Overview
Our goal is to develop fluency in reading music, proficiency in piano technique, and to explore repertoire of varying styles that spans many centuries (musical-historical eras), and comes from a diverse collection of composers. To measure student growth and progress, these lessons use a curriculum that consists of four broad levels:
Level 1: Introduction/Elementary
Students learn the fundamentals of piano technique, such as finger numbers, hand positions, and how the keyboard is organized. They learn how to read musical notation, including pitches, rhythms, and musical expression. By the end of level 1, students will be comfortable playing in five-finger positions (pentascales) with some movement across an octave. Lessons are 30 minutes.
Level 2: Early Intermediate
Students continue to develop reading and listening skills. They play music with both hands and in a variety of accompaniment styles. Repertoire includes short pieces like Minuets, Sonatinas, or little Etudes. In music theory, students learn about major and minor keys, chords, cadences, and form. Lessons are 45 minutes long.
Level 3: Late Intermediate
Students refine reading skills and explore more advanced technique. The repertoire becomes more substantial, including Baroque dances or preludes, Classical sonatinas, and intermediate-level pieces from the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Music theory focuses on diatonic tonality and form. Lessons are 60 minutes long.
Level 4: Advanced
Students gain a proficiency in reading music and they continue to build virtuosic technique. Capstone repertoire—used for a solo recital and/or auditions—includes six pieces: (1) a prelude and fugue by J.S. Bach, (2) a complete sonata by Mozart or Beethoven, (3) a work from the nineteenth century, (4) a work from the early twentieth century, (5) a work from the late twentieth/twenty-first century, and (6) a concert etude by Chopin or Liszt. Music theory focuses on chromatic tonality and atonality. Lessons are 60 minutes long.