Good Habits of Sight-Reading

July 1, 2010 Jennifer Boster

As a follow-up to Jenny’s post, I would like to mention a few good habits that we can teach our students as they work on their sight-reading skills.

no stopping: Jenny already talked about the importance of this habit. Sometimes students have developed such a bad habit of stopping that they don’t even realize they are doing it! The metronome is a good tool to help students realize where they are stopping, and to help them keep the beat consistent. Counting out loud can also be helpful, and of course good rhythm is essential to good sight reading. And like Jenny said, it is better to choose a nice slow tempo than to stop. Eventually, of course, if you are sight-reading as you accompany, it will have to be up to tempo, but the skills must be developed first at slower tempos.
no looking at hands: It is important for a pianist to have a confident feel for the keyboard, and to know the feel of any interval without having to look down at their hands (this feel for the keyboard is developed through good technique study). Looking down takes unnecessary time, and can cause you to lose your place in the music. For students who really struggle with this, you can cover their hands with a book or a towel (drape it behind the fallboard on a grand piano, and down over their hands). Another thing that works great is to have the student hold a paper plate in their mouth. They may feel a little silly, but it works!
looking ahead: If a student is busy looking at the note they are playing, they obviously don’t know what note is coming next. It is important for them to learn to look ahead so they know what is coming. As they get better at identifying patterns, they will be looking not just one note ahead, but whole phrases and measures ahead.
smooth eye motion: This is related to looking ahead, but has more to do with establishing a habit of keeping your eyes moving, so that you don’t get stuck on one note. This will allow the beat of the music to flow without stopping as well. A good way to help students learn this smooth eye movement is to cover the notes with a piece of paper, just as (or before) they play them. As you move the paper smoothly across the page, their eyes will naturally move smoothly with it.
reading from bottom to top: Most students are more comfortable reading treble clef than bass clef. If you can create the habit of reading the bass clef notes first, the treble clef notes will usually fall into place just in time. But if the treble notes are read first, the bass notes often just get left out.

If you find your students are struggling with basic sight reading, it is important to make sure they have the basic elements of notes, intervals, and rhythm mastered. Even more advanced students occasionally need to come back to a review of these basics, if they have never been good readers. Once students have a solid grasp of the basics, more advanced music theory concepts will become important in their sight-reading (for instance, recognizing chords, cadences, and form).
In order to really develop good sight-reading skills, it is important for students to be sight-reading on their own every day. One challenge I have had is in finding music for my students to sight-read, since once they have played a piece, playing it again isn’t exactly sight-reading. Here are some solutions I have found, and I would love to hear others’ ideas on this:

easy method books: students may have younger siblings who are playing in easy books that they can use for sight-reading, or if you have a library of method books and easy literature books, you could check them out to your students for a few weeks at a time.
Essential Keyboard Repertoire: I have used volume 1 of this series with advanced students, since the pieces are an intermediate level, only a page or two long, and there are 100 pieces in the book. For $10.95, it’s not a bad investment for several months worth of sight-reading.
folk tunes: a book like this one by Jane Smisor Bastien can provide easy tunes with simple rhythms and intervals for early sight-readers. The problem may be finding enough books of these to keep students busy, but an advantage is that most folk tunes are in the public domain, so while you can’t necessarily photo-copy published versions, you could easily write them out yourself and start a collection of sight-reading tunes for your own library. Folk tunes can also be a good place to teach transposition, another skill that will contribute to sight-reading ability.
hymns: If your students belong to a church, have them bring a copy of their hymnal to lessons. Hymns are usually too difficult for beginners to sight-read, but are perfect for intermediate and advanced players.
broadway or popular songs: These are really for advanced students only, as the rhythms in this type of music are much too complex for beginning readers. But for students who need a sight-reading challenge, these are a lot of fun.
Four Star: this is a gem that I have just recently discovered. There are 11 books, and each book has 10 weeks worth of daily sight-reading exercises. Read more about these books in this review by Sue Haug.

four steps of sight reading

July 1, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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Here are the four sight reading steps I teach my students:

Look over the entire piece. Notice everything about it – key signature, meter, tempo, accidentals, slurs, staccatos, other articulation, hand position, range, fingering, how much your hand will need to move, any key changes, any tricky rhythms, dynamics, etc.
Play the piece with no stopping or missing, skipping, or adding a beat. (You can go slowly, just keep going!) This is important for a couple of reasons – first, it teaches your students the good habit of not stopping when they mess up. Oftentimes students get so in the habit of stopping when they mess up that they automatically stop when they get to those tricky spots, even if they don’t do anything wrong. Secondly, when you are accompanying somebody you can’t stop. In my experience, the vast majority of my sight reading opportunities have been in accompanying vocalists, choirs or religious congregations. These are the times when the pressure is on – and you cannot stop, or else you will mess up the entire group. It is a great thing to learn to not stop right from the get-go!
Evaluate how you did! Identify any spots you had trouble in, mistakes you made, etc.
Play once more, this time going for accuracy. Aim to get everything right this time, to fix those spots you had trouble with on your first try.

why sight reading is important

June 29, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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I believe that sight reading is one of the most important skills we can teach our students. Sight reading ability is a great indicator of the student’s overall understanding of music and music theory. If a student is a good sight reader, chances are they are pretty musically-literate overall!

