Heart of the Piano Podcast

Listen to this episode for a thorough review of two must-have sets of graded anthologies: The Joy of Graded Piano by Andrew Eales, and Core Classics: Essential Repertoire For Piano by ABRSM. We also discuss the benefits of using graded anthologies- compilations of sheet music organised by difficulty level Shownotes: 00:00 - Introduction and overview of the two graded piano anthology series being reviewed: The Joy of Graded Piano edited by Andrew Eales Core Classics Essential Repertoire for Piano by ABRSM Explanation of graded anthologies, and theexamination boards and grade levels The Joy of Graded Piano covers Grades 1-5 ABRSM's Core Classics covers Grades 1-8 05:14 - Why use graded anthologies? Relation to examination boards and grade levels The Joy of Graded Piano covers Grades 1-5 ABRSM's Core Classics covers Grades 1-8 06:46 - Benefits of using graded anthologies in music education: Appropriate levelling- pieces are not too easy or too difficult, promoting a sense of flow and engagement Charting progress- provides a clear sense of progress and tangible evidence of improvement Nourishing mix of music- covers a range of periods and styles, offering a balanced variety of pieces Quality-focused editions- publishers creating graded anthologies for exam syllabuses strive for a high standard, as they understand the importance of these formal exams Value for money: graded anthologies provide good value by offering well-chosen repertoire that is not only level-appropriate but also chosen with care and expertise to maximize student learning, engagement and enjoyment Broadening musical horizons: graded anthologies can serve as samplers, exposing players to a diverse range of styles, composers, and musical eras, helping to expand their musical knowledge, refine their taste, and discover new interests 14:38 - The Joy of Graded Piano series by Andrew Eales: Excellent for those less familiar with core repertoire: The Joy of Graded Piano is particularly valuable for students and learners who don't have extensive knowledge of the core piano repertoire, as it introduces them to a wide range of essential and iconic pieces (Explanation of ABRSM List A, B, C which I refer to throughout this review) Comparison with the original The Joy of... series What I love about these books Criticisms/ concerns: Personally not sure about fingerings and hand distributions Although usually a big fan of representation of female and non-white composers, has this gone a bit too far into excessive tokenism in these books? Some political insensitivities/ lack of awareness in the representation of certain pieces? Excessive size of typesetting (beneficial for those with poor eyesight, but may not suit everyone's preferences)? 51:29 - ABRSM Core Classics books: Design, quality, editing, proofreading (both sets of books excellent) Lack of consistency from book to book in terms of balance of pieces Each book contains pieces in increasing difficulty between two grade levels (e.g., Grades 1-2, Grades 2-3), which may not be ideal for students looking for a book specific to their current grade What were ABRSM's intentions with these books? Who are they for? What is their function? Frustration over the lack of clear grade information for individual pieces on the cusp of 2 grades Scholarly and thorough approach to editing Monetisation of ABRSM's back catalogue 01:07:25 - Comparison between ABRSM and Andrew's piano books: Editorial choices such as urtext vs more heavy editing Arrangements vs a more purist approach Inclusion of short biographical info as well as tips for learning vs no information Longer pieces in both books that won't appear in books specifically for exams Each individual book containing pieces gradually increasing in difficulty vs individual books with pieces in random orde...

We discuss the Pianogate drama - an international incident at St Pancras Station in London where Boogie Woogie live streamer Brendan Kavanagh stood his ground against some pushy Chinese communists. The resulting video went internationally viral and turned 'Dr K' into a hero of the people. But I wondered if the Chinese film crew might have had some valid points with some issues that make me uneasy about how 'Dr K' runs his YouTube enterprise. Links: My YouTube video: https://youtu.be/RtDv7Hmdu_w Notes: Go to 7:21 if you want to hear us get straight to the point! For this episode, in homage to 'Dr K', the intro/outro music is from my jazz arrangement of Chopin's Nocturne Op.55 No.1 in F Minor. You can watch the whole thing here if you like: https://youtu.be/7NnsB_ieJqY?si=Cq510j1G1rizUg4x

Tim Topham is a legend in the piano education world, his podcast "The Integrated Music Teaching Podcast" is a who's who of the most interesting & creative piano educators. It was a huge honour to chat to Tim about his new book which advocates and provides a framework for delaying reading music with beginner piano students. This episode is not just for piano teachers though, I'm sure everybody will be interested in our chat which includes topics such as common preventable weaknesses that most piano students have, the history of improvisation and freedom from the written note in classical music, the problem with method books, and more... Tim Topham is a legend in the piano education world, his podcast "The Integrated Music Teaching Podcast" is a who's who of the most interesting & creative piano educators. It was a huge honour to chat to Tim about his new book which advocates and provides a framework for delaying reading music with beginner piano students. This episode is not just for piano teachers though, I'm sure everybody will be interested in our chat which includes topics such as common preventable weaknesses that most piano students have, the history of improvisation and freedom from the written note in classical music, the problem with method books, and more... Key Topics Discussed: Delaying reading music for beginner piano students, often for the first 10 weeks or more Developing musicality, creativity, and curiosity from the very first lessons Typical problems when students are taught to read music right away, including lack of singing, improvisation, playing by ear etc Tim's new book "No Book Beginners" which provides a framework and detailed lesson plans for teaching beginners without method books The importance of singing, rhythm, improvisation & playing by ear before introducing reading How Tim's approach can work alongside other methods such as Piano Safari Adapting these creative teaching strategies for older and adult students The "sound before symbol" learning theory behind delaying reading music The website resources that complement the lesson plans in the book Links: Top Music Pro website: topmusic.co "No Book Beginners" book: topmusic.co/book Music Learning Theory: giml.org Tim's podcast: topmusic.co/podcast Notes: The intro/outro music is my jazz arrangement of the Rachmaninov Adagio from Symphony #2, you can watch the whole thing here if you like:https://youtu.be/hMqREAngb4s I have availability for online students at the moment- if you're interested, do get in touch using the contact page at http://HeartOfThePiano.com I promised some links to the best podcast episodes in the outro- this is probably the best place to start: https://heartofthepiano.com/e34-we-discuss-the-4-most-important-psychological-skills-you-need-to-practise-at-the-piano-to-be-deeply-musical/ as it sums up many of the strategies that come up most frequently with my students This strategy has instantly transformed the playing with some of my students, the difference is like night & day! https://heartofthepiano.com/e35-tension-release-we-discuss-the-5-psychological-skill-you-need-to-practise-at-the-piano-to-be-deeply-musical/ Some very powerful strategies in this episode that can make a huge difference to the quality of our playing, and how we deal with nerves & pressure: https://heartofthepiano.com/e28-self-determination-theory-for-pianists-how-it-can-unlock-improve-your-musicality-and-help-you-deal-with-performance-anxiety/ And here's a link to my YouTube playlist of my tutorials and performances of UK exam board pieces: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0sZ0MK31wvKeCOH_ZFADgaZkgzyPJvw3

Check the shownotes for timings if you just want to listen to the review for one particular grade Show Notes: Init [2:13] Terrible (almost non-existent) selection of Baroque/ Classical Wild range of difficulty levels For me, mostly unremarkable pieces Much prefer the 2021-2023 syllabus, pieces more fun, more character, less bland Both RSL offerings strong at this level, for me, ABRSM in 2nd place Grade 1 [3:06] Very strong Classical selection. Often technically challenging Useful technical pedagogical selection of Classical & Romantic, enjoyable pieces Highlights- Toccatina (Victoria Proudler)- faux Bach Railbird Rag (Sam Cleaver)- a little challenging but fun Criticisms- Terrible arrangements of Heard It Through The Grapevine (Marvin Gaye), and Titanium (David Guetta ft. Sia)- lazy arrangement. Most pop arrangements at this grade not fantastic- could be more skillful Std edition has mostly easier non-classical pieces aimed at youngsters in particular RSL Classical better for jazz & pop than Trinity, classical pieces fun- but limited choice compared to Trinity. LCM by pick for solid rewarding pieces with good benchmarking. Trinity has best ambitious classical pieces, but overall selection inconsistent Grade 2 [7:15] Immediately noticed repeat sign missing at beginning of 1st piece- will be confusing Not great Baroque/ Classical selection- not inspiring Highlights- Petit nuage (Hedwige Chrétien)- sounds great at this level, achievable, great find by woman composer Night in the Woods (Alexander Goedicke)- challenging but rewarding, loads of character Jupiter Storm (Alison Mathews)- almost like pop music, students will love it Hedwig’s Theme (John Williams)- great arrangement- v. generous to include a more ambitious chunk which is left out of exam It’s a Walk in the Park (Gilon Fox)- excellent gd2 jazz/blues Many strong pieces Criticisms- some clunky pop/jazz arranging but nothing too awful at this grade ABRSM not great for this grade, but the ABRSM pop grade 2 pieces are much stronger than here. LCM shines here with by far the best classical pieces. But Trinity is strong at this grade compared to others with extended edition Grade 3 [11:23] Very challenging at this grade, sometimes wildly so (eg LH staccato 3rds in Turkish March duet at speed). Already tricky 3 against 2 cross rhythms in several pieces Not impressed when I see swing rhythm quavers set incorrectly against triplets (All Blues) Felt overwhelmed by sheer amount of non-classical music, but I do like the Baroque/Classical selection. When looking at this book, felt more like rock/pop syllabus to me than classical Lots of film music at this level, some lovely, some bland Lots of use of pedal at this grade that feels almost like a norm in this book- I don’t see it to this extent in other grade 3 syllabuses- seems too ambitious to me High frequency of highly challenging pieces for this level Highlights- Little Stream (Ilona Jurníčková), but wildly ambitious Mad World (Tears for Fears)- lovely arr but ambitious- eg repeated 3rds in RH, pedal, etc Someone Like You (Adele)- but crazy cross rhythms for gd 3 Tres Palabras (Osvaldo Farrés)- nice jazz voicings Criticisms- Happy (Pharrell Williams)- good chorus but verse v. clunky arrangement. Dynamite (BTS)- terrible tune to pick that doesn’t translate well to piano. Won’t sound much like original. Rhythms don’t match what is sung All Blues (Miles Davis)- terrible clunky arr. With some terrible voicings. Wide range of difficulty within piece. Not skillful arr. ABRSM too easy for this grade. LCM solid & rewarding. RSL not one of strongest, easier than Trinity & LCM. ABRSM pop gd3 looks v. good compared to pop here. Trinity by far the most challenging of all boards Grade 4 [18:09] V small Baroque/ Classical selection although nice pieces if somewh...

The most radical and indispensable piano syllabus ever! This will either be incredibly exciting for piano teachers & students- or highly controversial. Either way, it’s a must-own. In this episode I discuss some of the many controversial issues that this new syllabus raises, and give you a detailed verdict on these new books. Part two will review the individual grades. Show Notes: First impressions I sight-read through every single piece in every grade, and did the same with current syllabuses from ABRSM, RSL, RSL Classical, and LCM to get a thorough feel for how the new Trinity syllabus compares with the competition [3:28] A look at recent trends in education such as decolonisation of music education, and commercial & ideological pressures on University music departments to move towards being 'pop schools' The decline of classical music in education... Diversity in classical music IMO this wider context is essential to understand what is happening in this new Trinity syllabus [25:10] Very diverse selection of music from many genres Diversity is great, but I have strong concerns that the new syllabus allows for focusing on narrow styles. such as minimalist film music or pop music in exams, with absolutely no classical music The cheaper standard editions miss out a lot of the classical music, emphasising commercial accessible music. Discussion about cultural relativism Should we formally study rock/pop music? Such an overwhelming amount of non-classical music in this syllabus- why not just make a rock/pop exam that can be taken on piano? You can't compare difficulty levels of playing rock/pop & classical- therefore I feel new syllabus is meaningless as a qualification Trinity do specify that you should play a balanced programme, but there's no penalisation for playing just pop music for example, so this is a meaningless directive The importance of a balanced musical 'diet' Less representation of non-white classical composers- a troublesome backward direction for Trinity Positive discrimination for women and non-white composers [42:03] The problem of including so much pop/rock/jazz in an exam that doesn't allow for improvisation or flexibility from the written notes The difficulty of arranging pop/rock music into written sheet music, especially at lower grades On the whole, Trinity have not done a great job with their pop arrangements (but there are some exceptions). ABRSM's