CaliforniaMusicTeacherthis age, “Microjazz,” and “Within.” The remaining two reviews by Morris bring to light how a professional pianist deals with the scary topic—memory

CaliforniaMusicTeacher

Doori Na, Sean Kennard, and Joseph Lee Bonhoeffer Piano Trio

V O L U M E 3 8 | N U M B E R 3 | S U M M E R 2 0 1 5

Publisher

Music Teachers’ Association of California®

Editor

Louise Earhart, Ph.D. MTAC Long Beach Branch

Assistant Editor

Debbie Siemer MTAC Conejo Valley Branch

Graphic Design

Low & Joe Creative

Printer

Lauretta Printing

STATE BoArD of DirECTorS

President

Amy Chen-Huey Martin

First Vice President

Louise Earhart, Ph.D.

Second Vice President

Peter Thompson

Treasurer

Gwen Churchill

Recording Secretary

William “Bill” Becker

Membership Secretary

Verna Balch

Directors

Jennifer Cruz Heather Morris

Nancy Woo

Published by the Music Teachers’ Association of California

833 Market Street, Suite 900 San francisco, CA 94103

CaliforniaMusicTeacherThe Music Teachers’ Association of California, incorporated in 1897, is a professional organization of approximately 5,000 members. Throughout its 100-year history, MTAC has dedicated its efforts toward the pursuit of excellence in music education. Each of the more than sixty Branches throughout the state maintains its own schedule of programs and activities and participates in statewide projects and programs.

The California Music Teacher is a peer-reviewed journal. Annual subscription is included with MTAC membership dues. Nonmember subscription $25; single copy $10. Please report address changes to: MTAC, 833 Market Street, Suite 900, San Francisco, CA 94103.

Copyright 2015 by Music Teachers’ Association of California. All rights reserved. Nothing in this publication may be duplicated or reprinted without the advance written permission of the publisher. The statements and opinions expressed on these pages are not necessarily those of the publisher, MTAC. CMT reserves the right to refuse any advertising that conflicts with its policies. Acceptance of advertising does not imply endorsements. The publisher assumes no responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts, photos, or artwork. Unsolicited letters to the editor, articles, and other editorial matter will be edited at the discretion of CMT staff. MTAC reserves the right not to publish any material deemed inappropriate by the publisher. Please address all editorial and advertising correspondence to: California Music Teacher, 833 Market Street, Suite 900, San Francisco, CA 94103.

The California Music Teacher magazine would like to publish articles of interest to music teachers written by our own MTAC members. CMT is looking to feature well-written, pedagogically-sound, appealing articles that offer original perspectives to our readership. Suggested topics include composition, improvisation, repertoire, rhythm, technique, technology, business aspects of the studio, and any other topics of interest to those in the music teaching profession. The California Music Teacher magazine serves as an up-to-date source of information on all aspects of music teaching and serves to promote the mission of the Music Teachers’ Association of California. We strive to promote excellence in the music teaching profession through high membership standards, strong ethical values, and continuing professional education. Our editorial committee and feature article writers all work in a volunteer capacity. CMT appreciates the dedication and expertise of these many volunteers.

ContaCt Usadvertising: [email protected]

advertising Rates: www.mtac.org/cmtEditorial: [email protected]

sUbmission DEaDlinEsFall: September 15

summer: february 15

Cmt manUsCRipt sUbmission•Complete submission

information may be found at www.mtac.org/cmt

•CMT accepts manuscripts submitted only as a Word document and sent as an email attachment.

•Send your article to [email protected] and include your name, address, phone number, and email address.

• include a short 50-70 word biography, and a head-shot photo sent as a jpg attachment, at least 300 dpi at original size.

lEngth•feature articles 500-1000 words•one-page articles 500-550 words

Cmt photos/illUstRations•Authors are asked to provide

musical examples, photos, and/or other artwork to accompany their manuscripts. Digital photos/scans are required.

•Send photos and/or illustrations in one of the following formats: JPEG, Tiff, or PDf. Photos must be at least 300 dpi at original size.

•Written permission to reprint musical examples and photos should be obtained prior to submitting your article; all permissions must be provided to the CMT editorial committee.

Illustration by Eric Yang

aDVERtisER’s inDEX

The Musician’s Success Journal . . . . . . . . 5

Double Click Curriculum . . . . . . . . . . 28

MTAC Orange County North . . . . . . . 28

DEpaRtmEnts

2 From Our EditorLouise Earhart

3 From Our President Amy Chen-Huey Martin

20 MTAC Donation Form

29 MTAC Order Form

32 Foundation: Climbing to the Goal

Joyce Osborn

36 New Materials ReviewsHeather Morris

Historical pianos, page 19

V o l U m E 3 8 | n U m b E R 3 | s U m m E R 2 0 1 5

Contents

2015 ConVEntion

4 Do You Know the Way to San Jose?

William “Bill” Becker

6 Convention Artists & SessionsPeter Thompson

FEatUREs

21 Certificate of Merit®

Various Contributors

26 The Jetsons Meet the FlintstonesMichelle Sisler

30 Woman in Search of Piano Heather Morris

35 Honored & Remembered Circle List of Donors

“Joy in Music.” What a glorious expression of our profession. We most likely started out in joy with our first introduction,

our maturing process, and now as teachers and performers we are realizing our dream of a life in music, a life filled with joy. This is, of course, our theme for our Convention in San Jose at the fairmont Hotel. i was born in fairmont, West Virginia, a beautiful town. in our house, we had a square grand piano that my parents probably inherited. i remember how beautiful it was, brown, shiny, massive. i remember my Mother playing that piano with joy in the expression on her face. Heather Morris has written about such a piano in her interesting article “Woman in Search of Piano,” about one of the first pianos to come to this state in the mid-1800s. Bringing us up to date, Morris has also written two reviews of music written in this age, “Microjazz,” and “Within.” The remaining two reviews by Morris bring to light how a professional pianist deals with the scary topic—memory in performance, and how Michael Tilson Thomas is carrying on the legacy of his mentor, Leonard Bernstein.

The events at our Convention are well-featured in this CMT. The Convention will begin with our superb speaker and pianist, Hans Boepple. Did you know that Mr. Boepple, as a youth, studied with the renowned teacher Madame rosina Lhévinne at the Juilliard School? He will also share with us “Seven Basic Needs of Pianists.”

We will enjoy three piano recitals by Andrew von oeyen, Jerome Lowenthal (also from the Juilliard School), and Sean Kennard. i have listened to three interviews with von oeyen on the internet, all interesting, candid, intelligent, and fun! We can look forward to three lecture recitals by Douglas Weeks (Debussy), Emily Lu (Barber), and Victoria Neve (contemporary compositions). in addition, there are two lectures to help us expand our teaching repertoire by Stephen Pierce and forrest Kinney, and a lecture on romantic Piano Literature by Lowenthal.

other exciting events are the Bonhoeffer Piano Trio, featuring former VoCE winners; Michelle Caimotto in a flute recital and a master class; Kris Palmer discussing Baroque performance practice for winds, the ideas of which are happily applicable to other instruments. Voice is represented by Christopher Bengochea and Sandra Bengochea, both coming to us with glowing reviews. Anat Baniel has developed a unique program to help the musician overcome pain and avoid injury. We will be able to get out of our seats and move in Jan Keyser’s lecture, she promises. (it is always fun to experience what our students might experience.) We have events that feature special needs: the AMASE ensemble, as well as Annie Wang and Maggie Wang, who will discuss piano teaching for children with special needs. Susan Bruckner will talk with us on how group thinking can inspire our students.

Michelle Sisler will speak at the Convention on technology in the studio. Her article entitled “The Jetsons meet the flintstones,” is in this CMT and is about technology in the studio. i remember i once asked a student to record her Bach composition for the Bach festival. She came in the next week, propped up her iPad, and after waving at me on the other side of the screen played her Bach piece. i went out and bought an iPad that day!

Chris Hepp will enlighten us on Beethoven as businessman, and Antonio iturrioz will share his documentary on “The Buddha of the Piano: Leopold Godowsky.”

We will have the opportunity to visit the historic keyboard collection at San Jose State University and will be able to hear an organ concert, both before the Convention begins. ›

It is always fun to experience what our

students might experience .

by Louise Earhart, CMT Editor

from our eDItor

2 | California Music Teacher

W riting articles for the MTAC News and the California Music Teacher magazine is one of the

many duties i have undertaken during my tenure as MTAC’s State President. Although i try to complete my article early before the deadline approaches, i often find myself sidetracked with constant emails. Questions, documents, issues, and MTAC business call for my full and immediate attention. After the day is done, i promise myself that i’ll get to that article tomorrow. This continues until, lo and behold, suddenly tomorrow is the deadline!

Deadlines provide me with the motivation to get those articles written and finished. Deadlines mean i can no longer procrastinate. This process reminds me of my students preparing for their Certificate of Merit® Evaluations. School, homework, sports, or extra-curricular activities demand their full attention, and keep them from practicing their piano technique, sight reading, theory practice tests, or memorizing the pieces as they should, every day. To help students practice daily in preparation for the CM evaluation, i offer stickers or prizes for progress made between lessons. i schedule monthly informal recitals to measure their progress and encourage them to reach

certain milestones. i also enlist parents’ help to monitor home practice, give pep talks, provide encouragement, and generally cheer the kids on. Students are the most motivated when CM evaluation is just around the corner, when they can no longer procrastinate.

i also find myself motivated for writing an article when i have a topic that i am interested in learning and sharing with an audience. While stickers, prizes, and praise can help students get motivated, the best motivation is that which they generate themselves. Helping students find their own personal reasons for working hard and mastering an instrument is one of the most powerful gifts we as teachers can give them.

i also find if i am not pushing my students to do more than the bare minimum, many won’t seek to push themselves on their own. Students like to be challenged and will work to achieve high expectations, so long as

they believe those goals to be within their reach. i am grateful for the Certificate of Merit® curriculum and the annual evaluation which provides high standards but also attainable goals for students. Certificate of Merit® curriculum defines objectives, and CM Evaluations create a safe and supportive environment, where students can track their progress, receive valuable feedback, and take advantage of the many opportunities provided by MTAC for continued success in musical studies.

