 A sure-fire creativity hack is to practice "no" before "yes." This helps with playful mindful music and living. Sign: Italian for "No Parking" It’s difficult to create if whatever comes out has to sound or look a certain way, or if there is a list of things that ‘should not’ be done. Sometimes my music students know better what they don’t like than what they do. Exploring these preferences can help them feel more confident making up their own music and choosing home play songs based on their preferences.
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 Rain is a musical way to teach concepts in piano, voice and singing. Adaptive music lessons use daily life to build skills and confidence. At camp when I was a kid, we used to make rain as a game. In as big a group as we could manage, we would begin by snapping fingers, then tapping our laps, then clapping and finally stomping to make rain sounds even during the most dry summers. This game came to mind when I realized that I hardly ever use any of the many words we have for rain in Standard American English, except for the one I’ve used three times in just the subject and first paragraph of this blog :)
 Palm trees are tree-like grasses that responded to Houston's polar vortex with new growth in 2021. Palm trees are surprising me this week. Since last February’s polar vortex froze Houston’s palms into kindling, I have been waiting for them to be chopped down altogether, or to dwindle into sticks as their dried leaves fall. Instead, I see small tufts of green sprouting from their tops near my home on Houston’s East Side and as far away as Katy. This moves me because of what I know about these tree-ish grasses: everything underneath the top of a palm tree is not really living anymore in a strict sense… it’s just there to carry water to the life on top. I’ve been watching these grass-mopped poles from my highway commute for four months … enough time for a new elementary-aged student to grasp the basics of reading music. Enough time for a seasoned student to learn a few new songs or write a couple of their own. Enough time for me to write a new piano-learning book. Enough time for me to get used to living off of social media. As I teach piano, voice and music theory in my playful, mindful music practice week after week, I don’t always notice incremental changes that are happening. Sure, I do a happy dance inside every time a student understands something that may have felt really new before, and I enjoy the pieces my students create on their own. It delights me when students express their emotions or tell me about their days by playing songs to paint their moods. But sometimes when I see a student reading music with much greater ease than before, or when a parent tells me how much their children are enjoying playing piano between our lessons, it amazes me like new growth on a frost-burnt plant. But my students’ love for learning music is no miracle: it grows from the nurturing support of a teacher and parent team that makes time for rehearsal (aka home play), processing and exploration.   We shall not be moved is top-of-mind when I think back on my teen years in Berkeley, CA. In choir at Martin Luther King Junior High, I learned this hymn turned movement anthem with people from many different zip codes. Our tracked school system offered me few opportunities to interact with people from African-American, Asian American and Latinx backgrounds. Choir was one place that reflected the diversity of the student body, and where we built friendships from joy in music.
Sunday January 17 at 4:30 p.m., the Secret Choir will sing together as best as we can on Zoom. Our meeting will be brief (an hour or less) and we will warm up with some creative writing or drawing before singing a handful of songs that to me represent empathy and respect, such as We Shall Not be Moved. This social change hymn is borrowed from its Spiritual predecessor "I Shall Not Be Moved,” whose seminal words appear multiple times in the Bible, and even in the 1807 London-published excerpt created to maintain the tyranny of slavery. The "Sl*ve Bible" omitted any reference to freedom, equality, or direct communion with the Divine, such as in Psalm 16:8 I keep the L*rd always before me; because They are at my right hand, I shall not be moved. "I shall not be moved" was and is sung in steadfast resistance to oppression. While, on the surface, the lyrics appear to support staying in a place or station the hymn can be a call to inner fortitude. "I shall not, I shall not be moved. Like a tree planted by the water, I shall not be moved." This Mavis Staples Version brings comfort and hope to me. I also relish this Spiritual edition by the Harmonizing Four. For motivation, I like this Uptempo Praise & Worship track by Kenny Bobien.  As much as singing on Zoom feels like talking through a tin-can phone, it's still great fun! “Thank you so much for hosting Secret Choir online … I was stressed out before and now I feel better.” said one singer after our first Zoom sing last month. “It was so much fun to sing together: I missed this.” said another.
