Piano Teaching Success Podcast

Mark Matthews is a composer, educator, and self-described musical engineer, and he has an unmissable approach to learning the blues; you’ll have to listen to the podcast to find out.   In this episode, Mark meets me online from his current location at the border of Zimbabwe and Zambia, and from here he shares the history and origins of blues.  He then goes on to share the three-part...

When you hear the word ‘improvisation’, if you picture one of these smoky dens where these really cool jazz dudes sit in an almost meditative state, playing and improvising with their mates whilst being completely immersed and at one with the music? They have these crazy cool riffs at their finger tips and you think how on earth can you do that? How on earth could I ever teach that? I can't even d...

Looking for something engaging, fun, and packed with real musicianship skills to bring into your studio?  This episode is a little different - and so much fun!  Paul recently ran this traditional Japanese clapping game with a group of teachers at Top Music Live in Sydney, and the room had an absolute ball. In this episode, we walk you through the activity, unpack the pedagogy behind it,...

“Because we have keys [on a piano] we can press, it’s so tempting to turn the keys into a data entry exercise, and to think if we get the data wrong, the calculations will come out wrong. You could play all the wrong notes with the right rhythm, and it’s music.” What if the way we've been teaching piano is actually getting in the way of real musicianship? That's just one of the ideas Elissa Milne...

The children sitting in front of you right now have brains that work entirely differently to the way they did just a few years ago. They’re living in a world where information is accessible at all times.  In this podcast episode, Anita Collins says this will require us, as humans, to evolve. She talks about how we can work with devices and addiction withdrawal and other experiences kids need...

"I'd love to teach groups, but my studio's not big enough." If you've ever said or thought your space wouldn’t work for groups, this episode is for you. In reality, you probably don't need a bigger space. You just need to see what's actually possible. In this episode, we take you inside the real teaching spaces of Group Piano University graduates from around the world — from home studios and...

What does it actually look like to transition from a full private lesson schedule to a group piano studio, in real life, in under a year? In this episode, I sat down with Caelyn, a young piano teacher from Wisconsin, who completed Group Piano University just nine months ago and has already transformed her studio, and her lifestyle, in ways she never knew were possible.  And now? She’s actuall...

When thinking about group piano, many teachers get stuck on one big question: “How do I teach pieces to multiple students at the same time?” Because in private lessons, we naturally adapt to each individual student. But in a group setting, that approach simply doesn’t work. So what’s the solution? In this episode, we show you the exact model we’ve used successfully for over 30 years to teach piece...

  When thinking about starting groups many teachers get caught up in the “How will I do this?” question but what they should really be asking themselves is What is important to me musically and professionally?  In other words, what do you want for your students and yourself from adding groups to your teaching? And that’s where the principle of “Beginning with the end in mind” made famous...

Episode 5: How to Use Music to Teach Music What’s the one teaching tool master piano teachers have used for decades - but many teachers forget about, underuse, or even feel slightly guilty about?  It’s using music to teach music . In this episode, we unpack why fully-orchestrated backing tracks may be the most powerful - and most under-utilised - teaching tool available today. We share t...

  The Skill Every Musician Needs, From Beginners to Professionals - That's Often Overlooked Why do some students struggle to play in time — even when they can count perfectly? In this episode, we unpack one of the most fundamental (and overlooked) skills in piano teaching: beat. We explore why beat is the foundation of all music, why rhythm can’t exist without it, and why counting alone doesn...

Episode 3: The 3 M’s — The Real Secret to Making Piano Learning Stick (Even When They Don’t Practice) Have you ever felt frustrated when students come back to lessons unable to remember what you worked on the week before - even when you know you taught it clearly? In this episode, we explore why this happens - and why it has very little to do with how much students practise. Instead, we reveal the...

Episode 2: What Neuroscientists Discovered About Learning — Every Piano Teacher Must Know Have you ever watched a piano student’s eyes glaze over — even though they’re “doing the work”? In this episode, Gillian and Paul unpack groundbreaking neuroscience research that explains why this happens — and what actually helps students learn faster, retain more, and enjoy lessons again. We explore Dr Stan...

In this episode, we unpack the real challenges today’s piano teachers face in an AI-driven, distraction-heavy world: Shorter attention spans Rising anxiety Overwhelmed students Perfectionism Find out how Whole Body Learning (WBL) , our neuroscience-backed teaching approach can cut through digital overload and transform engagement from the very first lesson.  You’ll learn how WBL works, why it...

Gillian and Paul are looking forward to sharing ideas, tips, and strategies for using the Whole Body Learning methodology to make piano teaching easier and effective.