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Gaili Schoen is a passionate piano teacher and learning science researcher. She has written a piano instruction series called Upper Hands Piano: A Method for Adults 50+ to Spark the Mind, Heart and Soul. Learn more at UpperHandsPiano.com. Follow her blog for free monthly sheet music and practice tips: UpperHandsPiano.com/blog.

Latest Posts By Gaili Schoen

7 months ago

Piano Lesson 34: Mise en Place

Welcome to Lesson 34! Today I discuss the French chef’s term Mise en Place, and how, like a chef’s kitchen, musicians order their practice space to make it organized, efficient, and appealing. As you will see in my video, I am thrilled to be back in my original teaching space…

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7 months ago

Piano Lesson 33: Distractions!

One of the biggest obstacles to effective practice is distractions. Sometimes it seems like the minute we sit down to play, our family members suddenly need our attention, desperately. Or we realize that we forgot to send an important…

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8 months ago

Piano Lesson 32: The Cool Chord Possibilities of Playing from Fake Books!

Welcome to Lesson 32! Today we are going to work on improving our note reading skills and will learn to use chord symbols in order to play from Fake Books! Let’s do it! In your Chord Calisthenics you have been seeing chord symbols above the staff…

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8 months ago

Piano Lesson 31: The Magic of the Musical Mind and a Music Mystery!

We’re going to look at some astonishing scientific evidence showing that complex activities such as taking music lessons “resulted in a 50% reduced risk of developing dementia” and that taking piano lessons, specifically, reduces our risk…

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9 months ago

Piano Lesson 30: Raise a Pint for St. Patrick’s Day Songs!

Welcome to Lesson 30! Today we continue learning Irish Songs for St. Paddy’s Day or any time of the year. The Irish have a tradition of beautiful melodic music that speaks to both the pain and pleasures, the misery and the magic in life…

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9 months ago

Piano Lesson 29: Cockles and Mussels! Songs for St. Paddy’s Day

Today we turn back to p.69-70, to play Molly Malone (also known as Cockles and Mussels). We initially skipped it because it has some tricky rhythms, and I wanted you to advance a bit further before taking them on! Mid-February is a great time to start…

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10 months ago

Piano Lesson 28: Amorous Anecdotes about Johann Sebastian Bach and the Mystery of the Notebook!

Johann Sebastian Bach was one of our most prolific and celebrated composers, having written over a thousand intricate and innovative pieces in his lifetime. His second wife, Anna Magdalena, was a famous, accomplished and beautiful soprano singer…

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10 months ago

Piano Lesson 27: Can you Play the Can Can?

Welcome to Lesson 27! Today we will be learning some new notes and playing some new songs including Jacques Offenbach’s Can Can. Be sure to think about your posture this week, keeping your back straight, your shoulders relaxed, and your wrists horizontal…

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11 months ago

Piano Lesson 26: Happy Piano-versary!

As I started making my Lesson 26 video, I realized that it has been a year since my first Sixty and Me post on January 4, 2023! Happy Piano-versary to us! We have stuck with it, you and I, even though it has sometimes felt very difficult…

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11 months ago

Piano Lesson 25: Playing Music Expressively with The Dynamic Six

As you move beyond the “beginner” stage, one of the ways to make your piano playing more expressive and “musical” is by adding more dynamics. Dynamics have to do with how loudly or softly you play your music. If you listen to these performances…

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