Piano Pedagogy Playlist

For the Season One finale of The Piano Pedagogy Playlist, we’re doubling up on Chris Norton’s A Year in Twelve Keysand exploring both the June and July movements before taking a short summer break. First, we’ll hear Fughetta, a lively contemporary miniature fugue that showcases the composer’s skillful contrapuntal writing and rhythmic energy. Then we’ll move into Dozing on a Hot Summer’s Day, a dr...

This week, we’re taking a musical trip around the world with Wynn-Anne Rossi’s newly released series Dancing With the World. Designed as a four-volume collection spanning multiple levels, the series explores traditional dance styles from a variety of cultures and transforms them into engaging piano repertoire for students. In this episode, I’m focusing on six selections from Volume 2, written for...

School’s almost out, summer is calling, and this week on The Piano Pedagogy Playlist we’re packing up the car and heading out on a musical road trip. Join me for a journey from Chicago through the Great Smoky Mountains and on to Myrtle Beach as I explore music by Chicago composer Christopher Goldston, along with one special selection connected to the legacy of his mother, Margaret Goldston — one o...

Last week, the piano world lost the American pianist, composer, teacher, and author Seymour Bernstein at the age of 99. In this special episode of The Piano Pedagogy Playlist, I reflect on Bernstein’s extraordinary life and legacy — not only as a concert artist, but as one of the great master teachers of American piano pedagogy. Although Bernstein enjoyed a successful performing career, he made th...

On the first Monday of each month, The Piano Pedagogy Playlist features a piece from Chris Caine’s A Year in Twelve Keys—a collection that explores all twelve key signatures using only the notes within each key. For May, we turn to Dance in May, an expressive and graceful work in 3/4 time that deliberately avoids the feel of a traditional waltz. Instead, the piece invites students to think in long...

Today’s episode is for a very specific student. The one who’s deeply immersed in video games and gaming culture… who loves music—but doesn’t think they love piano. Maybe they’ve even decided they’re a little too cool for it. This week I’m sharing music that can change that perception. Featuring selections from Let’s Quest, Volume 2 by Chrissy Ricker, these original piano pieces capture the sound w...

Students often fall in love with pieces like Clair de lune long before they have the technique to play them well. And as teachers, that puts us in a tricky spot. We don’t want to dampen that enthusiasm—but we also know those pieces are, at the moment, out of reach. And handing them a simplified version rarely captures what drew them in to begin with. In this episode, I explore a collection that of...

Method books give us structure and sequence, but they don’t always provide enough reinforcement—or enough variety—to keep students fully engaged. That’s where supplemental repertoire can make a meaningful difference. In this episode, we explore Very Easy Little Peppers by  Elissa Milne —a collection of short, engaging pieces designed for early elementary piano students. These pieces offer teachers...

Spring rain provides the inspiration for this week’s episode of The Piano Pedagogy Playlist, as I explore two contemporary piano pieces that capture its sound, motion, and atmosphere in very different ways. I begin with April – La pluie de printemps (Spring Rain) by  Chris Caine , an advanced-level work from his collection A Year in Twelve Keys. This piece offers a rich, atmospheric sound world an...

This week, I’m sharing six short pieces from Kevin Olson’s Preludes in Patterns—music that sounds impressive, but is built from simple, repeating ideas. These pattern-based preludes help students build confidence, improve reading, and prepare polished performances in less time. A great resource for recital season or anytime you need a piece that comes together quickly. Prelude in C major (from Pre...

This week we explore music by Angeline Bell, a UK-based pianist and teacher whose “Notebook” collections have quickly become favorites among piano teachers. Selections from My Quirky Notebook show her gift for writing short, imaginative pieces that students enjoy while still developing real technique and musicality. These works combine humor, strong character, and practical pedagogy — perfect for...

With St. Patrick’s Day approaching, I wanted to explore music written from within the culture. I offer you three piano pieces by Irish composer Ailbhe McDonagh, a performer, teacher, and chamber musician whose educational music combines strong pedagogy with a real sense of atmosphere and character. From the flowing textures of The Estuary, to the rhythmic drive of Time Travel, to the calm, centere...

The waltz is one of the most enduring musical forms in Western music. First popular in the late 18th century, it has outlasted powdered wigs, pet rocks, fidget spinners, and even the 6-7 craze — and composers are still writing waltzes today. In this episode, I play three contemporary waltzes for intermediate piano students, each with a very different personality. All three happen to be in the key...

