Piano Matters Newsletter

Winter Holiday Open House

Winter Holiday Open House!
Sunday, December 13th
1:00 PM at Tally Piano Studio

New Piano Bears Musical Storybook - Little Bear's First Christmas Recital

A Delightful Holiday Storybook PLUS,

Elementary Piano Solos & Duets

 

AND, Fun Activity Pages!

Preview Video of Chapter One
Little Bear's Thanksgiving Play

This delightful storybook is full of Christmas joy and excitement as Little Bear learns to play holiday songs on the piano, and prepares to play in his First Christmas Recital.  Includes Elementary Piano Solos & Duets PLUS, Fun Activity Pages!  The story begins with Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma Melody's and finishes with a New Years Eve Finale.  This fun loving story is sure to brighten your child's holiday season and encourage them to play for others and enjoy playing their holiday songs!  Little Bear's First Christmas Recital Storybook also includes Elementary Piano Solos & Duets -- Thanksgiving Surprise, Jingle Bells, O' Christmas Tree, Santa Claus is Coming to Town, and Hallelujah New Year! PLUS, Fun Activity Pages! (For ages 6 to 10.)

Download Digital Book in PDF Format
Available Free for a Limited Time!

Order 8 X 10 Printed Color Book - $11.97

Best Wishes for a Wonderful Holiday!

Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

Oh Where Oh Where is that Piano Key Game & Free Halloween Pre-Reading Sheet Music!

Click here to download my Veery Scarry Halloween Piano Sheet Music for Pre-Readers and a Fun Piano Game parents can enjoy with their children at home - Oh Where Oh Where is that Piano Key? 

It's Time to Enroll for the 2009 Fall Term!

I hope you've all had a wonderful summer!  Now the break is almost over, Fall is on the way, and.......... it's time to enroll for the Fall Term at Tally Piano & Keyboard Studio.  Please call 850-386-2425 to schedule a lesson time before enrolling online with the link below, or email me at cindy@tallypiano.com.

2009 Fall Term Dates
September 1 - December 23 (17 Lessons)

2009 Fall Term Enrollment Page

Also students' on-line musical memory books at  MyPianoClub.com have been updated as well as our Studio Podcast on iTunes. 
Here is the direct link to the Tally Piano Studio Podcast on iTunes
http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=210213991
(Copy & Past Link in Browser - may not operate in Firefox, and you'll need to download the iTunes software.)

Summer students have learned some beautiful pieces, and I'm looking forward to seeing all my students in September!  Use the link below to find your student's pen name and listen to their BEAUTIFUL PIANO RECORDINGS!! These also include the May recital pieces. New Students music pen names are Music Beat, Sweet Music & Little Pachelbel.

My Piano Club - On-line Musical Memory Books

Summer Sample: My Heart Will Go On
(Love Theme from Titanic, Played by Ismael Zyed - Thank you, Ismael!)

Summer Sample: The Tempest
(Played by Megan Frost - Thank you, Megan!)

Don't Wait to Enroll - See you in September!

Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

Piano Bears Music Camp Video

Below is a short video on YouTube that two of my students, Erin and Kennedy helped me create as a momento of their fun piano camp experience.  While you're watching click here to download a longer flash video (takes a couple of minutes to download) which includes Kennedy and Erin playing "Piano Chord Tunes" they learned to create and improvise with at Piano Camp. See how much fun piano can be for kids!

Thank you Kennedy and Erin!

Best wishes, Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

9 WEEK SUMMER SESSION: Jun 2 - Jul 29

The 2009 Tally Piano Studio Summer Session begins June 2.  Students can enroll for the full 9 weeks of lessons, or enroll for 7 lessons and take any two weeks off for vacation.  

Summer Programs -

• Private Lessons
• Group Lessons
• Theory Lessons
• Summer Camps

For your convenience, after emailing cindy@tallypiano.com or calling 850-386-2425 for lesson availability, you can enroll on-line with the link below. The Summer Session Term offers a 2 month payment option, billed in cycles of 30 days. Your payment is secure, debit or credit with Visa, Mastercard, or American Express. You can also enroll over the phone or at the studio.

Click here for Summer Session tuition information and on-line enrollment. 


Reminder: 

2009 Tally Piano Spring Recital
Sunday, May 17th
Steinway Gallery
1:00 PM

See you at the Spring Recital!

Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

2009 Spring Piano Recital & 5 Tips for Recital Time

2009 Tally Piano Spring Recital
Sunday, May 17th
Steinway Gallery
1:00 PM

Parents, please mark your calendar for the 2009 Tally Piano Spring Recital on Sunday, May 17th.  The recital will be held at the same location as last year - the Steinway Gallery on Thomasville Road, across the street from the Paradise Grill.  Mr. Sims tells me that seating will be limited because he has a lot of pianos in his showroom. Below are some ideas to help students get ready, but I know they'll be wonderful, so don't worry!  As always it is my pleasure to give free extra lessons to students during this time, so please don't wait to schedule extra lesson time. 

Helping Kids in Piano Connect to their Inner Artist - 5 Tips for Recital Time.

Piano students spend a lot of time preparing their music, especially at recital time. Here are 5 tips to help piano students maximize their creative energy and get the most out of their practice time.

1. Ask Questions Along the Way -   Feel free to stop and investigate any areas of the music you're unsure of or have questions about with thoughtful review. Just playing the piece over and over without changes limits the possibilities for improvement. 

2.Make sure the objective is creative work at the piano, not just 'time at work' -  Practice with a specific goal in mind that adds a creative purpose to your playing. Such as counting out the rhythms, checking for accuracy of the notes, or improving your playing technique.

3. Target your best attention to challenging areas -  At the beginning of practice our minds are fresh and our attention is best. So begin practive on areas in the music that are most challenging. Then stop for a few minutes and start again fresh in another area. Look for areas of the music that need work and focus attention on these. Then play through the piece many times. Start the next practice session with another area of the music that is more challenging.

4. Don't gloss over the notes -  To let the music speak clearly, become familiar with the melody. Your ear needs to hear the music clearly to play clearly. Also, don't rely only on your own creative ideas, listen to how others have interpreted the music as well.

5. Add the human element - Creative ideas come to individuals.  To connect to your inner artist, make it personal.  Imagine each note is an important word in a personal conversation you're sharing with your very best friend. This will bring your own, magical personality into the musical conversation, so that each note resonates as part of a coherent, musical idea that's important to you and honors your audience. 

I'm Looking forward to seeing you at the Spring Recital!

Best wishes,
Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

No Lessons Spring Break Week & Raylen's Duet

No lessons Spring Break Week.  Have a happy and safe time.  Students' March recordings have been published at MyPianoClub.com.  Here is a wonderful duet that is sure to make you smile :-) It's played by Raylen Hughes and myself. It's called I've Got Music!

I've Got Music Piano Duet

HAPPY SPRING!

Easter Sheet Music for Children - The Easter Egg Hunt!

Listen to my new Easter piano composition The Easter Egg Hunt!.  To hear the lyrics and get the sheet music click the link below. The Sheet Music file includes the piano solo recording plus a special Sing-Along recording.  Choose Level 1 Piano Solo, or Level 2 Piano Solo. 

from Piano Bears Musical Storybook
Download Level 2 Easter Sheet Music 
Download Level  1 Easter Sheet Music 
THESE FILES TAKE A MINUTE TO DOWNLOAD 

Printable Easter Crafts for Kids

HAPPY SPRING!

Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

St. Patrick's Day Sheet Music!

Please enjoy my new piano composition for Level 2 piano students written in the style of an Irish Dance - To Musical Acres I Go! Students will love this music and cute lyrics. So students can hear it played, the audio is embedded in the file (see link below). Share this link with your friends in an email. It will make a great St. Patrick's Day Gift!

Click Link Below to Open Sheet Music

from Piano Bears Musical Storybooks
To Musical Acres I Go!

Direct Share Link for use in an email
http://www.PianoBears.com/docs/To_Musical_Acres_I_Go.pdf

Best Regards,

Cynthia Marie VanLandingham 

This Valentines Day - Put a Little Tune in Your Heart!

Recently one of my young students suggested a unique URL to our Kids Piano Page would more convenient.  I thought, "Gosh, she's right - why didn't I think of that!"  So here it is -  MyPianoClub.com  My students can visit this special page to hear their beautiful piano music we recorded at their lessons in the month of January.  We Love Sharing Our Music - Enjoy!

Also, here's a link to download my Valentines Day Sheet Music

from Piano Bears Musical Storybooks
Put a Little Tune in Your Heart!    

This is an easy arrangement for level 2 students. The audio is included -  click the speaker to hear the music.  I'm sure you'll recognize this fun tune.  To make this a gift that will keep on giving, you can share it with your friends, by sending the link in your own email on Valentines Day!  For more of my Piano Bears Musical Storybook Sheet Music visit KidsPianoSheetMusic.com

CONGRATULATIONS!!! students on your beautiful recordings!

