I am speechless

This video is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.  Watch this and I swear you'll run straight to your piano to practice.

PS:  watch his hands feel for the correct position before he plays each bass clef chord.  Keep your eyes on your music boys and girls...this kid is showing you that if you work hard enough and you play long enough, you wont need to stare at the keys to find your place on the keyboard.  If you can't find it with your eyes closed, then you haven't finished practicing.

Batten Down the Hatches

Oh my...my summer has disappeared in a whirlwind of crazy!  I don't know about all of you...but I think something was in the water this summer and kept everyone's schedules stirred up and flying left and right! I think this very moment is the first chance I've had to breathe in about two months.  Anybody else experiencing this summer anomaly?   I thought summer was supposed to be lounging on the beach and eating watermelon!!!! Well...I have officially decided to take back my summer starting today...and that means back to blogging with you guys :)

So lets start by rewinding.  I simply MUST share with you the incredible trip that I took this summer with my family.  Family vacations are limited once kids become grown and live in other cities (enjoy your vacations now boys and girls!).  However, my family has always been close and managed to keep with tradition this year and get both me, my little (not so little) 19 year old brother, mom and dad all together for a family trip to (drumroll pleases) IRELAND!!! This was my first time out of the country AND to the place where my family originally comes from (can you tell by the pale skin, red hair, and freckles?) so I was in awe the entire trip.  Let me let the pictures do the talking:

Real Italian Food

I developed a new love for hot tea...mmmmmm

Cathedral on a BEAUTIFUL sunny day

Look at that organ....breathtaking 

Can you tell I liked the food? 

Me and my little brother <3

The Cliffs of Moher (ummmmm beautiful...but TERRIFYING)

The Cliffs of Moher (at this point I threw a hissy fit and made the whole family stop and go back...my reason? The path from here on out was ON the cliff edge...no more pretty grass and flowers between us and certain death...one mis-step and you were over the edge...We ended up enjoying the cliffs from here with a cup of hot tea and watching the bravest of the travelers try to wind along the rest of the path.  My fear of heights kept us all on safe ground ;)

Incredible castles everywhere

Beautiful

Green :)

Sam and Mama

Castle Moat

DUNGEON DUNDUNDUNNNNN

Scary Moat around the castle after a crazy storm. 

Driving through the Countryside

Summer updates: to be continued....

Play me, I'm Yours

These videos are a little old...but I ran across them today and I love them!!! British artist Luke Jerram started "Play Me, I'm Yours" and it has been pulling people together since 2008.  It's amazing how a little bit of impromptu music can draw such a crowd!  Whether they have never touched a piano before, or they've been playing for twenty years, these public "Play me, I'm Yours" pianos are attracting everyone!  How much fun would it be for a bunch of us to get together and play in downtown Charleston, or out on Folly Beach?! What would you choose to play???  Maybe its time to bring "Play Me, I'm Yours" to our little corner of the world.  Food for thought for this fun-loving piano teacher and her wonderful students.  

Song of the Week

Lets step back in time for a moment shall we??  Everybody remember the movie Anastasia?

One of my all time favorites!  In the movie her music box plays a song called Once Upon a December.  It has always been one of my favorites and a long time ago I found the sheet music for it.  Every now and then on a rainy day I'll pull that out and start playing.  Its the kind of song that you can feel in your bones.  I found this on YouTube so you can hear the song and see some of the work:  Once Upon a December.  You've got to practice hard if you want to get this one down guys...its no easy feat....but its EVER so worth it in the end :D


**Everybody remember:  I've got a couple of In-Home Piano Lesson time-slots still available for Charleston, SC and surrounding areas!  Shoot me an email (ashleyerinw@gmail.com) or a text/phone call (803.370.1275) and we can start playing!!

Song of the Week!! (and some other stuff too)

SOOOOOOOOO I'm a little behind on my song of the week I know I know....But in my defense I've been horribly distracted by two dear friends of mine...I mean really...who could turn this down?

Puppy love makes everything better!! This is Bindi (she looks just like a fox!) and Oliver (big black and white baby).   I've been taking care of them for a friend this week and its taken a toll on this piano teacher's productivity ;).

BUT BACK TO MUSICAL BUSINESS!

My song of the week?

Love Story

by Taylor Swift (rumored to be another animal lover)

This is such a great song to work on for a bunch of reasons...but right now the puppies are yapping my name so I'm just going to give you my favorite one.

My middle school girls reallllyyyyy want to play it...they are willing to take on the most complicated versions of this song simply because it speaks to their love-struck hearts.

