Saturday, February 4, 2012
Feb. 3, 2012
On this day in 1959, we lost Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and the Big Bopper in a tragic plane crash. If you're old enough, you might remember exactly where you were when you heard the news. I do. I was in fifth grade, and I heard the news at recess. Even then I sensed significance.
Now here's some interesting math (again for you older readers). It was in 1972 that Don Mc Lean recorded his immortal hit "American Pie" which alluded to the tragic plane crash. He referred to it as "The Day the Music Died."
Here's the weird part (to me). The time elapsed between the event and the song was just 13 years. Yet the time elapsed between the song and the present...40 years. Can't be. But it is.
To this day whenever I hear a Buddy Holly song on the radio, I think about what might have happened if he lived. One of the top songs on the record charts at the time Holly died: That'll Be the Day That I Die.
Reminder: 2012 Piano Retreat is now taking enrollments. www.pianofun.com/wordpress
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Tip 10: Identify your weaknesses. (And address them.)
For years I was an undisciplined musician. Or more accurately, I would hover between discipline and otherwise. I'll exclude my days taking piano lessons as a child, because back then everything was orchestrated by adults. The grown ups determined who I'd take lessons from (and when), when and for how long I would do my practicing, what pieces I would learn to play, what I would do for my recitals, etc.
I was just a kid, and my passion for learning music hadn't kicked in yet. Discipline was not an option.
When the music bug finally did kick in, it hit me hard; and it wasn't the piano that kick started it, it was guitar. I started learning guitar about the time the folk music craze hit the culture, circa 1961. So here I was between 14 and 16 years of age, when Peter, Paul and Mary stormed in. Pete Seeger was a big influence. Bluegrass. Old Timey. Irish. I just soaked it all up. Then Bob Dylan came along, and I was mesmorized.
I played guitar constantly. I'd rush home from school, get the homework out of the way as soon as possible, and spend the rest of the evening in my room with my old Silvertone acoustic. Nirvana.
That alone doesn't mean I was disciplined. Obsessed, yes. But not always disciplined. But sometimes I was. I recall about a three month period where I was determined to learn three-finger picking. I was painfully learning it out of Pete Seeger's Folksinger's Guitar Guide. It was days of obsessive pain. The days turned to weeks, the weeks to months. I wasn't really getting it, but I was determined to stick it out.
Then one day, all of a sudden it came to me. I could three finger pick. I was a three month overnight sensation.
That was an example of discipline. But here's the kicker. Unfortunately I did NOT progress much further on guitar for a long time, and here's why. Once I hit the three-finger picking plateau, I kind of coasted. I was happy with my achievement and became complacent. I had attained a certain level of achievement with my guitar playing. And that's what I played. I reinforced my strengths, through continual playing in my new comfort zone. And that's a good thing.
But had I been really interested in improving my guitar playing, I would have addressed myself to my weaknesses (of which I had plenty). I didn't acknowledge my weaknesses. I was in total denial. Although I had plenty of role models to listen to, I did not make much of a conscious effort to play like them. I just kept with my three finger picking.
If you are a piano player (or any kind of musician), it's up to you to decide if you want to get better. Human nature is such that almost all musicians I've ever met, and I've met quite a few, wish to become better musicians. Insane? Maybe. But that's the nature of learning music.
Others might worship you as a musician, based upon your current skills. But you know you can do better. And it kills you, because we all know what it takes to become a better musician, right? Practice, practice, practice.
Actually, there's more to it than that. It's not just practice. It's knowing WHAT to practice. I tell my beginning students that there is no reason ever to practice the piano. Of course they are astonished to hear those words coming from a music teacher. But then comes the punchline. "Just play," is my frivolous follow up. Okay, that's kind of a joke with a little truth thrown in.
The real truth, however, is that making music is a combination of practicing and playing. We PRACTICE so that we can PLAY better. When we PLAY, we have a natural tendency to play to our STRENGTHS. When we PRACTICE, however, we need to practice to our WEAKNESSES. We need to address the areas of our playing where we are weak, and devise a prescription for making ourselves stronger.
So how do we go about that? A good music teacher (make that a VERY good music teacher) can assess your weaknesses AND find ways of addressing them. My hunch is this works better in the field of classical music than in pop, owing to the relative dearth of pop piano teachers and their almost non-existent formal training, especially in the field of pedagogy. In absence of such a teacher, you're going to have to find and correct your weaknesses yourself. Here we go.