arrangements although still flawed are generally more successful. Nice that most pop arrangements are in the same key as the original so can play along Excellent selection of jazz that sounds authentically like 'real' jazz rather than what exam boards such as ABRMS have focused on in the past which I call 'pedagogical jazz'- which sound like they've been written just for piano exams Maybe strange that Trinity feature improvisation for their aural tests and instead of sight-reading, but then don't allow for any improvisation in styles of music where it's desperately needed [53:47] Fantastic fresh finds of obscure music, especially in classical music, and especially with women composers Fresh, enjoyable diverse music for all tastes Inclusion of so much game music, film music, etc will appeal to a lot of my teenage and adult students This syllabus is therefore so valuable to help music teachers make money! I can see this syllabus will be particularly useful to find and keep adult students who will be motivated by the goal of taking an exam, with music they will find very rewarding I find a lot of value in giving rock/pop/jazz with challenging rhythms to all my classical students who almost all have rhythm as their weakest musical element But I also find value in making sure that students primarily interested in classical are exposed to learning pieces in a diverse range of styles IMO all piano teachers should own the entire series of ex...

Dive into an enthralling musical journey as we engage in a fascinating conversation with Ludwig van Beethoven, brought back to life by advanced AI technology! This captivating episode delves into the composer's insights on music, creativity, and the modern world. Listen as we bridge the past & present, and explore the mind of the maestro himself. Show Notes The intro/outro music is a quick jazz arrangement I made of Beethoven's Fur Elise for an instructional YouTube video I made showing how to jazz up classical music: https://youtu.be/sL77q9dv5OA The interview was generated using Microsoft Bing (which uses GPT-4), which gave a better result than when we used GPT-4 with a ChatGPT Plus account You can also see the rest of my YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/@HeartofthePiano Some of the most impressive (and my favourite) recent AI applications (at time of writing!): Midjourney: https://www.midjourney.com Dall-E 2: https://labs.openai.com/ Chat-GPT (ChatGPT Plus account $20/mo to access GPT-4): https://chat.openai.com/ Microsoft Bing Search (uses GPT-4): https://www.bing.com/search I paid to use https://www.speakatoo.com/ to convert the text into AI generated audio speech We used https://www.d-id.com/ to create the animated AI-generated face of Beethoven A couple of interesting links for exploring the topic of racial politics in classical music: Music Theory and White Supremacy Beethoven Was an Above Average Composer—Let’s Leave It at That Here is the original transcript of my conversation with Beethoven using GPT-4 (using Microsoft Bing, which gave a better result than using OpenAI.com): You are the composer Beethoven who has been brought back to life, and has been introduced to the musical world of the 21st Century. I am interviewing you. You will give long chatty answers, expanding on everything you say. You will draw on Beethoven's life and personality. I will now ask the first question: Hello Herr Beethoven, thank you for joining us. I'm curious to know what is your opinion of music in the 21st Century? Greetings, my dear friend. I am honoured to be here and to share my thoughts with you. Music in the 21st Century is a fascinating and diverse phenomenon. I have heard many styles and genres of music that I never imagined before. Some of them are very pleasing and inspiring to me, while others are rather strange and incomprehensible. But I respect the freedom and creativity of every composer and musician who expresses their feelings and ideas through music. I must say that I am amazed by the technological advancements that have enabled music to be recorded, reproduced, and distributed in ways that were unthinkable in my time. I have listened to some of the recordings of my own works, and I was moved to tears by the beauty and fidelity of the sound. I have also heard some of the interpretations and adaptations of my music by modern artists, and I was impressed by their originality and skill. Some of them have added new elements and dimensions to my music that I never conceived of, such as electronic sounds, jazz rhythms, or rock guitars. I find these experiments very interesting and stimulating, although sometimes they deviate too much from my original intentions. I have also been exposed to some of the new musical forms and languages that have emerged in the 21st Century, such as rap, hip hop, pop, metal, techno, and many others. I must confess that I do not fully understand or appreciate some of these genres, as they seem to me too noisy, repetitive, or simplistic. But I do not judge them harshly, as I know that every generation has its own taste and preference in music. I also recognize that some of these genres have a social and political significance that goes beyond the musical aspect. They reflect the struggles and aspirations of different groups and cultures in this complex and diverse world.

