Harmonic Mosaic Music

STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT.

Meet Dominic! Dom I call him, has only been with me a short time and is one of those that went from A-Z very quickly. One minute he is learning a scale and the next minute he is playing full classical songs by sight reading. Dominic likes popular and classical, and is learning Maroon 5, Coldplay and Beethoven. He asks questions when he doesn't understand something, and he has patience with this older teacher. ;) He is learning to understand the theory behind music, but he is able to just play from watching videos of songs he likes. Dom is pretty casual, and a good student. He isn't too particular about what he learns, but he gives it his best shot, and he is good on the computer. This week we were learning the circle of fifths and he totally understood how it worked together. He remembers the relation of the circle of fifths to the keys of songs and is now already working on his octave scales. He plays chords quite nicely too. This week we were working out a left handed part to a pop song, which takes a lot of effort when you are new. But Dom can hear when things aren't right and corrects it. You never know if the students I teach will end up becoming songwriters or performers, but having a good ear is essential to being able to do that. I have really enjoyed our lessons as Dominic is fully present, meaning he is there to learn and understands what is expected of him. So Congratulations Dominic our May student of the month. Great Job!

Zoe Student of the month for April.

*STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT*
7 years ago this pet lovin angel came to me for piano lessons. Zoe, was an 11 year old that loved animals and wanted to learn piano. And as all kids her age, she had many interests that derailed her from piano lessons. Now a college student, she is back to learn once again. Zoe has proved that time is on her side, in that she has become so much better the 2nd time around. I'm so very proud of this student and I will tell you why. Very few kids will leave piano lessons and then return to not only the same teacher, but to become their best self. I am utterly shocked how fast she has progressed in two months, and she has had to start from scratch all over again. She couldn't even remember a scale. But now she is learning sight reading so fast, that the songs are really clicking and she can play harder and harder pieces without a glitch. I told her that taking piano lessons is alot like wearing braces, you have to tighten them a little bit every month in order to get them perfectly aligned. Zoe is learning to grit and bear the learning process with a fun attitude! She was hesitant to take online lessons at first, but now says she really likes it. If Zoe chooses piano courses in college she will get 4.0 for sure, because she plays so beautifully now. I always tell parents when their child doesn't want to take lessons, don't force them. It won't help them in the long run if it isn't their choice. Some kids don't have the desire and discipline to succeed. Others just need time like in Zoe's case. I'm glad her parents realized this, because it didn't spoil Zoe's love of piano. Now here she is student of the month, and I congratulate her on her encore. Here's to you Zoe, may you have a bright future in music!

*STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT*

Meet Brion. Brion comes to me from Take Lessons. He has been with me since November. He is an online lefty guitar student. What an amazing progress he has made since he has started. And while he believes he could do better, as all of us older students do, He has been able to play songs in record time. Brion even bought a new classical guitar which always scores points with the teacher.😉 I have always enjoyed older students because they are patient and have more time to learn. Brion is so interested that he not only bought one of the books I suggested, he bought 3! He can play 10 chords from memory and has no trouble reading notes now. Brion can also read and memorize the notes on the fretboard quite well and he his learning while the charts are backward for his left hand function. Brion has showed this teacher there are left handed books you can buy that can help with understanding chord charts. He loves to play, and he practices in between his trips to far away adventures. Just like this Midwestern girl, Brion is very polite and a joy to have as a student. Congratulations to Brion for starting guitar late in life and sticking with it.

VALENTINE STUDENT OF THE MONTH

It’s time for a standing ovation for Michael, who has been in the spotlight a couple of times. Michael is now in online lessons and is doing very well. His reading skills have improved dramatically, and we are working from a book that is a grade higher than he was in last year. Michael is also good at bringing the computer into the right position while he’s playing, as sometimes I like to change the view to allow the students to read notes off of the computer. Michael can play two handed rhythms easily and he works slowly to make sure it is correct. He comes from a family of all-star piano players, so the skill is shared with his brother and sister. Whenever I look for a student of the month, I look to the student who has progressed the most and is really trying. It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve been in the spotlight, it matters on how well you are practicing and making an effort. Michael is certainly making an effort and it shows. Recently playing a grade 3 piece of music, he said he was willing to try it. I always allow my students to work on pieces before giving it a shot putting both hands together. But Michael felt confident and that was worth more to me than getting it right. Which he did by the way. Congratulations Michael on your victory for the February 14 Spot. I look forward to seeing your progression this year on Piano☺️

STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT. Meet Gracie, our January student of the month. Gracie is a very smart girl who can play pieces that require a lot of dexterity and timing. I will try to get a video of her playing 'Pirates of the Carribean." And while she is into songs from Imagine Dragons and more pop like bands, she is not opposed to playing classical songs by Beethoven either. Her scales are nicely played with each finger on each hand hitting at the correct time, instead of sounding like one hand is running away from the other. She corrects her mistakes, and does so at the mistake instead of heading back to the beginning. That can be hard for some, especially if the mistake starts with an eighth note. But Gracie tries to play her best, and usually doesn't have too many errors. Her rhythm is nice and she can play pretty much any two hand different rhythm song you give her. She does well with online lessons too. She has made great strides in the last few months, and so it is with her taste in mainstream music, and skills in performing difficult pieces, that we give her the spotlight this month. Congratulation's Gracie.