Our next Social Sing will be on January 17, a Sunday, at 4:30 p.m., during the weekend when we remember Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Jr. Every year during MLK weekend, radio stations play hymns and songs of resistance from the Civil Rights movement. Music is an integral part of movements for social justice, equality and change across the world, across time and in many cultures. Songs, instrumental music and dances, like the high-stepping South African Toyi-Toyi, performed during anti-apartheid protests, serve as a collective heartbeat of a crowd. Their messages can motivate people marching while communicating goals to outsiders listening. This winter, Secret Choir will feature songs of social change. We shall mine collective memory for songs to inspire and recharge the spirit. [I’ll send out some social context for these songs via email ahead of time so that when you arrive in our Zoom room all you need to do is sing!] As the global pandemic continues, it is my hope that songs of social change inspire perseverance to live by the values you hold most dear. The Secret Choir will meet this spring through March 2021, on select Sunday afternoons. The Secret Choir is a fun singing group and creative community for people of all backgrounds, genders, abilities, ages and body sizes. Through gentle vocal and writing prompts, members sing with ease, access intuitive wisdom, and use creativity as self-care. With increased intuitive and social connection, people in the Secret Choir enhance their well-being through self-compassion and consistent creative practice. Self-doubt and self-consciousness diminish as emotional resilience and contentment help them to thrive in daily life. I, Elisabeth Swim, started the Secret Choir to have an interfaith, body-inclusive place to sing socially, without pressure to perform. When I see members find their inner voices through gentle writing prompts and connect with others through song, my spirit soars! Join The Secret Choir HERE   Tuning pianos is what some people call a dying art. There are not a lot of people with the skill and musicality required to tune mechanical pianos.
I feel fortunate to know a few local piano tuners who work with me and my student families to set the stage for satisfying music. Ello Piano Service comes recommended by a colleague at The Next Step Academy. Saun C. Lee is also available to tune pianos throughout the Houston area. Finally, Action Piano has moved instruments for me, and they tune instruments as well. According to Saun [pronounced "sohn" to rhyme with "John"] C. Lee, tuning a piano annually can help students: Hear and appreciate sounds both at and away from the piano, which builds sensory resilience Sense differences between moods and shades of sound, which helps with social referencing Enhance their musical phrasing, which transfers to ease and fluidity in daily speech Enjoy playing the piano, which increases internal motivation for home play, aka practice!  As I continue to teach lessons and stay in touch, I want to thank you for being part of my community. I have seen clearly during the pandemic that the people in my life make it rich and fulfilling: I am so grateful you are one!
In case you haven't read my first music book, you may find it on Amazon. I drafted this on an Amtrak 🚞 from New Orleans to Atanta, enjoying the wheels' rhythm, tree-screened views and time and to think and write. If you've gotten into tidying during this home-centered time, and if you love books the way I do, you might be interested in passing some books along to readers outside your quarantine pod. Although little free libraries are fun and easy places to donate, you can also sell your books online from home through Powell's. Finally, I am a big fan of the Libby app which lends me audiobooks and digital text on deadlines that motivate me. Find it on Amazon.  The piano keys are backward -- opposite to what they used to be. In early days of keyboarding, harpsichord manuals (keyboards) were made with big ebony keys and small wooden keys topped with white ivory. In other words, the default, letter-name keys were originally black. However, because this made it difficult at times to perceive the space between the keys, where one key ended and another began, the colors were switched to what we use today. Now that borders between letter-name note keys and their sharps and flats are clear, it can be even easier to see the twelve-note pattern that makes every musical keyboard, from piano to organ to melodica to harmonium to accordion. As I describe in my short book Piano without Tears, understanding this simple pattern can allay any anxiety around gettint to know your keyboard: As long as I can count to twelve, I can get the piano: 5 black keys + 7 white keys = only 12 different keys! There are five black keys on any keyboard, formerly five white keys. Take a look at the bottom picture above. Notice that the black keys come in groups of three black keys and two black keys in an alternate pattern: a group of two / a group of three / a group of two / a group of three, etc ... There are seven white keys formerly seven black keys. They are organized according to their position among the black keys. Notice that there are four white keys directly touching the three black keys. There are also three white keys directly touching the two black keys. Students in my playful mindful studio build a foundation of understanding by learning every single one of these twelve keys in multi-sensory ways. What do you see in this pattern? Comment to let me know :-) or write me c/o music at notearspiano dot com
 I would not try to fuel my car by shifting gears. But as a new singer I did just that. Like many people, I tried to use muscles in my face and jaw to create sound.
My students learn that the body is made to sing using three different mechanisms:
Whether or not your life goals include singing, practicing extended exhales can bring inner steadiness. Start with the humming sound "mmmmmmmmmm." After a relaxed in breath, send a hum out on any tone (there is no ‘correct’ pitch) and keep going for as long as you like. When finished, enjoy the relative silence of your simple breaths. This PDF can help you remember to try this whenever you have a spare minute and a need for peace. (Playful Mindful Stress Tamers).  A common myth is that music always conveys the same emotions, no matter who is listening. This could not be further from the truth. Early European Christian chants, for example, used minor melodies to convey intense emotion, but not any particular type of emotion.
