accelerando
musical term for “gradually getting faster”
So what exactly is ‘Accelerando Piano’?
My goal is to make learning the piano a fun and enjoyable experience so you not only develop a life-long love of music, but also a comprehensive skill set to call upon as you navigate your musical journey. But there are only so many students I can teach in a week. Knowing that there are many, many other learners and enthusiasts who are accessing YouTube and the internet as their primary source of information and guidance, I decided to create ‘Accelerando Piano’ to help.
This site is a supplement to other learning sources, either in-person lessons or via online courses and videos. It's not designed to systematically teach you in the same way I would teach a student attending regular, weekly lessons. Rather it’s designed to target specific issues and topics which you can use as a reference.
Each video focuses on a particular aspect of playing, ranging from establishing the fundamentals of note reading, to introducing basic theory concepts and exploring more advanced elements of technique.
In my 30+ years of teaching piano students, I’ve seen the many and varied challenges they encounter, and have developed strategies and techniques to help them overcome those obstacles. These videos contain some of the insights and guidance I’ve shared with them, and now will be sharing with you.
Jane Trotter
I attended Otago University in Dunedin and graduated with a BA in English, a Bachelor of Music (majoring in Piano Performance) and a Post Graduate Diploma with Distinction in Music.
In 1991 I gained my LTCL Performer’s Diploma and a few years later in 1996, one of the highlights of my musical career came about. At the time, the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music were running Centenary Travel Grant Scholarships, allowing teachers to further their musical studies in London.
Under this Scholarship I attended the Royal College of Music and gained my LRSM Teaching Diploma. It was a fantastic and inspirational experience, exposing me to a huge array of teaching methodologies and pedagogical practices; strategies which I still employ and expand upon to this day.
My foray into composition....
One of the direct outcomes of my Scholarship to London was my growing interest in composition. Having come back from overseas brimming with ideas and having taught both young children and adults for many years, I was becoming increasingly frustrated with the quality of music available which would address students’ technical and musical needs in equal measure. So, I decided to compose a series of educational piano scores myself. In 2002 my first book “Garden Party” was published by Willis Music, one of America’s leading music education specialists.
This was followed a year later by “Garden Playtime” and in 2005 “Fantasy & Fairy Tale”, aimed at more advanced students, was published. My books are now published and distributed by Hal Leonard, the world’s largest music print publisher, and my most recent publications, “Freestyle” and “More Freestyle” embrace a range of diverse styles and cater for the intermediate level pianist.
”
Learning how to play piano was always on the top of my bucket list. However, I hesitated to learn from a teacher because English is not my first language.
After teaching myself piano for the first two years, my progress hit a dead-end. So finally I decided to take lessons and found Jane online and she was very knowledgeable, friendly, and patient. Her advice is very helpful and consistently accelerates my learning.
It has been less than one year with Jane, but I have progressed more than I have done in two years. Thank you Jane!