Merry Christmas Everyone.

STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT
Meet our Christmas student of the month Caitlin. Caitlin has been around a long time for online lessons, and she made it to the spotlight this month for one reason. Caitlin is determined to play a song for her friend that requires a level of dedication that shows the love behind her mission. This song has jazz formats with erratic timing, 4-finger octave stretch chords, and octave ranges all over the place for her long fingers. She would like to have this done by Christmas. Her unwavering determination in pursuit of her goal, makes me believe in this Christmas miracle. Caitlin has always given her best at whatever she does. She was one of our Christmas jingle rockers, and has a nice voice to boot. She has studied theater, and had high aspirations to be an astronaut. Whether that is still her goal is uncertain, but Im sure she could be anything she wanted with her willingness to set reasonable goals, and putting in the work of practice. This is Caitlins second time in the spotlight and few have had that honor. So lets wish a very Merry congratulations to Caitlin, Our December student of the month.

One of the greatest things about my job, is even when I’m not teaching these students anymore, we remain lifelong friends. Former student of the month “Shuka” has returned to Japan. But we still keep in touch. On this week of Thanksgiving, I’m not only thankful for my immediate family, I am thankful for all of my extended family. That means you Harmonic Mosaic students😌 Happy Thanksgiving!

STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT.

This November is lucky for Grant who not only has his birthday this month, he scored student of the month! Grant started lessons around March and he has two sisters he trades off lessons with. So for someone who doesn’t get a weekly lesson and took the summer off to boot, he is really rockin it. Grant started virtual lessons a month ago. I was told He was nervous about it at first. But you would never guess by the way he can handle the computer. He is able to read notes online and excels at theory. I was shocked when I gave him a song he had never played before and got every note correct.

Grant is careful when he plays and that shows in his rhythm reading and scales. He rarely makes a mistake. He is able to switch screens with me and understand the virtual piano as well as the Skype format. Truth be told, I was nervous too since we hadn’t had a lesson in a long time, and beside possible technical difficulty, he might have to start back at square 1. Not so! Grant has retained everything he has learned this year. A+ Job. Congratulations Grant. In the month that we will be counting our blessings. This one’s for you🏆

Just a reminder, you don’t need to reschedule Tuesday next week, because there are no lessons on Halloween. Have a fun and safe trick-or-treat.

Rory “AKA” Ray, wanted to let me know that this is our 1 year anniversary together. Happy 1 year of lessons Rory☺️

STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT

Meet Michael. I have known Michael for years and taught him guitar since he was just a youngster. Today he played a riff from the Cure's "Just Like Heaven song, that former student of the month Megan had introduced into her collection. Michael nailed it. He hadn't even ever heard it. But not only that, he played it with such great style. Michael is an online lesson student and has been since covid. He has learned so many things including studying on his own [see his video] the Harry Potter theme song. No one has been able to master that on guitar, it's quite a stretch. Michael can read notes and play barre chords and 5ths fluently, but where he really shines is in lead guitar. He is good with notes, but his spatial skills are amazing and that is what is needed to learn lead guitar. In fact, I think alot of his skill, has to do with his ear. He can tune by ear, and that helps with improv and figuring out songs without actually reading them. He has done so well and I am proud to name him as the October student of the month. Great job Michael!!!

The Washington county fair opens tomorrow and they have the mallard duck races back this year!

Washington County Fair, Hillsboro, Oregon The Washington County Fair in Hillsboro, Oregon has Big Fair Fun every summer in late July.

STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT.

Meet Paige. Paige started taking lessons about 6 months ago. She likes to make goofy faces on camera too by the way.

In the time I have known her, she worked very hard to strengthen her spacial skills so she could find the keys on the piano. That was the hardest thing for me when I started too. But once Paige memorized where some of the keys were, she took off and can play two handed rhythm beautifully. We mostly work with C and G at this point but we are now starting minors. She even decided to try Bach which is very challenging. She also plays the best version of London bridge I’ve ever heard. Her video is posted at an earlier time.

She started lessons, so she could learn to read music in case she wanted to join band at school. She doesn’t say much, but she seems to be concentrating more than conversing. Paige will be going online now and I’m thrilled to have her. She has come so far in 6 months and I felt she deserved some applause this month. So let’s give a hand to Paige our July student of the month. for working hard and showing her dedication to learning how to play piano.

Summer season has officially begun

Everyone is loving Georgie, except for Frankie that is. He will only be here a short time longer, I’m glad he brought joy into your lives.💕

STUDENT OF THE MONTH SPOTLIGHT.

It was a tough call this month but Emerick beat the competition. He has come very far on piano for a child who wanted to learn violin. He sits down at the lesson, and can play many songs including his scales by memory. He has great timing on his notes too. He enjoys every new song I give him, even the hard ones. He will work on a song until he gets it right. His favorite hobbies are pickle ball and tennis. His favorite animal is a snowy owl, and his favorite color is blue. Emerick spends his summers in 🇫🇷 France and I’m hoping he takes his piano skills with him for all his family to enjoy. Let’s give a round of applause to Emerick our June student of the month👏🏆🏅

Hope you all enjoyed your 3 day weekend. We have a new visitor until we can find him a good home. He’s very friendly so I hope you will like him. His name is Georgie.