Suzuki Piano Lessons: Introduction to the Suzuki Method
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- Опубликовано: 22 авг 2021
- How is Suzuki method different than the traditional piano books? What are the advantages to trying Suzuki lessons? Why would I want to have a certified Suzuki teacher who is trained in the method?
Classical piano teacher Michelle Sweeny gives an overview of the Suzuki approach and how it trains new students to think, listen, learn, and move like concert pianists.
questions? please ask! comment!
i love how excited you are when talking about things you love, as a student it definitely fills you with that same passion and comittment, thanks a lot!
thank you!
Well now I can continue now. Yeah it's wonderful to see somebody who feels so much enthusiasm for the essence of the excellent Suzuki teaching method. You really brought up a lot of great points 🙂 in your discussion. I share a real love for the Suzuki methodology as well too. I basically grew up as a guitar player who mostly enjoyed playing by ear, and singing songs eventually and composing a little bit. I would play the chords and recite the acronyms for remembering the notes hahaha. I had a friend who was an incredible piano player and her mother went into great detail of she learned through the Suzuki method. It was a really musical family. Anyways some years later I walked in my house and I could hear my son playing violin. I was so shocked and so surprised and so inspired that eventually I had to get a violin and start trying this Suzuki method. I found a lot of supportive videos on RUclips for it and in short, really fell in love with the music especially as it came to Bach and I discovered the truth of listening to the music to the point that you understand it on the inside. It's like a collection of excellent stories you listen to until you really absorb them and they come apart of you. I remember getting Aesop's fable record book when I was a kid and I listened to it thousands of times. Anyhow, I was so surprised you know the feeling when you master a piece of music and it's so inside of you, well I was feeling so much joy from the classical music I couldn't believe it as compared to playing pop music for so many years. Then learning how to read music more fluently was really a wonderful Joy too. So now I find myself teaching music at public school and naturally I turn my attention to the Suzuki method with the piano and I just bought a kid's violin too. It's so very true, by listening to the music, it's like your soul learns to love and appreciate the music so much that it naturally wants to come out. That is how I would describe it. Anyways on Christmas holidays here, I decided to focus on piano since it's a good instrument to learn and I'll be really excited to finally learn the Bach pieces on piano for the next Suzuki book. I'm sure I will be drawing upon your videos a lot. Thanks for sharing with the world. It's such a noble, altruistic thing to do, and I agree the teaching of music to others is a priceless gift. Keep them coming.
James
wow James I am so very grateful for your comments! I am happy you have found so much joy from music in your life. I have really observed a deeper level of connection to the music, a more active listening and creative experience as a performer as students try to get a SPECIFIC sound to come out of the instrument, and more connection emotionally to the music for both performers and listeners through the Suzuki method. Please keep the comments coming and as you learn more I would love to answer any specific questions you have about technique or requests for lessons on a piece you are studying.
the world needs more passionate music educators; thanks for sharing music with the next generation.
@@MichelleSweeny hey there. I didn't see this response it probably didn't go to my email. But I'm glad I checked up on you because I took this winter break to try working on Suzuki piano, and I've been having a lot of fun. I was a little intimidated with some of the left-handed technique in a few of the early songs. But surprisingly I got through them and I'm almost finished the book. Mind you, I'm not playing to the professional standard for adjudication. I've just learned them to my own satisfaction. I really fall in love with the way in which they tell you which fingers to use by number and they help you navigate the little puzzle of piecing it all together with your two hands. Now I should say, I could always play a little bit of piano, which includes all the chords and basically some oompa left hand bass type of rhythms. I can't believe that I'm reading the bass clef so fast with my left hand which always seem like some huge insurmountable task. One of the reasons I'm so excited to press forward is I can't wait to play Bach in the next book which is probably one of my highest goals. I assumed it was in the first book but I guess that will be for the second book. I was surprised to see the left hand bass clef patterns were mostly really simple and only slightly deviating to add usually one additional chord. That definitely makes it easy to read the bass clef. You know there's that important concept, when you truly Master a piece of music and completely absorb it, you can play yourself right into the presence of the Creator. This is something like the yoga meditation of music, and it's mystical metaphysical nature.
@@jamesbondaygee I so appreciate your enthusiasm! be sure to listen to the Bach that you want to learn (starting now!) every day so it's really ingrained in your ear and mind before you start to put it in your fingers
Well said Michelle and I am using it too :) Best regards and more videos please :)
Thank you so much I just uploaded three or four more Suzuki Piano Lessons today!!
