Generally, within the
first two attempts, the student is able to tell me that I got louder and then
softer. I then would ask them if it happened a little at a time or suddenly.
Again, they usually get this correct. I would demonstrate a sudden change in
dynamic in contrast to a gradual change.
Next, the
student should feel the sensation of dropping their arm weight into the keys
faster to get a louder sound and slower to get a softer sound. I recommend
practicing this on one note, in quarter note values, with the metronome. Then,
work with them in their music to incorporate the growth and diminution of each
phrase. Hopefully, without verbally addressing it, you can prevent the issue of
playing faster/slower coinciding with a change in dynamic. Teachers must understand
this principle: the speed at which the arm weight approaches the point of sound
does not necessarily affect the speed of the arm weight moving from note to
note. It is all careful choreography. That is information that does not need to
be verbally communicated to the student, however, unless you have an older
beginner or adult student with an interest in physics!
After they
are comfortable with this concept, we begin talking about the symbols that
indicate crescendo and decrescendo. I draw the two symbols and ask them which
makes sense for getting louder: the one that gets bigger or the one that gets
smaller. They generally guess correctly. We add these symbols to whatever they
are playing, where in the previous step we already determined they would crescendo
and decrescendo.
Finally,
we give them a name for the symbols. This is the last and (please don’t hate me
for saying it) least important step. What we call something, is far less
important than understanding and being able to execute the idea behind the name
assigned.
This
process of steps may happen in one lesson, or several, depending on the
student. What is important for the teacher, the parent, and the student to
realize is that each concept takes time to learn and apply, and that not everything
will happen quickly. Tremendous patience is needed from all three parties!
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