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Dorothy Taubman, Thomas Mark and practising without injury

by Tim Topham

For anyone who still believes in a high finger technique and isn’t familiar with the Taubman approach to technique: watch the following video (and the next three in the sequence). This will be the best 50 mins of YouTubing you’ll do this year! For more information, check out the Taubman Institute and Golandsky Institute websites. ... Dorothy Taubman, Thomas Mark and practising without injury

05/18/2012 Read more

Behzod Abduraimov | Melbourne Recital Centre

by Tim Topham

Much as been said about 22-year-old Uzbekistan pianist Behzod Abduraimov since he came to prominence after winning grand prize at the 2009 London International Piano Competition, and so it was with great anticipation that I went to his recital at the Recital Centre on Tuesday 27 March, 2012. One thing was instantly clear: this guy ... Behzod Abduraimov | Melbourne Recital Centre

03/30/2012 Read more

Preparing For an AMusA Performance Diploma Exam – Why Bother?!

by Tim Topham

I recently sat and passed my Associate Diploma of Performance (called the “AMusA” piano exam in Australia) with Distinction. Needless to say, I was ecstatic! It was a project that I’d been working towards for around two years, having last sat a piano exam when I was 12 and having had a break of around ... Preparing For an AMusA Performance Diploma Exam – Why Bother?!

02/09/2012 Read more

Barenboim – A Life in Music

by Tim Topham

I’ve just finished reading Daniel Barenboim’s autobiography entitled “A Life in Music” and thought I’d share some of his thoughts and comments on music for my readers. Despite being an exceptional pianist, the book is actually more about his life as a conductor. At first I was a bit disappointed by this but I soon ... Barenboim – A Life in Music

11/19/2011 Read more

James Rhodes – Etude for Left Hand

by Tim Topham

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of watching English pianist James Rhodes perform at the Melbourne Recital Centre. With a very good publicist, I’m sure just about everyone in Melbourne would have heard about him and the full-house attendance was impressive. His program was varied and delivered competently, although his playing was ... James Rhodes – Etude for Left Hand

10/28/2011 Read more

How to get addicted to practising piano

by Tim Topham

If you want to be really, really good at something, you have to be addicted to it. You need to be in a state where you are thinking about it all the time, even when you’re not doing it. You talk about it, you have friends that do it, you dream about it. Imagine having ... How to get addicted to practising piano

08/27/2011 Read more
 

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Nikolai Kapustin – the crossover jazz music keeps coming!

by Tim Topham

Since being introduced to the music of Friedrich Gulda at the APPC conference in July by Jovanni de Pedro, I stumbled upon another fantastic and, it seems, undervalued crossover jazz/classical composer: Nikolai Kapustin. Kapustin has been active as a composer since the late 1950s though he has only become known in the West during the ... Nikolai Kapustin – the crossover jazz music keeps coming!

07/27/2011 Read more

How to practice away from the piano

by Tim Topham

In an attempt to keep my teaching current and to learn from what the masters did in the past and consider how this affects modern playing and teaching, I am forever reading articles and books by noted pianists and teachers. If there is one thing that they all have in common, right back to the ... How to practice away from the piano

07/26/2011 Read more