schoolofmusictheorMar 295 minMoonlight and Mode MixtureSince I started teaching music theory online, I've discovered how much fun it can be to analyse well-known piano pieces - pieces that...
schoolofmusictheorMar 221 minSchool of Music Theory News - Grade 7 Theory starting next term!I am so excited, because next term I will kick off a new Grade 7 Theory course! Grade 7 is the perfect continuation of grade 6 theory,...
schoolofmusictheorMar 213 minSatie Around the Circle of FifthsThe Circle of Fifths is a graphic representation of key relations, but it is also a useful tool for thinking about fifth relations in...
schoolofmusictheorMar 105 minI'm a Circle of Fifths Nerd!For the past week or so, I've had the Circle of Fifths on my mind. In fact, it's been a bit of an obsession. This is partly because the...
schoolofmusictheorMar 14 minAn essay in voice leading Prelude No. 1, The Well-Tempered Clavier, by JS Bach Written by Johann Sebastian Bach, The Well-Tempered Clavier is a set of 48 preludes...
schoolofmusictheorFeb 216 minWhy I like the ABRSM Grade 6 Theory examI never took a music theory exam until I went to university. When I moved to the UK, one of the first things I noticed was the exam...
schoolofmusictheorFeb 145 minChords are like actors on a stageI am a member of the Curious Piano Teachers, and in November 2020, I was asked to contribute to their monthly "Curiosity Box" about...
schoolofmusictheorFeb 57 minWhen a C chord is dissonantI was once on a Zoom call with a bunch of other piano teachers. We were talking about how we introduce chords to young students. One...
schoolofmusictheorJan 103 minThe big secret to becoming a good sight readerMost people who want to become good sight readers realise that they must practice that skill every day. And in order to practice sight...
schoolofmusictheorNov 3, 20215 minThe problem with ABRSM sight readingThe problem with ABRSM sight reading is that the way it is tested renders it worse than useless. It is actually regressive. I trained as...
schoolofmusictheorOct 28, 20213 minSight Reading Story Number 5The Time My Sight Reading Skills Really Paid Off After a few years in the UK, I returned to education to study improvisation and...
schoolofmusictheorOct 19, 20212 minSight Reading Story Number 4The Day I Learned to Let Go and Have Fun Sight Reading I moved to the UK in 2003, and I quickly found my favourite pub. It was The...
schoolofmusictheorOct 12, 20212 minSight Reading Story Number 3The Day I Ditched My Story and Took a Big Risk (with the help of a backup plan) Following on from Sight Reading Story Number 2, I...
schoolofmusictheorOct 6, 20214 min"Every Good Boy Does Fine" is not fine!Today's blog post is about a little pedagogy niggle of mine - or maybe it's more serious than just a niggle. A quick apology But before...
schoolofmusictheorAug 9, 20212 minSight Reading Story Number 2When I left you at the end of the last sight reading story, my teacher had told me, for my exam, to play my sight reading in the correct...
schoolofmusictheorJun 29, 20212 minSight Reading Story Number 1I started learning to play the piano late. I was 11 years old when I started studying the piano. I loved it so much, and I practiced a...
schoolofmusictheorJun 29, 20214 minBetter Music Through TheoryThe phrase “Better Music Through Theory” is an adaptation of the old DuPont advertising slogan from 1935 – “Better Living Through...