Home Again by John Denver... is a possible singalong for your piano club or home.

by Rick Potvin
Great down to earth lyrics and very very simple chord changes make this a good sing along song for your piano setting, either professionally later in an evening after dinner or anytime at home.

We'll try to get this down on the piano for every skill level this week but to do the legwork on that, you'll have to join me in the forum.









When you sing and play John Denver, you have to think like John Denver... and even consider looking like him.

Here's my best John Denver impersonation. I think the hair does it. It's hair with an attitude. The hat and jean jacket work for him too but I don't have a jean jacket at the moment. Thank God I'm not a country boy, really. It's fun to imitate one however.

Discussion forum will look the song in more detail soon.

DENVER, John... Back home again.

Golden Buddha Restaurant in Phoenix AZ had a piano identity from 2007 to 2012.... why not your restuarant?

• Golden Buddha (1)
• Golden Buddha - links (1)
• Golden Buddha - Review (1)
• Golden Buddha customer requests - Blue Bossa (1)
• Golden Buddha restaurant piano by Dorothy and Rick (1)

PLAYLISTS on Youtube by Rick and Dorothy can be used in your home or commercial setting for background music.

• Playlist - 9 Christmas Singalongs with 2 Pianos (1)
• Playlist - Dorothy and Rick Two Piano Sing Along (1)
• Playlist - possible demo 24 songs (1)
• Playlist - Rick and Dorothy at Golden Buddha (1)
• Playlist - September stylings (1)
• Playlist experiment - Dorothy (1)
• Playlist experiment - Stan Goetz (1)
• Playlist experiment. (1)
• Playlists - 2 pianos 4 hands (1)
• Playlists - Asian Afternoon - Several tunes popular in Asia played by Dorothy. (1)
• Playlists - Elegant piano for elegant dining - 121002 (1)
• Playlists - It's Italiano (1)
• Playlists - It's Organ Time - Dorothy on the Technics EA-1 (1)

Chinese tunes and other Asian music is difficult to accomodate but we're trying.

• Chinese - Famous Chinese Songs played by Dorothy (1)
• Chinese music missing 2 notes. (1)
• Chinese New Year - Day 2 - 2013 (1)
• Chinese New Year - day 3 - Dorothy plays (1)
• Chinese new year - Gong xi Gong xi (1)
• Chinese New year - rehearsal (1)
• Chinese tunes - in pop style by Dorothy (1)

See and hear Dorothy Motto play piano.

• Dorothea - demo 1 (1)
• Dorothy - 7:30 set 1/2 hr (1)
• Dorothy - 130210 - Chinese songs on keyboard and Basin ST. Blues for Mardi Gras 2013 (1)
• Dorothy - 5:30 dinner hour (1)
• Dorothy - Alley Cat (1)

See Rick Potvin play piano and do some singing... for both teaching and performance.

• Rick - Catch that Turkey (1)
• Rick - Crocodile Rock (1)

Assignment for tomorrow-- Sunday-- Listen to 6 hours of Beethoven on Youtube!

Whether your a beginner or advanced, very young or old, listening to Beethoven is interesting and beneficial. It rewires your brain to become used to organized patterns of musical thought without ever being boring as a lot of so-called "classical music" can be. The punctuated rhythms and runs of the piano sound is a lot livlier and well defined, in my opinion, than even full orchestras, violins or other strings sounds. The fact that we have one sound-- the piano-- in all its variations-- forces the pianist and piano composer to be creative in ways that don't challange an orchestra. CLICK ON CONTINUED just below for a 6 hour Youtube video features Beethoven piano music.
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Smooth non-descript piano jazz in the tradition of 80's group Spyrogyra

On Saturday nights, I like to listen to Jazz. The following 30 minute video is called "smooth jazz". It's made up of songs that I've never heard before and that nobody will likely ever know the names of. A lot of it is created on synthesizers but sounds really good because today's synths reproduce many instruments digitally and accurately. I first started listening to jazz like this in the 1980s created by a group that called themselves Spyrogyra.

