Your Stories
guest post by Amy Boyes
I am delighted to share this reflective and uplifting vignette by Canadian pianist and educator Amy Boyes.
“Everything We Play” is a personal essay written from the perspective of an exhausted mother and music teacher. Wishing for some uninterrupted practice time to play something emotionally satisfying, the author is reminded by her young daughter that all music-making is beautiful…
Continue reading Everything We PlayIan Ruhfass a pianist living in Los Angeles, CA. He is also a piano tutor, and the owner/editor of a popular website for pianists all around the world.
Here’s Ian’s story…
Continue reading Your Story: Ian RuhfassSimon Reich is a pianist and award-winning composer from Victoria, Australia. He has written several articles published here on the Pianodao site.
Simon’ latest post tells of how he has, in later life, turned to music as a full-time professional, and his experiences training as a media composer. As well as giving a special insight into his own personal journey, the post will be an encouragement to all considering a career in music.
Heather Hammond is a piano teacher and the composer of the Cool Piano, Funky Flute, Cool Clarinet & Super Sax books (all published by Kevin Mayhew Ltd), and will be known to many readers for the Get Set! Piano series (Harper Collins) and award-winning Intermediate Pianist series (Faber Music), both co-authored with Karen Marshall. She also has a number of books published by Elena Cobb (EVC Music Publications Ltd).
Heather’s pieces frequently appear in exam syllabuses, and she wrote the three current pre-Grade 1 London College of Music handbooks. She is currently working on pieces for the new LCM electronic keyboard and flute syllabuses.
Here’s her story…
William Minter is a teacher and composer living in Connecticut. He is the author of Journeys, a piano series for intermediate learners.
Here, William reflects on his piano journey, and sets out the many motivations which have kept him engaged in playing …
I am the music teacher at The Cambridge School, Calcutta, India.
I am a pianist. Here’s my story…
I’m a piano tutor, living in an overcrowded city with over 8 million people: Hanoi, the capital city of Vietnam, a developing country in Southeast Asia.
Piano learning is a kind of luxury thing in Vietnam. You will discover why as you read my story …
Yukie Smith is from Yokohama, Japan. She now lives in the UK, where she performs, accompanies and teaches piano using her own multi-sensory learning technique.
She’s the author of a piano duet arrangement of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue (abridged version); and a full version of a violin & piano arrangement of Piazzolla’s Le Grand Tango.
Here’s her story …
New Zealand-born, now Canadian-based composer and pianist Christopher Norton is known the world over for his best-selling educational music, including the Microjazz, Connections and Preludes series.
Here he reveals how he discovered music in his youth …
Continue reading Your Story: Christopher Norton“I have had the great joy and fortune to spend a lifetime writing, recording and performing music…”
So writes the hugely successful composer and pianist Andy Quin, who tells his Story here…