In fact, sight reading is a big part of my own teaching philosophy. One of my three main objectives in my teaching is to help my students become musically-literate sight readers.

Being able to sight read well is of the utmost importance if one wants to be a proficient pianist. Students should learn all of the necessary concepts and skills to become good sight readers and well-rounded musicians.

So why is sight reading so important? Here is a list I came up with:

Good sight readers…

…are able to accompany somebody or make music in a group at the drop of a hat.

…are very good at recognizing and naming notes quickly.

…can probably learn new repertoire quickly.

…are good at looking ahead while playing.

…can become familiar with a lot more repertoire without necessarily needing to study it in depth.

…are well-rounded musicians!

It is one thing if our students can study a piece for weeks, months or years and then play it amazingly well (and this is definitely good!) But if they cannot sit down and play a new piece of music placed in front of them, are they truly good, well-rounded musicians?

we’re in the same boat.

June 29, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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Who else enjoyed this week’s poll? I surely did, because it made me feel a little better knowing I am not alone in the fact that I struggle finding the time to practice as much as I’d like. I do, however, feel inspired to do better in that department – hopefully some of you feel the same as well! Here are the poll results:

How often do you practice the piano?

Are you currently taking piano lessons?

This week we’d like to discuss Sight Reading – why is it important, how important is it really, how do you teach it, how do you motivate your students to do it….well you get the idea. 🙂 Have a great week!

oh and psst, don’t forget to take our two new polls, found on the sidebar or here and here! If you have ideas or suggestions for topics you’d like us to cover, let us know here or head on over and take our reader survey.

Performing at our recitals

June 27, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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I have really enjoyed Jenny’s posts this week about performing for your students and about fitting in practice time for yourself. This is something I’ve thought about a lot. It is a bit of a downer when I am reminded of how much better I was when I was doing my piano degree than I am now. Depressing! There is no way I can continue to practice 4-5 hours a day now that I am the primary caregiver for two small children, in addition to teaching and other adult responsibilities. BUT, that doesn’t mean that I have to stop practicing altogether! Without a performance to prepare for, it is easy for me to put off practicing, because there is always something else that needs to be done. That is one of the (admittedly more selfish) reasons that I perform at all of my studio recitals. An upcoming performance in front of all of my students and their parents is more than enough motivation for me to make sure that my practicing gets done. And really, anyone can practice, no matter how busy they are, if they make it a priority. (Isn’t this what we are preaching to our students?) My favorite time to practice is at night after my girls are in bed, but I try to get little snatches done during the day – often just 10 minutes at a time. I remember once I was babysitting a friend’s kids along with my own and I got 45 minutes of practicing in because the kids were having such a great time dancing and running around to the music. (It was Prokofiev’s Suggestion Diabolique, and its frantic sound and pace made those kids pretty wild!) Anyway, we musicians are pretty good at time management – a vital skill we had to acquire to fit in all the practicing we did in college – and with enough creativity and motivation, we can continue to develop our musicianship in adulthood.

As far as what to play at my studio recitals, I like to learn something new each time. There are plenty of pieces that I’ve always wanted to play, and it has been a fun challenge to choose a piece, listen to a variety of recordings, decide how I want it to sound, and teach it to myself. (I would, however, like to take piano lessons again someday.)

There are so many reasons to perform for our students! One is to expose them to a variety of classical repertoire that is fun to listen to, thereby (hopefully) generating more interest in different types of classical music. We can show them that it can be exciting to listen to and fun to perform! Another reason for performing is to give ourselves a little more authority when we tell our students what they need to do. 🙂 Students have a lot more respect for a teacher who clearly knows what they’re talking about, and what better way to demonstrate that than by showing them good piano habits in action? Performing is a good way to advertise our “product” not only to our students, but to the parents as well, who are paying us and should know what kind of a pianist their child’s teacher is.

