Effective Techniques for Mastering Scale Practice
Playing scales is one of the most fundamental skills that we, as pianist, must develop. Yet a complete, unadulterated scale will hardly...
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Piano lessons • Michael Hegarty
My Top Tips and Advice for Improving Piano Technique and Performance, acquired over years of giving piano lessons.
Michael Hegarty
- Sep 3
- 3 min
Mastering Piano Scales: A Comprehensive Guide to Practice
Learning to play the piano involves more than just pressing keys - it's about mastering the nuances of each note, scale, and melody. One...
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Michael Hegarty
- Aug 22
- 1 min
Congratulations to Victoria on a brilliant Distinction at grade 1 piano
This post is a congratulations to my student, Victoria, on her first rate distinction in her grade 1 piano. She attained excellent marks....
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Michael Hegarty
- Jul 9
- 2 min
Learn Piano Today: In-person or Online
Most people will say, when pressed, that one of their regrets in life is not learning to play an instrument. There is something...
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Michael Hegarty
- May 12
- 2 min
Empowering Independence: Teaching Self-Reliance in Piano Playing
This will be only a brief post on the topic of self-reliance and how to teach pupils in a way that will maximize their independence....
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Michael Hegarty
- Mar 12
- 3 min
Beginner's Guide: Choosing the Right Piano or Keyboard for You
When we first begin to study the piano, one of the biggest questions we have is: Which piano or keyboard should I choose? In the first...
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Michael Hegarty
- Mar 5
- 4 min
Exploring Piano Methodologies: An Alternative to Piano Adventures
I wrote an essay detailing why I believe, on the one hand, that Piano Adventures and similar modern pedagogies are not conducive in...
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Michael Hegarty
- Feb 28
- 6 min
The Problem with Modern Piano Methods: Why Traditional Piano Teaching Works
If you are thinking about learning to play the piano or are a piano teacher yourself, you will at some point come across someone singing...
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Michael Hegarty
- Feb 19
- 4 min
What should you expect when you begin piano lessons as an adult? Tips for beginner pianists.
Starting private piano lessons for the first time can be daunting. You don't know the teacher; this will, most likely, be someone you...
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Michael Hegarty
- Jan 22
- 2 min
Are Finger Exercises Worth It? A Brief Defence of the Value of Hanon in Piano Studies.
The value of finger exercises for students of the piano, such as C-L. Hanon's The Virtuoso Pianist in Sixty Exercises, has been greatly...
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Michael Hegarty
- Jan 10
- 3 min
Top Reasons to Study Music Theory alongside Piano Lessons
Those of us who have completed the series of ABRSM examinations in piano will have had the experience, most likely, of cramming enough...
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Michael Hegarty
- Dec 5, 2023
- 3 min
Review: Me and My Piano, by Dame Fanny Waterman and Marion Harewood
As this is the piano method which I use most frequently in my own piano lessons, and on which I was initially taught myself, I cannot...
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Michael Hegarty
- Nov 20, 2023
- 2 min
Review: It's never too late... to play piano, by Pam Wedgwood
Overall assessment This piano tutor book, it's never too late... to learn piano, by Pam Wedgwood, is an interesting and well-developed...
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Michael Hegarty
- Nov 16, 2023
- 3 min
Tips for Improving Sight-reading at the Piano
Having established in an earlier post the central importance of sight-reading in the training of the musician, what concrete steps might...
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Michael Hegarty
- Nov 14, 2023
- 5 min
Why is Sight-reading Important and how can we improve?
When we begin learning a musical instrument for the first time, we have to overcome the initial difficulty of reading music. All tyro...
38 views0 comments
Michael Hegarty
- Aug 5, 2023
- 2 min
Taking on New Piano Students for September
Looking for something new to enrich your child's life and future? Try private piano lessons. Music not only practices skills, such as...
29 views0 comments
Michael Hegarty
- May 18, 2023
- 2 min
Why Learn Piano Online?
In recent years, the availability of online learning platforms has revolutionized various industries, including music education. Online...
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Michael Hegarty
- May 18, 2023
- 3 min
10 Reasons to Learn Piano
The piano, with its elegant keys and melodious sound, has captured the hearts of music lovers for centuries. Learning to play the piano...
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