As the Chinese philosopher and teacher Confucius so wisely said, “The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential… these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence.” Through our programs, MTAC’s goal is to provide motivational keys to our teachers and students, to kindle the spark that ignites us all to reach our full potential for personal excellence. n

Students are the most motivated when CM

evaluation is just around the corner .

our CM program is a win-win program, both for teachers and students. Several of our CM Council offer us the why of their involvement in the program.

finally, i would like to offer a few

ideas that have crossed my mind about reading music. in reading music, i have been helped by concentrating on these four essential items: Up-down, skip-step, line-space, black-white, while

never, ever, looking at my hands. i force myself to correct mistakes by ear, not by eye, and without disturbing the rhythmic flow. Just a thought. Enjoy the Convention! n

from our PresIDent

by Amy Chen-Huey Martin, MTAC State President

Summer 2015 | 3

As i reflect on our forthcoming MTAC State Convention, i’m again reminded about the 1960’s popular hit song sung by Dionne Warwick, “Do you know the way to San Jose?”

Well, do you?!!!i sincerely hope you do! And, if not, will you make

it a priority to dust off that map, and plan your summer break itinerary to the 105th MTAC State Convention? Just as the El Camino real winds it way through our beautiful state of California, let your footsteps seek out San Jose. Personally, i find our venue to be a truly world class environment with accommodations fit for a queen or king. And, to top that off, the Convention Showcases, the artists and lectures, the master classes, the opportunities for professional development, plus student performances, will surpass and exceed any expectation you have envisioned. Are you ready?

i have a resounding response, “Yes, i do know the way to San Jose!” So i invite you to sing those great words and let them build your anticipation for a fun-filled summer break from your rigorous teaching schedule.

of course, you know the opportunities abound for family vacation activities, too, such as Great America, historic downtown San Jose, the Santa Clara Valley, the Santa Cruz Beach and Boardwalk, and even the San Jose Museum of Art virtually next door to the fairmont Hotel. Possibilities abound to refresh your mind and spirit. What could be more fun? San Jose has it all! our Convention theme of the “Joy in Music” will fill the ticket of relaxation, and musical development.

So let me ask the question again. “Do you know the way to…?”

i don’t know why, but somehow State Convention is the event that cinches the deal. Convention is one of the perks of belonging to MTAC. i’m so glad this event is designed for me…for you…for your students and their musical growth with performances that will be remembered for a lifetime.

it’s your decision, and i trust you’ll redirect your schedule to be there. Connect, grow, be more than you are now. Convention has a way to bring an amazing change in your musical culture, all for the good. n

by William “Bill” Becker Convention Co-Chair, Publicity


“I’d been using a regular notebook to write weekly assignments, but it wasn’t consistent and students wouldn’t use it. This book has everything included and

makes it easier for me to stay organized. It also helps my students chart practice

times as well as see and feel how successful their practice time is. They

love how easy it is to use. I love that it’s a spiral notebook and stays open and flat

on the piano.”

—Madeline Miller, MTAC member and piano teacher

“This book is an essential organizational tool for both teacher and student. Its

clean, logical layout makes it easy to outline expectations, and easy for students to track their progress and

establish an effective practice routine. It is an excellent way to prepare

students for recitals, competitions, and annual evaluations.”

—Michelle Rumley, MTAC member and flute teacher

The Musician’s Success Journal™

ASSIGNMENT BOOK AND PRACTICE LOG

Keeps teachers organized and students motivated

To progress, to improve, you must rewire the brain.

Studies have shown that the physical act of writing helps to rewire the brain. As teachers write in assignments and students log in their practice, change happens. Results are produced. Success follows.

The Musician’s Success Journal provides a systematic way for students to record practice time and stay on target—especially important when preparing for a recital, competition or an evaluation program.

Heavy, high-quality paper for easy writing and reading. High quality binding for permanence.

$8.95, with free shipping between now and the MTAC Convention

Send check to:

Lee Galloway 2409 Boundary Street San Diego CA 92104

Also available at the MTAC Convention at the Bookmarks booth or at the M.R. Musical Notes booth.

Summer 2015 | 5


FEatURED ConVEntion aRtists

The 2015 MTAC Fairmont San Jose Convention will be a wonderful presentation of Artists and Session Presenters for our members . Please see www .mtac .org for further information .

Presented here is a summary of our Recitals, Master Classes, and Sessions with a brief description of topics in different disciplines . The articles, listed in order are:

• Keynote Address• Piano and Lecture recitals• Piano Pedagogy• Technique and Literature Sessions• Master Classes• Small Group Coaching• String recital and Master Classes• Wind recitals and Pedagogy• Vocal recitals and Pedagogy• Physical Therapy• Early Childhood• Special Needs• Studio Development• Historical interest

KEynotE aDDREss:

HAns BoePPleThe Convention opens on friday morning with our Keynote Address by our own Hans Boepple, as usual, will inspire our members, here with our Convention theme “Joy in Music.”

tHe 2015 mtAC ConventIonT h e Fa i r m o nt S a n J o s e H o t e l | J u l y 3 – 7 , 2 0 1 5

ConVEntion aRtists & sEssions


piano RECitals

We are excited that our piano artists Andrew von Oeyen

and Jerome Lowenthal will give full-length piano recitals

and that Sean Kennard will present a short piano recital .

AnDreW von oeyen

Hailed worldwide for his elegant and insightful interpretations, balanced artistry and brilliant technique, Andrew von Oeyen has established himself as one of the most captivating pianists of his generation. Since his debut at age sixteen with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Mr. von oeyen has excelled in an intentionally broad spectrum of repertoire and with major orchestras throughout the world.

Jerome loWentHAl

Jerome Lowenthal ’s beautiful Sunday afternoon recital includes Chopin Nocturne, op. 62, no. 1, faure Nocturne no. 6, Chopin impromptu no. 2, Webern Variations, franck violin and piano sonata, movements 1 and 2 arranged by Alfred Cortot for piano, and the “Hammerkla-vier” – Beethoven Sonata, opus 106.

seAn KennArD

Sean Kennard has won top prizes in many competitions. Please see page 11 under String Recital and Master Classes for more information.

Summer 2015 | 7


lECtURE RECitals

Dr. DouglAs WeeKs

Debussy Preludes Bk . 2: Creating the Illusion of Orchestral Color

Dr. Douglas Weeks will focus on the use of the sostenuto pedal as well as the damper and una corda pedal. Weeks is Babcock Professor of Piano at Converse College in Spartanburg, SC, and Coordinator of Piano Studies at the Brevard Music festival. He has performed in Europe, Central America, Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. A recipient of a SC Commission on Higher Education’s Distinguished Professor Award, Dr. Weeks taught at the Cairo Conservatory as a fulbright Senior Scholar in 1999. He has published articles in Clavier Companion and in the on-line journal Piano Pedagogy forum.

Dr. emIly lu

The Stylistic Traits of Samuel Barber’s

Piano Music

Dr. Emily Lu will explore Barber’s stylistic traits from counterpoint, ostinato, rhythm, lyricism, to drama, through an overview of his piano works. She will focus on the analysis of the Concerto and Piano Sonata with an eye to further understanding and appreciating Barber’s music. Dr. Lu holds degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (DMA), Peabody institute of Music (MM) and University of Colorado-Boulder (BM). She performs widely in the Bay area, and is regularly featured on the concerts of the MTAC, fortnightly Music Club, and Mu Phi Epsilon. She has soloed with community and university orchestras in ohio, Wisconsin, and Colorado, and is currently teaching privately at San Jose, California.

Dr.vICtorIA neve

“Woman Alive!”

Dr. Victoria Neve’s lecture recital includes her performance of five com-plete works, with brief commentary on the composers, their lives and their own elucidations on the pieces them-selves, interesting compositional tech-niques employed in the works, and commentary on images or effects the composers say they hope to conjure from their compositions.

Dr. Neve has performed as piano soloist, chamber musician, duo pianist, and accompanist in concerts throughout the United States. She is founder and Director of the San francisco Young Pianists Competition and is a frequent adjudicator at numerous other piano competitions.


piano pEDagogy – tEChniqUE anD litERatURE

HAns BoePPle“Seven Basic Needs of Pianists”

American pianist Hans Boepple is an artist who shows rich musicality and stunning technical command. He soloed with the LA Philharmonic at the age of ten and has subsequently performed across the U.S. with many major orchestras. A Steinway Artist, Hans Boepple has received numerous honors including first Prize in the international J.S. Bach Competition (Washington, DC), the Kosciuszko Chopin (NYC), MTNA national competitions, and he won the Cole-man Chamber Music Award (LA) multiple times. Mr. Boepple earned a BM, an MM, and a Performer's Certificate from indiana University where he studied with Sidney foster. Boepple joined the faculty of Santa Clara University (CA) in 1978. His students have earned more than 160 state, national, and international awards. He received the Master Teacher Certificate from the MTNA and the Lifetime Achievement Award from CAPMT. He is a regular guest artist at the Portland Piano international, World Piano Pedagogy Conference, and the iU Piano Academy.

Dr. stePHen PIerCe

“Teaching Total Technique—Developing Healthy Habits

at the Piano from the Beginning”

All piano students would benefit from a healthy and holistic approach to piano technique from the outset of their studies. Unfortunately, many students are injured due to unhealthy habits formed during their early lessons. Teachers may find it challenging to include regular activities specifically focused on technical development with so many other musical skills to impart. Dr. Stephen Pierce will explore ways to teach healthy technique from the beginning.

