What Teachers Make

The following article can be found on many music websites. I've been thinking a lot about how privileged independent music teachers are to be able to earn a living for our families doing something that we love AND something that makes a difference in the lives that we touch.

WHAT TEACHERS MAKE

The dinner guests were sitting around the table discussing life. One man, a CEO, decided to explain the problem with education. He argued, "What's a kid going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?" He reminded the other dinner guests what they say about teachers: "Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach." To stress his point he said to another guest; "You're a teacher, Bonnie. Be honest. What do you make?" Bonnie, who had a reputation for honesty and frankness replied, "You want to know what I make? (She paused for a second, then began...) "Well, I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could. I make a C+ feel like the Congressional Medal of Honor. I make kids sit through 40 minutes of class time when their parents can't make them sit for 5 without an I Pod, Game Cube or movie rental... You want to know what I make?" (She paused again and looked at each and every person at the table.) I make kids wonder. I make them question. I make them criticize. I make them apologize and mean it. I make them have respect and take responsibility for their actions. I teach them to write and then I make them write. I make them read, read, read. I make them show all their work in math. I make my students from other countries learn everything they need To know in English while preserving their unique cultural identity. I make my classroom a place where all my students feel safe. I make my students stand to say the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag because we live in the United States of America. Finally, I make them understand that if they use the gifts they were given, work hard, and follow their hearts, they can succeed in life. (Bonnie paused one last time and then continued.) "Then, when people try to judge me by what I make, I can hold my head up high and pay no attention because they are ignorant... You want to know what I make? I MAKE A DIFFERENCE. What do you make?"

Performance Tips for Recitals

1 Try not to be too confident, angry, sad or too happy.

2 Try not to think things like "I couldn't practice very well because..." "The audience is too noisy" "The recital hall is too dark" "It sounded so much better at home" "Cold weather made my fingers so stiff" Instead, think about what is going on in your music, every measure until the end.

3 Perfect practice or performance rarely happens. Just do your best and keep going no matter what.

4 Practice with ONE HAND WITHOUT PEDAL everyday. It is one of the shortest ways to find a problem spot (memory slips, mental block, etc.) of the piece.

5 ?Dangerous? parts should be recognized and practiced thoroughly every day.

6 Practice without the pedal.

7 Practice also with both hands SLOWLY without pedal everyday.

8 Shortly before the performance, at least a week before, record your performance with no stops.

9 Recordings also help detect any dangerous parts. Listen to the tape, check everything for accuracy.

10 Ask your parents or a friend to listen to your piece(s) before a recital. (Say "please"...and "thank you") This will help you to play under pressure and also help you find your tricky parts of the piece.

11 Try to play with a radio or tape in the background so you can "tune it out". This can help with concentration during the recital.

12 Be sure to practice your bow and SMILE! (Bow your head and upper body while you silently say ?I LOVE MY SHOES!? (I took this tip from Carol Noona.)

13 Be as healthy as possible on the day of the recital - Be sure to wash your hands before you play. (BUT NOT RIGHT BEFORE YOU PLAY!) Sticky, slippery fingers can cause problems - Try to get enough rest the night before.

The absolute all-time best advice is . . . Just do your best and be sure to SMILE!

Another recital

Our 2nd recital on Thursday, May 22, was a wonderful time of celebration of the students (and parents!) accomplishment. I appreciate so much the part of the "lesson triangle" that is accomplished away from my studio - the parents and the students. You can really see how the diligence in practice paid off! Two middle school age girls played Timothy Brown's arrangement of Swan Lake in the newly published In Recital with Duets. and I thought the sound was just gorgeous. We had senior high students who played Bach, Chopin, Mozart, Beethoven, and early intermediate students who played pieces by Melody Bober, Ronald Bennett, Christopher Norton, Nancy Faber, plus beginning students who started between one and three months ago. I truly appreciate all of their hard work that makes a program like this possible. At both recitals all the moms got a long stemmed rose for each piano student in their family that I've taught. Many moms remarked how nice that little gesture was. I read somewhere recently that the success of a music student directly relates to their mom's encouragement. I think it was nice for them to be acknowledged in this way. Many students worked diligently to receive their awards - trophies, certificates and ribbons for piano exams, theory exams, and state contest finalist certificates.

