Tag Archives: keyboard lessons

Video – Arlo Guthrie Sings and Plays Piano – Live Performance

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Arlo Guthrie plays piano and sings live in this video of him performing “City of New Orleans”. “City of New Orleans” was composed by Steve Goodman and is a nostalgic story about a train route from Chicago to New Orleans. Arlo first recorded the song in 1972 and it has been widely associated with him ever since. In 2005, Arlo travelled on that train to arrive in New Orleans to raise money for musicians after the devastating Katrina Hurricane.

Arlo Guthrie was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1947. His father, Woodie Guthrie was famous for writing and singing social protest songs, and Arlo has kept that tradition and composed and recorded many. Arlo Guthrie, in addition to being a singer, composer, and musician, has also done some acting. He is most recognized from his portrayal of himself in the film “Alice’s Restaurant”, named after the hit song he wrote. Arlo Guthrie is an American legend and has contributed so much to the Folk music genre of America.

When some of my students are taking their keyboard lessons and piano lessons, the subject of how to play piano while singing, often comes up. Playing while you sing requires a different technique than playing solo. Arlo gives a wonderful example of how easy it can look in this flawless performance.

Some Albums by Arlo Guthrie
Together In Concert (1975), with Pete Seeger
Amigo (1976)
The Best of Arlo Guthrie (1977)
One Night (1978)
Outlasting the Blues (1979)
Power Of Love (1981)
Precious Friend (1982)
Someday (1986)

info about Arlo Guthrie

Piano Lessons, Keyboard for Beginners, Portland Oregon – Children, Adults

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If learning piano is something you have been thinking about for some time, here’s some of the things you can expect learning to play piano or keyboard. Learning piano is a wonderful new skill that you will have for years. It’s a very personal endeavor, and can be exciting and adventurous. You will begin to appreciate music in a way that you never imagined. Listening to music is great, but being able to play it will give you an entirely new level of understanding.

Individual private piano lessons will give you a weekly opportunity to work on new music and stay on a smooth course. I teach students from the age of 4 and up. Many students begin lessons as adults. I love working with beginner students. It’s great to watch their progress and see them explore the world of piano and keyboard music. Students decide which direction they would like to take the lessons. Some students prefer to work mostly on learning to read music. There is so much wonderful music to learn on piano; Classical, Pop, Blues, New Age, Folk, Jazz. Other students may wish to add blues improvisation, theory, and perhaps songwriting. I want students to have a fun experience learning to play and feel a sense of accomplishment right from the beginning. My studio is comfortable and relaxed place to study piano.

Norm Zarr
503-771-4611

more on Piano Lessons & Keyboard Lessons in Portland

 

 

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Video – Great Piano Jazz Solo on Keyboard – Terrific Improvisation Style

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This is a wonderful jazz piano solo played on a keyboard. It’s a complicated and advanced example of what hard work can accomplish. The piano player shows us how the jazz art form combines exemplary playing skill with the ability to create music on the spot.

Here in Portland, at my studio, my piano lessons and keyboard lessons students learn a number of different piano skills. For some, one of those is jazz piano. Playing to play jazz piano can begin with a basic introduction to the genre. We often begin with a round of blues improvisation to get students started with the technique of developing improvisational skills. Developing a students ear to be able to play jazz is very important, and there are a number of ways to accomplish this. Whether students play at home on a piano or a keyboard, the music and teaching method is the same.

Jazz is probably the most American style of music of all. It’s a method of playing any song by developing new voicings for the chords, and variations of the melodies. Jazz can make any kind of music exciting and fresh to listen to.

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Increase Your IQ – Piano Lessons For Children & Adults

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Piano teachers have always known that people who take piano lessons or keyboard lessons tend to have better cognitive skills that increase their success at school, at work, and in daily challenges. Recent research has quantified this with some statistical results.

Although most people think of IQ as a trait you are born with, studies now show that it is not static. IQ levels can change over the years and increase when people are given just several weeks of cognitive training. One study showed scores increasing over 15% for some students. Researchers have drawn a strong connection between music lessons and IQ level. Glenn Schellenberg, psychology professor, University of Toronto, has demonstrated that music lessons result in a higher IQ throughout one’s life. Six years of music lessons can markedly increase a child’s IQ score by an average 7.5 points.

In one recent study, researchers found that musicians that are active 10 years or more continue to show higher IQs beyond the age of 60. IQ scores fluctuate during a person’s life. Learning new skills stimulates the brain the most. People can increase their IQ by engaging in activities that are intellectually challenging. Complex school studies, work, relationships, and problems solving will result in increased IQ.

from the WSJ

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New Age Piano Lessons Keyboard Lessons – Portland Oregon

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blues piano lessons keyboardMy students love playing New Age music on the piano. It’s fun to play, and pieces can be learned quickly. The music is quite repetitive, and it creates a nice flow, filled with emotion. It’s one of my favorite types of music to teach. New Age music is intended to create a peaceful sense of inspiration and relaxation in the listener. Often used as a background for yoga, massage, and meditation, it gives students a relaxed and peaceful connection to the piano.

One of the composers most popular for New Age piano music is Enya. Her music is very well known and many of her pieces feature piano as the key instrument. New Age piano music is recognized by the feeling it produces. Sometimes the music is punctuated by long sustained, swirling chords. Harmonies are often hypnotic, the listener being drawn into a world of color and imagination. Pieces are often long, sometimes thirty minutes in length, compared to the short songs found in pop music. The music often is characterized by arpeggios in the left hand, and melodies in the right hand. Students taking piano lessons or keyboard lessons will definitely want to try some New Age music.

Vocal arrangements are not that common, but often found in Celtic, Tibetan, or Native American variations. New Age music crosses into many genres and is written not just for solo piano, but synthesizers, keyboards, acoustic guitars, drums, flutes, horns, stringed instruments, and just about any instrument found in a band. Generally, songs are either in electronic or acoustic form. A wide variety on ethnic instruments are often found in New Age recordings.

New Age music was originally influenced by diverse artists from many genres. Musicians such as Leo Kottke, Steve Reich, Philip Glass, Pink Floyd, Brian Eno, Keith Jarrett, Pat Metheny have all helped shape the current sound of New Age music.

Some popular New Age composers are:

Vangelis
Paul Winter
Will Ackerman
Jim Brickman
Enya
Jean Michel Jarre
Kitaro
Sandeep Khurana
Yanni
Andreas Vollenweider
Peter Gabriel

More info on New Age music…