My goals as a piano instructor are to guide and develop an extended artistic experience for each of my students. I see my responsibility as helping the student to find strong motivations for achieving identifiable goals. I aim to guide the student in improving public performance skills and confidence, providing guidance in individual lessons and facilitating performance opportunities.
As an instructor, I strive to have each student achieve independent thinking and creative musicianship. We work together in the pursuit of excellence to achieve the highest degree of artistry, and our journey allows the student to search for his or her unique, individual artistic expression. This search begins in individual lessons and studio classes by involving multi-faceted learning activities such as analyzing recordings, incorporating awareness of cultural/historical contexts of music, enhancing independent practice skills, and offering opportunities for master classes, small public performances and competitions.
The next step towards a successful class is setting clear goals and striving to achieve them. Although the goals for each student are unique, the love for music and the desire to make music are common to them all. In a class it is important to evaluate and give feedback as often as possible. In every lesson the student is evaluated on the preparedness for the lesson and an overall progress towards achieving specific goals. This evaluation allows the greater awareness of progress and a clarification of short-term goals. In the weekly studio class, several assessment techniques are applied. Group discussion, peer assessment, and summative and formative assessment are all part of the studio class. My lesson structure varies from student to student. It is always individual and personal. I emphasize hand technique and the development of sound. Having flexible and free hands is essential for piano playing.
Teaching Philosophy
Other primary objectives include mastering technique, tone quality, interpretation, memory, and musicality. One of my most important goals is to provide each student with the necessary tools to be able to work independently. By the end of the undergraduate experience each student should gain enough knowledge to be able to work effectively without a teacher while appreciating the value of seeking artistic and musical advice. Independent thinking is also advanced by class discussion. This helps students to analyze and develop the ability to think critically and question intelligently.
I encourage a free expression of students’ opinions, which I promote by creating a safe and comfortable environment in which students can easily share their ideas. Living in the 21st century, we are able to benefit from the advantages of incorporating technology into our teaching. There are diverse technological tools that I include in my teaching to assist students in their learning. These can benefit students in developing musical understanding, memorization, and performance skills. These mediums can challenge students to think independently and express their ideas while developing critical and creative thinking. One such tool is Blackboard. It allows for regular discussions by the students themselves on relevant topics and provide valuable opportunities for collaborative learning. Analyzing selected recordings is another Blackboard activity that I create for my students. The ability to stream recordings on Blackboard or to provide links for downloading performances from on-line sources such as You Tube, promotes critical and independent thinking about technique, interpretation, artistry, and repertoire. After listening to the assigned video clips, the students will post performance critiques on Blackboard and respond other students’ posting.
Another important technological tool is audio and video recording. I record every lesson for each of my students to help them remember what they have learned. To enhance this experience, the students are required to watch the lesson and submit a short report with their goals for the next week. Recording technology can be used outside of the lesson as well. Since individual lessons are usually once a week it is beneficial for me to keep in touch with the students during the week. Asking students to create a short recording of their progress by the middle of the week provides a useful motivation and an opportunity for them to receive feedback. Devices such as the i-phone, i-pod, and i-pad are extremely easy to use and appropriate for this application. As an instructor I have many different roles in the life of my students. One such role is to advise and help direct them toward their career paths. As their primary mentor, it is crucial to help students understand their career goals and guide them towards successfully achieving them. Finally, I value the importance of maintaining a strong belief in the potential of all my students. I strive to facilitate positive performance experiences and independence in pianistic development and achievement. I seek to help my students identify career opportunities. I place great emphasis on providing them with the knowledge and artistic guidance necessary to succeed in reaching their goals.
Young Students
The method of the Dr. Denenburg is based mainly on the Russian School of Pianism, a combination of serious professional learning in a friendly environment. Dr. Denenburg works with children as young as four years old, using recently developed Russian method by the one of the most successful teachers in the country. These materials have been proven to be extremely successful and provide a wonderful enjoyable learning experience. It focuses on developing imagination, hand flexibility, natural use of the body, sense of rhythm, and musicianship. Dr. Denenburg takes the student in to the world of musical imagination and provides a good foundation and enjoyable beginning.
In the past three years, Dr. Denenburg, taught in the coordination with the Los Angeles Philharmonic teaching group music classes for children 2-5 years old.
Dr. Denenburg and her students have been actively involved in the professional music organizations such as Arizona State University Music Association, Music Teachers Association of California (where she served on the board), College Music Society and currently Ohio Music Teachers Association.
Starting her teaching career sixteen years ago, Dr. Denenburg remains extremely passionate about her teaching. She believes in all the students, and puts in an extreme effort to provide a positive experience with music and the piano. Dr. Denenburg believes that with hard work and the right attitude, everything is possible!