hal leonard
blog posts

Teach music confidently without the stress

Repertoire Rap #2: Film and New Age music that teens and adults love

by Tim Topham

Repertoire Rap #2: Film and New Age music that teens and adults love. All right, hi, everyone. Tim Topham here. Again, for my Repertoire Rap for this fortnight, this is number two. Today’s focus is going to be on your teen and adult students in particular. I found that in working in school environments and ... Repertoire Rap #2: Film and New Age music that teens and adults love

02/23/2017 Read more

Easy pop music arrangements that actually sound good!

by Tim Topham

Finding easy pop music arrangements can be tough! There’s been a fair bit of discussion over at the PianoFlix discussion threads regarding how hard it is to find pop music arrangements that are not only playable by beginners, but actually sound like the real versions. This is one of the hardest things about introducing pop music into your ... Easy pop music arrangements that actually sound good!

12/23/2014 Read more

40 pieces “Coffee Card” and where to find more repertoire

by Tim Topham

As you already know, I’m a huge advocate for having my students learn as many pieces as possible each year, with a studio benchmark of 40 pieces for all students. In fact, I have no hesitation in saying that playing LOTS of repertoire is probably the most crucial element in a music student’s development and I’m ... 40 pieces “Coffee Card” and where to find more repertoire

03/22/2013 Read more

How to find cool new repertoire for your students

by Tim Topham

As my regular readers will know, I’m a huge fan of finding new repertoire for my students. In fact, I believe it’s a job necessity! I predominantly teach beginners to around Grade 2 level, many of whom start learning in Year 7 (ie. 12-13 years old) and often without any prior musical training. I also ... How to find cool new repertoire for your students

12/19/2011 Read more