Happy Valentines Day!

Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

Inaugural Jazz Piano Sheet Music

 

Here is a jazzy tune to help my intermediate students celebrate our new president, American Liberty Jazz.  I arranged this piece just for them. Click on the little heart to hear this patriotic music and download the sheet music below.

from Piano Bears Musical Storybooks

American Liberty Jazz Arrangement
by Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

Download American Liberty Jazz Sheet Music 

Best Regards,

Cynthia Marie VanLandingham

New Year Piano Hallelujah! - Free Sheet Music

The Winter Holiday Open House was a great event!  The students played BEAUTIFULLY!!   My Tally Piano Music Club iTunes, our studio podcast, has been updated with even more holiday music! (Find link in the sidebar.) 

Thanks so much parents and students for your hard work and support.   Below is a lovely recording of O' Come All Ye Faithful, just one of the many holiday pieces you can download from our podcast.  This duet is played by Erin Falls and myself.  Keep up the good work, Erin!  I know Erin will enjoy having this recording in her On-Line Musical Memory Book on the Kids Piano Page.  Many students played their pieces several times with me at the Open House.  Playing together is so much fun - especially the joyful songs everyone loves to hear during the holiday season. 

O Come All Ye Faithful, Played by TallyPiano Studios Student, Erin Falls.

The end of the year is a great time for students to celebrate their progress by taking a "listen" back through the years in their Musical Memory Books.  It's so easy to do this on the Kids Piano Page.  During the last week of the term I make time to do this during lessons.  Students always say things like, "I remember playing that song last year!" and "Listen to my very first Holiday Piece - Jolly Old St. Nicholas!  Gosh, I can't believe I've been playing so long!  I've made a lot of progress since I began piano!" 

Now it is time to set new goals for a New Year.  To help with this, below is a link to free sheet music to encourage students tp keep celebrating their piano progress.  I hope students enjoy this fun variation for level 1 or level 2 students on a familiar tune from George Frederic Handel - Piano New Year Hallelujah!

from Piano Bears Musical Storybooks
        Free New Year Sheet Music 
              
             

The 2009 Spring Term begins Tuesday, January 6th.  So parents, please contact me if you have questions about Spring Term 09 enrollment.  For new student enrollment, please call 850-264-7232 or 850-386-2425.  You can also email me at cindy@tallypiano.com for information about Tally Piano Programs.

Best Wishes for a Joyful Holiday Season!

See you in the New Year....

Cynthia Marie Vanlandingham

Open House this Sunday

Parents,

Just a quick post to remind you the Winter Holiday Open House is this Sunday.  See the previous post for details.  I have published new recordings of students' holiday pieces - they're beautiful!  Click the My Tally Piano Club iTunes link in the side bar to listen and download your student's holiday music.

See you on Sunday!

Cynthia

Winter Holiday Open House!

WINTER HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE
Sunday December 14th
2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Steinway Gallery on Thomasville Road

Carol of the Bells, Played by TallyPiano Studios Student, Ismael Syed.

DEAR PARENTS, STUDENTS, & FRIENDS OF TALLYPIANO STUDIO

The Winter Holiday House is just around the corner!   Above is a preview of this festive event -- Carol of the Bells,  played by TallyPiano Student, Ismael Syed.  Thank you, Ismael!

The holiday selections are special pieces chosen just for your student to show off their talent!  Please be sure your student brings their holiday sheet music or Christmas book to their lessons.  To help students prepare, additional, free lessons are available to all enrolled students.  I love giving extra time to help students prepare and polish their holiday music, so I hope you'll want to take advantage of this opportunity.  Just email  me at cindy@tallypiano.com to schedule free lessons.

The Open House is a fun and flexible event.  Have your child there anytime between 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.  Students perform their music in the order they arrive.

Piano students enjoy this wonderful time of the year and make great memories and progress playing their favorite holiday music.  To help your child continue playing through the busy month of December, here is a Piano Advent Calendar from PianoBears.com.  Just click on the link and you'll see how it works.

from Piano Bears Musical Storybooks

 
Also, Free Holiday Sheet Music is available on the sidbar.

On the Kid's Piano Page you'll find new student holiday recordings on our studio podcast, My TallyPiano Club Music published on iTunes. 

See you at the Winter Holiday Open House!

Best regards for a joyous holiday season,

Cynthia Marie VanLandingham