Nowadays, however, it is common to think of minor songs as sad (Umbrella, Sweet Dreams, Pavane by Faure). The same is true of songs that we think of as inherently happy. People can be moved to tears by songs in major modes which are often believed to be inherently happy (Twinkle Twinkle, Wake Me Up, Irreplaceable).How to avoid this emotional misunderstanding? Enjoy quality music time with yourself or your family as part of home school or wind down. Use this active listening framework I created with the help of Maestro Franz at the Houston Symphony to connect with any genre of music in an emotionally neutral way. This will make room for EVERYONE’s emotions reactions to the music, as you listen for qualites that are connected to every musician’s essential skills. Get the active listening framework here (Listen Up!) or find it in my book Piano Without Tears along with the whys and wherefores of my Playful Mindful method. If you would like a free copy of Piano Without Tears, simply fill out the form on this page :-)  Do you remember the "toy boat" tongue twister? When I was in elementary school, classmates and I would try to say the words "toy boat" five times as quickly as we could. Three reps in would get to "toy boyt" every time. On the other hand, I remember singing freely during my only-child alone time. I sang stories to myself, narrated whatever may have happened to me during my day, or made singing games out of my chores. Though I don't remember any of those early original songs, I know for certain that singing was a key part of my speech development. To support with my students' mastery of tricky sounds, I created a couple of originals.
These are kid-friendly songs, but I hope they are fun to hear at all ages 🤩 Song for "Ch" (lyrics here) supports mastery of the "ch" sound as distinct from "z" and "sh." It is inspired by the train song (above) and the Riddle Song, which my parents used to sing to me as a lullaby. To listen, click on the song title and press the "play" arrow on the new pop-up window. Trouble loading? Try this. Train on the Track (lyrics here) rehearses the consonant sounds "K" and "L" in the tricky cluster that begins "clickety clack" . To listen, click on the song title and press the "play" arrow on the new pop-up window. Trouble loading? Try this. These are both live recordings and I hope you enjoy their authentic feeling (a.k.a. unedited quirks ;) P.S. These songs and more are on SoundCloud. Follow me on Instagram. I would not try to fuel my car by shifting gears. But as a new singer I did just that. Like many people, I tried to use muscles in my face and jaw to create sound.
My students learn that the body is made to sing using three different mechanisms:
Whether or not your life goals include singing, practicing extended exhales can bring inner steadiness. Start with the humming sound "mmmmmmmmmm." After a relaxed in breath, send a hum out on any tone (there is no ‘correct’ pitch) and keep going for as long as you like. When finished, enjoy the relative silence of your simple breaths. This PDF can help you remember to try this whenever you have a spare minute and a need for peace. (Playful Mindful Stress Tamers). Looking for more support with singing? Right now I have openings in my online studio, and am working on a central online portal for singers (hear our in-person recordings here). Have you ever gotten really into a song? So into it that you don't want to listen to anything else or do anything else while listening?
There are a few songs that still have power to pull me into total mindfulness of their melodies and rhythms, even after decades of listening. During this stay-at-home stretch, why not share musical memories of power songs from your past? Here are a couple of ways to do this inside or outside of your quarantine circle: 1. Pick one song to share after a meal or before another shared activity. Play the song and dance or sing along, then share any stories that arise in your memory while listening ... invite your loved ones to do the same. Children might have favorite songs from in-person school days, from time with other caretakers or from online programs they enjoy. Across social distance, share one song each with a listening buddy on a phone or video call. 2. Make a memory-lane playlist to enjoy and share. In person, enjoy it while dancing, singing along, coloring, or doing any other creative or repetitive task -- even chores. Share the playlist with a listening buddy digitally ... ask them to send you their own play list. Swap stories after listening. What song do you remember as a power song for you? Comment and let me know :-) For more prompts and games, check out my music studio book Piano without Tears, which you can buy here in hard copy. If you would like to read a PDF instead, click here for the download as my gift to you. Did you ever spend recess clapping hands with friends? Maybe playing Miss Mary Mack or singing about fun foods or drinks? Hand-clapping games, while not always easy, have fast-acting benefits for mind, body and soul.