One concern that may keep some teachers from performing at their recitals is that they will seem like they are trying to upstage their students. I have worried about this a little, but I don’t think it has to be an issue. You do not have to make yourself the focal point of the recital – make it clear that the recital is about the students. I’ve found that my students and their parents look forward to and appreciate hearing me play, which is encouraging, but I make an effort to focus on their child’s performance when talking to them after the recital. After all, that is what they really want to hear about anyway. When I was a piano student, hearing my teachers play was a real treat, and I had much more respect for the teachers who performed than for those who didn’t. My piano professor in college is a prolific performer – search for “Scott Holden, piano” on YouTube – and he encouraged us to perform at every opportunity when we became teachers. I am trying to follow his advice, and only good things have come from it.

ten ways to use your continued piano study to influence your studio

June 25, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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Play at your students’ recitals – not only is it a great excuse for you to perform, but it’s a wonderful way to show your students and their parents that you know what you’re doing and that you practice just like they do, and to introduce them to some great repertoire.

Perform at a group class or performance/master class – a fun, informal opportunity to play for your students, giving them an opportunity to hear you play

Give new students a recording of your playing – I like to do this at interviews; I give them a copy of my resume and a CD recording. Of course you could also just perform for them!

Perform in some local ensembles or as an accompanist – I believe that participation in ensemble/accompanying work is extremely important in becoming a good, well-rounded musician. I have found that through accompanying I have learned so much about music-making, teaching, learning, listening, and performance, and I think that has helped in my own teaching. Plus, when you are involved in performances, you can always invite your students to attend!

Accompany your students in duets, concertos, etc. – Fun fun. Another great excuse to perform! Someday I will have two pianos and cannot wait for all the fun two-piano pieces that can be played….

Sight read through (or do a more in-depth study of) intermediate/teaching repertoire – then, of course, you will be much more familiar with it, be better able to choose good repertoire for each student, and will be able to teach it more effectively!

Be involved in studio practicing competitions! – ever think of this? I have never done this but think it could be super fun! You could even do something fun like students getting a prize if they practice more than the teacher – holy motivation! If that doesn’t get you practicing, I don’t know what would. And it might just motivate your students quite a bit, as well.

Learn or re-learn more advanced repertoire being studied by your students – that way you will be able to be so much more aware of the techniques needed and the difficult passages coming up, and will be able to teach the piece so much more effectively. You will also be able to demonstrate passages and techniques much more easily 🙂

Perform a solo recital for students or prospective students – could be a great way to get new students, and something wonderful to work towards in your own practicing!

Take piano lessons again! – I would love to do this sometime. What a wonderful way to improve not only your performance skills, but your teaching skills! Each teacher I have had has taught me so many things that I have been able to incorporate into my own teaching – what a great way to get some fresh ideas and perspective.

making time for practicing

June 24, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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As a mommy, I find it so hard to practice at times. It really is depressing when I think about it – I used to practice at least four hours per day, and I loved it. I so miss that (not that I would trade being a mom…I’m just sayin’!). And while of course I don’t expect to be able to practice that much, it can be so doable to practice every day! I think as a mom you just need to be creative.

practicing + being with this
little man 24/7 = tricky!

Luckily my little guy adores music. It’s gotta be in his genes or something, because he just loves it. I turn on my ipod and he immediately starts dancing around (and oh man he’s got the cutest, funkiest little dance moves around). He bobs his head to the beat, he sings. He dances around the room when we play the piano (my husband is a really talented pianist…he plays the third movement of Moonlight Sonata and my little boy LOVES it).

So recently I made a fantastic discovery…when I play the piano, my son loves to listen to the piece and then tell me what he thinks it sounds like. The other day while he ate a snack, I was able to practice a bunch of tricky sections from some old repertoire. After each little section he would tell me what it sounded like – “Mommy, that sounds like a frog!”

If my son is playing with his trains, I’ll say, “do we need some train music?” and thankfully he gets all excited and says, “Yeah!!” Awesome. I am then free to practice anything that slightly resembles the sound of a train. Car music is also a favorite. Scales are good car music. Haha. (I am gonna milk this for all it’s worth, because who knows how long it will actually work!)

In fact, he now does it all by himself. The other day he walked up to the piano, played a little ditty, then said to me, “That sounds like a lion climbing through a forest!”

How do you find time in your busy schedules to practice? How do those with kids make it work? Even if you don’t have kids, it can be hard to be diligent and to fit it in. What are your secrets?? 🙂

the best compliment ever

June 22, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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One summer afternoon I finished up teaching lessons to two little boys (on a totally unrelated note, these brothers were AMAZING students. They practiced EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Without fail. They were a teacher’s dream.). Their parents were late picking them up, so we had a little time to kill. I decided to play a piece for them. I sat down and played a little bit of Liszt’s Un Sospiro (Etude in D-flat Major). I finished up and turned to look at my students, who were standing there, stunned. One of them said, in amazement, “You sound like the freakin’ radio!” This is, by far, my favorite compliment I have ever received. It just cracks me up.