Dr. Pierce is on the keyboard facul-ty at the USC Thornton School of Music. Second prize-winner of the National Piano Competition in South Africa, Dr. Pierce has per-formed with orchestras in South Africa and Cincinnati. A presenter at national music conferences, he has also published in The South African Music Teacher and Clavier Companion .

forrest KInney"Four Arts”

Forrest Kinney will present a demonstration lesson entitled “four Arts.” Mr. Kinney proposes that someone with command of a language can talk, tell stories, read, and write and likewise, a complete musician can improvise, arrange, read and interpret compositions, and compose. forrest will teach a 60-minute lesson to an intermediate-level student followed by a question and answer session. forrest Kinney, NCTM, has taught music for 35 years and is the author of nineteen books. His book Creativity—Beyond Compare explores misconceptions about creativity. He has given hundreds of presentations for music educators throughout North America and Europe on improvising, arranging, composing, interpreting, technique, theory, and music history. He has given many solo and collaborative concerts and has played twenty-two times at the home of Bill Gates. He is a composer whose arrangements are included in dozens of publications.

Summer 2015 | 9

small gRoUp CoaChing

stRing RECital anD mastER ClassEs

piano pEDagogy – tEChniqUE anD litERatURE

piano mastER ClassEs

Jerome loWentHAl“Romantic Piano Literature”

Jerome Lowenthal is a prominent presence in the international piano world. A former student of legendary musicians William Kapell, Eduard Steuermann, and Alfred Cortot, he recently recorded Années de Pèlerinage of Liszt for Bridge records, as well as two-piano works by Messiaen, Debussy, and Corigliano (Cedille records). The Corigliano recording received a

Grammy nomination. His recordings of opera paraphrases and fantasies were recently re-released by LP Classics, along with a live recording from Hahn Hall. Mr. Lowenthal has collaborated with violinist itzhak Perlman, cellist Nathaniel rosen, and pianists ronit Amir, Ursula oppens, and Carmel Lowenthal. He served on the Cliburn, Schakowsky, rubinstein, Horowitz, and Bachauer piano competitions. Mr. Lowenthal received an honorary doctorate from the Cleveland institute of Music.

Students from Panel—Two Master Classes: Andrew von Oeyen and Jereome Lowenthal will preside.

Students from intermediate—Hans Boepple will preside.

Forrest Kinney will focus on creative practicing for all instruments.

Jerome Lowenthal will focus on piano concerti.

Dr. Neil Sharp will focus on overcoming injuries and tensions developed in playing.

Bonhoeffer Piano Trio featuring former VoCE Winners Doori Na, Violin; Joseph Lee, Cello; with Sean Kennard, Piano. The Bonhoeffer Piano Trio will offer a violin, cello, and piano recital from each member of the Trio as well as a chamber music concert together. They will provide master classes for Panel violin, Panel cello, and a VoCE chamber music master class.

stRing RECital anD mastER ClassEs

DoorI nADoori Na, violin, made his solo debut with orchestra at the age of seven with the Peninsula Youth Symphony. Currently living in New York City, Doori performs with many different kinds of ensembles ranging from Classical to New Music groups. He regularly performs with the orpheus Chamber orchestra. He holds a BM from The Juilliard School where he was concertmaster of the Juilliard orchestra. His teachers include itzhak Perlman, Catherine Cho, and Donald Weilerstein.

JosePH leeJoseph Lee, cello, is a member of the New York City Ballet orchestra. raised in Cupertino, Joseph studied with irene Sharp. Mr. Lee has both a BM and an MM from The Juilliard School where he studied with Joel Krosnick and Darrett Adkins. He also earned an MM degree in orchestral performance from The Manhattan School of Music. He was a member of the New World Symphony from 2010 until 2012 and has played with the New York Philharmonic, Mostly Mozart orchestra, and Princeton Symphony.

seAn KennArDSean Kennard, piano, has won top prizes in the Queen Elisabeth Competi-tion (Belgium), the international Music Competition of Viña del Mar (Chile), the Vendome international Piano Com-petition (Portugal), the Sendai interna-tional Music Competition (Japan), and the Hilton Head international Piano Competition (USA). He has appeared with Japan’s NHK Chamber orchestra, Yomiuri Nippon Symphony orchestra, osaka Symphony orchestra, Yamagata Symphony orchestra, Sendai Philhar-monic, Kyushu Symphony orchestra, the orchestre National de Belgique, orchestre royal de Chambre, the Chamber orchestra of frankfurt, the orchestre Philharmonique du Maroc, orquesta Sinfonica de Chile, orquesta filarmónica de Montevideo, and Sinfo-nia Perugina.

Summer 2015 | 11


winD RECitals anD pEDagogy

mICHelle CAImotto

Flute Recital and Master Class

Michelle Caimotto is principal flutist of the West Bay opera orchestra, piccoloist of the California Symphony, and a section member of the Symphony Silicon Valley. As a substitute and extra musician with the San francisco Symphony, opera, and Ballet, she has performed in every chair of the section. She has toured and recorded with the San francisco Symphony, is active in the recording industry and plays for Broadway touring productions. Her major teaching influences were Barbara Breeden, Paul renzi, and William Bennett. Ms. Caimotto is on the faculties of CSU East Bay, Mills College, and the Northern California flute Camp.

KrIs PAlmer

Baroque Performance Practice for Winds

Kris Palmer will present a broad overview of Baroque performance practices for instructors and intermediate to advanced performers. She will discuss the interpretation of written ornamentation such as trills and appoggiaturas using harmonic analysis; how to determine when to add extempore variations and diminutions; how to decipher tempo markings; when to apply notes inégales; the basic differences in performance practice between the french Baroque and the italian Baroque; and the use of dynamics and vibrato. These are all important considerations in a genre of music that left many of these decisions entirely up to the performers with minimal instructions in the written score.

Her awards include second prize in the National flute Association Young Artist Competition, first prize in the Carmel Chamber Music Society Competition, a Carnegie Hall recital debut award with Artists international, and a Musical Grant from the San francisco friends of Chamber Music. A former member of the New Mexico Symphony orchestra and the Chamber orchestra of Albuquerque, Palmer holds a Doctorate of Musical Arts from rice University with an emphasis on eighteenth-century performance practice.


VoiCE RECitals anD pEDagogy

Sandra Bengochea, soprano and Christopher Bengochea, tenor

Vocal Recital, Master Class and Pedagogy Session for Teachers and Students

CHrIstoPHer BengoCHeA

The Chicago Tribune described Christopher Benogochea’s performance in Ernani as “flawless…He has command of italianate style along with ringing top notes and a smooth legato, a fine, even Dramatic tenor in the making.” He also performed the title role in Poliuto and The Chicago Sun Times noted, “With his ringing sound and elegant phrasing, Bengochea was the very model of the martyred hero.” recent engagements included the title roles in the Palm Beach opera, opera orchestra of New York, opera San Jose, opera Santa Barbara. He was the featured tenor soloist at Zurich’s Tonhalle in a Verdi Gala staged by Lotfi Mansouri and conducted by Edoardo Muller.

sAnDrA BengoCHeA

Professor Sandra Bengochea recently joined the voice faculty of San Jose State. She has earned rave reviews for her spirited interpretations of the lyric coloratura repertoire. Described as having a “natural vivacity and charisma that resulted in a performance that was a joy from the first note to the last” (opera News), she has performed over thirty operatic roles, ranging from the comic to the dramatic.

Summer 2015 | 13

physiCal thERapy

EaRly ChilDhooD

AnAt BAnIelneIl sHArP

Anat Baniel and Neil Sharp will present NeuroMovement.® This program harnesses the power of the brain to change itself in helping the musician overcome pain, avoid injury, and reach reliable peak perfor-

mance. Anat Baniel is the author of Move into Life and Kids Beyond Limits . She has a background in clinical psychology, statistics, and dance. A close friend, colleague, and longtime collaborator of the late great movement scientist, Moshe feldenkrais, Anat has developed her method over years working with thousands of clients ranging from children with special needs to high per-forming athletes and musicians.

Anat began her career working with musician and dancers in the Academy of Music and Dance in Jerusalem, israel. Soon after moving to New York City, she began working with these world class musicians: Leon fleisher, Byron Janis and Seiji osawa. Anat has made two important discoveries:

1. Musicians can quickly change limiting, pain-causing patterns of playing by accessing their brains through her nine essentials. 2. Practicing often actually brings about limitation and stress and denies musicians easier and more reliable access to their skill and emotional expression in performance. Leon fleisher wrote, “We (at the Tanglewood Music Center) used to have a small army of the walking wounded. Since Anat joined our faculty, it has evaporated to barely one person each summer. instrumentalists, singers, and conductors have all voiced enthusiasm for the extraordinary increase in self-awareness and self-knowledge that has resulted from this course of study.” Neil Sharp studied medicine at Cambridge University and Edinburgh University Medical School. He subsequently left medicine to pursue a career as a professional opera singer in the UK and Europe including performing at the Bayreuth and Salzburg festivals. He is also a violinist. He discovered the work of Anat Baniel 10 years ago and immediately recognized its potential for the rehabilitation and prevention of injuries and the development of peak performance. He now lives in California, collaborates full time with Baniel, and works extensively with children with special needs, singers, pianists, and string players.

JAn KeyserJoyful Music Making in Early Childhood: The Impact of Movement and Multi-Sensory Experiences

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all of our students by the age of

five already had a strong feeling and understanding of meters, inner hearing for melodic patterns and harmonic movement, and could feel and respond to phrasing, dynamics, and timbre? This session will provide research based information on how children (two to six) develop musically with age appropriate musical experiences. This session will be active – participants will take part in activities that have been proven through brain research

to provide the strongest early learning benefits. Pre-reading experiences will be explored – what is appropriate regarding eye development and how young children benefit from experiencing then “constructing” a musical concept.

