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Group Piano Lessons: Contemporary Style Improvisation (Ages 8-12)

Does your child love contemporary (or pop) music? They can learn to jam on the piano with a contemporary style! This 4-lesson class allows them to explore key piano skills in a fun, improvisational style. #creative
Paul McFarland
Average rating:
5.0
Number of reviews:
(223)
Star Educator
Class
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What's included

4 live meetings
1 hrs 40 mins in-class hours
Homework
1-2 hours per week. 1-2 hours of practice is recommended per week.

Class Experience

In this course, students will learn how to play piano in the style of "popular music"-the type of music you might hear while streaming. Rather than learning a specific song, students will learn the fundamentals of the style and practice "jamming" or creating their own melodies. 

Improvisation is a fun, relaxed way to learn how to play the piano. Students will learn the major and pentatonic scales and how to improvise with those notes. They will start improvising right away! They will learn how to improvise with these notes using creative rhythms and various groupings. 

Specific lessons will vary based on the skills and needs of each player. An example might look like: 
Week 1: Improvising using the major and pentatonic scales.
Week 2: Improvising in the right hand while playing chord roots in the left hand.
Week 3: Improvising in the right hand while playing power chords in the left hand.
Week 4: Putting it all together and learning additional improvisation techniques such as note groupings, broken chords, and suspensions.

There are no prerequisites for the class, and no prior piano experience is required. However, many experienced pianists enjoy taking improvisation courses to improve their ear training and expand their repertoire. 

I believe that students learn best by doing. While I model all of the skills taught in the class, the majority of the class will be spent with the students experimenting in a safe environment and receiving instant feedback. Students will learn to improvise by improvising. 

I’ve had a really great experience learning how to improvise, and I’m excited to pass this on to you. I look forward to seeing you there! 

**If you would like to learn specific popular songs, please check out my Pop Piano Improvisation-Private Lesson course.**
Learning Goals
Students will be able to improvise on the piano with a pop-style.
learning goal

Other Details

Supply List
Students will need a keyboard or a piano. It is recommended to point the camera at the keys if possible.
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Joined May, 2020
5.0
223reviews
Star Educator
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Teacher expertise and credentials
Maryland Teaching Certificate in Music/Theater/Arts
Master's Degree in Music or Theatre or Arts from Loyola University Maryland
Bachelor's Degree in Music or Theatre or Arts from SUNY Fredonia
I'm a certified music teacher with over a decade of experience teaching music in the public schools. My Bachelor's Degree (from SUNY Fredonia) is in music education, and my Master's Degree (from Loyola University Maryland) specializes in Kodály Music Education. 

My mom was a piano teacher and my dad was a public school music teacher, so in one sense you could say I've always grown up around music and the piano. I had traditional piano lessons growing up and in college. However, around Middle School I discovered that my real love for piano is Boogie Woogie music, the blues, and improvisation. I would have given anything at the time for improvisation instruction; that's one of the reasons why I'm so passionate about passing on my love of piano improvisation with young students today! 

Reviews

Live Group Class
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$12

weekly or $48 for 4 classes
1x per week, 4 weeks
25 min

Completed by 2 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 8-12
3-5 learners per class

This class is no longer offered
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