Best Practices From Selected High-Performance Pre-College Piano Studios Dr. Jani Parsons University of Michigan Dissertation advisor: Dr. John Ellis
• Why are some teachers so successful in nurturing highly skilled, exceedingly musical students (what I term a high- performance student) within a large majority of their studio? • What are the traits these outstanding teachers possess? • Are there specific approaches to pedagogy that prevail among teachers with high-performance students? • Is it possible to extract similarities and differences between high-performance teachers that can influence other teachers for the good? • How does the high-performance teacher balance the many areas necessary to musical and technical mastery?
High-Performance Teachers • Consistently produce talented students over many years • Students regularly rise to the top in local and national competitions, festivals, and public performances • Students accepted for advanced studies at nationally recognized Universities and Conservatories
• Questionnaire • In-person Interview • Lesson Observation
Jani Parsons email me at janiannparsons@gmail.com
Mary Siciliano • Her private students have distinguished themselves in many prestigious competitions such as the MTNA National Finals, the Piano Arts International Competition, and the Oberlin International High School Competition. • She is currently teaching pedagogy at the University of Michigan with an active private studio. Previously she served as faculty at Oakland University. • Mary is an active performer and clinician and has been published in several journals. • Mary received her Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from Michigan State University and the Master of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Michigan, where she was awarded Livonia, Michigan the Joseph Brinkman Award for excellence in performance. Biography on Oakland University official website, accessed April 10, 2013.
Scott McBride Smith • President and CEO of the International Institute for Young Musicians, he leads a summer program offering specialized training for gifted young performers from around the world. • A long-time teacher of prize-winning students in Irvine, California, Dr. Smith ’ s students gone on to win major international competitions and be accepted in leading institutions • Co-author of the college text The Well-Tempered Keyboard Teacher , Christopher Norton ’ s Guide to Microjazz , and American Popular Piano series as well as associate editor of the magazine Clavier Companion. • Currently serving as president-elect of the Music Teachers National Association, Dr. Smith teaches pedagogy at the University of Kansas • Scott McBride Smith received his doctorate from the University of Southern California, where he was co-winner of the Outstanding Graduate in Piano award. Lawrence, Kansas Biography on Kansas University ’ s official website, accessed April 10, 2013.
Lorraine Ambrose • A long-time teacher at the Vancouver Academy of Music in the esteemed pre- college department. • Students of all levels have been recipients of numerous awards in local, national and international competitions, including concerto performances with professional orchestras in Toronto, Montreal, Seattle, and Vancouver. • Previous students have competed in international competitions, been accepted to prestigious schools as the Juilliard School, the Curtis Institute, the Eastman School, and the Royal Academy of Music (London), and gone on to successful careers in music. • Attended the University of Alberta and completed her Bachelor of Music Degree in Piano Performance. She also received Associate and Licentiate Degrees from the Western Board of Music and had subsequent Vancouver, British Columbia studies at the Mozarteum in Salzburg Canada Austria and Munich, Germany. Biography on the Vancouver Academy of Music ’ s official site, accessed April 10, 2013.
Brenda Huang • winner of the prestigious 1991 Gilmore Young Artist Award, immigrated from Taiwan to the Chicago area at the age of nine, and had principally studied with Emilio del Rosario, Russell Sherman, and Carolyn McCracken-Forough. • Ms. Huang was the first prizewinner of the New York Kosziuszko Chopin Competition, the national winner of the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA), an American Pianist Association finalist, and was chosen to represent the United States at the International Chopin Competition in Warsaw by the National Chopin Foundation in Miami, and has performed with many leading orchestras. • Students have won many local and national competitions with performances with recognized symphonies • She received her B.A., M.A., and Artist Diploma from the New England Conservatory and at the College of Performing Arts of Roosevelt University. She is a member of the piano faculty at the Chicago Institute of Music in Winnetka. Chicago, Illinois Biography on Brenda Huang ’ s official website, accessed April 10, 2013.
Sasha Starcevich • Received his Doctor of Musical Arts Degree from Yale University in May of 2003, with performances in United States, Canada, Asia and Europe. • Starcevich has given recitals at New York ’ s Carnegie Recital Hall, Moscow ’ s Tchaikovsky Hall, Windsor Castle, and in London ’ s Wigmore Hall. • Recorded for CBS Television and has released two CD ’ s under the Britstar label. • His students have been prizewinners of local, national and international awards, and have gone on to study music at the world ’ s most prestigious music schools have gone on to study music at prestigious schools such as the Eastman School of Music, the Juilliard School in New York, Yale University and the Peabody Conservatory. • He is in frequent demand as a performer, adjudicator and presenter of Master Classes throughout North America and abroad. • Has been affiliate professor of piano at the State University of New York, and department chair of Seattle, Washington music and professor of piano at the South Carolina Governor ’ s School for the Arts. He currently maintains an active private studio in Bellevue, Washington. Biography on Sasha Starcevich ’ s official website, accessed April 10, 2013
Peter Mack • Professor of piano at Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle, Washington. • Had his early training with Frank Heneghan at the Dublin College of Music. Subsequent study was at Trinity College, Dublin, and at the University of Cincinnati-College Conservatory of Music, and the University of Washington where he earned his doctorate in piano performance. • Has performed throughout the United States and Europe, as well as in Australia and the former Soviet Union. He is the winner of the New Orleans, Young Keyboard Artists and Pacific International Piano Competitions. His prize in the Sherman – Clay competition included a Steinway grand piano. • Mack is well-known for his extensive repertoire, having performed 25 concertos with orchestras. • The winner of several international piano competitions, he in high demand as a performer, teacher, adjudicator, conference Seattle, Washington artist and clinician. • Pupils of Mack are frequent winners of local, national and international competitions. Biography on official MTNA website, accessed April 10,2013.
Studio Policies • Not written down • Agreed upon verbally • Outlined in the audition/interview process • Allows for more flexibility
Expectations: • LA: “ With young students (up to age 13 or so), I expect the parent to attend the lesson , take notes (until the student can do this), and sit with and help the student while practicing . Even if the parent cannot actually help very much with the practicing, I insist on one parent attending lessons and being very much involved. ” • SS: “ I expect the parents to support my plan for their child , and to either be present at the lesson or set up a recording device (or both). I expect the student to complete all assignments given each week, and to log their practice time in a journal. My written instructions on how to practice are in a notebook and I expect them to follow that religiously . ” • BH and PM both have similar expectations that the parents be very involved in the lessons , creating a positive family dynamic with music in the fabric of the family life rather than simply a hobby or one after-school activity. – PM - “ I like the parent to be there until the child can drive themselves to lessons. ” • MS also expects parental involvement along with the following: – “ Daily time at the piano and regular attendance with all of the materials. Daily listening to a classical piece that we will discuss as well as attendance to free local concerts , and use of an acoustic piano in the home – No keyboards. ”
The Interview: • Does the student behave? • How do the parents interact with their child? • Is the child responsive and engaged? • Is time made in the family schedule for the study of music? NOT JUST • Is the child talented? • Does the student show significant potential for public success and a future in music performance?
Talent Vs. Precocity Precocity- precociousness: intelligence achieved far ahead of normal developmental schedules. from wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn Talent - Natural endowment or ability of a superior quality. from thefreedictionary.com/talent
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