February 28, 2026 (Lesson 1 of 8)

Lesson Assignments

šŸŸ©Sonatina in A Minor op. 94, no. 4, Allegro moderato by Albert Biehl (L. 3, B)

  1. See two new videos in Newzik, titled ā€œLH & RH Second theme / developmentā€

  2. Movement:

    1. Long notes: forward wrists! Why? Helps keep our muscles relaxed and ready for the NEXT movement.

    2. Two-note Slurs: down-up movement.

    3. LH curved fingers.

    4. Repeated notes: lift wrist

  3. m. 6 LH - detached

  4. m. 7: detach the LH chords with a forward-motion wrist.

  5. šŸ’›mm. 13-17 LH: Block the LH in groups of two beats (beats 1-2 and 3-4) so that you form a chord. Then practice as-written.

  6. Send a video of your corrected hand position, measures 1-17 (to Dustin)

  7. Learn

šŸŸ©Sight-reading 2A

  1. Prepare pages 74-78

šŸŸ©RCM Technical Requirements: Level 3

  1. Prepare page 5 of the PDF.

šŸŸ©RCM Technical Requirements: Level 2

  1. When you play solid triads, please have a forward-motion wrist.

  2. Review all technical items at their final tempo.

šŸŸ©Four Star Level 2 (this needs a bit more work before an exam)

  1. Practice daily with the two new audio files, pausing the audio after each example to clap or play back.

  2. After you play or clap back one of the examples, you can go back and clap / play with the example to see if you did it correctly.

  3. If youā€™re short on practice time, you can alternate between the clapbacks and playbacks on different days.

šŸŸ© Theory Level 3

  1. Unit 2: Complete the unit

šŸŸ©Etude in D Minor op. 82, no. 65 (L. 2, Etude)

  1. Gradually slow down at the end.

  2. šŸ’›Work for continued shaping of your LH melody. Try to have gradual crescendo and decrescendo and avoid accenting the peak of a melody.

šŸŸ© Ɖcossaise in G Major, WoO 23 by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) (L. 2, A)

  1. Review by practicing starting from any measure of the piece.

  2. POSITION IS FOCUS

šŸŸ©I Spy by Melody Bober (b. 1955) (L. 2, B)

  1. Review by practicing starting from any measure of the piece.

  2. POSITION IS FOCUS

šŸŸ©Farewell op. 98 no. 4 by Aleksandr Grechaninov (L. 2, C)

  1. Review by practicing starting from any measure of the piece.

  2. POSITION IS FOCUS

Level 3 Pieces

  1. The Stormy Sea by Ann Crosby Gaudet (L. 3, C)

  2. Sonatina in C Major, op. 36 no. 1, Allegro by Muzio Clementi (L. 3, B)

  3. Minuet in G Minor BWV Anh. 115 by Christian Petzold (L. 3, A)

  4. Musette in D Major, BWV Anh. 126 attr. Johann Sebastian Bach (L. 3, A)

Focus Tracker:

šŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ’›šŸ’›šŸ’ššŸ’›šŸ’œā¤ļøšŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ’œā¤ļøšŸ’ššŸ’œā¤ļøšŸ–¤ā¤ļøā¤ļøšŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ’šā¤ļøšŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ–¤šŸ§”šŸ’ššŸ’ššŸ’š

(53 points)

ā¤ļø= 4 POINTS (+ bonus = no reminders)

šŸ’š= 3 POINTS

šŸ’›= 2 POINTS

šŸ’œ= 1 POINT

šŸ–¤= 0 POINTS

HERE IS THE LINK TO I SPY PRACTICE VIDEO
https://www.videoask.com/f034bc97a




REVIEW LIST

Review the pieces on this list, with your music, one time each week.

šŸ’šCranky Cat by Teresa Richert (b. 1964) (L. 1, C)

šŸ’šFar Away by Teresa Richert (b. 1864) (L. 1 Etude)

šŸ’šThis Guyā€™s Disguised by Bradley Sowash (L. 1, B)

šŸ’šGerman Dance in D Major Hob. IX:22, no. 2 by Franz Jospeh Haydn (1732-1809) (L. 1, A)

šŸ’œLooking-Glass River by Nancy & Randall Faber (Prep. B)

šŸ’šRaptors by Kevin Olson (Prep. B)

šŸ’šNew Shoes by Linda Niamath (Prep B)

šŸ’šThe Lively Boy (Prep A)

šŸ’šLeaping the Waves with Dolphins (Prep B)

šŸ’šCurious Cat

šŸ’šMarching by Kabalevsky









šŸŽØ Color-Focus Practice (NFPER)

At the top of your music, write NFPER using the following color system:

  • N ā€“ Notes ā€“ correct pitches and accidentals (šŸŸ„ Red)

  • F ā€“ Fingering ā€“ consistent, effective finger choices (šŸŸØ Yellow)

  • P ā€“ Position ā€“ hand shape, posture, and keyboard geography (šŸŸ§ Orange)

  • E ā€“ Expression ā€“ phrasing, dynamics, articulation, tone, etc. (šŸŸŖ Purple)

  • R ā€“ Rhythm ā€“ steady pulse, accurate timing, and rests (šŸŸ¦ Blue)

āœ… If you're only recording audio, just use NER.

Step-by-Step Practice Flow

  1. Record your section once ā€” video is best, but audio is fine too.

  2. Listen back with one color/goal in mind.

  3. As you listen, mark your music using that color anywhere it needs improvement.

  4. Repeat for each remaining color, one at a time, until all five have been addressed.

  5. Choose a small ā€œspotā€ section from your markings ā€” just a few measures or a tricky passage.

ā€œSpotā€ until itā€™s solid ā€” meaning:

  • āœ… 3 times in a row correctly, or

  • āœ… 5 total correct repetitions, then move on.





  1. Focus on one or two colors at a time while practicing that spot.

  2. Use the troubleshooting checklist below if you're stuck.

šŸ”§ Troubleshooting Tips

šŸŽÆ If youā€™ve tried to fix something three times in-a-row and itā€™s still not working, donā€™t just repeat it ā€” 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?