This is why I mix up the music in my curriculum.  Yes we will play classical music.  Yes we will play pieces designed to teach a specific technique or a piece that focus's on a specific lesson we're working through.  But we will also play music that makes you feel excited and proud and determined.  If what you're playing doesn't speak to your soul...you simply won't work as hard!  Love Story has my kids practicing twice as long every day and calling me up during the week with questions to make sure they're getting the music just right.  I love it!

Now lets find out what music speaks to you :D  

mmmmmmmmmmm monday

Nothing like a box of cookies to throw me off of a healthy eating kick and into a sugar coma!

But hey...everybody needs a little pick-me-up to get through the beginning of a busy week.  Always reward yourself after a really good practice session! 30 minutes of piano practice = 1 delicious lemon meltaway cookie = happy students and a happy piano teacher :)

**Time-slots for piano lessons still available in Charleston and the surrounding areas!  Give this cookie-devouring piano teacher a call/text 803.370.1275 or email ashleyerinw@gmail.com to book a spot!!

Facebook Page

Happy Wednesday everybody! We're half way to the weekend :)...I just wanted to let you guys know that my Facebook Page is up and running now so go take a look (and show all your friends)!!

Piano at the Beach Facebook Page

Song of the Week!

Happy Tuesday!  First of all, I apologize for being MIA the past few days.  My crazy schedule is finally giving me an opportunity to jump back on here.

Now, down to business...this week's song?? The Bare Necessities!  I've never met an adult or child that didn't like Walt Disney's The Jungle Book.  My favorite character would have to be Bagheera simply because he looks like my my cat Boo, but Baloo certainly comes in at a close 2nd.

I ended up choosing this as my song of the week because one of my newest piano students has volunteered to play a song at his school's music recital in a few weeks.  The music is a little more technically challenging than he is ready for (he's only been taking piano lessons for a few weeks!), but since he'll be playing with other students who have been taking piano lessons for years, he wanted something familiar that he could impress his friends with.  Normally I wouldn't give my students something that was considerably above their difficulty level, however, I know how excited he is to be playing something his friends will recognize and I know he'll put the time in to learn everything he needs to learn in order to pull this off.  Nothing like a little outside motivation to push students into something new and challenging!!

We are kicking off the week with page 1 from this three page piece, so I'll update you next week on how our crash course is going! We are determined to have this ready for his recital in a few weeks :).  

**PS everybody...Time slots are still available for in-home piano lessons in Charleston, SC and surrounding areas!  Shoot me a text/call 803.370.1275 or email ashleyerinw@gmail.com to schedule now!!! I can't wait to hear from you!

Update on Adele

Hey Hey! Piano lessons seem to be flying by this week.  Everyone is in an amazing sunshiny mood! I swear this beautiful early summer is the culprit!

I just thought I'd stop by and let you guys know how amazed I am with my piano students playing Adele's Someone Like You.  Something about this song makes my girls really push and practice every day! They are becoming attached to their metronomes as much as their cell phones.  Its so fulfilling to watch them come to the realization that hard work and learning to use knew tools can get them to the place they want to be with their songs.  I am a firm believer in finding what style of music speaks to you, and then enhancing your knowledge of music theory and form through that.  Everybody learns best when they're having fun!!

**Time-slots still available for in-home piano lessons in Charleston and the surrounding areas.  Shoot me and email (ashleyerinw@gmail.com) or give me a call/text (803-370-1275) to book a spot! I can't wait to hear from you :)  

New Student!!

Taking on a new piano student is one of the best parts about my job! I love meeting new people and exploring new learning styles.  The newest edition to my schedule is a super sweet four year old girl.  She was VERY shy  when I first arrived but warmed up once we starting playing around on the piano.   By the time I left, she was excitedly teaching her mom how to do all the things we had just learned on the keyboard.  Seeing my piano students feeling that enthusiastic right out of the gate makes my whole day.

Note to parents of new piano students:

Most kids are nervous before they start their first piano lesson, and almost all kids are shy about meeting the piano teacher.  Don't Stress!!! Just remember, after getting the first couple of lessons under their belt, they'll be comfortable enough to start teaching you what they've been learning.  Get ready for your crash courses! 

**Don't forget everybody...I currently have available time-slots open for in-home piano lessons in Charleston and the surrounding areas! Give me a call (803.370.1275) or shoot me an email (ashleyerinw@gmail.com) to find out your rate and available times!  I can't wait to hear from you :)

Song of the Week!

Für Elise!!

