Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” from ChordTime Piano Hits may be the favourite wedding song of our generation. It also happens to be the perfect song to learn four chords that define western popular music: I, vi, IV, and V. These chords surely sound familiar by now—they’re the same four chords we looked at last week. If […]
“I wanna see you be brave!” This chorus from Sara Bareilles’ “Brave” offers words of encouragement for each of us—as piano teachers, students, and performers. How many of us grew up playing only classical piano, while listening to the Beatles, Billy Joel, and Coldplay? Perhaps being brave as a teacher means exploring music with our students, from their world. […]
In many places Autumn is the most beautiful season, with colourful leaves creating a kaleidoscope of whirling reds, yellows, rusts, and orange-browns, each with its own changing nuance as the days and weather shift. Nuance itself is a delicate word, implying subtlety and fine distinctions. And attention to playing with nuance can begin early. Yes, […]
Perhaps the favorite application of music theory in piano instruction is the teaching of I, IV and V7 chords in that familiar cluster surrounding the root-position I chord. This aspect of piano pedagogy is a guiding concept for Level 2B of Piano Adventures® and the corresponding ChordTime® Piano series. This simple chord formula is favored […]
