An essential concept of Level 2 is beginning articulation, specifically legato and staccato. These terms are so familiar to us as music teachers that we might overlook the importance of these touches in developing technique and musical expression. Perhaps you have noticed that there are no articulation marks at Level 1—no slurs and no staccato […]

There is much to share with our beginning students. With limited lesson time, how do we maximize our results? Fortunately, Level 1 presents three elements of pedagogy that have exponential value when taught in combination: introducing new notes with varied fingerings to develop note-reading skill utilizing arm weight for tone production and technique development using […]

Pattern Recognition Why are five-finger positions a necessary part of piano pedagogy? Because our hands have five fingers. So the relevance of five-finger patterns applies at virtually any level of piano playing. Major and minor five-finger patterns are taught in Level 3 (Spanish Edition) of Piano Adventures® after the basics of reading are acquired in the […]