Playing steady rhythms in concert with a friend builds coordination in eyes, ears and across the muscles of the mind-body system. One such fun game is the additive Slide, which I learned through musicologist Kyra D. Gaunt. In this numbers game, a pattern is created and then expanded one repetition at a time, up to the number 10. Ask me about Slide at our next lesson, or visit this blog. [We'll do some hand clapping at the next group sing, The Secret Choir on March 14] One clapping game can be made based on your name. Try clapping your hands { /\ } for every consonant letter in your name, and tapping your thighs { = = } with open palms for every vowel. For me, that's: == { e } /\ { L } == { i } /\ { s } == { a } /\ { b } == { e } /\ { t } /\ { h } Once you have figured out your pattern, repeat it three or four times in a row, without taking any extra time after the last letter in your name. See if you can make a steady beat ... then notice how it feels. Next time you have some down time and want to spend it off screen, try rehearsing this pattern (even mentally). Want more Playful Mindful Music from Elisabeth Swim at Sounds Like Me Inc? Join Secret Choir, a group singing adventure here. Listen to recordings of the Secret Choir here or here :)  When I have a long to-do list, it’s easy for me to feel stuck. Even with clear priorities, getting started on any one thing can feel very, very new. That’s when I call on a tool from my early childhood musicians. Growing minds and grownup minds need time to make sense and meaning of commands and tasks.
Sneak in some quality processing time by counting down, like rocket blastoff, any time you or your children need a little mindful boost: 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1 🚀 Counting down gives the listener an active role in the transition process. There is a definite end to the count, which even my stressed-out, unmotivated bodymind system senses. I use this countdown when transitioning out of a fun activity into something on my to-do list, when getting out of bed on a particularly cozy-and-cold day, and when pumping myself up to go into a room full of people who might be new to me. Mindful seconds spent listening in countdown make for a subtle energy boost of relief when the counting is through, just what I need to get going on the task at hand. When supporting young students to change gears, I might count down from 10 or even 20, to buy extra time. Have you ever been somewhere, waiting in traffic or at the store, and a song came on that you’ve heard countless times? An uncomfortably familiar amount of times? What do you do? I like to use active listening to turn moments like this into mindfulness. As I absorb the song through my sticky ears (songs get ‘in my head’ really easily), I hunt for the following: Where is the beat? Finding the beat of the song and tapping it lightly on my chest (if I am hands free) can help me feel more calm and grounded. Are there any bits of silence between melodic or rhythmic sounds? What would it be like to listen for those, and maybe breathe deeply into them? What instruments am I hearing? Can I pay attention to an instrumental sound I have not noticed before? The easiest one for me is the bass because of its low, steadily placed sounds. If vocal, how often does the singer say a particular letter sound? This can be really fun because it activates the logic- and pattern- seeking part of my mind, which is different from the judgey part. 😬 What was the last song you heard that got stuck in your head? I wanted to share with you a quick way to find your center even in the midst of a hundred thousand things to do. My mind tends to go extra fast when I have a lot on my plate, jumping from need-to-be-done tasks to concerns about things that haven't happened yet. It can be easier said than done to take a deep breath. When my mind is loud, it helps to have a physical sound to guide me into a mindfulness. In recent piano lessons, my students have enjoyed using piano keys as tools to find center with playful curiosity. We find a note or two to play together. (Pairs of black and white keys that skip over a note of the same color are harmonious.) My student plays the note or notes and holds them down until the sound goes away. We may notice how long the sound lasts and then play a note or two in a different spot on the piano (to the right, left, or center), perhaps comparing how long the notes lasted. Depending on mood, the focus can be simple mindfulness. In this case, we listen to the note or notes as invitations to breathe deeply and follow the quality of the sound: What would happen if, as the sound gets quieter, the mind settled more deeply into listening to it? This can be done on a digital keyboard, set to a piano sound. Some of my favorite centering songs have 3 beats. What I mean is that their underlying pulse--akin to a heartbeat--is counted 1 - 2 - 3. This odd but centering rhythm has a swinging feeling and is used in ballads, meditations and waltzes alike. What happens when you listen for the 1 - 2 - 3 beat in these tunes:
*This gospel classic and this grown-up ballad sung by the late and beloved Aretha Franklin *Kermit's colorful question from the Muppet Movie *My favorite waltz and love song from Viennese operetta While you listen, if you like, find the pulse of each song. Once you can hear and tap along with the regular strong beats, try counting 1-2-3 over and over, along with the music. How does this feel? I love this song and have wanted to play it for 25 years, ever since I heard it on KCSM radio in the SF Bay Area. There were a number of obstacles: the written music is not readily available. The song is in a musical range best suited to men with low voices. I’m not in a band. My spanish was not proficient. Recently I received our family's first piano, a gift from my late grandfather. It made a zig-zag journey from Oakland, CA to Indianapolis before finding its way to my Houston studio. What better motivation to pursue my own repertoire dreams? 🔥 When motivating students to play piano in between lessons, I speak of music as a precious flame that is lit during lessons. As a student plays piano in between our meetings, the flame stays lit, and perhaps burns even more strongly. By the time our next lesson comes around, a student simply reveals to me the lit flame of their learned song, which powers our exploration of the next piece. 🔥 My dream song took steady dedication to work up even to this point (an ongoing work in progress!). The biggest challenge, was in finding the music—you might notice from the photo below it’s a jazz-style chart, with chord names written in letters over the music-note melody. Sleuthing complete, I made a step-by-step plan to learn the bass line and the chords that go with it in a rhythm that pleases me and sounds something like the full-band version. With a few minutes of work at a time, a few days a week, over numberous weeks, I put together an arrangement that I enjoy playing and singing. This is my goal for all my students: to enjoy music as a life practice. Short periods of home play (aka practice) add up over time to make any desired skill easier—masterful, even. What is something you would like to learn (in music or not!), that seems big and overwhelming right now? Send me an email music@notearspiano.com and let me know!  Typing this blog post was an act of rhythm. So was clicking on it to read it (thank you!)
