TEACHING PIANO in the TIME of COVID-19
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EXPLORE PIANO MAGAZINE PIANO MAGAZINE COVID-19 SPECIAL ISSUE 2020 | VOL 12 | NO 2 in the COVID-19 SPECIAL ISSUE 2020 SPECIAL COVID-19 TEACHING PIANO TIME OF COVID-19 • SPECIAL ISSUE • | Best Practices for Technology & Tools Maintaining Your Studio VOL 12 | NO 2 $12.99 VOL Teaching Individuals for & Your Health & Groups Online Teaching Online During the Pandemic CLAVIERCOMPANION.COM / a magazine for people who are passionate about the piano PIANO MAGAZINE ONLINE PUBLISHER The Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy EDITOR-IN-CHIEF / CHIEF CONTENT DIRECTOR Pamela D. Pike LEARNING SENIOR EDITOR / DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL CONTENT WHAT YOU’LL Andrea McAlister The Future of Music Education FIND INSIDE SENIOR EDITORS Steve Betts • Craig Sale COVERAGE OF THE COLUMN EDITORS Using the power of technology, NEWEST TRENDS & IDEAS Linda Christensen, Technology Vanessa Cornett, Healthy Playing, Healthy Teaching the doors of online learning are IN PERFORMANCE Barbara Kreader Skalinder, Teaching now open to all. AND PEDAGOGY Nicholas Phillips, Recordings Suzanne Schons, Books, Materials and Music • Helen Smith Tarchalski, Keyboard Kids The Royal Conservatory of Music’s PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS Jerry Wong, International Richard Zimdars, Poetry Corner suite of online learning products FOR PIANO TEACHING & LEARNING PROFILES EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & CEO provide convenient and flexible online Jennifer Snow • options that will help teachers build DESIGN & PRODUCTION studio Chartreuse lesson plans and give students the LEADING PIANISTS & PEDAGOGUES COPY EDITORS opportunity to learn and earn RCM Rebecca Bellelo • Kristen Holland Shear recognition from the comfort of their THOUGHT-PROVOKING DIGITAL OPERATIONS own home! IDEAS FROM A RANGE Shana Kirk OF CONTRIBUTORS ADVERTISING COORDINATOR Anna Beth Rucker • CUSTOMER SUPPORT THE LATEST IDEAS Angela Triandafillou Jones ABOUT TEACHING PIANO CIRCULATION The Frances Clark Center for Keyboard Pedagogy ONLINE EDITORIAL BOARD Nancy Bachus Alejandro Cremashi Barbara Fast rcmusic.com/DigitalLearning Rebecca Grooms Johnson Scott McBride Smith 3 / PIANO MAGAZINE COVID-19 Special Issue 2020 Vol 12 No 2 / 1 CONTENTS CONTRIBUTORS REBECCA C. BELLELO DAVID CARTLEDGE LUWEN CHEN LINDA CHRISTENSEN ANDREW COOPERSTOCK VANESSA CORNETT ALEJANDRO CREMASCHI DIANA DUMLAVWALLA SARA M. ERNST ESTHER HAYTER Angela Triandafillou Jones teaches a student online, New School for Music Study, April 2020. LEARN TEACH CASEY HILDER CHU FANG HUANG ANGELA TRIANDAFILLOU JONES SHANA KIRK MELISSA MARTIROS 4 EDITOR'S LETTER 49 MENTAL & EMOTIONAL 12 THE NEW NORMAL 31 TEACHING VIA VIDEO: Pamela D. Pike WELL-BEING IN THE OF PIANO TEACHING HOW TO STILL BE TIME OF COVID-19 Shana Kirk "YOU!" 5 LESSONS FROM Vanessa Cornett David Cartledge TEACHERS IN CHINA 15 STRIVING FOR Jerry Wong with 55 PHYSICAL HEALTH EXCELLENCE IN ONLINE 36 TEACHING WITH Luwen Chen, Chu Fang & WELLNESS PIANO PEDAGOGY: MY MUSIC STAFF Huang, Matthew Quick CONSIDERATIONS CHARACTERISTICS Suzanne Schons & Yaokun Yang FOR ONLINE TEACHING OF EXPERT TEACHERS with Angela Triandafillou Vanessa Cornett USING THE VIDEO- Jones 10 KEEPING A STUDIO CONFERENCING ANDREA MCALISTER ARTINA MCCAIN REBECCA MERGEN PENNINGTON NICHOLAS PHILLIPS PAMELA D. PIKE RUNNING EFFECTIVELY 59 DELIVERING PIANOS FORMAT 38 TEACHING Rebecca Bellelo TO THE UNIVERSITY OF Diana Dumlavwalla ADVANCED PIANO MEMPHIS STUDENTS STUDENTS IN 19 SMILING FACES & Casey Hilder, 22 TEACHING GROUP UNCERTAIN TIMES ADAPTED APPROACHES Artina McCain CLASSES REMOTELY Andrew Cooperstock IN ONLINE LESSONS & Jonathan Tsay Esther Hayter, WITH CHILDREN Angela Triandafillou Jones, 40 THE BENEFITS Sara M. Ernst 62 TEACHING MUSIC Rebecca Pennington, OF TEACHING ONLINE: PAST, Allison Shinnick, ADVANCED STUDENTS 37 THE ROLE OF PRESENT, AND FUTURE Trevor Thornton REMOTELY TECHNOLOGY IN Pamela D. Pike Nicholas Phillips THIS TIME OF CRISIS 26 TOOLS FOR GROUP SCOTT PRICE MATTHEW QUICK SUZANNE SCHONS ALLISON SHINNICK JENNIFER SNOW Linda Christensen 65 LIFE IN MUSIC PIANO ONLINE 44 INCLUSIVE AND Jennifer Snow Alejandro Cremaschi ONLINE FOR 46 SUPPORTING OUR STUDENTS WHO ARE STUDENTS WHO ARE 66 TIP SHEETS FOR 29 CLASS PIANO SPECIAL LEARNERS AT-RISK TEACHING ONLINE & COVID-19 Scott Price Melissa Martiros Andrea McAlister ON THE COVER: Screenshots of COVID-19 Webinar Presenters, Frances Clark Center, March and April 2020. TREVOR THORNTON JONATHAN TSAY YAOKUN (ANGEL) YANG 2 / PIANO MAGAZINE Visit plasticfilmrecycling.org to find a recycling location for your magazine’s plastic poly bag. COVID-19 Special Issue 2020 Vol 12 No 2 / 3 LEARN LEARN EDITOR’S LETTER LESSONS from TEACHERS TEACHING PIANO in CHINA IN THE TIME OF COVID-19 Introduction by Jerry Wong Years from now