The Bass Clef

Normally, you would play the notes on the bass clef with the left hand. Take a look at this 60 s. video first.




Here are further webpages to look at to learn about the bass clef that I've selected for you.

Discussion outline [+]

Online piano lessons with a webcam at Pianobug.com

This is interesting but probably ineffective. [Outline for Pianobug.com]

Pianobug.com [+]

The problem as I see it is that the ability to play piano doesn't come fundamentally from learning how to play the piano, but rather from listening to and enjoying the right music. No piano lesson sites I've seen take that approach other than mine.

Keep a list of songs that interest you during the week.

If you're taking a weekly piano lesson, keep a list of songs that you find interesting during the week and report them to your piano teacher.

Stickles loaner book includes these songs-- listen to them!

YouTube - Mills Brothers - Glow Worm (live, 1957)
[Glow Work]

YouTube - The Tudors: Greensleeves (Henry/Anne)
[Lady Greensleeves]

YouTube - Pomp and Circumstance
[Pomp and Circumstance]

YouTube - Paul Robeson: Mighty Lak A Rose
[Mighty Lak' a Rose]

YouTube - Percy Grainger - Country Gardens
[Country Gardens]

YouTube - Country Gardens
[Country Gardens with vocals]

YouTube - Chauncey Olcott - My Wild Irish Rose (1913)
[My Wild Irish Rose]

YouTube - Oh Susanna!
[Oh Suzanna]

YouTube - Johnny Cash & James Taylor - Oh Susanna
[Oh Susanna]

YouTube - The Oak Ridge Boys - Oh Susanna!
[Oh Susanna]

YouTube - Oh, Susannah!
[Oh Susanna]


YouTube - Oh Susanna
[Oh Susanna]


YouTube - Muppets sing Clark Sisters - Little Brown Jug
[+]


YouTube - U S A MILITARY MARCH STAR AND STRIPES FOREVER
[+]

YouTube - U S A MILITARY MARCH STAR AND STRIPES FOREVER
[+]

YouTube - Woody Guthrie - "Red River Valley"
[+]

YouTube - On Top Of Old Smokie Wilf Carter
{+]




YouTube - United States of America Anthem (The Star-Spangled Banner)
{+]


YouTube - Andy Griffith - Down In The Valley
[+]


YouTube - Johann Strauss II - The Blue Danube Waltz
[+]

YouTube - Oh My Darling Clementine
[+]

YouTube - Skip To My Lou - Pete Seeger [1/24] [1963]
[+]


YouTube - happy birthday fWenD! (song traditional)
[+]


YouTube - Londonderry Air (Danny Boy) - Reading Uni Flute Choir
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9uG0j8xJaJQ



YouTube - Beethoven- Minuet in G
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSXRJwspGU0

YouTube - Joshi - TA-RA-RA-BOOM-DE-AY
[+]





YouTube - The Shannon Quartet -The Sidewalks of New York
[+]



YouTube - The Alley Cat Song
[+]

"Autumn Leaves" to be studied this weekend.

FAMOUS SONGS

Autumn Leaves

Made famous by pianist
Roger Williams in 1959.

[ENTER discussion classroom on this topic]

Children's songs are excellent starter songs for piano lessons.

I'll be creating links for the following songs... then creating a youtube playlist and CD-- AND... a book of piano music based on the exact same songs. That way, if you study with me in Phoenix, you'll have access to that music-- otherwise you'll simply have to assemble it yourself.

A Hunging We Will Go
Alphabet Song
Are You Sleeping?
BaBa Black Sheep

to be continued. (This site is under heavy construction as of May 2011.)

Oh Susanna! - assigned listening.

Enjoy this first....



Now print out the lyrics... [here] or here...

...and play the video again while singing along. When you're finished that, watch this piano player Allan Dale.



Pretty good "set of chops" there, Allan! Allan has created an amazing number of really high quality old style piano vidoes. Here's a piano student whose elementary version of the song is probably more like how you will sound for now.



I personally like playing and singing this song at the same time-- it's a perfect singalong. I like my students to do the same. Now here's a funny video of an adult who begins to sing but all we hear is "Oh Susanna"....



And that's IT!!! I guess I'll have to be the guy to upload the singing and playing at the same time... unless I get one of my students to do it... or if you the reader want to do it. I would use the first video as the guide...

Email me at rick_potvin@yahoo.com for lessons-- only after you've been through the online course.

Song Survey Assignment #1

Before playing the piano, you have to have something to play. And to choose what to play, you should have songs that you're familiar with in your mind already. It's much easier and more fun to play songs on the piano that you've heard before. Many of my piano students have never heard the songs I'm familiar with and I'm not familiar with the songs my students know.

To survey songs means to listen to them. Today, I'm going to assign these songs for you to listen to and familiarize yourself with. You may find them on mp3 file and download them to your ipod if you can or you may find them on Youtube or just midi files. I'll make a series of links for the youtube files once I find them but in the meantime, you may post links to the comments section here in this blog as suggested listening. Here are the titles.

The Glow Worm
Greensleeves
Pomp and Circumstance

YouTube - Mills Brothers - Glow Worm (live, 1957)
[Glow Work]

YouTube - The Tudors: Greensleeves (Henry/Anne)
[Lady Greensleeves]

YouTube - Pomp and Circumstance
[Pomp and Circumstance]

YouTube - Paul Robeson: Mighty Lak A Rose
[Mighty Lak' a Rose]

YouTube - Percy Grainger - Country Gardens
[Country Gardens]

YouTube - Country Gardens
[Country Gardens with vocals]

YouTube - Chauncey Olcott - My Wild Irish Rose (1913)
[My Wild Irish Rose]

YouTube - Oh Susanna!
[Oh Suzanna]

Watch Hot Cross Buns being played.

First, print out this sheet.

[PRINT OUT]


Now watch this...

May 2011 Sequence

1. Listen and follow the music of Czerny excercises. [+]

Listen and read the music to Czerny's exercises on this Youtube playlist.

[Listen and read]

Begin piano lessons without playing the piano!

Welcome to your first piano lesson without playing the piano. Simply direct your attention to each of the following exercises. When one is complete, go to the next one.

1. [Hot Cross Buns.]

2. [Elementary fingering]

3, [Oh Suzanna!]

Walk in Black Forest.

`````This entire song uses Perfect 4ths, major 3rds, and minor 6ths which is the point of interest that I'd like you listen for.

Watching and listening to Hanon and Czercy exercises can be mood-creating and interesting.

Hanon and Czerny wrote a series of exercises that piano players in general would not likely consider worth simply listening to. I would say they are worth listening to. There could be a beneficial cognitive effect in terms of brainwave moderation and modulation. I'll explore that here.. and post some useful links.

Beginnger's Sequence will be posted here.

This is under construction as of May 2011... I plan to have a series of links here for beginners... and will continue the series so that there are logical upgrades of knowledge as we move along. I've only recently reconnected with this site and generated some better ideas. In the meantime, email me at rick_potvin@yahoo.com for Phoenix AZ based piano lessons in our regular studio.

Welcome to my piano lesson website where you will observe.

The primary aim of this website is to have you observe others playing piano. The theoretical basis for my approach is a scientifically validated monkey-see monkey-do approach. I believe students learn better when they attempt to duplicate what has already been done. Imitation is the first step in any kind of skilled learning, from tying a shoelace to playing piano and building a nuclear power plant.