Piano Lessons 1965 - 1977

My first piano teacher - Mrs. Swint, if memory serves - was a violinist who taught piano on the side.

When it became clear that my interest in playing wasn't going away Mom  consulted with her accompanist, JoAnne Deacon, to find a more suitable teacher. I started with Victor Smiley when I was 7 and worked with him until I graduated from High School.

At our first lesson, or so I am told, I played some thing I had learned.

His response was "Dig That Crazy Rhythm."

I guess he dug me, though I did not know myself well enough at that time to know what digging myself, as myself, well enough to dig me, was, but no problem. We've all been there.

He told my parents that his greatest fear would be that I would get bored, so he loaded me up with a pile of music. Bach to Bernstein was his motto, and though I think he used Bernstein as a placeholder, the Bach part was no joke. Lots of it from the very beginning. Musicianship: Scales, arpeggios, finger exercises, theory, improvisation, and repertoire from Baroque (always it was Bach), Classical, Romantic, Modern, and Popular composers. Popular meant show tunes at first. Later on he tried mightily to teach me the rudiments of jazz, but I resisted just as mightily.

What I learned:

think vocally. (hidden message: music is thinking)

legato is about shifting weight.

the damper pedal has seven positions (an oversimplification of course, but it sets the feet to listening).

the greater part of all ornaments begin above principal note.

keep your pinkie curved.

(never in so many words, but:) keep it moving, take your time.

and in case you forgot: think vocally.