It's not easy to distill the essence of musicianship into a finite number of categories. There are just too many subtlties. But for the sake of illustrating the point, let's look at just five:
technique
repertoire
rhythm
improvisation
theory
Chances are if you're like me, you could use some work in all five areas. In that case, you need to prioritize. So take a careful look at your piano playing. Record it. Analyze it. See if some of these symptoms apply to you.
So once you have listed a few symptoms, you can refer to the chart above to try to pinpoint the problem. And then you can go about working on the solutions by using the chart below. Here are just a few ideas.
The point is, don't just do what's fun to do unless it doesn't bother you not to make progress. We get weak in certain areas, because we neglect to work in those areas. And the reason we neglect to work in such areas, quite possibly, is that it's not very fun to do so. So we end up trapped within a vicious circle of stagnation.
These suggestions are just examples. There are many other areas of music in which we can work and improve. Recording yourself can help a lot. So can getting the opinions of others.
I mentioned that there are resources out there to help you learn. We have a lot of good stuff for sale too. But remember that it's just information. It's there for you when you want it. But first it will be of real benefit to do the prep work and discover what's wrong with your playing, find the right information to help you solve what's wrong, and then do the work that it takes to make the corrections.
Of course when you do discover your weaknesses, it will be very helpful to write everything down in a log. Indicate your weakness, write down the name of the source of information you plan to use to fix it, write a specific game plan for working on the weakness (specify that you will spend exactly x minutes a day on this problem), and finally set a target date for when you will evaluate your success.
Then take the plunge. There is even a chance you'll discover that the sessions spent at the piano addressing your weaknesses will become fun after all. That's called success.
I was just a kid, and my passion for learning music hadn't kicked in yet. Discipline was not an option.
When the music bug finally did kick in, it hit me hard; and it wasn't the piano that kick started it, it was guitar. I started learning guitar about the time the folk music craze hit the culture, circa 1961. So here I was between 14 and 16 years of age, when Peter, Paul and Mary stormed in. Pete Seeger was a big influence. Bluegrass. Old Timey. Irish. I just soaked it all up. Then Bob Dylan came along, and I was mesmorized.
I played guitar constantly. I'd rush home from school, get the homework out of the way as soon as possible, and spend the rest of the evening in my room with my old Silvertone acoustic. Nirvana.
That alone doesn't mean I was disciplined. Obsessed, yes. But not always disciplined. But sometimes I was. I recall about a three month period where I was determined to learn three-finger picking. I was painfully learning it out of Pete Seeger's Folksinger's Guitar Guide. It was days of obsessive pain. The days turned to weeks, the weeks to months. I wasn't really getting it, but I was determined to stick it out.
Then one day, all of a sudden it came to me. I could three finger pick. I was a three month overnight sensation.
That was an example of discipline. But here's the kicker. Unfortunately I did NOT progress much further on guitar for a long time, and here's why. Once I hit the three-finger picking plateau, I kind of coasted. I was happy with my achievement and became complacent. I had attained a certain level of achievement with my guitar playing. And that's what I played. I reinforced my strengths, through continual playing in my new comfort zone. And that's a good thing.
But had I been really interested in improving my guitar playing, I would have addressed myself to my weaknesses (of which I had plenty). I didn't acknowledge my weaknesses. I was in total denial. Although I had plenty of role models to listen to, I did not make much of a conscious effort to play like them. I just kept with my three finger picking.
If you are a piano player (or any kind of musician), it's up to you to decide if you want to get better. Human nature is such that almost all musicians I've ever met, and I've met quite a few, wish to become better musicians. Insane? Maybe. But that's the nature of learning music.
Others might worship you as a musician, based upon your current skills. But you know you can do better. And it kills you, because we all know what it takes to become a better musician, right? Practice, practice, practice.
Actually, there's more to it than that. It's not just practice. It's knowing WHAT to practice. I tell my beginning students that there is no reason ever to practice the piano. Of course they are astonished to hear those words coming from a music teacher. But then comes the punchline. "Just play," is my frivolous follow up. Okay, that's kind of a joke with a little truth thrown in.
The real truth, however, is that making music is a combination of practicing and playing. We PRACTICE so that we can PLAY better. When we PLAY, we have a natural tendency to play to our STRENGTHS. When we PRACTICE, however, we need to practice to our WEAKNESSES. We need to address the areas of our playing where we are weak, and devise a prescription for making ourselves stronger.