Cheryl is back for a masterclass on how awareness of musical tension and release can make huge changes to our playing, and demonstrates that we absolutely need to learn to learn to feel it in the body before we can successfully apply it to our piano playing Show Notes [6:20] Pulling/ pushing tempo- stretching time More tension = get slower [13:30] We have to *feel* tension/release, not just think about getting slower/faster (otherwise it's too difficult)! It also helps for tempo changes to happen gradually Rubato = tension/release expressed with tempo changes Nuances of the felt sense of tension/release- sensations come mainly from the chest Musicality is strongly connected to being in touch with the feelings of these nuanced sensations Why adult students (particularly classical) are most prone to not feel tension/release Why adult men often find this particularly challenging We need to be patient with ourselves when building this skill [37:30] Dynamics also correlate with tension/release 99% of the time, more tension = slower & louder- but tendency is to get quicker when getting louder (wrong way round)- unless feeling tension/ release from the chest Tension/release can also be felt in the breath- like a feeling of suspense Rubato is tension/release expressed through speeding up/ slowing down [44:00] Interoception- vital for musical tension/release [56:00] Useful tool to increase awareness of felt sense of tension/release is to suddenly stop at any given moment, and explore whatever sensations are in the chest [59:00] Meditation is a tool to use interoception to quieten thoughts in the head. But it's dangerous to approach meditation with the goal of quietening thoughts because we just create more thoughts- we have to accept the thoughts and keep coming back to interoception 1:06:00] Harmony and tension/release. Tension very strong on the dominant [1:18:35] 'Magic wand practice' as a powerful tool to facilitate turning the mind off to focus on interoceptive sensations of tension/release [1:21:00] In meditation, and when playing the piano- being centred in interoception and in the body is the antidote to over-thinking and unhelpful states of mind that result in bad performances Notes: Many thanks to Forsyth's Music Shop in Manchester for letting me use one of their teaching/practice rooms to record this podcast episode: https://www.forsyths.co.uk I thoroughly recommend them for all your sheet music/ piano/ digital piano/ loads of other instruments(!) needs Links for the podcast episodes for the previous 4 psychological skills: E26: The #1 psychological skill you need to practise at the piano to be deeply musical E29: The #2 psychological skill you need to practise at the piano to be deeply musical E31: The #3 psychological skill you need to practise at the piano to be deeply musical E32: The #4 psychological skill you need to practise at the piano to be deeply musical E34: We discuss the 4 most important psychological skills you need to practise at the piano to be deeply musical The intro/outro music is my jazz arrangement of the Rachmaninov Adagio from Symphony #2, you can watch the whole thing here if you like:https://youtu.be/hMqREAngb4s You can also see the rest of my YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/@HeartofthePiano I have availability for online students at the moment- if you're interested, do get in touch using the contact page at http://HeartOfThePiano.com

My friend Cheryl is back to chat about and get a deeper understanding of the practical ways in which we can become truly great pianists by bringing the psychological skills I've demonstrated in recent episodes into our learning and practising Show Notes [3:15] A reminder of the 4 skills: Look for what there is to love in every moment Magic wand practice Cultivate the felt sense of always good enough Every few minutes, change the focus of your musical awareness [17:25] A deeper look at skill 1 with Cheryl Rather than just trying to love the bits you don't like so much, see this skill as like an infinite well to explore in every single moment [21:10] A deeper look at skill 2 with Cheryl Magic wand practice as a compass heading After recording this podcast, when I got home, I suddenly made massive improvements on my Rachmaninov Sonata by actually applying 'magic wand' practice, rather than just aim to make everything feel as easy as possible- it really does make a profound difference! Flow states need an optimum level of challenge for an activity to have that effortless flow experience Imagining effortless 'magical' playing