<![CDATA[Imagination and mental imagery in the piano learning environment]]>It shouldn’t be the same old five-finger warm-ups and scales without an infusion of emotion/imagination. That’s why I decided to experiment and have two adult students communicate a juxtaposed shift of mood between a MAJOR penta-scale (five-finger position) and its companion parallel minor. Neither pupil expected to be asked to raise five step-wise notes to a level of emotional engagement.
So here’s what happened:
Peter started with Parallel thirds (in a five-finger Db MAJOR and minor) frame.
Laura took off with a B Major/minor penta-scale.
Later in his lesson, Peter infused a G Major Arpeggio with a “floating” contour…
Another keyboard view of G Major arpeggio
Experiences with mental image prompts encourage expressive music-making and will be valuable in all practicing phases.