Épisodes

  • Ep. 6 – Cool Beans: Jazz, Pop, and Playfulness in Ben Crosland’s Piano Music

    Ep. 6 – Cool Beans: Jazz, Pop, and Playfulness in Ben Crosland’s Piano Music
    Sep 8 2025
    This week on the Piano Pedagogy Playlist, I dive into Cool Beans by English composer Ben Crosland — a fresh, pop-inspired collection of 12 graded pieces for early to late intermediate pianists. After years of hearing good things about this collection, I finally bought the digital download of Book One, sat down at the piano, and couldn’t stop playing — I immediately went through the whole book twice!

    Cool Beans, Volume 1 - by Ben Crosland

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    13 min
  • Ep 5: RCM Celebration Series Spotlight: Three Contemporary Pieces for Intermediate Students

    Ep 5: RCM Celebration Series Spotlight: Three Contemporary Pieces for Intermediate Students
    Sep 1 2025
    The "Celebration Series" of repertoire books published by the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto have been a longtime favorite source of mine for discovering new pieces by living composers. Updated every seven years, I always find fresh pieces that eventually become old favorites. This week, I highlight three options for intermediate students from the level four, five, and six books- Peter Rudzik’s whimsical Happy Grasshopper, Nkeiru Okoye’s beautifully atmospheric Dusk, and the energetic Running for the Bus by Alexina Louie.

    Truly Astounding Animals, by Paul Rudzik

    African Sketches, by Nkeiru Okoye

    Small Beautiful Things: For Piano, by Alexina Louie

    Celebration Series (Sixth Edition) Repertoire 4

    Celebration Series (Sixth Edition) Repertoire 5

    Celebration Series (Sixth Edition) Repertoire 6

    This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, we may receive a commission at no additional cost to you. This helps keep our podcast alive. Thank you!

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    13 min
  • Ep. 4 : Hang On! Exploring Glenda Austin’s First Jazz Suite

    Ep. 4 : Hang On! Exploring Glenda Austin’s First Jazz Suite
    Aug 25 2025
    This three-movement work by the prolific Glenda Austin exhibits all of the qualities that make her music so adored and valued- lyricism, expression, excitement, and with a touch of jazz. The Jazz Suite #1 could be a long-term project for an intermediate student, or split up the various movements between students in your studio and have them perform it tag-team style on the next recital.

    Sheet Music, digital download here!

    Find Ms. Austin on Facebook

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    8 min
  • Ep. 3 : Confidence Builders – Getting back on the bench

    Ep. 3 : Confidence Builders – Getting back on the bench
    Aug 18 2025
    Students are slowly trickling back into their schools and back into our studios! In an ideal world, our pupils would have all diligently kept up with their piano studies through the summer, but we know that's not always the case. This week I’m sharing four pieces by Australian composer Daniel McFarlane—fun, impressive-sounding works that are easy to learn and perfect for motivating students who need a quick win at the piano. Easing back into things is a great way to build confidence and set the tone for a fun and productive year. Eternal Light - Digital Download Ever Distant - Digital Download Funk - Digital Download Loneliness - Digital Download
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    12 min
  • Ep. 02 – Anxiety, keeps on tryin’ me…

    Ep. 02 – Anxiety, keeps on tryin’ me…
    Aug 11 2025

    This week we explore the fine art of making your students sweat (musically speaking). I’ll play two pieces that capture the fidgety, feelings of uncertainty that many of our students (and ourselves) experience heading into a new school year. First, the Anxiety Toccata by Scott Price, which doesn't let up from the first note until the double bar. Then I take a spirited dash through Friedrich Burgmüller’s Inquiétude, which offers just enough breathing room to avoid passing out. Along the way, I'll give my thoughts on why the hit pop song “Anxiety” didn’t make today’s playlist (spoiler: I dig the song! Just not such a great piano solo). But you might have some students who want to play it this fall, so I include links to the better arrangements out there.

    Grab your metronome, steady your nerves, and join me for some controlled musical panic!

    • Anxiety Toccata, Scott Price More info... Kindle e-book
    • Inquiétude, Friedrich Burgmüller - Free download
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    7 min
  • Ep. 01 – The End of Summer, The Start of a New Podcast

    Ep. 01 – The End of Summer, The Start of a New Podcast
    Aug 3 2025
    I hear the cicadas. I'm seeing the back-to-school ads on TV. But let's not say goodbye to summer just yet. On the innaugural episode of the podcast, we listen to three evocative pieces on the joys of summer and the melancholy of August. The three pieces by Martha Hill Duncan and are taken from her collection entitled, "Cottage Days".
    • Water Lilies - More info...
    • Sandcastles - More info...
    • August Moon - More info...
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    11 min