In our third teacher chat, Stephen Hughes and Tony Parlapiano and I discuss popular music styles and the value of incorporating reading and listening when it comes to playing the piano.
Listen to additional teacher chats here.
At one time, pop music was considered an add-on to traditional, classical piano lessons; something students might do on their own but not something useful to be included in the lesson. Times have changed and teachers are finally noticing the value of including popular music styles in their curriculum. They now see the value of teaching from chord charts and lead sheets or without any music notation at all.
Stephen Hughes
Stephen is a fellow Texas piano teacher. His grandmother was his first piano teacher when he was four years old. His students excel in playing traditional piano repertoire as well as popular music styles. He equips students for a lifetime of musical enjoyment.
Tony Parlapiano
Tony joins us today from Massachusetts. His unconventional journey to piano as a student, which started with the school band program, gives him a fresh approach to working with his own students. He shares some of his great insight in today's chat.
What’s the difference between learning to play pop music versus traditional classic music?
Stephen – When people think Pop, it is not encompassing of all pop styles. Praise and Worship, some forms of gospel, and some jazz fit into Pop. I believe it comes down to the complexity and tendency of the music. When people say Pop, people of this generation tend to think Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars. Or anything that is Billboard 100 – mainstream radio hits.
Serious “classical” students usually spend so much time preparing for some kind of event that they miss out on creative outlets and having fun. The thrill of competitive events can take a toll on students so learning pop styles can provide a good balance.
I use a blended approach in my studio. Playing by ear requires listening, chord knowledge, and strong beat awareness where playing from piano repertoire focuses on reading, technique, and interpretation of the music. All these concepts and their many variances are essential for musicians.
Tony – When I first began teaching, I thoroughly researched the methods available at the music shop, picked one, and got to work. While I had a few students that consistently showed up prepared, I found that a majority of my kids dodged their assignments. I started to get the feeling that if I wasn’t careful, in 10 years, I’d be very good at teaching something no one cared about. Pretty early on in my teaching, I started asking kids to bring in CD’s of the music they listened to, and I’d teach them how to go from radio to piano. Engagement, learning, practice, and retention skyrocketed.
The thing I’ve found is that students can decide what they get to play without deciding what they get to learn. I don’t only teach pop music, but I believe wholeheartedly in the concept of interest-led learning.
Where do you start?
Stephen – I like to focus on the experience for the students for the very first lesson and throughout their entire stay as a student. Giving that fantastic feeling of playing along with the music in whatever capacity that is- recordings, play-along tracks, karaoke tracks, keyboard ensembles, student bands, professional bands, etc.
Playing pop music gives students a different kind of energy and enthusiasm. You can take three chords that you learned from traditional classical music and play hundreds of pop songs immediately. You can also transpose those and get ahead of the curve in terms of the classical curriculum.
Classical curriculums are typically step-by-step graded approach as far as method books are concerned. In learning pop music, you can still scaffold all the information yet you’re not limited to when and how you learn a tune. Even if more on the complex scale, there is always a way to play the song. Teachers can easily modify chords to songs to where you can play them right away and then gradually add new chords in each song as needed.
Tony – As far as resources, there are unlimited resources. Go on YouTube, and you can find a dozen videos that will show you how to play any song you want to learn. Some are terrible, and some (like those that Stephen offers) are great. Search Pop Piano Methods on Amazon, and there are 215 results.
A lot of my materials for teaching popular music are all about getting students to understand the underlying harmonic structure of music by thinking and hearing in numbers before letters. I’ve branded these resources under the name Popmatics (the math behind pop music.
Popmatics by itself doesn’t mean anything. It has to be me. What is me? It’s the way I think, the way I relate to people, the way I have insight into who they are, the way I teach. I just put Popmatics in its proper role which is that it’s a tool. It’s not the whole thing; it’s only a tool I use when I need to use it. Everything I do and the way I do it, that’s me. Parlapiano. Popmatics is just a part of it.
I say this to try and be aware when you get hit with all the marketing of something that’s going to be the answer. You’ll never find it all in one place or from just one person. Explore and discover what resonates with you.
If you’d like my recommendation of a great place to start, check out Music as a Language, a Ted Talk by Victor Wooten.
What can parents do to support their piano kid learning all kinds of musical styles?
Stephen – Parents can support their kids by sharing their music with them. Get them interested in what you listened to as kids. All music in this generation is an evolution of the artform. Lots of kids may know who the Beatles are but have never even listened to their music intently. Encourage them to sing as well or write lyrics or both.
If they show signs of musical creativity in this area, then consider having a few lessons or summer lessons with someone specializing in pop music to give them some direction.
Tony– If we’re going along with the assumption that your child/student wants to learn popular music, the value of teaching this style is that you significantly reduce the chance that they’ll turn into adults who tell people they used to play the piano.
Every teacher I’ve ever met says their goal is to create lifelong musicians. That’s great, but often the process interferes with the result, and it doesn’t really matter how good an eleven-year-old is if they want to quit when they are thirteen.
I’m not going to pretend like I run a perfect studio. 60% of my students practice less than I’d like. However, nearly all of my students stay until they graduate high school, and by that time, they know how to learn, they know how to work, and (achievement unlocked) they all have the ability to keep music in their life forever (and they do).
I have to believe that a lot of the reason my students stay is that I’m always checking in to be sure that the work we are doing together is connected to their value structure.
Everything stems from interest.
Stephen and Tony share resources for piano parents
Pop Piano Book by Mark Harrison
Chord Play & Pattern Play by Forrest Kinney
Bradley Sowash text & videos on using chords
Stephen’s Studio Facebook page
Also, Learn all your chords in all inversions and positions possible.
Watch Stephen and Tony's students in action
Connect with Stephen and Tony
Stephen’s Online Studio Facebook Page
Visit Stephen’s website, Online Piano Lessons for online piano lessons and music technology training. Coming soon: Video library Subscriptions and Video Podcasts
Check out Stephen’s Video Tutorial teaching how to play “Hey Jude” by the Beatles
Visit Tony’s studio website, Parlapiano Studio
Check out Tony’s Popmatics Primary Chord Scale tutorial
Remember the group Stephen mentioned on the show that sounds like Led Zeppelin but he couldn’t recall the name? He revealed the answer at the end of the episode; the band is Greta Van Fleet – a sure-fire way for parents and teens to connect across the generations!
Thanks for listening!
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