The Playground

Hello again! This is part two in the Soulful Grace series. If you read my first Soulful Grace article in the previous issue of The Playground and spent some time learning the arrangement I presented there, […]

• Written by SM Admin on Jul 29, 2012
• amazing grace, arrangement, chord, jennifer lee, music, piano, playing, simply music, soulful grace, the playground, tutorial

Who likes to perform in front of others? I don’t see many hands up. It seems like there’s a rare breed of person who just loves an audience, and the rest of us recoil in […]

• Written by Gordon Harvey on May 30, 2012
• chopin, coaching, gordon harvey, learning, lessons, music, performance, piano, playing, simply music, the playground

  Amazing Grace is a beautiful song. And, as is apparent from Neil’s introduction of it in both the foundation materials (Levels 1 and 2) as well as in the variations, it’s also a wonderful […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on May 30, 2012
• amazing grace, arrangements, chords, groove, jennifer lee, learning, lessons, music, new, piano, recording, sheet music, simply music, the playground, tutorials, variation

Documentary Review by Elizabeth Gaikwad The Musical Brain – Writer/director Christina Pochmursky, producer Vanessa Dylyn, Matter of Fact Media For me this is one of the most interesting documentaries made about the scientific evidence that […]

• Written by Gordon Harvey on May 30, 2012
• book review, books, Elizabeth Gaikwad, gordon harvey, media, music education, piano, piano movies, simply music

How many things can you think of that have nasty side effects? Medicines. Technologies. Political policies. Even just things we’ve said or done to people we know. How many times have you been thrust into […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on Apr 8, 2012
• coaching, learning, lessons, mark meritt, music, piano, play, simply music, speed, the playground, time, walk

I remember hiring a car on a holiday a few years ago. We could only tune the radio to one station, playing popular music, and as the songs cycled by, I started to realize that […]

• Written by Gordon Harvey on Apr 8, 2012
• chords, learn, music, piano, simply music, songs, teach, the playground

The term “Coaching” brings many things to mind but perhaps the most common is the image of a professional sports coach—like Vince Lombardi or soccer coach Luiz Felipe Scolari. Professional sports coaches train athletes to […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on Dec 16, 2011
• art, coaching, lessons, music, piano, play, robin keehn, simply music, students, teachers, the playground

  What do raising children, going to school, holding down a job, and taking piano lessons have in common? They each start with a goal that requires a long term commitment! In Simply Music, we […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on Sep 24, 2011
• benefits, create, learn piano, learning, music, music education, music lessons, piano, robin keehn, simply music, success, the playground

  In January of this year my first grandchild was born. His name is Jack and he was named in honor of my father who passed away last year. Baby Jack’s birth was very complicated […]

• Written by Neil Moore on Jul 20, 2011
• music, neil moore, piano, simply music, the playground

Students and parents/coaches often believe that the Simply Music method is demanding. It can be a challenge to be as diligent as the method instructs. It can be hard for parents to actively involve themselves […]

• Written by Guest Contributor on Jul 20, 2011
• easy, experience, learning, lessons, mark meritt, method, piano, simply music, student, teacher, the playground