So how do we go about that? A good music teacher (make that a VERY good music teacher) can assess your weaknesses AND find ways of addressing them. My hunch is this works better in the field of classical music than in pop, owing to the relative dearth of pop piano teachers and their almost non-existent formal training, especially in the field of pedagogy. In absence of such a teacher, you're going to have to find and correct your weaknesses yourself. Here we go.
It's not easy to distill the essence of musicianship into a finite number of categories. There are just too many subtlties. But for the sake of illustrating the point, let's look at just five:
technique
repertoire
rhythm
improvisation
theory
Chances are if you're like me, you could use some work in all five areas. In that case, you need to prioritize. So take a careful look at your piano playing. Record it. Analyze it. See if some of these symptoms apply to you.
| Symptom | Problem Type |
| hit a lot of wrong notes | technique |
| don't feel comfortable in certain keys | technique |
| don't feel in control | technique |
| not able to predict chords | repertoire/theory |
| get lost in songs | repertoire |
| can't take requests | repertoire |
| just have trouble memorizing | repertoire |
| tempo slows down | rhythm |
| tempo speeds up | rhythm |
| stop and go | rhythm |
| tied to the sheet music | improvisation |
| sounding dull/boring | improvisation |
| lack of intuition | theory |
| trouble with keys | theory |
So once you have listed a few symptoms, you can refer to the chart above to try to pinpoint the problem. And then you can go about working on the solutions by using the chart below. Here are just a few ideas.
| Problem Type | Solution |
| technique | Hanon exercises |
| scales | |
| exercise books | |
| your own exercises | |
| repertoire | learn x songs per week |
| different composers | |
| different styles/rhythms | |
| different keys | |
| rhythm | work with metronome |
| work with recordings | |
| rhythm instruction CD's | |
| improvisation | work with recordings |
| play along instructional media | |
| record yourself and play along | |
| theory | study theory books |
| learn more songs | |
| analyze music |
The point is, don't just do what's fun to do unless it doesn't bother you not to make progress. We get weak in certain areas, because we neglect to work in those areas. And the reason we neglect to work in such areas, quite possibly, is that it's not very fun to do so. So we end up trapped within a vicious circle of stagnation.
These suggestions are just examples. There are many other areas of music in which we can work and improve. Recording yourself can help a lot. So can getting the opinions of others.
I mentioned that there are resources out there to help you learn. We have a lot of good stuff for sale too. But remember that it's just information. It's there for you when you want it. But first it will be of real benefit to do the prep work and discover what's wrong with your playing, find the right information to help you solve what's wrong, and then do the work that it takes to make the corrections.
Of course when you do discover your weaknesses, it will be very helpful to write everything down in a log. Indicate your weakness, write down the name of the source of information you plan to use to fix it, write a specific game plan for working on the weakness (specify that you will spend exactly x minutes a day on this problem), and finally set a target date for when you will evaluate your success.
Then take the plunge. There is even a chance you'll discover that the sessions spent at the piano addressing your weaknesses will become fun after all. That's called success.
This is the 10th installment in our series of articles on hidden or obscure strategies for improving musicianship. These strategies are not intended to be a substitute for (I dislike this word) "practicing." To the contrary. Spending time playing your instrument is mightily important.
But think of these 22 ideas as strategies you can use in addition to your time in the woodshed. How does one find a label for these strategies? Subconscious? Metaphysical? Whatever word you want to use, go ahead. It's just that these ideas are not often presented to you as part of a musical instrument learning regimen. For earlier articles, check our blog archive.
Friday, June 17, 2011
Tip Nine: Play the best you can afford.
This is the ninth installment in our series of articles on hidden or obscure strategies for improving musicianship. These strategies are not intended to be a substitute for (I dislike this word) "practicing." To the contrary. Spending time playing your instrument is mightily important.
But think of these 22 ideas as strategies you can use in addition to your time in the woodshed. How does one find a label for these strategies? Subconscious? Metaphysical? Whatever word you want to use, go ahead. It's just that these ideas are not often presented to you as part of a musical instrument learning regimen. For earlier articles, check our blog archive.
It stands to reason you want to select a high quality instrument, both as a beginner and an advanced musician. This is more critical for some instruments than it is for others.
Take the guitar. You don't want to start a student on a bad guitar. Some guitars, due to warped necks and a host of other problems, are simply unplayable. They physically cause pain to the finger tips. They don't sound good.