Jan Keyser is the founder of the Harmony Road Music Course and is involved with early childhood. She has been a featured speaker at MTNA and MENC conventions, Musaic 2010 international Conference in Singapore, and most recently at the National federation of Music Clubs international Conference in Portland – June 2014. Also in June – she was appointed a consultant for the Teacher’s College of Qingdao, China, which offers a specialized program for preschool teachers. Ms. Keyser is dedicated to uncovering the understanding of how parents, teachers, and children can create a better world and learning environment through musical involvement.

spECial nEEDs

sArA HongSara Hong directs the Academy of Music and Art for Special Education

Sarah Hong began studying cello at the age of six and was selected as most promising young cellist in the Korea at the age of sixteen. She made her New York debut at Carnegie’s Weill recital Hall as a winner of Artists international. She studied at the Juilliard School with Zara Nelsova and Joel Krosnick while receiving both BM

and MM degrees. She finished her Artist Certificate in chamber music at the San francisco Conservatory of Music under the direction of Bonnie Hampton. Currently, she is a cellist of Le Due Muse (cello and piano duo) and the Ensemble Ari. She teaches special needs children as a music director at AMASE. She also started the ‘Phos (φῶς)’ Benefit Concert Series to support various non-profit organizations serving children in underdeveloped countries.

ACADemy of musIC AnD Art for sPeCIAl eDuCAtIon (AmAse)

Pieces to be performed include Over the Rainbow, Try to Remember, In the Garden, Do-Re-Mi, the first movement from the Mozart Piano Trio in G minor, the Mozart Piano Quartet; Mozart, Alleluia, Haydn Theme from String Quartet op.76 #3, Schubert Theme from String Quartet, op.29 and the Strauss Pizzicato Polka . The entire AMASE Chamber Ensemble will perform Beethoven, Theme from Symphony No.9, Joyful Joyful .

Summer 2015 | 15

spECial nEEDs

Practical Piano Teaching for Children with Special Needs

Even with special needs children, music can be received, experienced, and learned. Learning music can increase developmental stimulation, self-awareness, and engagement with the outside world. Using different methods and approaches, music teaching can be adapted to make learning accessible. This presentation focuses on teaching piano to children with autism and Down syndrome. insightful tips and musical interventions will be presented for teachers to use as a guide during lessons.

AnnIe WAngAnnie Wang received a BM in piano performance with a minor in Educational Studies from the University of California, irvine. She received an MM in piano pedagogy from University of illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Wang has performed nationally and internationally and has amassed over six years of professional piano teaching experience. She is an active member in both MTNA and MTAC.

mAggIe WAngMaggie Wang is a board-certified music therapist. She received her BM with emphasis in piano performance for the University of California, irvine. She minored in psychology and social behavior, and in educational studies. She recently received an MA in music therapy. During her clinical training at Heart-Share, she worked closely with children with developmental disabilities including autism, Down syndrome, and cerebral palsy, bringing music to children at developmentally appropriate levels. She recently presented case studies with special needs children at New York Presbyterian Hospital, sharing techniques and interventions that can be used when connecting autistic children with music.


stUDio DEVElopmEnt

susAn BruCKner

Crowdsourcing Your Studio

Susan Bruckner will give us inspiration for teaching more dynamically in our private studios with “Crowdsourcing Your Studio.”

Have you ever experimented with using ‘groupthink’ to influence the level of artistry and motivation in your studio? Have you ever noticed that some skills are more effectively achieved in a group? This workshop will put into practice a variety of techniques to foster individual students in a group that becomes greater than the sum of its parts. Learn how to energize and build your studio by sharing peer influence and strengths. Watch as your studio grows and students gain confidence and enthusiasm!

Susan Bruckner is a pianist with degrees from Eastman, The New School for Music Study, and the San francisco Conservatory. Her teachers include frances Clark, Jerome Lowenthal, and Paul Hersh. She is Director of Piano Studies at Cabrillo College, has a private piano studio, and is author of The Whole Musician: A Multi-Sensory Guide to Practice, Performance, and Pedagogy . Susan gives workshops on the topics of learning styles, group teaching, and developmental stages for musicians throughout the U.S. and in Europe. She performs regularly with the Santa Cruz Chamber Players.

mICHelle sIsler

iPad iDeas:Teaching Music with Apps– Any Technology Skill Level

Discover how to incorporate your iPad, iPhone or Android phone or tablet in your teaching. Learn how teachers are using mobile apps to engage students, address multiple learning styles and make their teaching more effective. Best known for her innovative approach to incorporating technology, motivation, and creativity into music lessons, Michelle Sisler is the founder of Keys to imagination, and MusicEdConnect.com. Michelle presents workshops and seminars to music teachers throughout the world and teaches students on Crystal Cruises. Michelle is an active author of music theory games, motivation programs and curriculum, and is a widely published author with articles in Clavier Companion and American Music Teacher .

Summer 2015 | 17

histoRiCal intEREst

CHrIs HePP

Beethoven the Businessman

Beethoven is a member of the artistic geniuses who were also ingenious businesspeople. These include Titian and Picasso in the visual arts, Shakespeare in the dramatic arts, Chaplin in the cinematic arts, and Handel and Verdi in the musical arts. An understanding of the economic history of the time and the business principles that Beethoven ruthlessly utilized is essential to a full appreciation of this great composer’s life and musical influence. Moreover, his career as a musical entrepreneur contains many invaluable lessons for music educators and performers living today.

Chris Hepp is Director of Development at SfSU. from 1988 to 2006, he was Associate Professor of Piano at the University of Kansas (Lawrence) where he was division chairman, co-founder of the Evelyn Swarthout Hayes Summer Piano institute, and interim Associate Dean of Graduate Studies for the School of fine Arts. During this period and in partnership with rita Spillman, he created SH Productions, producing the video series “Nelita True at Eastman” and “Conversations with frances Clark” among others. in 2006, Dr. Hepp joined Sherman Clay Pianos as institutional Sales Director where he was named to President’s Club, designating the most successful sales representatives for four of his seven years with the company.

AntonIo IturrIoz

Documentary Film The Buddha of the Piano: Leopold Godowsky

The 57-minute film, “The Buddha of the Piano: Leopold Godowsky,” is the first and only documentary about the legendary musician, considered by many to be the greatest pianist and arranger of all time. This film gives highlights of Godowsky’s busy career, shares his thoughts about music and life, and summarizes his achievements as pianist, arranger, composer, and teacher. it was shown on Northern California PBS and is endorsed by Marc-Andre Hamelin, Byron Janis, and Gary Graffman.

Antonio Iturrioz is a Steinway Artist, teacher and documentarian. His two musical documentaries have received critical acclaim. His teachers include his father Pablo iturrioz, francisco de Hoyos (pupil of Gyorgi Sandor), Bernardo Segall (pupil of Siloti who studied with Liszt), Aube Tzerko (who studied with Schnabel), and Julian White (who studied with Egon Petri). He is a Godowsky specialist and maintains two websites: www.newinternationalgodowskysociety.com and www.theartofthelefthand.com. in 2013, he gave the world premiere of Gottschalk’s “Nuit des Tropiques.” This composition will soon be published by Bardic Edition Music Publishers, Scotland.


histoRiCal intEREst

Students perform and practice on these instruments in solo works as well as chamber settings. in addition, a unique class on Beethoven Sonatas is regularly taught at the Beethoven Center located in the Martin Luther King Library where students study first editions and manuscripts of sonatas and learn to play these pieces on the Broadwood and Dulken.

Note: We will offer a Pre-Convention visit on Thursday, July 2 at 3:00 pm for students and teachers. An informz R.S.V.P. email will be sent to members. n

Convention Program Chair and Second Vice-President of the State Board, Peter Thompson is past state VoCE Chair. He served as President and Vice-President of SCC Branch. Peter is a thirty-five year member of the American federation of Musicians and a professional violinist, violist and conductor. His orchestras include Monterey, San Jose, Santa Cruz, the Goldovsky opera, Harrah’s Tahoe (Brian farnon), and as backup for many celebrities. He received a BM in Violin Performance from University of the Pacific. further studies include Violin, Viola and Chamber music (William Kroll–Mannes College), and graduate studies in music theory (Queens College CUNY).

tHe HIstorIC KeyBoArD ColleCtIon At sAn Jose stAte unIversItySan Jose State University’s School of Music and Dance houses two unique collections of historic keyboards. The Historic Keyboard Collection features post-1840 pianos including an 1841 Bösendorfer, 1861 English Erard, an 1868 french Erard, an 1871 Viennese Streicher, and an 1875 Broadwood. in addition, the School owns three modern replica harpsichords: two Wilsons and a Sabathil. The Ira F. Brilliant Center for Beethoven Studies features an 1823 Broadwood, an 1827 Jakesch, and a 1795 model Dulken created in 1985 by Paul Poletti and Janine Johnson. in addition the Beethoven Center owns a Speerhake clavichord and a Wilson harpsichord. These keyboard instruments are regularly featured in concerts presented by students and faculty including:

• Plucked or Strucked, a series of concerts featuring the clavichord, harpsichord, fortepiano and piano tracing the history of the keyboards held in the School of Music and the Beethoven Center.

• french Piano festival of piano music by ravel and Debussy presented by students and faculty.

• Historic Keyboard Concerts presented by the School of Music and the Kurosawa Piano Music foundation.

