This blog is regarding a set of private sessions for learning piano that I attended at GMI (Global Music Institute), tutored by Almudena Diaz, a pianist, songwriter, and composer from Madrid, Spain. These sessions were planned to help me advance my piano playing skills which will eventually help me do well in my entrance audition for college admission. Hence, I decided to go through these sessions so that I can gain perspective into what I have to do in order to achieve a certain level of expertise on the instrument. 

 

The sessions were scheduled every week for one hour each. Since I have never traditionally learnt piano, I was almost taught to relearn my playing. While I was using self-taught techniques related to playing chords, bass notes, or octaves, most of the concepts I learnt were new to me. 

 

At the start, I had to mainly focus on how I play notes, which falls under basic technique. The first few sessions involved basic theory and learning, such as playing scales with one or two hands at a time, involving parallel and contrary motion (ways of practising playing a scale). Multiple basic exercises such as the aforementioned one were introduced to me by the tutor, which I then practised throughout the week. Moreover, the later sessions included a lot of improvisation, which I am pretty fond of. Even though improvising is very different from composition, it allows me to think more like a composer rather than a performer, hence, I enjoy it thoroughly. During the sessions, Improvising meant - selecting a specific skill with specific notes and improvising upon them. For example, using the C major scale to play arpeggios (a broken chord, where notes are played in an ascending or descending manner). This approach allowed me to develop techniques that I would actually use while performing with a band or even composing my own pieces. 

 

As a final assessment, I was required to improvise on the 12-bar-blues, a prominent chord progression in popular music. With the help of all the sessions before the final one, I heavily improved my playing, which was evident in the final assessment of my performance. Improvising, using muscle memory, playing scales, and playing a lot of 12-bar-blues allowed me to become fluent in the form. 

 

With the tutor’s feedback I have received, one of my main takeaways is focusing on rhythm while playing. As I was relearning a lot of the technique, my main focus was on what I was playing, and how I was playing it. This deterred me from putting my focus on rhythm. Hence, I will also be making sure to include practice time in improving my sense of rhythm. Moreover, as I attended the sessions and practised, I realized how having deadlines for learning new skills can be important. Hence, I decided to set weekly goals for myself on the Piano so that I can learn and improve my efficiency. Overall, the sessions were not only helpful, but quite enjoyable, and I look forward to attending sessions at GMI.