dawn's piano

I figured it was high time I did another post about my own musical projects. My newest pet project is an Irish flute I picked up in Killarney. I found it at a hole-in-the-wall music shop we came across on the honeymoon.

As many of you know, I just got married! We are very happy and excited, and really enjoyed seeing so many of my students at the ceremony and reception. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. Naturally, music was a large part of the ceremony for us.

I think it's fair to assume that most people believe playing in band or orchestra in school is a good experience. And I'd go even farther than that to say any kind of collaborative music playing is good for development. Here's my take on why:

It's been about 9 months since I did my first Favorite Apps post, and I've definitely had time to explore and discover several other apps that I absolutely love! I have to say technology has given us some great teaching tools, and in doing so opened up many more avenues for presenting material to a wider audience. I will start off with my new favorite app EVER:

A warm welcome to all of my new summertime students! I am very excited to begin making music with all of you. Summer is just around the corner, and I am looking forward to another great season. One of the things I really love about summer are the outdoor concerts!

"Play Me, I'm Yours" has been touring internationally since 2008, and right now it's in Los Angeles! This event was started in 2008 by British artist Luke Jerram, and is being hosted in LA by the LA Chamber Orchestra. What does this mean? Well, there are 30 pianos, each painted or decorated by a local artist, set up around the LA Area on public outdoor stages.

I know from my own experience, it is always more fun to play a song you've heard before. And its even better when it's a piece that you like, one that gets stuck in your head and has you humming it throughout the day. Popular music is catchy, fun, and usually upbeat. Best of all, its usually pretty simple when you break it down musically.