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5 Reasons Why Steel Drums Are the Perfect Choice for Students During a Pandemic
Move over, recorders. Students have another option when it comes to basic music education, and it’s more sanitary than many other options! Steel drums are a low-touch, high-performance instrument for kids to learn music during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Read More Comments
The Benefits of Playing Musical Instruments
The Chinese philosopher Confucius once said, "Music emits a pleasure that the human race can't do without." If hearing music can be so beneficial to the human race, it follows that playing a musical instrument would be even better. Here are some benefits of playing musical instruments. Read More Comments
5 Tips for Hitting High Notes
Although it's completely false to say that a singer's talent is measured by the number of high notes she or he can belt out, high notes are an unavoidable fact of life, and every vocalist will struggle with them at one point or another. Whether you're a deep-voiced bass, a coloratura soprano, or a humble shower singer, you can improve your voice by mastering proper technique in your upper range. Practice makes perfect, and here are some tips to help you as you ascend the scales. Read More Comments
Demystifying Time Signatures
For many of us with limited experience reading standard music notation, time signatures can be a bit baffling. We’ve all experienced hearing them in different contexts, such as background music, focused listening, playing music and singing. In this article I will break down different signatures and explain how they function. Read More Comments
Musical Motivation: 4 Reasons to Stop Making Excuses and Just Do It!
We live in a society where we are constantly bombarded by distractions that are all competing for our attention. Case in point: you are reading this article right this very minute instead of engaging in any number of alternative tasks (the author thanks you kindly for your attention!) Read More Comments
Are Exams Right for My Child?
You’ve had your child in music lessons for a little while now and everything seems to be going well. They seem to be more confident while perched on the piano bench, they know that Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge and they practice every day (well, most days). Even their teacher agrees that things are progressing positively and they make a suggestion to you one day: “Have you considered having your child complete their RCM or Conservatory Canada exams?” Read More Comments
Top 10 Reasons for Learning to Play a Musical Instrument
Here are our top 10 reasons why you should start learning to play a musical instrument. Read More Comments
The Benefits of Music Lessons Later in Life
Like many people, I took music lessons in school. Several years of clarinet, a few years of singing. I enjoyed it but my talent level determined that it certainly wasn’t going to be a career for me. Once university began, music became something that I enjoyed listening to or singing along with in the car. Read More Comments
The Language of Music – Why Music Theory is Fun
If you learn to ‘speak’ music theory it lets you talk about music without having to say: “remember that bit there that went da, da, da, dum?” It lets you define the particular bit of music you are talking about and the specific component of that music. Read More Comments
Classical to Country: The Polish Man in Black
Dan is a classically trained singer who often wanders the halls singing Beatles songs and has spent his share of time rocking out. Recently we heard that Julian was commuting to Poland to sing in various venues and were curious about the connection. Read More Comments
Sound: The Foundation of Music
How do we produce a sound? How do we move air to generate a musical sound? Depending on the instrument, we breathe in, breathe out – vibrating our vocal cords; hitting resonant surfaces; plucking strings; or drawing a bow across strings. Read More Comments
The Benefits of Being a Weekend Warrior
Everyone can benefit from discovering a new instrument. Whether it’s wanting to follow along with as your child learns, or maybe you have a group of friends who love to make music together, there’s always a way you can let music enrich your life. Read More Comments
Teaching Music to the Blind
I have been a music teacher for over half my life. It is something that runs in my blood; my mother and I teach out of the same studio in Mississauga. This past year I spent time working with and teaching music to blind children in Thailand. Read More Comments
Play Along Recordings for Jazz
If I could, I’d practice every day with a live rhythm section, but this is impossible so I settle for the next best thing: Play along recordings. This is not only handy but also a fun way to learn and practice tunes. Read More Comments