And the worst thing is, a beginning student doesn't know the difference. We teachers understand that music students need to be motivated or they won't advance. The musical challenges are great enough as it is, we don't need extra roadblocks like a subpar instrument to derail a student's progress.
A quality instrument doesn't guarantee a student will become successful, but a bad instrument can adversely affect even the most gifted and motivated of students.
The guitar may be an extreme example, but the same principal applies to piano students. A bad piano may not directly cause blisters and carpal tunnel syndrome, but it could have some serious negative effects.
So do you need to run out and buy your six year old a nine foot Steinway? The Steinway salesman may disagree, but the answer to that is no. Then how do you tell a good piano from a bad one?
Everything else being equal, a grand piano is usually better than a vertical piano. Start with that. What, you can't afford a grand piano (or you don't have the room)? Okay, a vertical will do. Now the rule is, the longer the strings, the better. Thus, (again, all other things being equal) an upright piano would be better than a spinet. In fact a spinet should be your last choice (but don't completely count it out).
There are actually a couple of sizes in between spinet and upright. Just above spinet is console. A lot of the smaller Japanese pianos are in this category. Above console is studio (these are institutional pianos, made mostly for schools, churches, libraries, and the like).
The next consideration: how well has the piano been maintained over its life? Was it tuned once a year like it should or once every three presidential administrations? Is it in tune now (reasonably)? Do all the keys work? Any obvious flaws with the frame or the sounding board?
Then there are the subjective evaluations. How does it sound? How does it play? If you are not a piano player yourself, you'll probably need to get an outside opinion if you're shopping around.
I myself started on a crappy spinet. It was all my parents could afford. I still have it. Then as an adult I got an old used upright. Later when I turned pro I got a really nice (for a spinet) spinet. I got that so I could move it around, and take it to gigs. I still have that one too. Then I finally got a nice medium sized grand piano which I really love.
But the grand piano spoiled me. I go back and play the two spinets, and I wonder how I ever survived playing them. People know me as being really cheap in a lot of areas. But I never cheap out on a musical instrument. They are just too important.
So if it's for your child, get the best instrument you can afford. They won't appreciate it early on, but they'll be statistically more inclined to stay with music with something of quality to play on. And they'll thank you later.
As for yourself. You're going to want the best if nothing else than for pride of ownership. Psychology 101 tells us the bigger the investment, the more you'll play. The more you play, the better you get. The better you get plus the better the quality of the instrument, the better you sound overall.
A more expensive instrument may even be more economical in the long run. If you compute the cost in terms of dollars per hour spent playing, a more expensive instrument may actually be cheaper than a cheaper one. Of course there's things like resale value and trade in value to consider too, but we don't even need to count that.
Buy the best. You and your children deserve it.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Piano Camp Frequently Asked Questions
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Q. What is Piano Camp?
A. It's a two day experience of classes, workshops, guided practice, and personal coaching in the art pop piano playing.
Q. Is it for beginners?
A. There will be two tracks, one for beginners and one for those beyond the beginning stage. Absolute beginners are encouraged. The second track (Beyond) is designed for those students who have taken the Instant Piano Workshop designed by Robert Laughlin or those who already have a little background in pop/chord piano playing.
Q. Who is behind it?
A. The workshop is presented by the New School of American Music. They were founded in 1982 and have directly or indirectly been responsible for teaching hundreds of thousands of students nationwide in their One Day Workshops. These workshops are given primarily in college non-credit programs, in almost all 50 states and in Canada.
Q. Who is teaching it?
A. Over 300 piano teachers have been trained to give these workshops. However the bulk of the sessions at Piano Camp will be taught personally either by the designer of the course, Robert Laughlin or by his wife Pam.
Q. What do I need to know already?
A. Nothing really. However, if you wish a head start you can download a pamphlet to study at www.pianofun.com/newsletters.html
Q. Will there be pianos for everyone?
A. We will have four or five keyboards available for campers. And there will be ample time for practice. But I can't guarantee that there will be a keyboard available for everyone all the time. Therefore, I encourage you to bring a portable keyboard with you, if you have one. If enough people do that, there won't be a shortage. But it's the only way I can guarantee you will have an instrument to play 100% of the time. If you cannot bring your own instrument, I will guarantee you'll have access to one of our instruments at least SOME of the time.