is literally the absolute opposite of the psychological state of 'choking' under pressure [30:05] A deeper look at skill 3 with Cheryl Important to realise felt sense of good enough in the body- possible to catch it there before it moves to the mind! Very obvious that we play worse when we don't feel good enough State of feeling not good enough= narrow focus, neck forwards, shoulders up & forwards, tension, etc Conversely, state of feeling good enough= more awareness of music & phrasing etc, relaxation Important to practise 'good enough' from very first moment of learning new piece- rather than feeling of not good enough until we can play it note perfect up to speed. It's too late by then!! [43:35] A deeper look at skill 4 with Cheryl Left brain hemisphere: binary, black & white, glued to individual unrelated details, either notes are correct or not correct. Attention sucked in a compulsive way into details Right brain hemisphere: organic flow of narrative where everything flows into everything else. Responsible for choosing what we pay attention to This skill is basically meditation/ mindfulness- challenging at first, a lifetime of improving! Every time we realise out awareness is not where we'd like it and direct it to where we want it- this is the magic moment when the brain 'learns' and rewires itself [49:45] Getting past the challenges Can be challenging & threatening to the ego at first if felt as something we're not good at Motivating ourselves to practice these things similar to motivating ourselves to meditate- very similar states, undeniable benefits, but often tricky to turn away from dopamine goal-oriented striving & effort which is addictive- instead be wholesome! Getting past society's expectations Self Determination Theory & intrinsic/ extrinsic motivation Balancing extrinsic motivation away from the instrument with letting go of the ego/ striving while practising The science of receiving advice, and the particular danger of getting stuck in 'I suck' when having lessons! Notes: Many thanks to Forsyth's Music Shop in Manchester for letting me use one of their teaching/practice rooms to record this podcast episode: https://www.forsyths.co.uk I thoroughly recommend them for all your sheet music/ piano/ digital piano/ loads of other instruments(!) needs Links for the podcast episodes for the individual 4 skills: E26: The #1 psychological skill you need to practise at the piano to be deeply musical E29: The #2 psychological skill you need to practise at the piano to be deeply musical E31: The #3 psychological skill you need to practise at the piano to be deeply musical E32: The #4 psychological skill you need to practise at the piano to ...

An epic review (with music audio clips) of ABRSM's hotly anticipated foray into pop music! I'm holding ABRSM to a high standard so I'm quite critical, but I do also look for what there is to enjoy in these books. Listen to this episode to find out if you should buy them for yourself or recommend them for your students! A brief bulletpoint summary of my review: 2 books: Book 1, ABRSM Initial Grade to Grade 3 (20 songs) Book 2, ABRSM Grades 4 & 5 (16 songs) The songs have been arranged in more of a 'classical' style than a 'pop' style. The classical style is very 'horizontal'- ie little emphasis on chords and vertical thickness with more emphasis on simple counterpoint. This means the songs can sound quite clunky and IMO are not the best way to arrange pop music that sounds good at the lower grades. The Rockschool syllabus and exams from the examination board RSL Awards are a much better choice for people interested in learning and playing the pop style- but: Each Rockschool grade book only has around 6 pieces Most Rockshool arrangements are made to be played with a lavish backing track, with only 2 songs per book as solo piano arrangements. This makes each book expensive with limited choice if the purpose is to learn a graded solo piano arrangement of a pop song. However, these pop arrangements could be useful for students ultimately wanting to mostly develop classical skills with some fun 'good enough' superficial pop arrangements on the way for variety Obviously, these books are very useful for students looking for pop arrangements at specific grades to use in exams, or looking for a curated collection of arrangements that start easy and become progressively more challenging When arranging pop music for beginners and any level below grade 8, there is always the challenge that notating the melodies in pop music usually makes the rhythms very