I know, I know...it's been a long time. Too long. I've missed writing as much as (I hope) you've missed reading. I do have a list of excuses, though. Since the last time I've written:
-I moved, and just got internet finally turned on yesterday.
-I had surgery.
-My brother and I both graduated...him undergrad, me grad school.
-I had my birthday. The big 2-6!
I have a couple more excuses, but they are personal family matters.
Either way, I'm back, and have lots to discuss!!! Also since last time we've spoken and now, a few fun events have happened!
Let me take a minute to congratulate the following students on their previous successes:
-Madi/Hannah did an awesome job performing at their school's talent show.
-Alyssa got selected out of everyone in her school to represent them in the district orchestra...which she placed 4th in her section. This is in the entire DISTRICT. She also has completed another year with the Pittsburgh Youth Philharmonic Orchestra.
-As I mentioned in the previous post, Brian performed a scene in his play and it was totally awesome. Acting and playing at the same time is no joke!
-Amelia performed four pieces for her preschool class, which was her performance debut, and she did outstanding.
-Nathan performed in his school orchestra concert.
**I got to witness all of these concerts, and I'm very pleased with my students' improvements this year. I don't want to give too much away, so I decided to hold off on pictures and such since the recital is coming up.***
So the annual "recital" is coming up on May 31st. It's amazing the different reactions among my students. They range all the way from beyond ecstatic to beyond nervous. I'm going to get into more detail soon about preparing for a recital...let's start a recital countdown, actually.
RECITAL COUNTDOWN!!!
TIP 1: KNOW YOUR MUSIC INSIDE AND OUT.
I know what you're thinking: "Thank you, Captain Obvious." Just here me out....I need to mention this point because, from past experience, I've made the mistake of believing I was prepared for a performance when I really was not.
You must be able to play your piece perfectly, with literally no issues whatsoever, a comfortable amount of time before you perform. You SHOULD NOT wait until a week before to start buckling down on the practicing. Basically, by the time you get up on stage, your performance piece should be so simple for you to play that you would be able to play it without music.
Often, you know you are not prepared to perform when the situation goes like this:
-Student plays the piece semi-perfectly at home.
-Student plays the piece with a few more errors at the lesson.
You need to strive for PERFECT at home AND in lesson...if you can't play it perfectly in front of your teacher, you won't be able to play it perfectly in front of 100 strangers. It should be second-hand nature, and you need to be fully-prepared if you want to do a good job.
The performance is out of your comfort zone...automatically, your nerves might kick in, there may be distractions, the temperature might not be what you're exact used to playing in...etc. All of these factors contribute to making performing a bit more challenging...so THE LAST THING you want to worry about it how to play your piece. The piece should be the easy part!!!!!!!!!!!!!
COUNTDOWN TO THE RECITAL: 15 DAYS!!!!!!!!!!
Til next time,
Givi Girl
-I moved, and just got internet finally turned on yesterday.
-I had surgery.
-My brother and I both graduated...him undergrad, me grad school.
-I had my birthday. The big 2-6!
I have a couple more excuses, but they are personal family matters.
Either way, I'm back, and have lots to discuss!!! Also since last time we've spoken and now, a few fun events have happened!
Let me take a minute to congratulate the following students on their previous successes:
-Madi/Hannah did an awesome job performing at their school's talent show.
-Alyssa got selected out of everyone in her school to represent them in the district orchestra...which she placed 4th in her section. This is in the entire DISTRICT. She also has completed another year with the Pittsburgh Youth Philharmonic Orchestra.
-As I mentioned in the previous post, Brian performed a scene in his play and it was totally awesome. Acting and playing at the same time is no joke!
-Amelia performed four pieces for her preschool class, which was her performance debut, and she did outstanding.
-Nathan performed in his school orchestra concert.
**I got to witness all of these concerts, and I'm very pleased with my students' improvements this year. I don't want to give too much away, so I decided to hold off on pictures and such since the recital is coming up.***
So the annual "recital" is coming up on May 31st. It's amazing the different reactions among my students. They range all the way from beyond ecstatic to beyond nervous. I'm going to get into more detail soon about preparing for a recital...let's start a recital countdown, actually.
RECITAL COUNTDOWN!!!
TIP 1: KNOW YOUR MUSIC INSIDE AND OUT.
I know what you're thinking: "Thank you, Captain Obvious." Just here me out....I need to mention this point because, from past experience, I've made the mistake of believing I was prepared for a performance when I really was not.
You must be able to play your piece perfectly, with literally no issues whatsoever, a comfortable amount of time before you perform. You SHOULD NOT wait until a week before to start buckling down on the practicing. Basically, by the time you get up on stage, your performance piece should be so simple for you to play that you would be able to play it without music.
Often, you know you are not prepared to perform when the situation goes like this:
-Student plays the piece semi-perfectly at home.
-Student plays the piece with a few more errors at the lesson.
You need to strive for PERFECT at home AND in lesson...if you can't play it perfectly in front of your teacher, you won't be able to play it perfectly in front of 100 strangers. It should be second-hand nature, and you need to be fully-prepared if you want to do a good job.
The performance is out of your comfort zone...automatically, your nerves might kick in, there may be distractions, the temperature might not be what you're exact used to playing in...etc. All of these factors contribute to making performing a bit more challenging...so THE LAST THING you want to worry about it how to play your piece. The piece should be the easy part!!!!!!!!!!!!!
COUNTDOWN TO THE RECITAL: 15 DAYS!!!!!!!!!!
Til next time,
Givi Girl