I know I'm going a little old-school here but I just couldn't resist.  Every couple of weeks my piano students and I visit an ongoing music wish-list.  We discuss styles of music that they enjoy playing and listening to, songs they're curious about, and songs they wish they knew how to play.  Normally my students will ask me for contemporary sheet music simply because they're more familiar with it than classical, but this week something was different.  THREE different students asked me for Fur Elise! Its rare that I have multiple students ask for the same piece in the same week, so to have three of them ask me for something classical at the same time was one in a million.  I love seeing my kids happily delve into music they don't hear on the radio every day!  I've got the music all printed up and ready for them to get started, so I'll keep you posted on their progress.  Fur Elise was actually one of my favorites to learn when I was a piano student myself.  

PS...Adele's Someone Like You is going swimmingly for my girls.  They're happily ticking away with their metronomes! What a happy piano teacher I am this week :)

**Hey Don't Forget!!! I currently have time-slots available for piano lessons in Charleston and the surrounding areas.  Shoot me an email (ashleyerinw@gmail.com) or drop me a call/text (803.370.1275) to book your spot! Oh and tell all your friends too ;) 

Road Trip!!

As most of you know I am a commercial photographer by day, and an enthusiastic piano teacher by night. I love the fact that my work life is composed of my two very favorite things! After my last piano lesson this week, I hopped in my car and headed on a three day road trip to Nashville, Tennessee!! This was a business trip, but as I said, work and fun are one in the same for this lucky pianist. My purpose in the music capital? I had the opportunity to photograph an up-and-coming guitarist, wearing incredible vintage clothes in some amazing locations!! I grew up in the back-woods of Tennessee, so being out in the fields surrounding Nashville exploring old barns and antique shops was like coming home for me. Actually being in the city was more of a new experience. While exploring, I ran across The Big Bang, a dueling piano bar on Broadway in Nashville. Anybody been?? Between all of the location scouting and shooting, I didn't have time to stop in, but The Big Bang is now on my list of MUST SEE places in Nashville. You really can't beat a good dueling piano bar :).

As much fun as I had out in the fields of Tennessee and exploring the musical side of Nashville, I can't wait to be back home with my piano students again! I'll be back on the road tomorrow and will get home with just enough time to stop and pick up some new sheet music on my way home. See you soon!

**Don't forget everybody!! I currently have some available time slots for piano students! Anyone in Charleston and surrounding areas give me a call 803.370.1275 or shoot me an email ashleyerinw@gmail.com and lets start playing!

Song of the Week

This song has been out for a while now and you know you've alllllll heard it on the radio. I picked this piece up one day at the music store while I was shopping for some new lesson books, and I just couldn't put it back down! I have several little girls that listen to Adele on the radio and have been asking me to put some of her music on their list of future songs to play. Since I'm constantly looking for pieces that will challenge my kids, but also keep them involved and intrigued, I decided to give it a shot. I am OH SO glad that I did! This song is an incredible exercise in timing. Many students who have never been asked to use a metronome before, don't understand the necessity of the annoying ticking machine, but after giving my kids this piece and kicking it off with the metronome, I have kids asking me if they can use the amazing ticking machine with every song they have! Now when I see new students asking for a metronome...my day is made. Since I just started on this song with some of my girls, I haven't had anyone completely finish it yet...but I will keep you updated and let you know how we all progress!!

All you piano lovers out there, both teachers and students, I urge you to try it out yourself! Adele - Someone Like You

*Don't forget guys...I currently have availability to teach in-home piano lessons in Charleston, South Carolina and the surrounding areas! Shoot me an email (ashleyerinw@gmail.com) or give me a ring (803-370-1275) and lets start playing!

My piano lessons this week went very well all across the board, but I had one lesson on Monday afternoon that truly blew me away! My youngest student has been working so hard the past few weeks. He is learning to read and write English, Hebrew, AND music all at the same time! Thats a lot to ask of anyone, let alone a 4 year old. For a few weeks I worried that he had too much information coming in from different directions, but this week, he proved to me and his mother that he can handle anything! Upon sitting down to our lesson, he excitedly (and voluntarily) spouted off everything that he could remember about our previous lesson. Then he bounced up onto his piano bench and proceeded to play his assigned song while reading the notes to me out-loud and never missed a beat! Lessons like that remind me how much kids brains can really soak up!

*Remember guys, this piano teacher has some availability in her schedule right now and is accepting new students in Charleston, South Carolina and the surrounding areas! Give me a call at 803-370-1275 or shoot me an email at ashleyerinw@gmail.com!! Can't wait to hear from you :)