Archive for the ‘Teaching’ Category

Status, yes/no

Posted by Susan Tomes on 19 March 2016 under Concerts, Musings, Teaching, Travel  •  5 Comments

In my travels as a guest tutor I come across post-grad and young professional musicians from lots of different countries. For some time now I’ve made it a habit to ask them how they’re getting on with making their way in the classical music profession – easy or difficult? Without exception they reply that they are finding […]

Thinking back or planning ahead?

Posted by Susan Tomes on 18 October 2014 under Concerts, Musings, Teaching  •  1 Comment

An interesting discussion the other night with a bunch of student pianists. We were discussing the kind of situation where you have to perform several different pieces in a row without being able to leave the stage. This is sometimes the case in, for example, a competition, where the rules state that you must perform […]

Motivation

Posted by Susan Tomes on 26 July 2014 under Inspirations, Teaching  •  Leave a comment

I’ve spent the past week teaching a piano course in the south of France. Stormy weather accompanied our music-making, and the temperatures were unseasonally low, though we were sometimes grateful that cooler weather made it easier to work. My class of pianists was a very interesting group to teach. All of them have demanding day […]

The composer’s markings

Posted by Susan Tomes on 7 June 2014 under Musings, Teaching  •  3 Comments

In a lot of the teaching I’ve been doing recently, one theme has been running through the lessons. I find myself pointing out to one person after another that they are not actually doing what the composer asked. I don’t mean in terms of notes – those are usually fine – but in terms of […]

BBC Young Musician

Posted by Susan Tomes on 26 April 2014 under Concerts, Musings, Teaching  •  2 Comments

Here it is again, the heart-warming parade of talented young musicians competing to be BBC Young Musician of the Year. With every passing year it seems more remarkable that there is such a wellspring of young talent directed at classical music. It’s tremendously motivating to see it in action. And here again are all those […]