Puppets and Perfect Peppew-pippews

The piano kids are preparing for the spring recital, May 15, 12:30 in Eagan.  Each student is playing one classical piece.  My preliminary estimate is 85 minutes. . . still much shorter than the four hour dance recital I sat through last May.  My mom and Bill's sister got MAJOR brownie points for their attendance although there was some pretty heavy texting going on between us all by the last dance.  Mary was only in two dances.  ($120 worth of costumes. . . cough and gag)  Calvin started to cry when he turned the program page and saw that there was a whole second half. . . Bless his sweet heart, I almost cried too. We opted out of dance this year.

For the record--texting is not allowed during piano recitals.  And yes folks, I will have a talk with Maggie about holding conversation throughout the studio recitals.  Sorry.  There is no costume to buy, by the way.  You can wear sequins if you really want/need to.

The kids are preparing for the recital.  One thing we do to prepare is to tally perfect repetitions.  The goal is to achieve 50 perfect repetitions by the recital.  These perfects can be slow, right and left hands alone, section by section, however they want--they can be.  A tally has to be worth the equivalent of the whole piece played note perfect. The first tally is always the hardest.

I am careful to express that the reason we do this is not to require the student to be perfect.  Musicality always trumps technical perfection.  We tally perfects to build awareness, concentration and confidence.  Until we listen for a note perfect repetition the kid can play a hundred wrong notes and barely notice.  After logging 50 perfects, we also have a much better statistical chance of getting it right as well.  How can you expect to be comfortable at the recital if it isn't easy to play your piece accurately.  Of course in 2002 Kyle Serafin proved me wrong by nailing the Beethoven Sonata Op. 49, No. 2 at the recital after never having gotten through without crashing at the lesson.  Hope springs eternal.  Most of us will need the perfect repetitions.  Kyle is now a composition major at the University of Wisconsin for those of you who remember him.  He friended me on facebook, but I'm not so sure he wants his childhood piano teacher looking in on his college conversations.  Another blog topic. . .

Calvin and Mary have a stuffed puppy puppet who helps out at the piano.  Puppy talks in a funny voice and calls the perfect repetitions "perfect peppew-pippews."   As in, "May-we, awr you ready to doo yew pewfect peppew-pippews?"  Who can say no to puppy?   The perfect rep is rewarded with puppy cuddle time.  Works for me.  Every parent has to find their own calling. . . mine is great puppy voices. . .

After the recital the students get to collect from me: m&ms or Skittles equal to the number of perfect reps they tallied, with a limit of 100 pieces of candy.  (I have mercy on the parent of the over ambitious child who plays Mary Had a Little Lamb 500 times perfectly).

It's not about the candy, it's not about being perfect.  It's about preparing wisely to share your music with a caring audience.  It's about being comfortable so you can have a positive experience playing the piano. Good luck students and get busy!