Last week I came across a documentary about the life of movie composers, as they explain the process of composing music for major movies. I was so mesmerized by the Doc, that I had to take a moment to share what I learned. I don't want to spoil anything, yet I'll give you some glimpses that caught my attention. The film shares about various composers, including Hans Zimmer, John Willams, Danny Elfman, Quincy Jones, Randy Newman and so many others that I've never heard of, yet

This week I shared on the acting/theater part of our website some of my favorite acting games. Thought I would take a moment to share how some of them work. One of the games is the Question Game, where people ask questions instead of answering the questions. A topic is decided and the group can only ask questions. For example, the topic might be going to the store to get bacon. One person might say: Where is the bacon? Another person might say: Why are you looking for bacon?

One of the many songs I've tried to teach piano students is Happy Birthday, since they know people who have a birthday. Who wouldn't love to hear someone play and sing the song on their special day. What a blessing to have that type of special gift given on their day to celebrate their life. I recently came across an arrangement by William Gillock, through Willis Publishing, taking the basic melody and creating gorgeous arpeggios and various chords. The song is written in the

Recently I became a bit obsessed with the story of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Ok passionate, to the point that I read a Who Was Lewis Carroll kids book and even read the first book. What a crazy ride. Perhaps I'll share more of the ideas soon. Yet I wanted to share with you a recent book I came across at our local music store. Jason Sifford, a jazz pianists, teacher and composer for Willis Music and FJH Composing, created original songs based on the book, for an interm

I'm a bit giddy as we prepare for the summer studio games, where students have a chance to play with water balloons, water squirters and sidewalk chalk. There are so many great options from smashing water balloons to staff, piano keys and rhythm created with sidewalk chalk. We have the students write out major and minor chords with sidewalk chalks in a race. When we know we're going to play water balloon softball, where we will get soaked, we wear swimsuits and I ask a music

One of my many favorite holidays is July 4th, how we celebrate the freedoms we have. The older that I get, the more I appreciate the time to celebrate. This year is no different, as the studio has been learning how to play and sing famous Patriotic Music. I'm really excited to hear what the students will experience this month as we prepare for a time to celebrate. The voice students are learning how to sing the National Anthem and other famous songs. The piano students are le

Today is a big day for the studio. We are opening our doors for our local students to return to lessons at the studio. We will be taking our precautions, including hand sanitizer and wiping everything down during and after the lessons. I'm excited and praying the transition goes well. We'll take it slow, knowing everything is working out for good. Thanks for your support. Blessings.