Note: A special thank you to the parents who went out of their way to encourage me! I am truly grateful.

Recitals

Last night we had our first of two spring recitals. I always think it's so enjoyable to sit back and just listen to what my students have accomplished during the year. For refreshments I decided to go on the easy side and bought chocolate chunk brownies and put my own fudge frosting on them. I also included mini-eclairs and mini cream puffs, plus cheesecake squares from Sam's Club. I found that if I left these frozen until right before the recital, then put them out on a plate, they were perfectly thawed when it came time to eat. For drinks I bought small pop cans in a variety of kinds at Cub. The food worked out great, the students played great and I think everyone was happy. I handed out trophies for 4 jr-sr high students. Trophies are based on accomplishing 8 items out of 20 suggestions on my trophy list, so it represents a significant amount of work. I've structured the trophy ideas so a student of any age and progress can attain a trophy in 1 school year if they work at it. It's always very interesting to me that the students who earn trophies are also those who earn other awards: state contest finalists, National Guild awards, theory exams and piano exams.

Is Your Piece A Perfect 10?

I once had a student who was a very good figure skater got the idea for a "perfect 10" piece:

1 Correct Notes = 1 point
2 Correct Fingering = 1 point
3 Correct Rhythm = 1 point
4 Accurate & Steady tempo = 1 point
5 Dynamics = 1 point
6 Articulation & Phrasing = 1 point
7 Know the musical terms = 1 point
8 Know the key of the piece = 1 point
9 Know the form of the piece = 1 point
10 Memorized = 1 point

The Meanest Mother

I heard this the first time from my pastor in my teen years. I appreciated it even then.

The Meanest Mother In The World
Copyright 1967 by Bobbie Pingaro

I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast. When others had cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. As you can guess, my supper was different than the other kids' also.

But at least, I wasn't alone in my sufferings. My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did.

My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times. You'd think we were on a chain gang. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. She insisted if we said we'd be gone an hour, that we be gone one hour or less--not one hour and one minute. I am nearly ashamed to admit it, but she actually struck us. Not once, but each time we had a mind of our own and did as we pleased. That poor belt was used more on our seats than it was to hold up Daddy's pants. Can you imagine someone actually hitting a child just because he disobeyed? Now you can begin to see how mean she really was.

We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath. The other kids always wore their clothes for days. We reached the height of insults because she made our clothes herself, just to save money. Why, oh why, did we have to have a mother who made us feel different from our friends?

The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning. We couldn't sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept-my mother actually had the nerve to break the child-labor law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, learn to cook and all sorts of cruel things. I believe she laid awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us.

She always insisted upon us telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, even if it killed us- and it nearly did.

By the time we were teen-agers, she was much wiser, and our life became even more unbearable. None of this tooting the horn of a car for us to come running. She embarrassed us to no end by making our dates and friends come to the door to get us. If I spent the night with a girlfriend, can you imagine she checked on me to see if I were really there. I never had the chance to elope to Mexico. That is if I'd had a boyfriend to elope with. I forgot to mention, while my friends were dating at the mature age of 12 and 13, my old fashioned mother refused to let me date until the age of 15 and 16. Fifteen, that is, if you dated only to go to a school function. And that was maybe twice a year.

Through the years, things didn't improve a bit. We could not lie in bed, "sick" like our friends did, and miss school. If our friends had a toe ache, a hang nail or serious ailment, they could stay home from school. Our marks in school had to be up to par. Our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing. My mother being as different as she was, would settle for nothing less than ugly black marks.

As the years rolled by, first one and then the other of us was put to shame. We were graduated from high school. With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out.

My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education. None of us have ever been arrested, divorced or beaten his mate. Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country. And whom do we have to blame for the terrible way we turned out? You're right, our mean mother. Look at the things we missed. We never got to march in a protest parade, nor to take part in a riot, burn draft cards, and a million and one other things that our friends did. She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults.

