Piano from Scratch

Now we'll take a look at the left hand portion. Since we have so many ledger lines coming down below the G clef staff for the left hand, I make a new set of mnemonics to help find those lower notes more quickly. I then cut out cookie cutter portions of the left hand to better show how to distribute your hand position across the run. Remember, we're using our right hand to "rescue" two of the top notes. We'll continue working on the last portion of the notes going down in the next lesson, as it will involve a slightly tricky fingering.

We start with a portion of the right hand, including the extra notes that will be "scooped" from the left hand part.  To make things a bit easier, I redraw the left hand notes on the same staff lines with the right hand part.  When playing thirds (two notes at a time in one hand), try to lift the non-playing fingers out of the way for better connections.

Thanks to the wizardry of the folks at Ashbury Music Hall, I'm now able to offer private, online lessons to anyone, anywhere, anytime!

I'm now offering a 4-week introductory course for piano students of all levels, with a focus on classical music for intermediate and advanced pianists. We will interact through the Ashbury Music Hall website, where we'll be able to record and post video responses to each other directly on the site itself. We'll also be able to record audio clips and post text comments, as well as share annotated sheet music files.

You will need to be able to record video via a computer webcam (or some other video camera that will allow you to upload video files) as well as audio, either through the computer's internal microphones, or with an external USB microphone like the Blue Snowball or the Samson C01U USB condenser microphone. Feel free to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if you need help setting up your equipment for online lessons.

I look forward to seeing you at your first lesson!

 

I'd like to invite you to sign up for lessons with me at Ashbury Music Hall, covering Debussy's "Clair de lune" from scratch, right from the comfort of your own home! My 12- week course lessons are designed for beginners who have never played the piano before or read a note of music. We'll use the piece itself to learn the basics of music notation and piano technique. Ashbury Music Hall makes it incredibly easy to post video and audio comments between teachers and students - all you need is a computer with a broadband internet connection and a way to record audio into your computer, and optionally a video recorder as well (see my video for details). I'll also work on a video to help with audio and video setups for students.

I'm looking forward to personally helping you learn to play Debussy's masterpiece "Clair de lune" - from scratch!