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63 members (AlkansBookcase, Barry_Braksick, danno858, BadSanta, danbot3, Animisha, Burkhard, 14 invisible),
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Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 45
Full Member
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Full Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 45 |
I have only one student - - my 9-year-old grandson -- and no other teaching experience. (In fact I continue my own piano studies with a teacher.) Because my grandson stays with me several days a week, we have a weekly lesson and I can listen to his practices. (I try to stay out of the way of the practice sessions and let him work things out as much as possible.)
Because he has ADD and petit mal epilepsy, for which he takes meds that can make him more emotional and easily frustrated, I never know how lessons are going to go and he can try the patience of a saint. (His parents aren't $$ able to afford lessons with a real teacher, and I'm not sure he'd want to go elsewhere right now.) But he's a smart kid, and has musical aptitude, so given that he's not allowed to engage in other activities like biking, martial arts, contact sports, etc. -- I stick with it.
The moments that pay off for me is hearing him exclaim often during practice - - "I LOVE this bit!" or "wow, that's really cool" when a musical motif suddenly clicks with him. The other day I heard him say "I just want to play this one line a hundred times!"
That's what keeps me going with him.
Working on:
Chopin Ballade No. 1
Janacek "On An Overgrown Path"
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 194
Full Member
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Full Member
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 194 |
LOL. What you had is called "Night Terrors". It happens about 4am. If you ever wake up at 4am and are worrying about just everything, relax - try to go back to sleep - and know that in the morning, it won't seem to be a big deal. Whatever it is, suddenly seems quite managable. Once I learned about this common condition, I completely changed. Now if I wake up and see that it's 4am, I won't let myself worry. I know it's most often Night Terrors. Not really Pollyanna, but two nights ago, I woke up in the night freaking out. A few weeks before, I had called a recital venue to see what dates and times they had available. I then called my students' parents (I run a pretty small studio right now because my children are small and I can't handle more at this stage) to see if any of them would be out of town on May 25 or June 1. I was particularly worried because May 25th is Memorial Day weekend, and June 1st is right after school gets out. Anyway, we all settled on June 1st at 1:00 p.m. I sent out an official email telling everyone. But a couple of nights ago, I woke up and wasn't sure I'd actually called the venue back to schedule it with them. My mind was racing. What if the slot was now filled? What if I had to reschedule the recital? How unprofessional! Could I maybe find another venue on the same date and time? Where? I couldn't fall back to sleep for an hour. I couldn't wait until 10:00 the next morning, when the venue opened, so I could call them and confirm my appointment. Yeah. They confirmed that I have that date and time booked. The middle-of-the-night freakout was for nothing. I'm feeling more than a little silly. But you know? I think teaching piano is kind of in my bones, and for some odd reason, that makes me feel good. 
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 194
Full Member
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Full Member
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 194 |
Oops. Made a mistake. It's "Night Hysteria", not Night Terrors. Night Terrors are what little kids get.
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Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 469
Full Member
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Full Member
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 469 |
Piano teacher since 2008, festivals chair for local chapter of NFMC, dabbling composer of pedagogical music
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Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 1,654
1000 Post Club Member
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OP
1000 Post Club Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 1,654 |
Oops. Made a mistake. It's "Night Hysteria", not Night Terrors. Night Terrors are what little kids get. I was told this night hysteria is a symptom of menopause 
Piano Teacher
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Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 469
Full Member
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Full Member
Joined: Apr 2010
Posts: 469 |
I hope not! I'm only 29.
Piano teacher since 2008, festivals chair for local chapter of NFMC, dabbling composer of pedagogical music
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Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,336
3000 Post Club Member
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3000 Post Club Member
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,336 |
Well, I would just like to announce, we did our piano party today, and all went swimmingly! Comments from parents were (1) everyone played well, which they did and (2) it was well organised which it wasn't, but clearly good enough. I had 23 performing and I was really anxious about how long it was going to be, and all the children getting bored and fidgeting, but all was well. We spent about 10 min on warmup songs, then 30 min of performances. Then we had bhajis and brownies and popcorn and cupcakes, all wonderful! Just wanted to tell the world, that's all! 
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Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 1,654
1000 Post Club Member
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OP
1000 Post Club Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 1,654 |
Well, I would just like to announce, we did our piano party today, and all went swimmingly! Comments from parents were (1) everyone played well, which they did and (2) it was well organised which it wasn't, but clearly good enough. I had 23 performing and I was really anxious about how long it was going to be, and all the children getting bored and fidgeting, but all was well. We spent about 10 min on warmup songs, then 30 min of performances. Then we had bhajis and brownies and popcorn and cupcakes, all wonderful! Just wanted to tell the world, that's all! Congratulations!!!! Sounds like a success and lots of fun! "Swimmingly"...wow, it's 110 degrees here and if I were teaching today we would all rather be in a swimming pool!
Piano Teacher
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Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,336
3000 Post Club Member
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3000 Post Club Member
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,336 |
Yes, I still can't believe it!
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 2,651
2000 Post Club Member
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2000 Post Club Member
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 2,651 |
I'm happy for you, ten left thumbs.
But I'm curious. What are bhajis?
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Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,336
3000 Post Club Member
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3000 Post Club Member
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,336 |
Indian hors d'ouvres. Deep fried with vegetables and (I think) chick-pea flour.
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Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 2,651
2000 Post Club Member
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2000 Post Club Member
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 2,651 |
Indian hors d'ouvres. Deep fried with vegetables and (I think) chick-pea flour. Sounds delicious!
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Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,336
3000 Post Club Member
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3000 Post Club Member
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 3,336 |
It was! Fresh and good.
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