Spring Piano Recital 2016; My Biggest Ever!

Yes, I know the title says "biggest ever piano recital," but the blog post itself won't be too big. First, because I am writing this post waaaaaay late at night (thank goodness for Coca-Cola and a lazy morning tomorrow!); secondly, because the format of this recital is pretty much the same as my last several recitals have been.

I was sad when our friends the Bezzants moved out of Arizona, since that meant we wouldn't be able to do piano recitals at their home any more. However, since I picked up several new students this winter, I have realized that perhaps my little business has "outgrown" the Bezzant's hospitality in any case. I have also gotten more and more grateful for the Joyner-Green Valley Library's piano in their large meeting room; it is the only (free) room in the area that can fit all my students and their families for a recital!

This recital was great (I know I say that every time, but it really was great this spring!). The kids all showed up prepared to play, and they all performed to the best of their abilities. I had several new students performing for the first time ever at this recital (six of them, I believe!!), but you'd never know it from their cool professionalism.

I was proud of my daughter's performances as well. I recorded their performances, as is my responsibility as their mother/teacher, and I am grateful they were able to rise to the occasion! Here are Celeste's songs:

Celeste has come a long way in the last year and a half; I am very proud of her!

Here are Lorelai's songs.

I was proud of Lorelai for pushing herself a little bit with this recital. She chose a couple of songs that were difficult for her to learn, but she got them ready just in time. Perfectionist that she is, she couldn't help but dwell on her (minor) mistakes after her performance, but I was so proud all the same. I love that Lorelai is trying to push herself in piano (even if she whines about it sometimes!), and I hope that bodes well for her piano performance going forward.

What a great (and sometimes silly!) bunch of kids I have had the privilege of working with! As much as I enjoy the recitals, it is always nice when they are over, and everyone can breathe and relax a little bit. We had a few more weeks of more laid-back lessons, and then school was out and summer was here!

A few of my piano families take the summers off; while I don't approve of this choice, per se (I think staying away from piano for too long can hamper progress in early students), I can certainly understand it. And that also means a little less work for me over summer (and more time for me to have fun with my kids over the summer!), so it's hard for me to argue. All the same, by this point in the summer (early July, aka "late summer" for us Arizonans), I am ready for the kids to start coming back and for regular lessons to resume. After all, Christmas is coming soon...gotta pick out that holiday music for the winter recital, right?

Can you tell I love teaching piano? It's very likely I will have another job someday (one that will likely require me to give up teaching privately), but until that time I intend to enjoy being a music teacher as long as possible!