Dr.

Paul Pollei BYU Piano Faculty 1961-2001

BYU chair of graduate piano study
Founder of Gina Bachauer International Piano
Foundation and Competition
Founder and member of the American Piano Quartet
Oct 24, 2008 UMTA state convention presentation
South Towne Exposition Center

Teaching children
Natural sounds—the voice. Child needs to be surrounded by sounds, the most natural of
which is the voice.

Get kids singing—sing with words, numbers, all possibilities of sound

Plunking on the piano is not sound nor talent

Only 12 notes on the piano—not 88; the rest are just more octaves

You cannot get the sound of the piano without the pedal

Use correct posture at the piano right from the beginning—otherwise one has to be the
correction officer the rest of our lives.

Secret of harmony is scales and chords

Bartok: Don’t play parallel five-finger patterns—play contrary five-finger patterns

If you have heard “don’t play thumb on the black keys”—that is the most damaging
statement of all.

Expectation is very important in music lessons—if student does not do what you ask
“then maybe we are not a good fit.”

Have child copy four measures of music a day.

Play five-finger tunes in 12 keys

Play all chords in diatonic scales up and down. This exercise will change them from
playing with a baby sound to real piano sound.
#1 mistake in piano teaching is to jump ahead too fast

One problem in America—we don’t love music—we love sports

If the child does not keep their part of the bargain we have a little “come to Jesus”
session.

Secret of inspiration: play for them or take them to someone who can. Take them to a
concert. If you leave them alone and only torture them with tedious lessons, it won’t
work. Does not have to be a complex piece; Chopin 4th prelude, or Bach 1st prelude, or
Chopin nocturne; so the child hears beautiful music and develops ear and brain for
making beautiful sound.

Method books are an insult to intelligence—“I hate lollipops and butterflies” [as found in
method books]. Method books don’t teach the piano “sound.” They keep child in one
key and not the whole keyboard.

All keys are created equal—there are no easy keys or hard keys to play in.

Start octave scales when they can do all 31 Hanon exercises at 100 on the metronome:
four 16th notes to the beat, staccato. Then at 120 legato

Take really good care of your students with friendship—have parties, events, recitals.

Use Mack Wilberg’s Duet Miniatures in Twelve Keys. He also has a second volume.
These highlight the five-finger patterns in each key with sophisticated teacher parts.