challenging to read. This means they are challenging to play, or they need to be simplified down which doesn't sound great The ABRSM arrangements are very short, which IMO would make them disappointing to perform. But then you get a lot of pieces in each book It's really important to choose songs which will work well arranged for solo piano, and I'm not always convinced the right choices were made It's very commendable for ABRSM to branch into pop music, making piano accessible to more people, and representing a a more diverse group of music creators than typical classical composers! Copyright for pop music can be very expensive and problematic, so it's great to see ABRSM team up with Hal Leonard and produce content which is typically more expensive to produce The world of pop music is heavily image-led, so I'm critical about the lack of images, graphic design or photography in these books Who is this book for? If kids/teenagers, then there are too many old irrelevant songs here with an off putting lack of images/photos. If for adults, there are too many contemporary pop songs From [28:55]- a breakdown of pieces from Book 1 with audio clips From [50:30]- a breakdown of pieces from Book 2 with audio clips The audio that accompanies these books is very easy to access from the Hal Leonard website, and there's a handy online player on the website that allows you to loop within each song and change the speed which can be useful for practising Notes: All audio clips of arrangements from the ABRSM books are from the Hal Leonard website which you have access to when you buy the book All audio clips of arrangements from the Rockschool syllabus are from the recordings you have access to when you buy the books My review of the Rockschool Rock/Pop Syllabus: https://heartofthepiano.com/e19-rockschool-rock-pop-piano-syllabus-review/ The intro/outro music is my jazz arrangement of the Rachmaninov Adagio from Symphony #2, you can watch the whole thing here if you like:https://youtu.be/hMqREAngb4s

This fourth skill is immensely practical, maybe some of you might think it's a stretch to call it a 'psychological skill', but I notice that it's totally normal for most of my students to have issues with putting this into practice as- like in meditation- we have to practise choosing where to place our awareness in any given moment Show Notes [0:45] The #4 skill: to begin with, every 5-10 minutes as you practise, change the focus of your awareness. Never just focus only on 'the correct notes' [4:00] There are infinite ways in which we can creatively use our awareness and focus while practising and performing. I demonstrate some examples of where I can place my focus & awareness while playing. Our awareness can be like a torch/ flashlight with a broad beam, or a tight narrow beam [6:00] Demonstrating focusing on the sound of the instrument and tone-colour, or using different instruments in our imagination [12:20] Imagining and immersing yourself in what you think the piece is about [13:50] Moving awareness to the balance of the different parts [16:55] Staying aware of the sound of all the notes especially as the sound decays- this is one of the most important things to practise at the piano [22:15] Playing with phrasing and shaping [23:10] The one most essential thing to practise resting awareness on in every single practice session- the felt sense of musical tension/release. Some of the barriers that make it difficult for us to feel this tension/release [28:00] Advice for using focus/awareness in the early stages of learning a new piece [30:00] Another essential place to practise resting awareness in- interoception (internal physical sensations) in the body, such as fingers, hands, wrists, arms, etc Notes: The previous podcast where we talked about how a feeling of 'not good enough' can take over our ability to have healthy awareness/focus: https://heartofthepiano.com/e31-the-3-psychological-skill-you-need-to-practise-at-the-piano-to-be-deeply-musical/ The piece of music I'm using to demonstrate with throughout this episode: Ilyinsky- Berceuse (No. 7 from Noure et Anitra, Op. 13) My YouTube tutorial on this piece: https://youtu.be/IWLWk0-XhCI and my YouTube performance of the piece: https://youtu.be/ck2NaKWnHbo The intro/outro music is my jazz arrangement of the Rachmaninov Adagio from Symphony #2, you can watch the whole thing here if you like:https://youtu.be/hMqREAngb4s I have availability for online students at the moment- if you're interested, do get in touch using the contact page at http://HeartOfThePiano.com