Using this as a background, I am trying to raise my three children. I stand a little taller and I am filled with pride when my children call me mean. Because, you see, I thank God, He gave me the meanest mother in the whole world.

Repertoire Practice Log

This week I dragged out this repertoire practice chart that I often use for intermediate to advanced students. It's fabulous how one week of half speed practice can whip their rough spots into shape. At first, no one thinks they can play at a speed of 60 per quarter or below. (My teacher said to me once that in her doctoral studies her professor made everyone play their pieces at 40 to the q.) After we've done it together at that speed (60-65) 3 times I ask the student what they think now. They always say, "It's easier." Seems like a lightbulb comes on. I can't claim this idea, though. I got it in a handout on teaching intermediate students from Mary Beth Shaffer. Thanks to her, my students will be much better prepared for their recitals in two weeks. (BTW, it works with younger students, too.)

REPERTOIRE PRACTICE LOG

	M	T	W	TH	F	SA	SU	TOTAL
1/2 speed met.=
3/4 speed met.=
Practice Spots
A tempo met.=
Other

Super Parents!

I heard the nicest comment from a parent today! "Every penny I have spent has paid off. Emily used to not want to practice, and now I can't get her to stop!" (. . . and the student says all she wants to do when she gets home from school is practice . . . hmm, I think I can handle that! mv) Shelli R., Brooklyn Park

Symphony of Support for Pushing the Piano

SYMPHONY OF SUPPORT FOR PUSHING THE PIANO
I came across these interesting letters to Dear Abby, first published in the Los Angeles Times:

DEAR ABBY: Your advice to force children to practice was right on the mark. Most children hate to practice, and our son and daughter were no exception. My husband got tired of all the fighting and crying, and said, "Let them quit ! it's too much of a hassle." I said: "Over my dead body!" After that, there were very few arguments. Today, our daughter, Marylou Churchill, sits principal second violin in the Boston Symphony, and our son, Paul, studied cello at Juilliard and toured with the Mantovani Orchestra.
-MARIAN SPEAKER San Mateo, California

DEAR MARIAN: Congratulations. Read on for more letters from parents who refused to cave in when their children wanted to quit:

DEAR ABBY: I?m a mother who forced her children to practice. Why not? It was for their own good. We force our children to take baths, brush their teeth, eat their vegetables, turn off the TV and do their homework, don?t we? My son wanted to quit piano when he was 10. I said ?No way ? you are not quitting!? I knew that my judgement was better than a child?s. Today he is a conductor and professor at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music.
-EILEEN GIOVANAZZI La Mesa, Calif.

DEAR ABBY: I grew up in a music family. Our parents had a very effective way to get my brother and me to practice. We were told, ?Either you do the dishes ? or practice.? So my brother and I practiced a lot. I?ve been playing the piano for 35 years, and today my brother is an accomplished guitarist.
-MARK ALLEN DONITCH San Rafael, Calif.

DEAR ABBY: When our children first began taking piano lessons, I was told, ?The measure of the child?s success is directly related to the determination of the mother.? It?s true. I was the one who drove our three children to their music lessons for eights years and insisted they practice. When they wanted to quit, I not only paid them to practice, I gave them a cash bonus for every outstanding lesson. (Very few children are self-motivated.) It got them over the hump, and eventually they learned to appreciate music. In retrospect, it was well worth the struggle.
PROUD MOM IN TUCSON, Ariz.

DEAR ABBY: I am a girl in the seventh grade. I?ve been taking piano since the first grade. I?ve never liked practicing and never will. There were lots of fights about practicing and I always ended up crying. My mother threatened to stop the lessons, but I?m glad she never did. I still hate to practice, but I love to play.
-A GIRL IN SPRINGFIELD, Va.

DEAR ABBY: Years ago we lived across the street from a music-loving Italian family in London, Ontario. There were four sons and one daughter. I can still see the mother chasing her kids with a hickory stick trying to get them to go take their music lessons. Their last name was Lombardo, which may ring a bell with your older readers.
R.J. CALHOUN Clearwater, Fla.