2026-2027 Events
October 17-18, 2026 — Group Classes
December 5-6, 2026 — Group Classes
January 24, 2027 — Performance Class & Guest Artist Workshop
February 27-28, 2027 — Group Classes
April 10-11, 2027 — Group Classes
May 22, 2027 — Student Final Recital
How to Practice
Use the Practice Guide below. It logs your practice for you — no comments needed.
Press Start from # whatever number it shows. It picks up where you stopped last time.
Press Start, read the assignment, practice.
Tap the kind of practice, then press Done.
Press Next practice item and go again.
Capped items count down and chime. Keep going if it's going well.
Some assignments finish. Those carry a Done for the Week button. Press it when the job is done and the assignment comes off your list. Technique and repertoire don't have one; those are every day.
Need the metronome, a recorder or the NFPER colors? They are in Practice Tools, right under the practice types. Tap one and it opens inside your assignment. Tap Close to put it away.
Got something to say about an assignment? Paste the line it gives you into the comments and add your note.
Log only what you actually did, on the day you did it. Five minutes is a real entry. Logging starts October 1.
🟩 on track · 🟨 needs extra attention · 🟪 didn't get to it at the lesson · 🟥 priority · ⬛️ don't practice this one
[PRACTICE TOOLS]
The plan for RCM: we're not doing the Level 4 exam this fall. We'll aim for it in the spring, which gives us time to build the four pieces properly instead of rushing two of them back.
Technique
1. ⬛️ RCM Technique, Level 4
Nothing to do yet — I'm bringing you the Level 4 book. This starts next week.
Theory
2. ⬛️ Theory, Level 4
Not this week.
Musicianship
3. 🟩 PA Sightreading, Level 2B
⏱ One page per practice session.
Pages 66-70.
One page each session. If you do more than one, that's up to you — just log what you actually did.
4. 🟩 Four Star, Level 4, Unit 1
⏱ One day per practice session.
Work through Unit 1, one day at a time.
Repertoire
5. 🟨 Sonatina in F Major, Op. 168, No. 1, I. Moderato cantabile (Diabelli)
RCM Level 4, List B
⏱ No cap, but expect 11-15 minutes to do two measures properly.
You hadn't touched this in about two months and you remembered more than you thought. What we're rebuilding now isn't the notes, it's the habits. So we're going in small sections and making each one performance-ready before moving on.
This week: measures 1-8, two measures at a time
Work each two-measure section in three passes. Three correct repetitions of each hand, then three hands together, before you move on. This is NFPER in order.
Notes, fingering, position. Right hand 3×, left hand 3×, hands together 3×. About 2-3 minutes.
Add expression. Right hand 3×, left hand 3×, hands together 3×. About 2-3 minutes.
Add rhythm, with the metronome at 60 per quarter note. Right hand 3×, left hand 3×, hands together 3×. The goal is to be with the metronome. If 60 is too fast, slow it down — that's fine, just make a note of the tempo you used.
That's roughly 11 to 15 minutes for two measures. In a perfect world you get through all eight measures in one session, but don't rush it to get there.
The next day
Review the two measures you already did: right hand once, left hand once, hands together once, with the metronome.
That tells you whether to work them again the same way, or move on to the next two.
If you have extra time, do more. If two measures start feeling easy on every try, make the section three measures instead.
Keep in mind
Make a note for your music stand that says IN-THE-BLACK. If your thumb is playing a black key, your fingers have to be up in the black keys.
Always go to the downbeat. There's a pickup at the start, so measures 1-2 means through that downbeat.
🟥 Listen and practice with the two videos below, one for right hand and one for left. Copy the wrist movements exactly.
About 70% of your practice should be slow or medium. That's true for me too — the solo recital I just played in Louisiana was 70 minutes of music, and most of the practice behind it was slow.
🎥 Right hand, wrist movement https://youtu.be/dVh8xWb6cXw
🎥 Left hand, wrist movement https://youtu.be/lqQJDhs-5bQ
6. 🟩 Solitude (Grill)
RCM Level 4, Etude
⏱ No more than 10 minutes per practice session, if it's a solid 10 minutes.
