Supporting Your Piano Pathway
Reflection by Andrew Eales
Keeping you own Piano Journal is an idea that is so simple it seems obvious, yet so powerful that it could transform your piano journey in the months and years ahead.
In my book How to Practise Music, I wrote the following to suggest adult learners keep a piano journal:
“Older learners often like to keep their own journal in which they write a more reflective account of their practice journey, which may or may not be shared with a teacher. These can be excellent tools for structuring practice sessions, probing for solutions, or looking back on previous work.”
It is a suggestion I unpacked in more detail in my article Keeping Your Own Piano Journal, which fascinatingly proved to be one of the most popular posts ever published on this site.
That article includes an explanation of what a piano journal is, what the benefits of keeping one are, how to get started, and questions that you might wish to reflect on in your piano journal.
I won’t rehash the answers given in that article, but I want to let you know about a new gift book from Edition Peters, a simple but gorgeously presented notebook which could be the ideal repository for your reflections and tool for piano journaling over the next year.
The Musical Notebook
Having previously published a simple 48-page notebook with space for writing music and text, Edition Peters have now created an altogether more sumptuous notebook for musicians, which offers:
- 140gsm ivory cream paper
- 130 pages with 5mm dot grid for writing
- 30 pages of 10-stave manuscript paper for musical ideas
- quotes from great musicians past and present
- a diagram of the circle of fifths
- Italian tempos reference guide
- page numbers and page finder ribbon for quick orientation
While the price is a little steep compared to the alternative of using a simple all-purpose journal, the Edition Peters notebook would make a lovely gift for any pianist this Christmas, and I suspect that many readers will be keen to get a copy to use for their journal in the coming year.
What makes this particular notebook special is the thought that has gone into providing a helpful balance between pages for freestyle writing and scope for jotting down musical ideal, together with the useful extras.
And what makes it still more special is the superb quality of the product itself. It is no secret that I love cream paper, but it’s fair to say this notebook oozes quality in every area, from the thick but flexible covers (with shiny gold lettering) to the outstanding stitched binding and sturdy ribbon place marker.
As I wrote in my full article on the topic,
“Keeping a journal, and using it with honesty and a commitment to progress, can help us unblock any problems we encounter or are struggling with, celebrate our ongoing progress, and chart a better, happier piano journey.”
Edition Peters’ Notes is among the most luxurious and accommodating notebook and journaling resources I have encountered, and could be your best purchase of the year.
Indeed, it could be the trigger that sets you started on the hugely rewarding journey of keeping your own piano journal.
My book How to Practise Music would of course also make a great gift for you, your students and friends this Christmas!
Pianodao offers over 700 articles and reviews, all FREE to access.
If you appreciate this content, please support and follow the site:
