Grace Music Studio
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The first term of 2018 is ahead of us!

1/24/2018

 
With a lot of energy and passion stored up during the summer holiday, I'm glad that I will meet my lovely students again from next week! I hope my students will make great progress this year as they always did and become a confident, competent pianists. I wish those who are preparing for grade exams and diploma exams the very best and I will do my best to teach and guide them to achieve their goals. I have a feeling that 2018 will be a great year!  
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AMEB presentation for 2017 piano series 17, grades 5-8

6/3/2017

 
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What a delightful afternoon for piano teachers. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Mrs. Tess Hill and impressed by her passion for music teaching and preparation for the presentation. She is truly a teacher of teachers.

Studio relocated to Canning Vale as of term 2 2017

5/22/2017

 
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Grace Music Studio has been relocated to Canning Vale. I currently see my students in the new studio which has more space to feel comfort and shorter, easier access from the driveway. I am happy that almost all my students could follow me and come to the new place without major difficulties and I feel sorry to Jayla, my special student, that it became too far for her to travel from her house in one of the suburbs in up north. I wish my students and I can make some dearest memories here in the new studio. I thank all my students and parents for their support and trust.

CHRISTMAS IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER

12/19/2016

 
It's been a wonderful year to me personally and as a teacher. Teaching talented students and seeing them grow was pure pleasure to me and I feel so blessed with lots of students who are most kind and warm-hearted. They truly make my year. I feel sorry and sad to think about two students who will no longer see me in the new year as they move to Melbourne, Ashmeet and Bimin. You will always have a special space in my heart. I wish you could find an excellent piano teacher there soon to continue your progress.
This year, I wanted to make my Christmas article more interesting, so in the last lesson, I asked some of my students to leave a short end-of-year message to everyone and here they are:

Nicholas- Merry Christmas, everyone!
Esther- Have a good Christmas, be safe everybody.
Prathyush- Merry Christmas and happy new year.
Hannah- Piano is the best!
Sohee- I've really enjoyed playing piano with Grace.
Tracy- Merry Christmas and good luck next year.
Eun- Don't eat too much in this festive season! Harsh diet is coming!
Jayla- I love piano!
Akiho- I learned a lot this year.
Ashmeet- It's been amazing to learn from you, Grace.
Nicholas - This year was awesome!
Venzhel- Grace is the best piano teacher and it was a great year.
Bimin- I enjoyed learning from you.

A few students were too shy to say something, and some others had intensive lessons so I did not have time to ask them for a message. All those who did not leave a message but whom I taught and loved spending time with- Sophie, Ronalee, Roneesha, Matt, Hannah, Carl, Catherine, George, Judea, Luke, Madelyn, Whitchill, Jessica and Christine- I thank you so much for being great students to me. 

Congratulations on your amazing achievement this year and hope you will continue to make remarkable progress in the new year. You make me proud.
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Merry Christmas everyone and thanks a lot for your lovely messages, cards, and gifts.

Christmas is here!

12/23/2015

 
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The gifts and cards I received on the last lesson day- thanks so much, everyone! You guys make my job so rewarding.
The very last lesson of this year means the end of year holiday season that we've all been waiting for is here:D

I am proud of all my students on their progress this year and I congratulate on their excellent results and achievements in exams, competitions, concerts and student forums. I am so happy for them as I know how diligent they were with their daily practice all year round.

I wish a very merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all my students and their family and hope the new year will be full of joy and happiness. 

Summer lessons 2016

12/7/2015

 
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Summer lessons for 2016 will be offered for 3 days from the 6th (Wed) January to 8th (Fri) January. Unlike regular lessons, summer lessons are optional and do not require a full-time registration. Instead, each lesson is scheduled upon students' demand on a 'first come, first served' basis. Although there is no obligation to enrol full-time, I recommend my students to meet me at least once during this time in order to receive guidance and feedback on their practice. This lesson will also serve as an opportunity to review their knowledge acquired the year before. To arrange your lessons, please notify me of your preferred date(s), time(s) and duration by returning the slip given to you by your next lesson.

Why music?

12/2/2015

 
The 2nd issue of ABRSM's 2015 Libretto magazine presented an article explaining the benefits of learning music as a cover story. I'd like to share it as I found it quite fascinating.
the_benefits_of_music_learning.pdf
File Size: 437 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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All ready already for the last school term

10/14/2015

 
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Here we are in the last school term of Year 2015! I can't believe that Christmas is around the corner already as it still feels like yesterday when we celebrated the new year. Time flies!
Last Friday, my piano tuner Toni came and checked the hammers, their actions and responsiveness
of my Kawai GE-30 to make sure it sounds at its best for all my students. It was necessary especially because the piano is new and it's been only about 3 months and it needs time to settle in this new environment. 
Now, 10 great weeks are ahead of us and I feel well-prepared and fully recharged for it! 

A history of the piano lecture with G. Lancaster

10/7/2015

 
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This image is from ttp://www.metmuseum.org/toah/images/h2/h2_1984.34.jpg
Geoffrey Lancaster, who is a pianist and conductor at the forefront of the historically-inspired performance  practice movement, gave a lecture on a history of the piano, titled "How piano is your forte?" on  Sunday 28 June at Zenith Music Auditorium for over 3 hours. He gave the lecture with a great sense of humour and passion for piano and music. His lecture covered a vast area of the evolution of piano and he illustrated lots of examples of early pianos and played a snippet of music that helped us understand how certain pieces were intended to be played on the piano of that time. The visual aid (slides) together with his demonstration on the piano helped the attendees to comprehend how the various and
evolving mechanisms of the early pianos worked and how they were reflected in music written in that era. Not only did he explain different pianos in chronological order, but he also described the development of the early pianos by region (Italy, Germany, Austria and England). Some of the areas he covered in the lecture were about the invention, construction and components of the early pianos including the harpsichord, clavichord and fortepiano. It was fascinating to know that a lot of classical era music was written with the damper raised. It worked to clear the very common misconception that we should avoid using the damper pedal when playing a classical piece! After the lecture, I realised how I cannot put all early pianos into the same category and how largely different they were from one another.
No wonder accurate performance comes with accurate understanding of the history!

Changes to the studio room

6/25/2015

 
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KAWAI GE-30, the grand piano in the new studio room.
This image is from
http://www.kawaius.com/main_links/grands_09/ge30_specs.html
The studio room will be relocated to the audiovisual room at the back of the house from the new term. This room is larger than the current studio room, so it will enable us to have a grand piano, an upright piano and a digital piano as well as a sitting area for the parent(s) in the same space. There won't be a separate waiting room from the new term. I hope the students will enjoy their parents' presence and the parents will be able to know how their children are doing in detail. Students/parents of different time slots may be in the same space for a minute or two when a lesson overruns (although I try my best not to) or when the next student comes a little early. Please greet each other when meeting other students/parents before or after your lessons. In fact, it is always nice to be friendly to one another:D
Please refer to the notice slip for information on how to access this new room. I hope everyone will enjoy this new room!

AMEB presentation on aural work, sight reading and general knowledge

6/17/2015

 
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I participated in AMEB Section 111 Presentation last Sunday on 14 June. Quite a lot of music teachers gathered in the Kurrajong Theatre for this special event. The presentation covered three areas: aural work, sight reading and general knowledge in the context of AMEB practical examination requirements and preparation. Three AMEB examiners (Valerie Lang, Barry Palmer and Jangoo Chapkhana) led the presentation with well-prepared and useful materials. It gave me a chance to consider other teachers' approaches to these areas. Indeed, sharing teaching tips is a great thing to do as teachers, benefiting one another :)
This presentation inspired me in many ways and I hope I can inspire my students to have greater interest in these essential areas of music.


Heartwarming letter from a student

6/4/2015

 
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I received this letter from my student Sophie a few months ago. Sophie started having piano lessons late last year and has been enjoying her lessons ever since. From the very first lesson, she showed a natural aptitude for music. She has been energetic and passionate in lessons and surprised me many times with most unexpected ideas and improvisations on the keyboard. She composed an 8-bar song, notated them on a stave and played it for me just after the first term of her lessons. It is surely a blessing to have a student like Sophie- musical, bright and kind.
The message written in her letter is so lovely and makes me realise how rewarding teaching is. Here are a few sentences from the letter:
"Thank you for teaching me piano. If I ever feel sad I know I can just go to my keyboard and play. Everytime I come to yours  I just 
feel relaxed, happy and curious what I' going to learn next.[....] One day, I'll become a famous pianist. [....] I wish I could have piano lessons everyday!"
It's a joy for me to see Sophie grow as an all round musician and I can't wait to perform her own duet piece in the next student forum. 

Seminar on WACE exam preparation

5/26/2015

 
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I attended a WACE performance preparation seminar held by WAMTA on Saturday 16th May. The seminar was delivered by three current WACE examiners- Peter Sunman, John Beaverstock and Andrew Patrick. We had many points for discussion which covered various aspects of WACE exams including what to expect in the examination room, repertoire selection, timing of pieces, role of instrumental teachers in preparing the candidates and performing scores, just to name a few. Without doubt, the seminar was highly informative and effectively prepared teachers and students for WACE exams. It was worth attending despite the wintery, stormy and rain-drizzling weather:D

Theory Exam Result: Pass with Merit

5/8/2015

 
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I took a grade 7 theory exam last March, as part of my teaching Diploma preparation and I received the result yesterday: 87%, only 3 points short of a distinction. I'm not disappointed at all though, as the exam was by no means easy and I needed a geat deal of time and energy to prepare for the exam. I feel very satisfied with the result:D
I know not many musicians, students and teachers alike, sit for theory exams beyond grade 5, which is a pre-requisite for AmusA practical. However, it was very important for me to develop myself to become best equipped for my students so I decided to devote more of my time to studying theory and grade 7 was a challenging but attainable goal. I believe a great teacher should always be an active learner and I hope I can be the one all my life. A theory AmusA is waiting for me now, I guess!


Student Forum May

5/7/2015

 
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1st page of the program edited
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Katie.S playing Val's by Maykapar   
This year's first Student Forum was held last saturday, 2 May at St.Mary's Anglican Church, South Perth. Many students from more than 10 teachers participated, and amongst them were quite a few advanced students. The programme was wonderful and lasted for about 2 hours. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it!
It was particularly more special for my dearest student Katie as it was her first public performance. Unlike most students who perform for the first time, she didn't get nervous at all and played the prepared pieces beautifully with a careful attention to details. Congratulataions! No doubt that I was very proud and happy! I'm sure she was happy, too: ) I hope she will play to her best in her grade exam in July.
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