March arrives with strength in this week’s episode. I perform March: Promise of Spring from Chris Caine’s A Year in Twelve Keys, a dramatic D major work filled with expansive intervals and demanding octave textures — a fantastic study in hand preparation and rhythmic drive. I also share Kevin Costley’s Symphony of Spring, a late-intermediate to early-advanced piece that explores dynamic contrast,...

Robots, starfish, puppies, dreamcatchers — they all live in the imaginative world of Canadian composer Anne Crosby Gaudet, a teacher-composer whose music is playful and colorful, as well as brilliant in the way it develops students. In this episode, I share six of her pieces for elementary through intermediate pianists: Robots , Starfish at Night , Periwinkle Twinkle , Playful Puppy , Dreamcatcher...

Finding jazz pieces that are both musically authentic and technically appropriate for developing pianists can be a challenge. In this episode of The Piano Pedagogy Playlist, I explore Portraits in Jazz by pianist and composer Valerie Capers—a standout collection that brings authentic jazz styles into the intermediate student repertoire. Capers’ collection offers pieces that capture the spirit of r...

The Winter Olympic Games are underway, and this week’s Piano Pedagogy Playlist celebrates the spirit of the games with five sport-inspired pieces for elementary and intermediate students. From the energetic triads of Olympiad to the driving rhythms of Slap Shot, and from graceful ice skating to one winter sport you might never expect to hear represented at the piano, today’s selections capture the...

Our journey through, A Year in Twelve Keys continues with “February — Winter’s Glaze” by Chris Caine, a brief but atmospheric piece written in the uncompromising key of C-sharp major — seven sharps, shifting meters, and a quietly icy finish. With a major Sunday event on the horizon, the episode then takes a turn toward lighter, more playful territory, featuring three short works by Wynn-Anne Rossi...

This week on the Piano Pedagogy Playlist, we step into a world shaped by poetry and imagination. The music featured in this episode is inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s beloved collection A Child’s Garden of Verses—poems that take childhood seriously without over-sentimentalizing it. That same spirit can be found in the piano music of composer Chee-Hwa Tan, whose works capture the feelings behi...

The week features music that offers reassurance, optimism, and a hopeful outlook for the future. I'm playing three pieces by three different composers, ranging from early intermediate through early advanced — each selection offering meaningful musical expression alongside valuable teaching opportunities. • The Rainbow’s Promise by Melody Bober — an expressive intermediate-level piece featuring som...

After weeks of winter-themed repertoire, it’s time for a musical getaway. In this episode of The Piano Pedagogy Playlist, I head for warmer shores with the piano music of composer Martín Cuéllar. You’ll hear three engaging pieces that span late-elementary through late-intermediate levels: the atmospheric Nightfall at Tossa de Mar, the lively and playful Scherzo, and the gentle, reflective The Sile...

This week we start a year-long musical journey with through Chris Caine's "A Year In Twelve Keys". The first selection, "January - New Year" is a musical theatre ballad-without-words. The opening melody seems to speak the words “New Year,” setting a tone that’s calm, thoughtful, and full of possibility. As a bonus, we take a quick romp through Martha Hill Duncan's "Icicles", a piece that a piece t...

I’m taking a short, two-week holiday break from the regular podcast format. But I wanted to share with you one lovely Christmas piece by the late Linda Martinez. It’s a thoroughly modern take on The First Noel from her collection “Snowy Days of Christmas”. Thanks for accompanying me on the first twenty episodes of this journey. I’ll look forward to discovering new music with you in the new year. M...

The Year’s Cadence closes out the regular podcast episodes of 2025 with a moment of musical reflection and quiet anticipation. Framed by the musical idea of a cadence—a place of repose that also hints at what comes next—this episode explores four piano pieces by different composers that mirror the emotional arc of the year’s end. This episode is both a practical repertoire guide and a moment of gr...

Three pieces this week from the collection Aspects of Blue by Alan Bullard, all at an intermediate level. Blue Sky Digital Download Stately Blue Digital Download Blue River Digital Download This week, we dive into Alan Bullard’s Aspects of Blue—a collection that takes the familiar 12-bar blues chord progression and reimagines it in completely unexpected ways. These aren’t blues pieces, but charact...