In the style of Mike Rowe’s podcast “The Way I Heard It” and Paul Harvey’s radio show “The Rest of the Story”, this episode of the Piano Parent Podcast brings you the backstory of a musician or song or a moment in music history. I use these musical mysteries to tell you something you might not know about someone or something that is somewhat familiar; in this case, we will learn how one young musician convinced his older and wiser teacher to try something new by singing something old.

Cameron Dennis is an amazing fusion of music and technology. While continuing to pursue graduate degrees in performance and music theory he is combining his musical knowledge with his skills in technology to create wonderful online resources for music students of any skill level.

On today's show, Cameron shares his new Ear Trainer. This resource is extremely valuable to help piano kids learn to identify and notate the sounds they hear.

With such a push these days for popular music, it is refreshing to hear someone who is just as passionate about our historic musical heritage as Janna Williamson.

Janna Williamson, NCTM, is a pianist, educator, and collaborator. Janna enjoys high retention in her independent piano studio in the suburbs of Chicago as well as the rewards of students who have gone on to enjoy a lifetime of music. 

RAMI BAR-NIV (RAHmee BarNEEV) is one of Israel's most acclaimed and sought-after pianists. He travels extensively and has become an international citizen, concertizing all over the world. Rami has performed on every continent with the exception of Antarctica (I suppose we'll excuse you from that one).

In addition to concertizing and lecturing, Rami also composes and has written two books. On today's show, Rami will share insights from his first book, The Art of Piano Fingering.

Merry Christmas!

In this BONUS episode of the Piano Parent Podcast, you will hear my reading of Luke 2:1-20. I will also share some personal thoughts on that passage and this special time of year.

Whether you are great at setting goals or stay up well past midnight on January 1 making New Year's Resolutions, it's a good idea to make plans and have things to aim for.

In early 2020 when the pandemic first happened, Anna Fagan and her husband used the opportunity to fulfill a marriage-long dream; RVing around the country. Listen to today's show to hear how Anna has taken travel teaching to a whole new level.

Every tenth episode of the Piano Parent Podcast offers you a list of ten somethings. On today's show, I present to you a list of Ten Wintery Pieces.

A textbook definition of sight-reading would be the ability to read a piece of sheet music on the spot and to be able to play it as you're reading it. Another aspect of sight-reading is the ability to use your eyes to track the music on the page while your hands find the notes without having to look at them.

On today's show, Christopher Oill talks about sight-reading - it's value and how to improve this skill.