Our students need to hear us play! They need to know not only that we know what we are talking about, but that we practice what we preach and practice the piano just like they do. On a side note, I am definitely not perfect and this is something I am working on; I know I have a lot of room for improvement in this category (regular practicing, that is) since becoming a mommy and having precious little time to myself (I am sure you other mommas can surely relate!).

One of the things that I admire most about my piano teacher in college is that he was always practicing. It seems like every time I’d walk past his office, if he wasn’t teaching he’d be practicing up a storm. How inspiring, to see your own teacher practicing so diligently, and to know without a doubt that they absolutely know what they are teaching, and that they are exhibiting the same hard work that they expect of you!

pretty poll results

June 22, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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Thanks to all who participated in this week’s poll! It seems that scales & arpeggios and Hanon exercises are pretty common for our intermediate students. I personally feel that a good mix of all of the options are ideal in teaching our students good technique.

So, I was getting tired of the same boring colors on the poll results – and realized I could easily change them! Sweet. That makes me happy. So here are the results –

How do you most often teach technique to intermediate students?

This week we will be focusing a little more on ourselves as teachers – specifically on a way to maintain our professional skills. Our topic for this week will be: Maintaining Professional Skills: Continuing Your Own Piano Study. Do you still take piano lessons? Do you practice regularly? How do you keep up your piano skills, and how does this influence your teaching?

One of the questions in our reader survey asks how you maintain your professional skills. Out of the 34 people who have answered this question so far (head on over there and take it if you haven’t already!), 22 people said that they practice the piano regularly, 21 said that they perform for their students and others, and 8 said that they are currently taking formal piano lessons.

Have a wonderful week, and we look forward to your comments!

Technique from the Pianist’s Bench

June 18, 2010 Jennifer Boster

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I was recently re-reading a great book by Boris Berman, Notes from the Pianist’s Bench. What a wonderful book! I highly recommend it for any piano teacher. Berman includes in his book chapters on topics such as Sound and Touch, Practicing, Deciphering the Composer’s Message, Technique, and The Art of Teaching and the Art of Learning. He illustrates his points with tons of musical examples from great piano literature. I find this book really inspiring to me as a pianist as well as a teacher. I think that this book is just as helpful for teachers of young students as it is for advanced pianists.

In light of our current topic here on The Teaching Studio, I was especially re-reading the chapter on Technique, which is fabulous and goes into great depth on what good technique is and how to teach it. I’d like to summarize a bit of his chapter on technique, because it has been so helpful to me (but you really should read the entire thing, it is chock full of incredibly helpful ideas!).

Did you know that the word technique is derived from the Greek word for “art”? I didn’t, until I read this book!

Berman talks about three fundamental physical actions used in piano technique:

independent use of well-articulated fingers
rotation movements of wrist or forearm
use of weight of the forearm and upper arm

He believes that most of the pianist’s movements are some combination of these actions, and that they are all equally important.

Berman also believes that two pillars form the foundation of good piano technique:

The economy principle (being economic in your movements; to not use a bigger part of the body when a smaller will suffice)
The extension principle (to regard the finger, hand, forearm and arm as the continuation of the others, with each individual unit ready to support and share the work with the others.)

He goes over each part of the hand/arm that is used in playing the piano (fingers, palm, wrist, elbows, arms, etc.)

Fingers

The fingers must always be active; this is essential for enunciation…The fingertips give definition to the sound…Finger technique is not only indispensable but also completely safe if practiced properly.

Wrist

It is essential for the pianist to develop a flexible wrist, capable of small and rapid movements. It should be able to work flexibly and smoothly in three ways: rotating, performing horizontal shifts, and making vertical movements….Wrist technique needs to be developed early in the pianist’s life.

Studies & Etudes

Berman briefly discusses studies and etudes, but says he is more familiar with the more advanced ones, as that is the level he most often teaches. However, for etudes he does recommend that Czerny, Cramer, Clementi and Moszkowski be used before more difficult ones such as Chopin, Liszt, Rachmaninov or Scriabin. As far as exercises go, he prefers Brahms, Tausig and Hanon. He says,

…some of them are well worth incorporating into a daily technical routine…to be highly useful for daily warm-up.

He also builds his daily technical routine on scales and arpeggios.

No technique without a musical goal

Important as the technical work is, it should never be done without a musical goal in mind. Realizing the musical content of the passage helps the pianist to find the right technical approach.