Q. How effective is the curriculum and staff?
A. Robert Laughlin, the designer of this program and lead teacher at Piano Camp, has personally given the basic Instant Piano workshop to almost 25,000 students over a span of almost 30 years. The course has been consistently rated as one of the best courses offered by the dozens of college non-credit programs in which it has been taught. This is not just an idle boast. We have thousands of evaluations in our files, and we get unsolicited praises about the course on a regular basis.
Q. Will classical music be covered too?
A. No. Just pop.
Q. What's the difference in teaching or learning classical vs. pop?
A. Classical music revolves around reading music notation, which is a long process with a steep learning curve. Pop music revolves around chords, a much easier system.
Q. Will there be private instruction?
A. The instructors plan on helping everyone out with their individual needs during the guided practice sessions. There you will have one-on-one contact with the instructors.
Q. What is the deadline for the tuition discount?
A. June 22 at midnight.
Q. What about sleeping arrangements for Saturday night?
A. Sleeping is bunkhouse style. The bunk houses have about a dozen single cots with mattresses. You bring your own sleeping bag or bedding. The bunkhouses are segregated by sex. If you wish, you can opt for a private room upgrade for yourself or your family. Those come with a semi-private bathroom. Again, bring your own bedding. More info on facilities and what to bring are at the Walker Creek Ranch web site. Be sure to read the list of essentials before leaving for camp.
Q. Where is Walker Creek Ranch located?
A. Less than an hour north of San Francisco and less than an hour from the famous Napa Valley wine country, the ranch is located on several acres of pristine natural foothill topography. It's currently used as a nature camp for the Marin County school system. Aside from the wildlife, you won't see any neighbors. It's really beautiful and ideal for short hikes and explorations during your free time.
Q. What about meals?
A. You will get lunch and dinner on Saturday and breakfast and lunch on Sunday. It's all served cafeteria style and is actually pretty good. Vegetarian meals are available and they can accommodate special needs. Be sure to inquire ahead of time.
Q. Where can I get more information?
A. These links.
Walker Creek Ranch: http://www.walkercreekranch.org/newpdfs/confguestinfo.pdf
Registration: http://www.pianofun.com/camp/orderform_pc.html
Friday, May 27, 2011
Pianofun Piano Camp Schedule
Here's the Piano Camp agenda. Note there are two tracks. Campers are free to take either of the two tracks. Or skip around between the two. Or combine the piano sessions with the VIBO Family Camp sessions where they will offer guitar, percussion, violin, cello, ukulele, woodwinds, vocals, dance, and more. That schedule will be published shortly.
For one low price campers can take up to 11 sessions over the two days, and it includes the Family Song Circle, Faculty Concert, Jam Session, and Talent Show.
Also great food, great people, great environment, fresh air, close to the wine country, and the over all wonderful vibes one gets from an event of this nature.
As you read the schedule keep in mind that the Basic Track is designed for those who have not taken the Instant Piano workshop from Robert. The Beyond Track is for those who have taken Instant Piano and want more information of this kind or those who have a background in chord piano already.
July 23 - 24
Walker Creek Ranch, Marin Co., California
Info on the location.
Piano Camp Schedule
| Basic Track | Beyond Track | |
| (beginners) | (intermediates) | |
| 10-10:45 am: | Reading Notes | More notation skills |
| 11-11:45am: | Intro to Chords | Super Exercises |
| 12-1pm: Lunch | ||
| 1-1:45pm | Keys, Time, etc | Adding Pizzazz |
| 2-2:45pm | Guided Practice | Guided Practice |
| 3-3:45pm | open | open |
| 4-4:45pm | open | open |
| 5-6pm | Q and A | Q and A |
| 6-7pm | ||
| Dinner | ||
| 7:30-8:45pm | ||
| Family Song Circle | ||
| 9-10pm | ||
| Faculty Performances | ||
| 10pm | ||
| Jam Sessions | ||
| Sunday, July 24 | ||
| 8-9am: Breakfast | ||
| 9-9:45am | Beginner Issues | Int. Issues |
| 10-10:45am | Arranging Demo | Arranging Demo |
| 11-11:45am | Guided Practice | Guided Practice |
| 12-1pm: Lunch | ||
| 1-1:45pm | open | open |
| 2pm | ||
| Family Talent Show |
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Piano Camp 2011 Costs and Reg Form
Click on the link below to view all the costs of Piano Camp. They're all in the Registration Form.
http://www.pianofun.com/camp/orderform_pc.html
To quickly summarize, the cost to attend camp
(tuition) will be $150. That's for a total of 12
sessions over two days, plus the song circles,
faculty recital, jams, etc.