This was a really beautiful speech. I'm going to write you a more in depth once I finish some chores here. Thanks for sharing.
yay thanks!
Thank you for this video!
glad you liked it!
Hi Michelle, so true about the Suzuki method, I just got certified in level 1. Though how to incorporate arm weight in the method isnt very clear yet, and I can see my students neeed this aspect. Could you give a rundown of different arm weight aspects with each piece in book 1? That would be so wonderful.
yes! we really focus on arm weight with twinkle B on the second note of the pattern. dropping the finger onto that key to produce a round ringing tone. that piece establishes the arm weight technique and we refer back to it in lessons any time the melody needs to have more arm weight. I will try to record a video about this too, let me study the pieces a little bit. I love this question and it really is the heart of Suzuki method!!
ruclips.net/video/7jNThX8zGok/видео.html this introduces dropping the arm.
ruclips.net/video/ptMD2E2zDV8/видео.html this is definitely an arm weight exercise (but the students are more focused on finding the pitches in several different locations on the keyboard) and you can use it to teach arm weight on the first pitch and no weight on the second note. this is preparation for two note phrasing in book two... the Sonatina in G major by Beethoven.
Hi Araceli, here is an overview of all the pieces in book one that teach arm weight technique. ruclips.net/video/r6wWSXVYS-c/видео.html
Yess!!!! I wonder if someone has studied the Suzuki method for adults. I started at 27 and I used Suzuki method. (I used to be a Suzuki cello kid).
Oh that's a good question to look into! Did you like learning through the Suzuki method as an adult? It's fantastic repertoire and has a lot of overlap with the strings so probably felt familiar since many of the songs are in the cello books
Did you learn the songs by ear or through reading? I think the adult mind works differently than a child... And I wonder if it would be as easy to learn by ear. Hmmmm. When I studied child development, I learned that there is a part of the brain that learns language that closes off around age 7 to 10. So I think the answer to that is it would be less natural to learn by ear as adults, but honestly I haven't used the Suzuki method with adult students. What was your experience?
@@MichelleSweeny I learned the pieces by listening and reading (emphasis on listening). I had a lot of help in techmique from my Suzuki piano colleagues. I'm in book 4 now, but once I get a teacher I dont mind going back to book 1. I love learning with it!!! I only use Czerny etudes for sight reading only as the Suzuki books have everything.
Hello @Michelle Sweeny ,
From my experience as an adult who has been learning piano for one year and eight months, to answer your question, I would say: "Yes, but...".
If I have to describe my current skills, I would say that I am able to learn and perform reasonably well (though not necessarily up to speed) classical repertoire up till grade 4-5 ABRSM/Trinity standards, if it is to bring to performance level. If it is just for improving my sight-reading and analytical skills "easy-peasy", within 1-2 weeks, I will choose grade 2-3 repertoire. I say all these because, well... There is more than listening, repeating and hitting the right notes when when playing piano (or any instrument, somehow).
I have Suzuki books at home, but I am using them as supplement, because... despite my ease to remember tunes, identify pitches and being sensitive to patterns, my biggest challenge is motor skills. Everyone is struggling with something while learning an instrument, so you have to find a method which works for you.
Initially, I wanted to use the Suzuki books and pedagogy as my primary learning method. However, my clumsiness wouldn't help me go beyond half of Suzuki piano book 1. So instead, I started to take lessons with the Hoffman Academy (which is originally designed for children, by the way...), grew my pianistic experience with the Alfred Piano adventure Books. Then, at some point, I tried my skills on the Suzuki Books. I could play the book 1 just by sight-reading, finished book 2 in one month and a half.
Recently, I started to focus on the repertoire list of Trinity exam grade 3 and some pieces were also part of some Suzuki books. It means that yes, I am using the books, but not in the intended order. For instance, I recently used Book 5 to learn Fur Elise and Book 4 to learn the Arabesque from Burgmuller.
I am conscious that using the books doesn't necessarily equates using the method. But if I analyze my piano journey, I have been using Suzuki's principles. Listening to the repertoire before playing is one aspect of it. Performing in public and playing with other people. But the more I advanced in my learning, the more I felt necessary to understand what I was playing.
I hope my comment is helpful.
@@robbgregorrichard1009 Wow Robb this is so interesting to hear how you have progressed. How much time do you typically spend practicing each week? You have made quite a bit of progress in just a year and a half!
I have a new student who started with the Hoffman method and she has such a fantastic foundation. I need to learn more about it. I'm glad it worked for you to get further along.
