Monday, August 31, 2015

Scott Joplin Rags

For my birthday, I received a book of Scott Joplin's complete rags. I was really excited to be able to dig into Joplin's music. I have been working on memorizing "The Entertainer", and have found that I really enjoy playing rags. My favorites from Schirmer's collection of Scott Joplin rags would be "Elite Syncopations" and "Bethena Waltz". This collection would be a good book for an advanced student to sight read from.


For my listening pleasure, I own Rags to Riches: the Essential Hits. This is a well done collection of a sample of Joplin's rags. It is available both as a Cd and as an audio download.

Saturday, August 29, 2015

Composition Competitions

For many years, I participated in OMTA's Composition Celebrations, an event designed to encourage students to compose their own music. Since I graduated from piano lessons, I have not been participating in this event. However, I recently found that Greg Howlett is hosting music writing contests. It is open to various genres and instruments, and runs monthly. One of the criteria for winning is the marketability of the piece. Is there a viable market for it? An incentive for entering is the $250 dollar prize. All entrants can choose to have their piece posted as a free download on Greg Howlett's blog, although you may also be able to have it sold from his website instead. To find out more, click here. I have already submitted my own piece.

Monday, August 24, 2015

Mezzo Forte means Medium Fast!

I think all teachers have found at some time or another that they or their students have redefined the meaning mezzo forte and forte. The new meaning of mezzo forte is medium fast, and obviously forte means fast!


It is an interesting phenomenon that dynamic markings unconsciously influence how fast a section is played. Passages marked piano are often played slowly and treated reverently. Loud passages are played with great speed and gusto. It is amazing to see the connections we unconsciously make between speed and volume, and in turn connect to different emotions.

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Quote from J. S. Bach


“Where there is devotional music, God is always at hand with His gracious presence.”  ~ Johann Sebastian Bach


(quoted from goodreads.com)

Thursday, August 20, 2015

A Resource for Church Musicians

Recently, I found a wonderful resource for church musicians. Greg Howlett posts many free arrangements that would work for preludes, postludes, and interludes. He also writes posts about how to find the happy medium between being tied to the music and playing solely by ear. If you sign up for his newsletter, he will send you a free download for one of his CD's, a hymn arrangement that is not posted on his blog, and a free course on charting chords in a hymn.