In addition there is a cost for food (of course)
and lodging. See the form for all the options and
details. But it's really reasonable. And the food
is good. I can attest to that.
There will be eight full sessions in Piano Camp
(just devoted to piano), plus dozens of other
courses offered through the Family Camp. You are
welcome to take any courses in either of the two
camps. It's all included in this one price.
Now for some good news. There is a 20% discount
for children and very young children attend free.
And I managed to finagle an early bird discount
for everybody else. If you enroll by June 1 (next
Wednesday) you can take the entire camp for just
$118. After that it goes back up to $150.
You could easily pay $118 just for two or three
private piano lessons. But here you can soak up
two whole days of nothing but piano. Or you can
mix these piano sessions with the other sessions
from family camp.
The camp will be very informative and very fun.
The bulk of the sessions will be taught by yours
truly.
More info shortly. But now here is the
registration link.
http://www.pianofun.com/camp/orderform_pc.html
Other Info
Dates of Camp: Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24
Info on the location.
http://www.walkercreekranch.org/newpdfs/confguestinfo.pdf
Proudly Announcing Pianofun Piano Camp
This is the most exciting thing we've done in a
long time. Maybe ever. I'll send you detailed info
very soon. But this is what I can reveal now.
The dates: Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24
The location: Walker Creek Ranch, near Petaluma in
Marin County, Northern California.
The agenda: Eight sessions of just piano, over a
two day period. Includes guided practicing with
one-on-one coaching. Two curricula. One for
absolute beginners (including children) and the
other for those who have studied the Instant Piano
Course or who have some previous experience with
pop chord style piano.
Lodging and meals provided (or you can opt to take
care of that yourself).
Held in conjunction with the Vibo Music Family
camp where you and your family members can opt to
take other courses in topics such as guitar,
ukulele, percussion, dance, jazz vocals, violin,
cello, from a staff of first rate teachers.
Plus you are welcome to participate in family song
night, listen to a faculty concert, participate in
a community band, and an evening jam session. All
of this in a safe, nurturing environment, in a
beautiful, natural setting, just minutes away from
California Wine Country.
I'll get you more information very soon. In the
mean time you can reserve the weekend on your
calendar.
Saturday, July 23 and Sunday, July 24
Info on the location.
http://www.walkercreekranch.org/newpdfs/confguestinfo.pdf
Oh. And the cost will be very, very reasonable. So
reasonable you'll be able to bring the entire
family.
Here are some of the features of just the Piano
Camp.
Two Basic Tracks: Beginner and Beyond
BEGINNER TRACK
The beginner track is for those who know little or
nothing about music or the piano. We also welcome
those who have studied only classical (notation
based) piano and who want to learn the chord
system from scratch.
Goal: To enable the beginner to play any song on
the piano with two hands by the end of camp. (Yes,
you heard that right. Any song, two hands).
BEYOND TRACK
The "Beyond" Track is for those who have already
studied the Pianofun Instant Piano method or who
have had some basic background in chord style
piano and want to hone their skills.
Goal: To learn strategies to improve your piano
playing skills and knowledge of chords. We will
also explore many of the tricks, techniques, and
sneaky little secrets used by pro piano players.
There will be a total of eight sessons on just
piano out of the 11 slots the camp offers. There
will be a minimum of two piano instructors, one to
handle mostly the beginners, the other to work
with mostly the intermediates.
Campers are free to combine Family Camp classes
with Piano Camp classes and participate in the
Family Song Circle, listen to the Faculty Recital,
the jam sessions, the ensembles, and everything
else the camp has to offer.
It's actually a great opportunity to learn more
about piano while your kids (or grandkids) take
some really fun music and dance lessons from the
skilled instructors.
And best of all, there will be NO ADDITIONAL COST
FOR PIANO CAMP. It's all included.
So mark your calendar: July 23 and 24.
Info on the location.
http://www.walkercreekranch.org/newpdfs/confguestinfo.pdf
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Hi, I'm Robert Laughlin, and this is my blog. After learning the piano in my early twenties, I played professionally in my late twenties. Then traded the bar rooms for class rooms. Want to learn to play piano? Give me three and a half hours with you, and you're there.
