aural skills piano

050 - Simplified Organization for the New School Year

050 - Simplified Organization for the New School Year

It's back-to-school season, which means cups of hot tea in the mornings, new music to learn and explore, a new teaching schedule, and a few new organizational tools and strategies to test out, per usual.

The start of a new school year is a great opportunity to reset, refocus, and try new things. I talked about this back in Ep. 006 - Four Things I'm Doing Differently in My Studio. It's interesting to look back and see how much has changed and what I've learned in two-and-a-half years!

Today, I'm sharing an inside look at three big studio projects I worked on this summer—repertoire planning, technique organization, and an aural skills video library—and how I'm implementing them into my studio this fall.

026 - My Favorite Aural Skills Games & Activities

026 - My Favorite Aural Skills Games & Activities

Aural skills (also known as ear-training) is a fundamental facet of musicianship. Learning to listen, identify, discern, and understand music without notation present helps us develop the inner listening skills needed to become well-rounded, well-versed musicians.

What kinds of aural skills experiences are we giving our students, of all ages? How can we incorporate aural skill activities in our weekly lessons?

I've done a little research on this and found several helpful resources for fostering the development of aural skills in private lessons (and at home) with students of all ages.

If you don't already include aural skill experiences in your teaching on a regular basis, I hope this inspires you as much as it has me!