F r E E A D M I S S I O N

P R E - C O N V E N T I O N

PIPe orgAn ConCertfeaturing the artistry of

rexphil rallanka, organistMember: American Guild of Organists (AGO)

Thursday, July 2, 2015 • 8:30 pmCathedral Basilica of St. Joseph | 80 S. Market St, San Jose

P r O G r A M

Praeludium in D Major, BuxWV 139 by Dieterich Buxtehude

Capriccio in D Major by Georg Böhm

Prelude and Fugue in C Major, BWV 531 by J.S. Bach

Sketches for Pedal Piano, Op. 58, No. 5, 6 by Robert Schumann

Fugue on B-A-C-H, Op. 60, No. 5 by Robert Schumann

First Arabesque and La Cathédrale Engloutie by Claude Debussy, arr. Leon Roques

Organ Sonata, Op. 65, No. 1 by Felix Mendelssohn

Hymn: America the Beautiful – tune: Materna

Summer 2015 | 19

Credit Card: Visa MasterCard Discover Diners Club Carte Blanche JCB

Number: __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ Exp: __ __ / __ __

Signature: _________________________________________ Date: ________________

ProGrAM DESiGNATioNS AMoUNT

Composers Today $

friends of Today’s Music $

Gretchen Geber VoCE fund $

improvisation $

Music Study Assistance Grant $

Piano Concerto and Solo fund $

Young Artist Guild $

Young Composers Guild $

SECoND CENTUrY fUND $

TOTAL DONATION AMOuNT $

Name: ____________________________________________________________________________

Member iD if applicable: _______________________________________________________________

Branch if applicable: ___________________________________________________________________

Company Name if applicable: ___________________________________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________________________________________

City: _____________________________________________ State: ________ Zip: _____________

Email: ____________________________________________________________________________

i would like my donation to be made in honor of: ______________________________________

i would like my donation to be made in memory of: ____________________________________

i would like to be contacted regarding a gift of securities

Payable by check or credit card.

Please make checks payable to:

MTAC foundation

Mail to: MTAC State office833 Market Street

Suite 900San francisco, CA

94103

or fill out your credit card information below

and fAX to: 415-978-9695

or donate online at http://www.mtac.org/

foundation/ #howToDonate

Donations are tax deductible

as allowed by law.

offiCE USE oNLY

Date rec’d:________________________ Amt: ___________________________ Check No: ___________________________

Date of Check: ____________________ Solicited By: ___________________________________________________________

DonAtIon formmusIC teACHers’ AssoCIAtIon of CAlIfornIA® founDAtIon

833 Market Street, Suite 900, San francisco, CA 94103-1851 | (415) 978-9668 or (800) 834-3340 Ext. 1 | fax: (415) 978-9695

m y first experience with Certificate of Merit® was when i was in middle school. i was studying voice

with Leona roberts, who is still an active member of the orange County North Branch of MTAC. i participated in CM for voice through high school, and finished in the highest level (Level 7 at the time).

CM gave me the structure i needed for my college auditions. When i auditioned for the Voice Major at UCLA, some of the comments from the panel of professors were, “Wow, you completed CM Level 7 for Voice?” “Well, that explains why you were so well prepared today.” i was so grateful to Leona for enrolling me in the program, and helping me become not just a strong singer, but also, an educated one.

When i graduated from UCLA, i joined MTAC immediately. i had begun teaching students in college, both piano and voice, and wanted to give them the same experience i’d had. i joined the Long Beach Branch, and immediately felt like i had made 100 friends. These men and women watched me get married, have two children, and held my hand through difficult times, while being my biggest supporters through my triumphs.

i have served on the Long Beach Board for the past 7 years, was CM Chair

in 2013 and 2014, and am currently President of our Branch. in 2007, i was asked to join the CM Council as Voice Chair. Throughout the next 6 years, i had the honor of further developing the voice program to become more cohesive. i helped write the new syllabus and the technique component of CM. The overall theory scores for voice students are consistently over 90%, and the number of students enrolled across the state is increasing each year.

Whether or not these students go on to become music majors, they will have received a well-rounded musical education through their enrollment in CM, in addition to learning music, history, and culture that they would not normally be exposed to. Now, i get to watch my two boys participate in this program (they study with my good friend, Marla Devich). As i hear them playing their technique, Sonatinas, etc., i am so grateful that they are thriving in the structure that so CM provides.

CertIfICAte of merIt®

Sarah Sandvig Long Beach Branch

The following is a sampling of personal thoughts written by former students who participated in Certificate of Merit®; how wonderful it is to read of their individual experiences and stories .

Summer 2015 | 21

I grew up on the tropical island of Taiwan, where succulent fruits and colorful flowers are abundant, and in the summer, you can hear birds and insects

calling from miles away. There, the cultures of the East meet the West. You can find a delicious sushi restaurant, a sizzling steak house, and traditional Taiwanese cuisine all on the same street.

Taiwanese people love the ballet, the symphony and the opera as much as they love the traditional puppet shows, shadow shows, and Chinese opera. The concert halls are always packed with world-renowned ballet companies and orchestras performing.

My parents were school teachers who were music enthusiasts. After school, my mother would teach the piano, and my father would teach the violin at home. As soon as we could, my sister started learning to play the piano, and i, the violin. At the age of five, i entered one of the Catholic schools in the city of Taipei, in the Music Special Education Program. By the time i left Taiwan and

immigrated to the US at the age of thirteen, i had undergone seven years of Music Special Education Programs in both the private and public school systems.

The Music Special Education Programs in Taiwan gave rigorous conservatory-style training to all students in addition to regular school work. All students received private lessons in a primary and a secondary instrument. All students participated in music theory, music history, rhythm, musicianship, music appreciation, orchestra, choir classes. older students also had to learn a traditional Chinese instrument and play in a Chinese instrument Ensemble. of course, every semester, students gave recitals and went through the juries as their final Exam.

When i came to the U.S., i was quite disappointed to find that there was almost no music in the school curriculum. The closest thing i found was during the E.S.L. (English as a Second Language) classes, the teacher played pop music for us to “fill in the blanks.” it was fun, but not very intellectually challenging in the musical sense.

That’s why i was thrilled when my violin teacher, Mrs. Janice Luna, introduced me to the Certificate of Merit® program. When i held the theory test in my hands for the first time, i was having the time of my life! i never realized counting intervals and writing scales could be so much fun! i remember, at that time, there were very few students in the program. During the exam, i was given a stereo to play the ear training cassette tape, and i didn’t even need headphones because i was the only student there.

A couple of years ago, when i was invited to join Certificate of Merit® Council, i finally realized what makes this program work so


Tammy Tsai Whittier Branch


well. Not only are the students, parents, and music teachers working year-round to prepare for the yearly exam, but there are twenty-some CM Council members, spread throughout the state of California, who volunteer their time, often working through the wee hours of the night, to make everything happen. i have never seen a more hard-working and cohesive group of people.

Now, the Certificate of Merit® program has grown to have tens of thousands of participants every year in California alone. i believe it’s because people realize what a well-designed program this is. When i started teaching, the program i recommended to my students was the Certificate of Merit®. When my three daughters started learning to play musical instruments, i made sure they participated in the Certificate of Merit® program. it’s because i believe it’s important to be a well-rounded musician. Music history, music theory, and music analysis along with note reading and ear training are the core of a good musician. These elements provide the backbone to one’s musical development.

i also realized, after working as volunteers for other top-notch music schools, how lucky we are to have such a supportive State Board who works so hard to make MTAC to have one of the most technologically advanced systems where efficiency is apparent in every aspect of every program. it has truly made our organization the leader for others to follow.

i am truly thankful for the MTAC, and for the Certificate of Merit® Program.

I participated in CM during high school. Honestly, doing CM made me incredibly nervous, but in the end, i saw the positive benefits. i joined the

MTAC in 1990, mainly because i wanted to offer my private students more performance opportunities. This was one of the best decisions i have made in 30 years of teaching! Taking my piano and voice students through the CM program has created many strong musicians who continue to use their talents well beyond college.

My first piano student who went to the state Convention is now a music teacher at an elementary school and teaches voice and piano privately. Several former voice students are actively singing on stages all over the world, Disney cruises, YouTube channels, and operas. Many have contacted me over the years, saying how grateful they are to have done CM, how it prepared them for college and gave them confidence.

i am honored to join the MTAC CM Council. The recent changes and updates to the CM Voice program have made it a strong program, and i’d like to help it grow and flourish in the coming years.

Sharlae Jenkins Santa Barbara Branch


Summer 2015 | 23


Ivividly remember my sense of anticipation as i patiently waited

outside the door of my first CM Evaluation. Though i had played for several years in my school band program, i was aware that my performance level was well below that of the other freshman in my new teacher’s studio. When i was enrolled in the Certificate of Merit® Program, i knew i

wasn’t entered in a division of like-aged students against whom i would compete; instead, i was working toward a standard that my teacher felt was attainable for me. After 9 months of study with my teacher, and a lot of practicing, i successfully completed my Level 4 CM flute evaluation. This was a meaningful victory for me—this benchmark was a visible measure of my musical growth, which is sometimes difficult for a student to see during daily practice. over the next three years of high school, my teacher set high goals for me and i earned the opportunity to perform at Convention in festival and Panel Honors recitals. As a student, i saw the CM Program as an arena for me to raise my playing to and above the standard, as stepping stones to musical knowledge, as well as an avenue for performance opportunities.

As a Music Major, i began to grow my own teaching studio and i wanted my students to benefit from a comprehensive music education, as i had experienced as a student.

i became a student member of MTAC and began to use the Certificate of Merit® curriculum with my students. As a new teacher, the CM Syllabus was an invaluable resource as i learned how to structure lesson plans for my students; it helped me to learn how to set reasonable expectations for both the average and exceptional students. As a teacher, i see one of the greatest aspects of the CM Program is its ability to systematically grow a student’s musical learning with its many levels, yet also allow a student to grow as a young performer with performance opportunities, like Branch Honors, Convention, and Panel. This broad spectrum of possibilities in one program makes it an ideal program for many of my students, whether they take lessons to do well in band or they wish to pursue music as a career.