Watch, follow and listen to 30 min. of Czerny piano exercises to "tune yourself up".

by Rick Potvin, Pianist and Piano Teacher
Phoenix, Arizona 
Email rick_potvin@yahoo.com or phone (602-371-0094

On the left is a one page sample of what Czerny's compositions look like. In a few words-- they are interesting exercises-- much more interesting than Hanon, although I have students begin with Hanon and gradudate to Czerny. 

You can see, just by looking at the pattern of notes, that there is some routine here. The only thing missing are the roman numeral chord changes and chords-- which I have students install because it leads to a higher level of comprehension and lays the basis for classical or even pop and modern composition of all kinds. 

The score on the left was a free sample from [VirtualSheetMusic.com] 

ASSIGNMENT SUITABLE FOR ALL AGES and skill levels: 

Listen to 30 min. of Czerny Excercises now.... 

Tonight's piano EDUTAINMENT-- a lesson in a "show" - don't get around much anymore.

Watch this playlist this evening, of various renditions of a favorite jazz standard and a favorite of my own.. Don't Get Around Much Anymore.

Valentine's Day Piano Hour with a 90 min Youtube Upload Playlist of Rick and Dorothy.

                   

242 songs on Youtube plus 24 playslists by Rick and Dorothy for your entertainment.

Introduction to the sustain pedal for beginner students-- by Dorothy

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The sustain pedal is the pedal on the right of the group of 3 pedals you will find on a typical acoustic grand piano, or an upright or spinet. When pressed, it forces the felt dampers to lift from the piano strings so that they can continue to vibrate and make sound. When the pedal is released, the damper comes down on the string and stops it, thus stopping the sound. This is useful in piano playing because in practically anything you play, you do want control of how long the particular chord or note you're playing continues, without having the manually hold down each key

continued.............

Imagine your Asian Restaurant like this with live piano on the stage at the back.

To enter the restaurant, click on continued...

Wonder of You

Assignment: Listen to Elvis sing "The Wonder of You", then watch Dorothy perform it.

Dorothy plays Chinese tunes on portable keyboard with sustain pedal-- and Basin St. Blues for Mardi Gras on Technics Ensemble.

The portable keyboard can be used as a miniature piano....

Dorothy Motto plays Chinese songs for Chinese New Year day 3.

1. Arianne (S. Korean)
2. Loyal Heart (Clayderman)
3. When will my love return? (Theresa Tang)
4. Clayderman song
5. Clayderman song
6. Chinese Girl folk song.

Dorothy Motto plays tunes for Chinese New Year Day 2 2013

Springtime in Northern Country
Green Island
Memory of Younger Time
Grandmother's Song *Taiwan
Promise in the Wind
Flower Song

Mini concert promo for Chinese New Year - rehearsal by Dorothy

Paganini Theme & Hamptom Booogie by Dorothy -- Pianoman by Rick

Dorothy and Rick take turns playing a few Lionel Hampton tunes.

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR 2013 from Dorothy Motto

Butterfly Lovers -- When My Love Comes Back (Theresa Tang) -- Lovely Song -- Gong XI Gong Xi

Blue Bossa

Dave Brubeck at Carnegie  Hall

Carolina on my Mind - James Taylor

Shifting whispering sands, Jim Reeves (Rick's dad's favorite song on the juke box)

HELP

Red Rubber Ball

Popcorn

Pop interpretations of Classical pieces by Dorothy

Debussy's Reverie interpreted by Tomita's synthesizers in the 1970's.

Time After Time

Drag the following chart off the blog onto your desktop and preview it in your photo software that reads JPEGS to make sure it will print out as 9x12 and print it out. It's the same sheet I use to play the video just below it. 

Rod Stewart is the latest pro to redo this tune... by Jules Styne... 

Further discussion, notes and videos... including the roman numeral chord changes... my favorite way to look at a song. 

TIME AFTER TIME

Bonanza Theme

Free advertising for NBC and the writers of the theme song should allow me to post the music and my version of it on the piano along with a youtube of it... and Youtube has permission to place those transparent ads on my video rendition of it as well so they can service the payments for rights to copy. 

The follow sheet music pages can be dragged onto your desktop as a JPEG and printed out. 

Discussion and notes...
BONANZA theme

Dorothy - 1/2 hr. set for 7:30