I suspect we will all have our own stories of Wenzhou University where I teach has been postponed PAMELA D. PIKE to tell of how we were affected by COVID-19. From my own until further notice. In order to keep this semester on track, Editor-in-Chief/Chief Content Director perspective, colleagues in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, we have transitioned all the courses to online teaching. and Taiwan were the first to share updates of school closings and a new culture of all online, all the time. The Frankly speaking, I admit that my colleagues and I had our doubts about this new method of instruction when it Excellent piano teachers negotiate the delicate balance teaching online for over a decade, while others began their situation took on a different resonance as I began to hear first began. Truthfully, most of us were unprepared and between preparing and planning for each lesson, and online teaching ventures more recently. However, I know from family and friends back in the United States who were inexperienced. The requirement to livestream all lessons responding to unanticipated student needs during the that we learn best when we share with and learn from each scrambling to adjust to new safety measures. When the proved to be more complicated than just uploading videos lesson. These two skills, careful preparation for upcoming other. Nancy Baym notes that “we use technology to suit numbers of those infected began to rise here in Australia, onto the online course platform. After a couple of weeks of lessons and thoughtful flexibility during actual lessons, are our own aims.” 1 As you learn more about teaching piano I watched closely as colleagues at the Melbourne learning and adapting to the new way of teaching, I became essential during the COVID-19 global pandemic. So, even online, consider how you can use technology to your Conservatorium of Music joined together to adapt to a used to it, and even surprised myself to find some benefits as we struggle to make meaning of our new daily realities advantage in your piano studio. series of swiftly changing policies. Optimistic proposals to online teaching. I came to appreciate a certain efficiency and the enormous human suffering during this unsettling to livestream some of our scheduled performances gave and flexibility. For the students, they could review the lessons time, most of us possess the educational skillset required I encourage you to peruse all of the articles in this issue, but way to outright cancellation. Large lecture classes were on their timetable as well. For me, I no longer needed to to bring music into the lives of our students from a distance. read those that pertain to your specific teaching situation required to go online within a forty-eight-hour time period. first. Later, when you have taught online for some time and Multiple seminars in using Zoom were offered in quick drive to school and walk to different buildings between As pianists have discovered, teaching piano in the online have reflected on your own teaching practice, consider succession. Days later, a mandate to lockdown University lessons. With one click of the “Close” button, I could return environment requires careful preparation, planning, going back to re-read or explore different articles. Each buildings was imposed and all face-to-face meetings and to my own creative research projects immediately after and sequencing of lesson activities. However, technology article contains important kernels of pedagogical wisdom lessons came to a halt. teaching a class. can be fickle and working online is not the same as playing that can be applied in multiple teaching environments. As a piano teacher, two matters needed to be addressed with our students in the studio, so we must be flexible and Broad topics include best practices of teaching online, Whether emailing with colleagues in the United States, during the setup process. The first was finding a suitable adaptive during online lessons. Having taught online for teaching individuals or groups of piano students, teaching Asia, or Europe, trading messages with students about livestreaming platform and equipment, and the second many years, I am always amazed at how quickly most of beginning, advanced, or unique learners, maintaining your the best technology to continue lessons, or just catching was finding out if each student had access to a keyboard. my young students acclimate to the online environment. studio online, preserving your own health and well-being up on social media, I am constantly inspired by the Because I’m not a tech-savvy person, I was overwhelmed Though, it can be more challenging for adult students and while teaching online, and the importance of continuing musical community’s resilience and desire to stay connected. by the choices of platforms, software, and apps. After teachers to feel comfortable with the