When it came time to choose a piano teacher for our oldest son, there was no doubt that we would choose a colleague who was an MTAC teacher whose students participated in Certificate of Merit®. i want my children to play music, to understand music, and to love music. i see that, with excellent instruction, the CM curriculum will help them attain this; my children, as do most, thrive on goals. My oldest son performed his first CM evaluation in 2014 and, upon completion, had a huge sense of accomplishment. He was able to see the culmination of his growth over the five months preceding his evaluation and was ready to look forward to the new theory, technique and repertoire he would learn in the next level. A few months ago, my son was assigned to memorize a piece he had previously learned and had analyzed. While he was practicing this piece, he paused, turned to me and said,

Michelle Rumley San Diego Branch



“Mommy, it’s easy to memorize because i just have to think of the chord progression.” i love that he is applying his theory knowledge and that it is reinforcing his playing. As a parent, i see that the progressive curriculum presents my child realistic goals for him to achieve and his gained knowledge increases his appreciation of music.

i have benefitted greatly from MTAC and the Certificate of Merit® Program as a student learning and growing with the curriculum, as a teacher utilizing the curriculum in my studio, and now as a parent as i watch my son learn, grow, and perform in this program. All of these reasons compel me to give back to MTAC and the Certificate of Merit® Program so that my MTAC colleagues and all of our students may know the same joy in music education i have experienced from this wonderful program and organization.

I thought it was a unique opportunity to participate in an organization that i grew up in. i participated in CM evaluations from 8 years old until i was

15. i completed Level Advanced CM in the 9th grade, and went on to Panel and Master Classes, and received the senior medallion in my last year of high school. CM offered me a goal to strive for and made me a more well-rounded musician.

Annie Chen Los Angeles Branch

Susan Beaty Santa Clarita Valley Branch

t he CM program has always been really important to my teaching and making sure that my students’ progress properly from year to year.

And i have gained students solely because i offer the CM program. Because it means so much to me, naturally when i was asked to come onto the council, i was very excited and happy to join the ranks!

Summer 2015 | 25

It was 52 years ago that the Jetson family first made its debut. The show lasted just one season but today “The Jetsons” stands as the single most

important piece of 20th century futurism. The Jetsons live in a technologically advanced time of robots, videophones and push button conveniences. Does this sound similar to how we live today? of course it does, especially if you are a student.

Today’s students learn and communicate information entirely different from what many of us experienced in school and music lessons. Technology continues to drive the direction of our society and how we learn.

Millennials are tech savvy and are enthusiastic about learning this way. So why would we only teach like we were living in the stone age of the flintstones? We have already embraced technology in many ways such as email and social media. Why not take advantage of these new space age tools and blend them with our traditional teaching methods?

Technology shouldn’t be added just

to add technology; teachers must evaluate whether it improves the educational experience and if it doesn’t, it shouldn’t be used. Let’s look at just two of the Jetson’s modern day conveniences and how we can apply these ideas to our teaching while still keeping our favorite methods, tips and tricks.

My New Assistant!rosie the robot was a very valuable member of the Jetson family helping out with daily tasks such as making breakfast and cleaning the house. We, too, have a studio assistant, our iPad (which can just as easily be an Android tablet). My iPad assists me at every lesson in several ways:

•Helps students make more progress by learning and mastering theory concepts targeted towards what they are learning in lessons in a fun, motivating way with apps such as flashnote Derby (note recognition) and Dragon Scales (scale practice).

•Helps students practice their lesson

and supplementary pieces accurately in Piano Maestro and Home Concert Xtreme using the piano

•Compose pieces using Noteflight•Learn about famous composers

with My first Classical App or Classics for Kids.com or explore their homes and cities using Google Street View

•More effectively learn concepts or songs with Alfred's Premier on-line Assistant Videos (Qr codes are provided in Double Click Curricu-lum® for an instant link)

•Learn to accompany a singer or work on ensemble skills with NoteStar

•Helps students learn digital music displays and turn pages using forScore

•Take an electronic payment using the Square or another similar card reader

•record students so we can evaluate their playing together

•record a video of a section of a song we worked on together in a lesson so they remember a specific

by Michelle Sisler

Illustrations by Amy W

ong


technique or rhythm and email it home via instaMail.

•Complete traditional worksheets in a paperless fashion on the iPad using Notability

When do I have time for all of this?My students use the iPad as part of

their 30-minute lab session every week, working on many of the above. Sometimes i assign additional technology lessons as homework.

Student’s lab activities will never replace our one on one time together at the piano but it does help me meet various learning styles and provide individual instruction and assessment at the student’s pace. it gives me more time during lessons because concepts i normally would take time for during lessons such as flash cards, ear training and music history, can now be done in lab and i can now spend more time on repertoire and technique.

Because we are not like George Jetson working three-hour work days, you might be thinking, "How will i have time to find apps, plan and assign appropriate technology lessons for students? Even deciding which apps are good can be time consuming.” fortunately, Keys to imagination LLC has done all of the work for you with an update to its popular series, Double Click Curriculum®, which are student books that correlate your iDevice and Android

apps, websites, and software with your lesson books. Double Click Curriculum's co-author and MTAC member Michelle Galindo, has done an amazing job writing this series! She has taken time to learn hundreds of apps and decide which ones are worth using, saving you time and money and then she correlates each lesson in the app for you.

Beyond the direct learning benefits, my lab and use of technology has certainly helped my marketing efforts. it has set my studio apart from those that do not use technology. When parents call for lessons for students, they are impressed and excited their children will have the opportunity to use the lab and students are excited to have an iPad and computer as part of their lessons. Most teachers with labs find themselves with a waiting list of students and a higher demand for their services. it has helped me make more money, since i charge for the use of my lab. (i recommend setting a lab rate equal to 50% of your current rate for a half-hour lesson and half-hour lab.)

On-Line Video Conferencingin the first episode of “The Jetsons,”

taking place in the year 2062, Jane worked out her strained fingers with her fitness instructor via videophone. Wouldn’t it be great if fred Karpoff could appear on our screen and teach us about technique, Dr. Scott McBride Smith could help us teach our students to memorize more effectively, Jennifer foxx could help us get paid on time, Leila Viss could help us creatively incorporate iPads into our studio and Sarah Lyngra could show us how to teach on-line just like Jane’s fitness instructor? Without even leaving our homes, we could turn on our screens and have these amazing teachers right there, in our studios, teaching us!

Welcome to what the Jetsons had in 2062 —MusicEdConnect .com!

MusicEdConnect .com blends both the traditional teaching sessions with those learning about modern day apps and tools, delivered in a modern way that is more convenient and cost effective for teachers and students. it comes to you wherever you are in the world.

MusicEdConnect .com held its first on-line conference in 2014. Teachers from 40 of the 50 states in the United States plus seven other countries attended. Attendees were invited to join the web based conference live to watch sessions, ask presenters questions and share with each other, however, all sessions were recorded so attendees could watch the sessions live or at a time that was convenient for them. Saturday, attendees were able to log-on and network with presenters to ask questions and share new ideas. What a great way to make new friends from across the globe!

The 2nd annual MusicEdConnect .com conference was held live (on-line) february 4-7, 2015 and featured amazing presenters from around the globe. While sessions covered a wide variety of topics, leaders shared many new ideas for incorporating technology in lessons. George Litterst shared his knowledge and expertise in using electronic scores, Shana Kirk gave ideas for using technology to help with business and marketing, Sarah Lyngra taught her tips for teaching on-line, Leila Viss and Linda Christensen shared new ideas for iPad and Android apps and Susan ogilvy and Dennis Mauricio showed us how to use iPads as a musical instrument to practice and perform ensembles. All of the 2015 sessions, including these fabulous technology sessions, are available on-demand at MusicEd-Connect .com . ›

most teachers

wIth labs fInd themselves

wIth a waItIng lIst of

students…

Summer 2015 | 27

Technology is just another tool to help your students learn and grow as musicians. Using our own creativity, we can be imaginative HoW we use these tools to teach future musicians and enhance our instruction.

Combining our traditional style teaching with technology savvy tools will help you create a studio that has the best of both worlds. n

Michelle’s use of technology, creativity, and presentations have gained her national recognition . Along with teaching, Michelle is the founder and Chief Man-ager of Keys to Imagination, LLC and MusicEdConnect .com . She is a favorite presenter and is frequently sought after for presentations and classes across the nation . Michelle serves on the technology committee for the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy, and has written

technology articles for Keyboard Com-panion, Clavier, and American Music Teacher . She has co-authored Studio Makeover, Technology “Addition”®, Dou-ble Click Curriculum® and several other programs . Michelle also teaches Yamaha’s Passport to Music on Crystal Cruises .

