PRACTICE EXPECTATIONS
Students are required to practice at home between lessons. Daily practice is crucial to musical progress. The recommended practice time will be discussed with the student based on their age, skill levels, and goal. I request that student have an acoustic piano, not an electric piano*.
Ideal practice time would be a 30-minute lesson = 30 minutes of daily practice. The goal for those who are taking 30-minute lesson would be 3 hours or more a week. For young students, two 15-minute practices daily also works well. The same goes for a 45-minute or 1-hour lesson = 45 minutes or 60 minutes or more of daily practice. Parental support is also critical to the success of each student. Young beginners will need parental supervision to practice until they become self-directed. Parents/guardians are welcome to stay and observe their child’s lessons at anytime.
*The following is a quote from Irina Gorin on acoustic piano vs electric piano, a well-respected piano pedagogue from Ukraine, and the author of "Tales of a Musical Journey"
children's piano method books based on the teachings of Russian piano school.
"Digital Disadvantages
The problem with digital pianos is that they can't really duplicate the tone and touch of a real piano. Even with today's sampling technology individual notes may be quite accurately reproduced, but the tone of notes sounding together, as in an acoustic piano - with complex harmonics mixing and resonating against a flexible wooden soundboard - cannot be matched. As a result, most music sounds rather sterile played on a digital piano.
Digital pianos don't feel like real pianos. "Touch Sensitivity" and "Weighted Action" is not the same thing as the sophisticated inner mechanism, or "action" of an acoustic piano. Digital pianos merely simulate the touch of pianos. They don't provide the same feedback or responsiveness to your playing, so your performance range is limited.
If you are considering buying a piano for your child, consider this: many piano teachers will not teach students who have reached a certain level on anything other than an acoustic piano. Digital pianos are counter-productive when it comes to technique and dynamic performance. These skills cannot be practiced on a digital keyboard and then applied to a real piano action. It's not the same thing. A piano also represents a stronger commitment to a student, as opposed to a digital keyboard that may represent the same thing to a child as a computer, an electronic game-station or a CD player.
Something else to consider is that an acoustic piano will hold its value far better than a digital. An acoustic piano can last 100 years, while a digital may be obsolete in 5 years and might be hard to even give away by then."
Students are required to practice at home between lessons. Daily practice is crucial to musical progress. The recommended practice time will be discussed with the student based on their age, skill levels, and goal. I request that student have an acoustic piano, not an electric piano*.
Ideal practice time would be a 30-minute lesson = 30 minutes of daily practice. The goal for those who are taking 30-minute lesson would be 3 hours or more a week. For young students, two 15-minute practices daily also works well. The same goes for a 45-minute or 1-hour lesson = 45 minutes or 60 minutes or more of daily practice. Parental support is also critical to the success of each student. Young beginners will need parental supervision to practice until they become self-directed. Parents/guardians are welcome to stay and observe their child’s lessons at anytime.
*The following is a quote from Irina Gorin on acoustic piano vs electric piano, a well-respected piano pedagogue from Ukraine, and the author of "Tales of a Musical Journey"
children's piano method books based on the teachings of Russian piano school.
"Digital Disadvantages
The problem with digital pianos is that they can't really duplicate the tone and touch of a real piano. Even with today's sampling technology individual notes may be quite accurately reproduced, but the tone of notes sounding together, as in an acoustic piano - with complex harmonics mixing and resonating against a flexible wooden soundboard - cannot be matched. As a result, most music sounds rather sterile played on a digital piano.
Digital pianos don't feel like real pianos. "Touch Sensitivity" and "Weighted Action" is not the same thing as the sophisticated inner mechanism, or "action" of an acoustic piano. Digital pianos merely simulate the touch of pianos. They don't provide the same feedback or responsiveness to your playing, so your performance range is limited.
If you are considering buying a piano for your child, consider this: many piano teachers will not teach students who have reached a certain level on anything other than an acoustic piano. Digital pianos are counter-productive when it comes to technique and dynamic performance. These skills cannot be practiced on a digital keyboard and then applied to a real piano action. It's not the same thing. A piano also represents a stronger commitment to a student, as opposed to a digital keyboard that may represent the same thing to a child as a computer, an electronic game-station or a CD player.
Something else to consider is that an acoustic piano will hold its value far better than a digital. An acoustic piano can last 100 years, while a digital may be obsolete in 5 years and might be hard to even give away by then."