Suzuki books are unfortunately not very descriptive; there is very little written about how to study each piece and it's passed down from teacher trainers and workshops and conferences from one Suzuki teacher to the next.
Would you be interested in videos teaching the Suzuki pieces to adult students? If yes, what pieces are you working on and needing instruction for? What are the motor skills you need more help with?
@@jervilopez1844 Suzuki Piano colleagues?... are you on faculty as a Suzuki Cello teacher?
Book 4! Wow! I'm so happy that the listening helped. When I was in music school I would spend time listening to recordings when I was trying to memorize and master a new piece. It's helpful at every level of learning.
Let me know what you want to learn and I'll make videos at your playing level! Happy to be your teacher until you have time/resources to find one in person.
Amazing Michelle! Just came across your channel through searching about Suzuki Piano method. I'm currently an adult beginner who's preparing for my RCM Preparatory A piano exam. What do you think of the RCM method? Would love to know your thoughts on it. Cheers from Canada :)
Hi Ali, I don't actually know very much about the RCM piano exam, but from what I do know about it I think it's fantastic. I think it lays a great foundation for successful musicianship. I wish we had something in America that was so complete.... we have such a hodgepodge here and there are so many holes in our music education. Royal Conservatory has done a great job at making a curriculum that's comprehensive.
@@MichelleSweeny thank you so much Michelle! I really appreciate the response. Cheers :)
Yo quisiera pasar clases poe el método Suzuki, cómo debo hacer. Cómo inscribirse.
you can search the Suzuki international website for the teacher directory to find someone in your area.
I'm not great at Spanish but...let me try. puede cercar el website de Suzuki por un maestro de piano cerca de tua cita.
Where are the rest of your videos?
Suzuki Piano Lessons: ruclips.net/p/PLJMTxULvKZatZChzyzRj1lVK8aw70XWEI
This is inspiring. I just started harp lessons with the Suzuki method, & have been worried because over 30 years ago, as a child I took Suzuki piano lessons. I had seen my older sisters use another method & progress between songs & books, so I was discouraged with the Suzuki method. I was a child but still got so sick of the songs & felt like I wasn’t progressing because I was in book 1 for so long, so I quit. If I had understood this, & that it wasn’t me but the program, I may have continued. I didn’t understand why I was stuck playing the same nursery rhymes for so long & why I couldn’t read music effectively yet.
The good thing is that all of these decades later I still have my training inside of me & it’s coming out in my harp playing. I am able to pick up songs quickly by ear, & many of the songs are the same from piano. I had to break the habit of plucking the string like I was picking up a Kleenex though😅.
I am planning on following your Suzuki piano lessons to relearn & add to my past training. Thank you!
ooooooooohhhh yay! yes it takes a while to lay the foundation. When a Suzuki student completes book two, they have scales, note reading skills, and are ready to really go in any direction they want with piano if they don't want to continue the classical path. But yeah that's good to know that you didn't appreciate the nursery rhymes.... some students need different music.
good luck with the harp! that's exciting!
A while ago I tried to learn playing piano by myself. I always wanted to play violin for I find the sound of a violin being the most wonderful sound this world has to offer but piano comes on the second place. I tried to learn it patiently but at some point I felt I am not progressing so after I got to relatively know where on the keyboard the notes are, surprisingly I started to play music. It was my music.
Basically I went from Twinkle, Twinkle to something else entirely. What I play is like movie music and I can picture the movie while that music is played for the first time ever.
I feel happy every time I play my piano even sounds don't seem to always fit. I make them fit and when I do this, my movie is ready.
I wish I had the chance to learn like everybody learns, from a music teacher.
Does the method work for adults without prior musical upbringing?
Does it allow any choice of songs such as doing mostly minor key for those who do not like major key?
in a broad sense, Suzuki method is an approach to teaching, a philosophy that can be applied to any music in any key-- Major and minor keys. You can learn by ear, your teacher can focus on technique in lessons, and you can memorize all your music as you learn it. if you find a Suzuki piano teacher that is well trained and also open minded about repertoire it could certainly work. But you should also have an open mind to laying a foundation with the book one repertoire because it teaches so much technique through those specific songs. You can think of them as studies or etudes instead of children's songs-- the advantage to having children's songs as the base for our study is because they are familiar and easy to memorize so you can focus on the movement of your fingers, the direction your wrist is circling, the drop of arm weight into the keys. You could easily play all of the book one songs in minor keys if you prefer.
Do I need to know how to play the piano to teach my daughter with the Suzuki method? Can we learn as we go? Do I have to start with the first book? The first is too childish for my daughter, she would like to play classical music instead of baby songs…. Can you please guide? Thanks!
