The Playground

Hazel Scott was a Trinidadian-born jazz and classical pianist, singer, and actor. She was a critically acclaimed performing artist and an outspoken critic of racial discrimination and segregation. Scott was a child musical prodigy, receiving […]

• Written by Gretta Dunn on Oct 14, 2020
• 'The Hazel Scott Show'." ... she was also known for playing 2 piano's at a time!!, classical music, female, female musician, music, music education, musician, pianist, piano, piano concerto, piano player, piano. She was prominent as a jazz singer throughout the 1930s and 1940s. In 1950, she became the first African American to host her own TV show, simply music, the playground

Born June 5, 1941 Martha Argerich is an Argentine-Swiss classical concert pianist. She made her concert debut at the age of 8 and is considered to be one of the greatest pianists of the recorded […]

• Written by Gretta Dunn on Sep 16, 2020
• classical music, female, female musician, music, music education, musician, pianist, piano, piano concerto, piano player, simply music, the playground

Giana Nguyen is an Advanced Simply Music Teacher and Singer/Songwriter based in Irvine, CA. She has just released her new self-titled album, “GiANA”. Leon Moore spends a few minutes learning about her musical background, influences […]

• Written by SM Admin on Dec 6, 2018
• Dancing Keys Music Studio, Giana Nguyen, interview, Leon Moore, music, music education, musician, piano, simply music, Singer, singer-songwriter, Songwriter, teacher, teaching, the playground

After our Songwriting Tips from Simply Music Friends – Pt 1 post, we asked contributors to give us a more in-depth insight into their process of creating songs. You’ll find that there are as many […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on Nov 27, 2017
• gordon harvey, music, music education, musician, musicians, piano, play piano, simply music, songwriting, Sue Lopez, the playground

There have been many professional and semi-professional musicians on the Simply Music team. Gretta Dunn is one of them, forging a growing career as an alt-country singer-songwriter (as Gretta Ziller) around her work for us. […]

• Written by Stephanie Iadanza on Sep 19, 2017
• Album, Country, gretta dunn, gretta ziller, interview, music, musician, professional, simply music, Singer, Songwriter

In our last discussion about the diversity of Jazz, we cast a very broad net to show how varied music can be under the jazz umbrella. This time I thought we could explore just how […]

• Written by Gordon Harvey on Feb 15, 2017
• Autumn Leaves, create, gordon harvey, music, music education, musical, musician, piano, simply music, the playground

  Creating your own original music is one of the most beneficial aspects of studying an instrument and being a musician. In Part 1, I talked about two of the three keys to reaping those […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on Jul 26, 2016
• benefit, composition, improvisation, instrument, mark meritt, mark s. meritt, music, musician, piano, simply music, the playground, toolkit, tools

Credit: http://www.coos.be/   We know our teachers and staff are passionate about their day jobs, but for some, this is just part of their musical journey. Many of them have multiple irons in their musical […]

• Written by Mel Karajas on May 27, 2016
• blog, creative, eliette roslin, gretta ziller, jennifer lee, josh gronner, katie schmidt, music blog, musician, professional, simply music, the playground

I’m just learning to take baby steps into improvisation. And I have a secret to tell you. But first, let me tell you where I’m coming from and what my personal experience with music has […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on Mar 31, 2016
• classical music, composition, Eastman, ensemble, improvisation, Julliard, literature, musician, Oberlin, patti phears, Peabody Conservatory, piano, playing, simply music, technique, the playground

Music has always been such a huge part of my life – there are some songs which can instantly transport me to different places in time, invoke memories, stir up feelings that sometimes have languished […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on Sep 20, 2015
• apple, appleipod, audience, concert, houseconcert, ipods, itunes, memorie, music, musicandmemory, musician, niarobertson, pianolessons, s ipod, shuffle, simplymusic, theplayground