Joane GrubaughFureya Unal

Dr. Rob WatsonKaren Smith

Celeste HasslerKee Yuen Lee

Carol HillsJulie Johnson

Mary JoyLusine Shahinyan

Teri WatsonLily Lee

President1st Vice President2nd Vice PresidentTreasurerRecording SecretaryMembership SecretaryCorresponding SecretaryCorresponding SecretaryDirector 1Director 2Director 3Director 4

p n

Available at

with

Correlate Your

To Your Lessons

foriPad & Andriod Apps, Websites & Computers

Jetsons flIntstones continued from page 27


Certificate of Merit® Syllabi QTY MEMBErS NoN MEMBErS SUBToTAL

Piano Syllabus 2012 $37 $47

Winds Syllabus 2011 $37 $47

Voice Syllabus 2011 $37 $47

Harp Syllabus 2011 $37 $47

String Syllabus 2012 $25 $32Certificate of Merit® Practice Theory Tests with Answers (mark quantity on each line)

Piano, Complete Set 2013: 2014: $26 ea —

Violin, Complete Set 2013: 2014: $26 ea —

Viola, Complete Set 2013: 2014: $26 ea —

Cello, Complete Set 2013: 2014: $26 ea —

Winds, Complete Set 2013: 2014: $26 ea —

Voice, Complete Set 2013: 2014: $26 ea —Certificate of Merit® Materials

Sight reading, Keyboard, Book 1 Prep – 2 $10 $13

Sight reading, Keyboard, Book 2 Level 3 – 6 $12 $15

Sight reading, Keyboard, Book 3 Level 7 – Advanced $12 $15

Sight reading, Keyboard, Books 1-3 Prep – Advanced $27 $34

Piano Technical requirements Book* 2007-r $27 $34

Vocal Technique and Vocalises 2010 $23 $29

Composers Today Syllabus 2009 $27 $34

Composers Today Pre-Preparatory EGB’s Notebook (Symbols) $11 $14

Composers Today Student Composition Workbooks (mark quantity on each line)

Prep: Book 1: Book 2: Book 3: Book 4: Book 5: $11 ea $14

Composers Today film Scoring, films (mark quantity on each line)

Time Management: The Puppet: Bus Love: The Other Girl: $11 ea $14

improvisation Syllabus and Guide $37 $47

improvisation Games and Activities $37 $47

CalPlan Syllabus 2005 $16 $20

MTAC Membership Pin $12 —

MTAC Branch President Pin $17 —ToTAL

Credit Card: Visa MasterCard Discover Diners Club Carte Blanche JCB

Number: __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ - __ __ __ __ Exp: __ __ / __ __

Signature: _________________________________________ Date: __________________

orDer formmusIC teACHers’ AssoCIAtIon of CAlIfornIA®

833 Market Street, Suite 900, San francisco, CA 94103-1851 | (415) 978-9668 or (800) 834-3340 Ext. 1 | fax: (415) 978-9695

Payable by check or credit card.

Please make checks payable to:

MTAC

Mail to: MTAC State office833 Market Street

Suite 900San francisco, CA

94103

or fill out your credit card information below

and fAX to: 415-978-9695

orders may also be placed online by logging into

your Teacher Home Page at http://www.mtac.org/

Prices include sales tax and shipping fees.

returns will be accepted at the discretion of the State office. items that

have been removed from original shrink wrap

cannot be returned for a refund.

Prices are subject to change without notice.

* The Piano Technical Requirements Book has

undergone minor revisions with the 2012 Piano

Syllabus. The revisions are available on your Teacher

Home Page.

®

Name: ____________________________________________________________________________

Member iD if applicable: ______________________ Phone _________________________________

Address: ___________________________________________________________________________

City: _____________________________________________ State: ________ Zip: _____________

Email: ____________________________________________________________________________

offiCE USE oNLY

Date rec’d:________________________ Amt: ________________________ Paid by Credit Card Paid by Check

WOMAN IN SEARCH OF

PIANOby Heather J . Morris

not just any piano, but the first piano that ever sounded its tinkling notes in the Golden State! it all started with the Donner party. on a hiking weekend in Truckee, i

discovered that there was one English member of the ill-fated 1846 journey and he was John Denton from Sheffield. Since my maiden name is Denton and i attended Sheffield University in my home country of England, it seemed appropriate to find out more about my namesake.

The following weekend found me rummaging through the boxes in the California room of the State Archives in Sacramento – polite rummaging, that is, in plastic gloves. i came across a bill of sale for a piano signed by James frazier reed in 1849. After surviving the Donner Lake ordeal in 1846, reed had settled in San Jose and purchased a piano for his daughter, Patty. She eventually married frank Lewis and ran a hotel in Santa Cruz – hmm, my current home-town – and subsequently two grand hotels in nearby Capitola. Patty claimed that the piano she had in Capitola was one of the first pianos to come to California and

that got me thinking…is that true? Which WAS the first piano to arrive in the Golden State? i decided to divide my research into two sections – trace, if i could, Patty reed’s piano, and find out more about the earliest pianos that came to the state. John Denton would have to wait.

in the following months i was to find out that reed’s piano made the journey through the Santa Cruz mountains not once but three times. “A pioneer piano: in the parlor of the Sea Side Home stands a piano

which is supposed to be the first one that came to this state. it was made in Albany, New York, by f. P. Burns, and brought around Cape Horn in the fall of 1849 by Capt. Wilson, and was put together on the schooner where its delightful strains helped to vary the monotony of the long voyage. it was regarded as a great curiosity when it arrived in San francisco and crowds flocked to see the instrument and listen to its melody. Captain Wilson was seized by gold fever and sold the piano to Mr. J. f. reed (the father of Mrs. Lewis) for $1000. This gentleman brought it to San Jose on Nov. 4, 1849, where it remained a number of years.

The piano had brass pedals and two brass candleholders .


When Mrs. Lewis removed to this city in 1856, he [Mr. reed] had it conveyed here in a vehicle drawn by oxen by way of San Juan and Watsonville. it has not lost its pristine sweetness of tone through age as was evidenced yesterday when a SUrf representative listened to some of the old time airs that Mrs. Lewis so kindly reproduced.” from The Santa Cruz Surf, february 27, 1884.

That piano is now in the state park repository, an enormous warehouse in Sacramento, where i was told that i could not view it because it was not in a place safe enough for my visit! it took two years of emails before the authorities decided i was not going to give up on my request. Eventually i was invited to come to see the piano. i could view it, photograph it, but not touch it. Even so, it was wonderful to realize that the owner of Patty reed’s famous doll had played this very piano. When the Grand Hotel in Capitola, where Mrs. Lewis was manager, burned to the ground in 1929, “the glare was visible across the bay in Monterey. firefighters from Santa Cruz rushed to the scene but all they saved were one piano and six chairs.” Ah, that piano again!

So part one of my mission had been accomplished. Now, i was eager to discover which piano arrived first in this fair state. over the next six years, i searched state parks, historic newspaper articles, traveled the length and breadth of the state, and arrived at the following conclusion. The earliest documented piano was one that adorned the living quarters of Princess Elena Pavlovna Gagarina, wife of Alexander rotchev, the russian manager at fort ross, on the coast of Northern California. She brought with her some fine belongings,

her piano, and her extensive library. The rotchevs were known by visitors for their great hospitality, their cuisine, and last, but by no means least, for the Princess’s skill at the piano. Eugene Duflot de Mofras, a visitor from france, visited the rotchevs at fort ross in 1841. He wrote of “a choice library, french wines, a piano, and a score of Mozart.” What became of this piano is a mystery though i like to think that John Sutter, who purchased all the goods from fort ross when the russians left in 1841 took the piano with him to his home just outside Sacramento, Hock farm, before he established Sutter’s fort. Sutter engaged a fellow Swiss, Adolphe Engler, to teach his son to play the piano, so he must have had a piano. Engler soon won the heart of Sutter’s daughter, Eliza. Much to the chagrin of Sutter, the two married but a couple of years later they were divorced. Unfortunately, Hock farm and all its contents were destroyed in a fire in 1865.

Three pianos were brought around Cape Horn in 1843 by a certain Captain Stephen Smith, a Baltimore merchant who purchased a land claim in Bodega. Don Abrego, a prominent businessman in Monterey, a hatter in fact, from Mexico, asked Smith to bring him a piano. Smith brought three instruments on his next journey, along with a disassembled sawmill, which he set up in Bodega, the first in California, a gristmill, and a young woman of sixteen whom he subsequently married. Abrego’s adobe house and gardens, built in the 1830s are still extant in Monterey, and are owned by a women’s club. Though the piano is no longer there, i was invited to view the parlor where the piano provided entertainment. n

Born and raised in England, Heather J. Morris received her degrees from the universities of Sheffield and Durham . She currently teaches piano, clarinet, theory and composition and writes classical music reviews for the Santa Cruz Sentinel . She is a member

of ASCAP and has written orchestral, symphonic band, chamber, and piano works .

Summer 2015 | 31

ClImBIng to tHe goAl

$115K!

by Joyce Osborn, MTAC Foundation Chair

As I write this, it is late April . I see that we have passed our halfway mark for the Foundation goal of $115,000 . SUPER!!!

y et, we cannot rest, for we need to close that gap by the end of Convention. i have complete confidence in all of you to do that. if our membership gave a donation of any amount, we would do it. if you are not a part of the donor

group, please consider it and join a Circle. You can do so at the Convention MTAC foundation Table.

MTAC is now giving you the opportunity to say publicly “thank you” to those past and present mentors and friends. You can give a donation to the MTAC foundation in their name and know that their encouraging words will be carried on in you and this organization. This circle embraces the person you name along with your own name. it is the hope that this circle will become massive as we think back to those people.

if you have already donated by April but did not designate someone by name, please let MTAC know and we will add it to the final list by July 31, 2015. You can also give your donation at Convention and get both names on the Circle list. 10,000

50,000

90,000

20,000

60,000

100,000

30,000

70,000

40,000

80,000

mtAC founDAtIon


Please remember that your donation goes only to the programs and their scholarships, etc. None of the foundation money is used for MTAC operating expenses.

Designate the following eligible programs:

• Composers Today• friends of Today’s Music • Gretchen Geber VoCE fund

Vocalists, orchestral instrumentalists, Chamber music, and Ensembles

• improvisation• Music Study Assistance Grant• Piano Concerto and Piano Solo• Young Artist Guild• Young Composers Guild• Second Century fund

Honored and remembered Circle consists of family members, friends, colleagues, teachers or those who have touched our lives and for encouraged us in that often misunderstood career called “Music” for they have cheered us on to just “Go for it!” WE HAVE! Here we are musicians who spread music everywhere.

HONORED & REMEMBERED CIRCLE

Benefactor Circle consists of members and friends who have donated various amounts up to $499. if we could add a great number of you to this group, we would reach our goal easily. remember, any amount is very welcome.

BENEFACTOR CIRCLE

Leadership Circle combines all the foundation Grants with individuals who have given $500 and above. Thank you!