This week: measures 1-8, two measures at a time
Both voices together, three times correctly, with the right kind of sound. Then the next two measures.
Play slow enough that your hand stays relaxed. That's the whole test.
We're looking for relaxation, control, and good sound — not speed.
Expression: it's two voices, and the top one wins
Put your energy into the upper-stem notes. Let the lower ones relax.
What we fixed at the lesson
You don't have to stretch to hold those notes — the pedal is down, so you can let go. That was the thing making it feel impossible.
Last measure: take the very bottom note into your left hand. Fingering 1-2-3.
The key signature is four flats. Name them before you play.
Watch the wrist: don't slope it and don't hike it. Sit back a little, and check where your elbow is — scooped back, not forward.
If you want to add the pedal, change about twice a measure, on the downbeats.
7. ⬛️ Gavotte in F major (Graupner)
RCM Level 4, List A
Not this week.
8. ⬛️ Sonatina in B-flat Major, Op. 29, I. Andante (Schmitt)
RCM Level 4, List B
Not this week.
9. ⬛️ Cool Cat Waltz (Pine)
RCM Level 4, List C
Not this week.
10. ⬛️ The Avalanche, Op. 45, No. 2 (Heller)
RCM Level 4, Etude
Not this week.
Review List
Review twice a week, with your music. You don't need to review all of them in one practice session, just one per week.
RCM Level 3
Musette in D Major, BWV Anh. 126, Anonymous, from the Notebook for Anna Magdalena Bach (1725) (List A)
Minuet in G Minor, BWV Anh. 115, attr. Christian Petzold (1677-1733) (List A)
Sonatina in G Major, Anh. 5, No. 1, I. Moderato, attr. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) (List B)
Album für die Jugend, Op. 68, No. 1, Melody, by Robert Schumann (1810-1856) (List C)
Prelude VII, by Barbara Arens (b. 1960) (Etude)
Mouse Dance, by Jakub Metelka (b. 1986) (Etude)
RCM Level 2
Minuet in G Major, from Suite in G Minor, BWV 822, by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) (List A)
Écossaise in G Major, WoO 23, by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) (List A)
Crocodile Tears, by Christine Donkin (b. 1976) (List B)
Invention in C Major, by Renée Christopher (List C)
Etude in G Major, Op. 166, No. 6, by Henri Bertini (1798-1876) (Etude)
RCM Level 1
Bourrée in D Minor, by Christoph Graupner (1683-1760) (List A)
Early One Morning, Traditional, arr. Frederick Silvester (1901-1966) (List B)
Canon, No. 8, from 17 Canons, by Carleton Elliott (1928-2003) (List C)
Celebration, by Anne Crosby Gaudet (Etude)
RCM Preparatory B
To Fly Like an Eagle, by Anne Crosby Gaudet
RCM Preparatory A
What's That Noise?, by Martha Mier (b. 1936)
Sleigh Bells, by Christine Donkin (b. 1976)
Boots, from Little Dog Tales, by Yvonne Adair (1897-1989)
The Haunted Mouse, by Nancy and Randall Faber (b. 1955; 1954)
Step-by-Step Practice Flow
Identify a section to record.
Record your section once — video is best, but audio is fine too.
Listen back with one color/goal in mind.
As you listen, mark your music using that color anywhere it needs improvement.
Repeat for each remaining color, one at a time, until all five have been addressed.
Choose a small "spot" section from your markings — just a few measures or a tricky passage.
"Spot" until it's solid — meaning:
✅ 3 times in a row correctly, or
✅ 5 total correct repetitions, then move on.
Focus on one or two colors at a time while practicing that spot.
Use the troubleshooting checklist below if you're stuck.
🔧 Troubleshooting Tips
🎯 If you've tried to fix something three times in a row and it's still not working, don't just repeat it — troubleshoot:
Do you need to slow down?
Should you practice hands alone?
Could you make the spot even smaller?
Would technical exercises help (staccato, accents, etc.)?
Do you need to think ahead more clearly?
Do you need blocking practice?