Ford Barker Piano Studio

Squirrels at Play, Boris Berlin, performed by Summer Novak To participate in the Canada Music Week Celebrations, some of my students learned works by notable Canadian composers listed in the RMC Piano Syllabus. Squir...

CELEBRATION OF CANADIAN MUSIC; SPOTLIGHT ON ANNE CROSBY GAUDET

To participate in the Canada Music Week Celebrations, some of my students learned works by notable Canadian composers listed in the RMC Piano Syllabus. Dreamcatcher by Anne Crosby Gaudet is one of them.

Anne Crosby Gaudet, a music educator and publisher from Bedford, Nova Scotia. She is best known for her pedagogical compositions for piano and harp, which are widely used in music education curricula across North America.

Thoughts from the performer Danoosh Chamani are included in the description.

Dreamcatcher, Anne Crosby Gaudet, performed by Danoosh Chamani To participate in the Canada Music Week Celebrations, some of my students learned works by notable Canadian composers listed in the RMC Piano Syllabus. Dream...

CELEBRATION OF CANADIAN MUSIC; SPOTLIGHT ON BORIS BERLIN

To participate in the Canada Music Week, several of my students learned works by notable Canadian composers. Squirrels at Play by Boris Berlin is one of them.

Boris Berlin (1907 – 2001) was a pianist, music educator, arranger, and composer of Russian birth. He is primarily remembered for his work in piano pedagogy and taught some of Canada's most illustrious musicians. In 2000, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada.

Thoughts from the performer, Summer Novak, are included in the video description.

Squirrels at Play, Boris Berlin, performed by Summer Novak To participate in the Canada Music Week Celebrations, some of my students learned works by notable Canadian composers listed in the RMC Piano Syllabus. Squir...

Celebrating Success!

Summer was awarded a scholarship for "most outstanding performance" at the recent ORMTA Junior Scholarship Recital. Well done!

Gentile Breezes, Alexander, performed by Summer Novak "I really enjoyed this piece because it has dynamics and the pedal really pulls it together."~Summer Novak

Celebrating Success!

Harper has completed RCM Level 2 Piano. Congratulations.

To celebrate this achievement. Harper has generously given us an excellent recording of her favorite piece from Level 2. Well done!

Nightingale, Hidy performed by Harper Cheng "I selected this piece because of the calm and gentle feel. In addition, it is a little mysterious and I particularly enjoy the ending."~ Harper Cheng

Celebrating Success!

Qunicy received First Class Honours with Distinction on his Level 9 RCM Practical Examination. Congratulations!

This follows his Level 8 RCM Practical Examination for which he received the 2024 RCM State Award. These certificates are awarded in each State to the student who received the highest mark for the respective Practical Examination in the previous academic year.

This award-winning pianist performs the List C selection chosen for the Level 9 Exam.

Cancion de Mayo, Granados, performed by Quincy Gordon "This is my favorite piece from Level 9, and I really enjoyed practicing and playing it. It’s a perfect mix of difficulty and passionate emotions. This piece...

King's College Choir announces major change Find more at https://www.kingscollegerecordings.comReleased on April Fool's day, April 1 2014.----Gregorio Allegri: Miserere, mei, Deus

MUSIC SOOTHE THE SAVAGE BEAST

The proverb, Music Soothe the Savage Beast, comes from the play The Mourning Bride, by William Congreve, an English author of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. Unfortunately, this is a misquote. Congreve's original words follow:

"Musick has Charms to sooth a savage Breast,
To soften Rocks, or bend a knotted Oak."

In any case, the meaning of the proverb is the same. The breast (misquoted as the beast) is the seat of emotion. In other words, music can enchant even the most pugnacious of people.

THE LOVE HORMONE
Often, hidden underneath these timeless proverbs, is some interesting science. In this case, it involves the hormone called oxytocin. The pituitary gland releases oxytocin into the bloodstream. Its main function is to facilitate childbirth, which is one of the reasons it is called the "love hormone". In addition to this function, it has others. In particular, it has prosocial effects, including changes in emotional empathy, recognition and interpretation of emotions, enhanced group cooperation and trust, and a reduction in the perception of stress and anxiety. Active music-making causes the release of oxytocin. An article by Alan Harvey published in Loud Mouth: Music, Arts, and the World titled Music, oxytocin and Human Sociality, describes this nicely.

PERSPECTIVE
In recent times, we are witnessing a "dumbing-down" of our society. As described in Wikipedia, dumbing-down varies according to the subject matter, and involves the diminishment of critical thought by undermining standard language and learning standards; thus trivializing academic standards, culture, and meaningful information, as in the case of popular culture. Music and arts education generally has been one of the targets. At the same time, we are witnessing an erosion of democracy and polarization of our political environment. I believe these are related phenomena.

To elaborate, one of the oldest and often very effective pollical strategies is to divide and conquer. The Oxford Dictionary describes this as the policy of maintaining control over one's opponents by encouraging dissent between them, thereby preventing them from uniting in opposition. We see this happening frequently in current events often by oppressive and authoritarian leaders who devalue human rights. To conclude, one antidote to this disturbing trend is to promote and restore music education and active music making in our communities.