LEADERSHIP CIRCLE

Any Amount from $5 to “tHe sKy’s tHe lImIt” Is WelCome!

A gift of any amount is appreciated, and

will help the MTAC foundation.

Thank you for your generous support!

YoU made it happen last year! Let’s all

make it happen again this year!

Summer 2015 | 33

FUNDRAISING EVENT AT THE CONVENTION

Shadows in the Past is a compelling novel that blends the best elements of a family saga with a coming-of-age tale, then seasons it all with a dash of innocent romance . Ms . Ashleigh writes with fluency about many subjects, and her words flow naturally and poetically . The reader will find passages to re-read and savor on every page .

“The characters are so well defined that they still stick in my mind, and i loved all the references to music from one who knows her stuff!”—Betty Martin, Music Teachers’

Association of California State President, 2000 – 02

“A beautifully written, reverent book of faith and forgiveness, all bundled into an exciting and surprising plot. i couldn’t put it down!”

—The Most Rev . Sylvester D . Ryan, Bishop Diocese of Monterey,

CA (ret .)

“What a satisfying book! i laughed out loud, i cried, and i cheered for John and his family. i hated for this book to end. i’m hoping for a sequel.”

—Cassie Cedolin, booklover and avid reader

Many of you know or remember Marty Ashleigh from several years back. i recently had a wonderful email from her and i would like you to know about it. She is a writer and is offering many copies of her first book, Shadows in the Past, to the MTAC foUNDATioN ProJECT. 100% of the book sales will go to the Foundation. Each is priced at $10.

Martha Ashleigh lives on Catalina island with her husband, Dave, and their golden retriever. recently retired from a lifetime of teaching music, she enjoys writing music and poetry, hymns, short stories and longer works. She is co-author of the popular graded series of music theory books, fundamentals of Piano Theory (Keith Snell and Martha Ashleigh, Kjos, 1997). Ms. Ashleigh has been an active member of MTAC for many years, serving on the Stanislaus County Branch Board in many capacities, including President and CM Chair. She also served on the State Certificate of Merit® Council for twelve years, the last six as State CM Coordinator. Ms. Ashleigh assisted Sue Shannon in the early years of the Young Composers Guild and briefly served as State Coordinator for the YCG program.

The Ashleighs enjoy reading, gardening, playing darts, cards, and games of all kinds. They volunteer at the local island hospital making music and leading sing-alongs. Ms. Ashleigh also serves with the music ministry at church. Both lifelong teachers, the Ashleighs tutor the local kids whenever help is needed.

Marty says, “We are thankful for the natural beauty that surrounds us. We live in a postcard. Life is good.”

All of our thanks and good wishes go to Marty . She sends her best for a great and successful Convention and says “hi” to all her friends in MTAC . n

mtAC founDAtIon continued from page 33

If you want to reserve a book before Convention, email me at osbornj@me .com . Give me the name of the day you will be there . I want all reserved

books to be bought and picked up by Saturday

evening at Convention . If you can come to my home in Woodland Hills, I will be happy to sell you one before

Convention . Just let me know . —Joyce Osborn


A foundation Donation form is provided for your convenience, on page 20. for answers to questions on how best to donate, please contact: foundation fundraising and Development Chair Joyce Osborn osbornj@me .com

or State office operations Administrator rhonda Williams rhondaw@mtac .org

List of Donors as of May 15, 2015

In memory of

Bertram Balch, Jr.VErNA BALCH

•In memory of

Dr. BoB Bennett frESNo CoUNTY

BrANCH

•In memory of

helen BroaDwell

frANCES GEorGE

•In honor of

nita & Denny Donovan

LiSA LUKAS

In memory of

richarD earhart

LoUiSE EArHArTArDES ABAD

VErNA BALCHSUSAN BEATYSUSAN CLArK

JENNifEr CrUZGLoriA Ho

SHArLAE JENKiNSMAriE KANETA

JANE KAToGErALDiNE KEELiNG

AMY CHEN-HUEY MArTiNJoYCE oSBorN

JUDi SANDS-PErTELEVELYN GAWLEY PoHLMANN

MiCHELLE rUMLEYSoUTHErN CALiforNiA

CoMPUTEr CLUBSUE SCofiELD

•In honor of

Betty martin

BEYSTEr fAMiLY foUNDATioN

In memory of

regina mastrantonia

LUCY AMiCoDoroTHEA GoNSALVESMArK HiGGiNBoTToM

CAroL SHoUrMArYANN SiMMoNDS

•In memory of

thomas osBorn

JoYCE oSBorN

•In memory of

nancy PlourDe

JULiE JoHNSoN

•In memory of

roBin wooD

LAKEWooD-CErriToS BrANCH

HonoreD & rememBereD CIrCleL i s t o f D o n o r s

Keeping scoreby Michael Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony

it is always great fun to learn about the lives of composers. it is particularly interesting to get a glimpse into their environment and perhaps, for a brief moment, see the world through their eyes. in nine one-hour documentaries, originally a television series made for PBS, Michael Tilson Thomas, and the San francisco Symphony trace the lives of eight influential composers and allow us to do just that. Commenting on the social and cultural background within the historical context, Tilson Thomas explores the motivations and influences behind major classical works by Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, Copland, Stravinsky, Berlioz, ives, Shostakovich, and Mahler. The San francisco Symphony accompanies each episode in the series with a one-hour concert. Thou gh their website says that these programs are suitable for high school, college and university music appreciation students and their teachers, i have found them to be just as appealing to untutored music lovers. The downloadable lesson plans that accompany the programs are useful for teachers. As a protégé of Leonard Bernstein, Tilson Thomas is highly involved with continuing his teacher’s legacy that was laid out in the groundbreaking Young People’s Concerts. The website has much interactive material exploring each composer’s scores and pertinent musical techniques as well as the personal and historical stories behind them in a user-friendly way: www.keepingscore.org.

The DVDs are available from www .shopsfsymphony .org .

microjazzby Christopher Norton

As an introduction to both students and teachers who are new to teaching jazz, this series is ideal. funky and stylish accompaniments are included for many of the pieces in the accompaniment book, along with a backing track CD that students love. They feel like a valued band member and cannot wait to begin work on a new piece. The series contains five books: Beginners A, B, and three lesson books. A and B assist first-time players steadily through basic keyboard technique and theory using simple pieces in popular styles such as jazz, blues, rock ‘n’ roll and reggae. Published by Boosey and Hawkes and distributed by Hal Leonard, these books are a little more expensive than usual. Nevertheless, i find that even around twenty dollars a book with the accompaniment and CD, they are well worth the motivation they provide for students. The pieces are great fun for recitals as well.

neW mAterIAls revIeWsby Heather Morris


Practicing Perfection: memory and Piano PerformanceBy Roger Chaffin, Gabriela Imreh and Mary Crawford, pub . Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc . 2002

What happens when a cognitive psychologist, a concert pianist and a social psychologist get together? They write a book. Many of us marvel at the skill of the concert performer, the technical expertise, the musical interpretation of the little black dots. But what about the amazing ability to memorize something that requires the execution of between ten and twenty notes a second for minutes on end. Haven’t we all thought, “What does the performer think about as the fingers fly across the keyboard?” To see the practicing process in action, Gabriela imreh takes us on a personal journey into that inner sanctum of every performer – the practice studio.

The first half of “Practicing Perfection: Memory and Piano Performance” is an investigation into one person’s experience in preparing the third movement of J. S. Bach’s “italian Concerto” for a professional recording. This particular piece was selected because its fast tempo allows little space for the performer to think ahead. rather one has to rely on automatic retrieval from long-term memory. The book opens with a description of a day-in-the-life of a concert pianist – the day of the recital with its numbing fear and adrenaline rush. Given the relative neglect that conservatories place on how to deal with memory lapses, the book goes on to share interviews with over fifty well-known pianists including Augerich, Arrau, Brendel, Hough, Grainger, fleisher, Watts. The kinds of memory that these pianists employ and mention in these interviews include muscle, aural, visual (for both the score and the hand positions), and conceptual (the use of finger patterns and formal harmonic analysis).

Drawing on a few earlier studies of how experts practice for maximum efficiency, the writers then go on to study imreh's practicing habits, especially how the establishment of a framework of retrieval clues are helpful--sometimes called performance cues. Scheduling practice, monitoring energy levels during that practice, and the identification of a problem and the finding of a solution to that problem are all covered in this book. Psychologists interested in memory and music cognition, musicians, researchers, educators, and professional pianists will all find this book of interest. The score of the third movement of the italian Concerto and imreh’s recording of it are provided.

WithinSix pieces for solo piano by Justin Levitt

With key signatures of five flats and five sharps and with the occasional six flats thrown in for good measure, this collection is not for the faint at heart. rather, it is for the advanced pianist. Chopin acknowledged that pieces in these keys lie well under the fingers. i think CMT readers can agree that note reading usually is a challenge for our piano students. Large hands are needed here: tenths are frequent. Justin calls his genre “life music,” music born out of life experiences and emotions. He includes a description of the genesis of each piece and the six pieces are available with a CD with his own interpretation. Though not classically trained, Justin has been awarded three prizes in recent MTAC “Composers Today” for pieces in this collection. in 2012 at Carnegie Hall he performed an all-original composition concert. There is freshness in these pieces as the music takes unexpected turns and forays, but the overall sense is of peace and tranquility. for example, “Mansion rag” is an upbeat piece but the last piece “Sweet Contentment” rounds out “Within” in an introspective mood.To order this book and CD visit www . JustinLevitt .com . n

Summer 2015 | 37

MuSIC TEACHErS’ ASSOCIATION OF CALIFOrNIA®833 Market Street, Suite 900San Francisco, CA 94103

An original certificate from 1968

Documents

CaliforniaMusicTeacherthis age, “Microjazz,” and “Within.” The remaining two reviews by Morris bring to light how a professional pianist deals with the scary topic—memory