Recitals are Over...Now What?

We are so proud of all of our students who participated in our recitals this weekend! Everyone prepared so well and performed excellently.

Now, many of our students may be thinking, "What's next? I'm done with my piece, so what do I do now?" The week immediately following a recital performance is a great opportunity to review goals and set new ones for the future. Take this time to analyze and ask your student the following questions:

"What did you love about the piece(s) you played?" It will make selecting new pieces much more fun and simple if you can talk to your student about what they enjoyed in their last pieces. They will also feel encouraged and be able to identify specific times that playing the piano helped them feel happy.
"What was difficult about the piece(s) you played?" Similarly, finding out what made their old pieces difficult will help in selecting new pieces, and it will also give you a chance to talk to them about what things they can differently in the future to make their pieces easier. Try doing some research or talking to the solo teachers about the questions your child has and see if you can find good answers!
"How was your practicing?" In January, we wrote about setting effective practice goals, and we gave some tips on how to encourage your child to practice. Did any of those methods work well? Which ones could you try again or modify to be more effective? Is there any way your child could increase their practice time?
"What do you want to accomplish before the next recital?" Our next recitals will be in April, so that gives your student about 2 months to work toward a new goal! Will they finish that hard hymn they've been working on, or master a new level on the technique sheet? The sky is the limit for these talented students!