When I went to my first Suzuki Piano lesson as a little girl, I sat and watched my mom take a piano lesson. then I had a turn....
learning and listening and practicing together is one of the best ways!!!
I'm going to have to think about that question.
it's not that you need baby songs.... but there is so much foundation built into book one and the "baby songs" are actually etudes that teach all the fundamentals of piano technique. it would be impossible to begin with book two with no prior experience. those book two pieces are actually more like a third year level in any other method. I encourage you to peruse my Suzuki Piano lesson playlist to answer this question. for book one it's not about Mary had a little lamb so much as putting a right hand melody with left hand chords. it's learning how to match an Alberti bass pattern with any melody (absolutely essential for Mozart and Beethoven and Haydn) and it's about the finger and wrist and arm technique to produce staccato, legato, weighted melodies, and musical phrasing.
it would be such an honor to guide you and your daughter through the process. if you want to communicate more about her age and interests, I would love to make some Suzuki videos that talk more to the mature, sophisticated student and have more analytical and technical explanations.
as a comprehensive method to learn classical piano there is no method that I have found that sets you up for success that is better than Suzuki. the baby songs are only the first eight or so in book one, and then from there on out it is Bach and Schubert and Mozart and Beethoven.
but if you want to learn another way..... there are always other ways. Like for example this video: ruclips.net/video/gpZC8a6VlRY/видео.html
or you can check out my friend Brianne who teaches a really accessible and rewarding method that is geared towards adult beginners who don't want baby songs. I will find her info and share in the comments.
@@MichelleSweeny Hi Michelle. Thank you! it would be great to have contact on this matter. My daughter is on her third piano teacher and I don't think that it is working. For school subjects I have noticed that it is very motivating for her if I work with her, short sessions but often instead of once per week. Before organizing a new teacher I would like to try Suzuki a bit on my own, I know my daughter but not piano so I need to find some guidance on how I can teacher Suzuki just to get up her interest again and then we can continue with a teacher. Do you have any videos, books etc that can help me find exercises that I can do with her? Does the Suzuki-book provides this guidance? Last time we played was fun, so she has a song from her current teacher that she likes. So we practiced a very short part of this song together, we played it slow, super-fast, with high and low tones, with her eyes closed etc. It was great and I think she really could practice one part of the song without it being boring. I need to make it interesting. I need though more ideas what I can suggest to her. We have done math when running or learning multiplication by playing games. etc. Would really appreciate your comments on this :-) thanks!
please tell me what song she has with her teacher now and/or what book she has used before. it sounds like she may be more advanced than a new beginner. I would love to help, but need to know what she already knows (apologies that I did not respond sooner!) if she has had several teachers that makes a difference in what exercises I suggest.
dozen a day and hanon virtuoso pianist are my go to exercises, but she would have to know a bit of note reading for those.
Question: Are the Twinkle Variations ever played hands together?
yes absolutely. we start one hand at a time, but try to get hands together as soon as possible.
@@MichelleSweeny Thanks Michelle -- that is such an excellent foundational approach for both tonalization and coordination. Is there someplace online where I could see students performing the Twinkle variations with both hands? I haven't been able to find one yet.
@aBachwardsfellow Yes I think so there is a boy who plays a book one recital, and I believe he plays twinkle with both hands. let me try to find it.
This is the one I was thinking of. it's only hands together for the theme though. hmmm ruclips.net/video/ZvnnFStzx4M/видео.htmlsi=AyNCl4NSakKNFz-v
here is one with both hands together ruclips.net/video/1cc-Rl-iF4Y/видео.htmlfeature=shared
Do you teach online lessons?
hi Carol! Good question! I am happy to explore the possibility but have not done much online teaching... so I would have to learn a bit about technology to make it work. Tell me more about what you need--- beginner, intermediate, advanced lessons?
What is your email?
hi there!!! I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have through the comments. (My email address is private, sorry)
@@MichelleSweeny Is your online course all here in the RUclips? Piano and violin? Suzuki's method?
@@familiavandeburgt4901 Yes, all my video lessons are on RUclips and totally free. The easiest way to find them all is on my Suzuki Piano Lessons playlist which I will share a link for. They are organized from easiest to most difficult, so you can do the lessons in order, and book two is a separate playlist.
Suzuki Piano Lessons: ruclips.net/p/PLJMTxULvKZatZChzyzRj1lVK8aw70XWEI
@@MichelleSweeny I will certainly enjoy watching these -- you are an inspiring and very effective teacher!