Every movement we make requires rhythm-based coordination from a designated part of our brain's core. Language is rhythm. Play is rhythm. Music is rhythm. When I improve my rhythm, I make other areas of my life easier and more enjoyable.
Music is innately connected to many students' most challenging subject, math! In fact, I like to say that music is mathyou can feel. In my playful, mindful music studio, pianists, vocalists and percussionists develop steady rhythm and an appreciation for the math of music. We may tap or move to the rhythm of a song before playing or singing it. We talk about rhythmic cycles, and how songs are divided into groups of beats. Because of their strong foundation in rhythm, my students transition well to choir, orchestra, bell choir and other musical activities outside the studio, where they enjoy social connection as well as musical satisfaction. What most people don't know is that by helping to enhance the brain's rhythm system, we prepare it to create the most sophisticated rhythm of all: attentive stillness. Get started on music math at home witha simple find-the-beat game you can play anywhere!  Have you ever been somewhere waiting in traffic or at the store--and a song came on that you’ve heard countless times? A song that you would just rather not hear again? What if one of your family’s ipads is playing a song for the umpteen thousandth time? What do you do? I like to use my active listening to turn moments like this into mindfulness games. As I absorb the song through my sticky ears (songs get ‘in my head’ really easily), I might hunt for the following: *Where is the beat? Finding the beat of the song and tapping it lightly on my chest (if I am hands free) can help me feel more calm and grounded. * Are there any bits of silence between melodic or rhythmic sounds? What would it be like to listen for those, and maybe breathe deeply into them? * What instruments am I hearing? Can I pay attention to an instrumental sound I have not noticed before? The easiest one for me is the bass because of its low, steadily placed sounds. *If vocal, how often does the singer say a particular letter sound? This can be really fun because it activates the logic- and pattern- seeking part of my mind, which is different from the judge-y part that does not prefer the song. 😬 Thanks for reading! Send me an email to let me know: what is a song that gets stuck in your head? Playful Mindful Music by Elisabeth Swim at Sounds Like Me Inc
I talk funny. Especially when it comes to learning, I use words that sound really strange to people who do not know me yet. For example, I do my best not to use the words hard and difficult: When I say something is difficult, I feel a little overwhelmed. I don’t feel motivated to do the thing. The task is, on some level, new. I haven’t done it enough times to make it feel easy. Maybe sometimes it feels easy, but I have not learned it so that it feels easy to do even when I’m tired, hungry or otherwise under extra stress.
When I call a task new instead of hard or challenging, my mind-body system gets ready for something exciting. I have an open-minded curiosity about how I will accomplish it. I am interested in how it might feel easier after I have done so and curious about what I might learn along the way. Rather than calling things difficult or hard, I am committed to learning that every task and every activity is either easy or new. I train students to do the same. If something is easy, I have learned it or mastered it. I may have done it or similar things many times before. If it's new, I am still learning it. I might not yet feel like I have got it down. There is more learning to be done by rehearsing the task until it becomes easy. NEW ↜------------------------------------------------------↝ EASY When I encourage myself with energizing words like easy and new, I have more energy and clearer awareness of how to use my energy to reach my goals. Living life on a spectrum of learning makes it possible for me to be curious about my mistakes as I make them. What feels new to you in life right now? What feels easy? Send me an email to let me know. |
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