I'm in a new video phase right now. Instead of sitting myself in front of the camera to memorialize all the great masterworks of the past, I've decided to take a break and let my students move center stage into an arena of playing and learning. I get to plop myself down at the second piano, and nurture these fledglings along as a musical guide within the same artistic space. It's as if I've moved into an adult role and out of the personal, self absorbed spotlight.
As a teacher, gazing in on my students as they progress in their studies, I have the unique opportunity to learn a great deal by listening attentively to their early efforts. While I respect their expressive individuality, I still have to fine tune my ears to identify what needs improving and how to best nudge things forward. Where words can fail teachers in this endeavor, playing, shaping, singing, and gesturing with the arms and hands are often the most direct and effective ways of transferring musical ideas.
Two days ago I made a video of ten year old Mai playing Kabalevsky's "Clowns" and though I edited it down to small size, I could still see baby steps of growth in just a fraction of lesson time. Her sister, Sakura, next took her place in the hot seat, and performed a German Dance in F Major by Mozart. This second video file was more than twice the size of Mai's, weighing in at nearly one gigabyte.
To get a student to relax in the eye of a camera is no small task, but it can be done by making music the primary focus apart from any attention to occasional note errors. In the scheme of a whole piece, the phrasing, nuances, and overall projection are at the heart of musical communication.
Last night proved to be very frustrating in this technology driven universe that often thwarts creative juices from freely flowing. Not one, but two times, the latest You Tube upload crashed at the half way mark without explanation, which sent me madly scurrying to the "saved" file to attempt another launch. Now 12 hours later, having lost a night's sleep in the process, I sit here bleary eyed at 6:34 a.m. PDT, babysitting the silly, dumb PC thinking that if I say a few prayers and keep my cat away from the desk top, that the video won't disintegrate. Who knows, I have a dentist appointment this morning, and the darn thing could implode again while I'm gone causing me enormous grief. Is this co-dependency or what?
If the video of Mai's sister materializes on You Tube, I will breathe a sigh of relief, look up at the sky and thank my heavenly Intercessor.
Stay tuned. I'm just a heart attack away from posting the latest.
Oh No! Another You Tube just bit the dust!
Alas, there is Total Video Conversion which produced this final result in an economical hour, taking all our nuances and dynamic contrasts down the tubes.
