December 2021
November 2021
Any C.S. Lewis fans out there? Concept albums are always fun adventures … and this month I’m drawing your attention to one of my recent favorites from The Gray Havens! Blue Flower is based off of C.S. Lewis’s autobiography, Surprised by Joy. Each song on the album depicts an idea that shaped Lewis. In the book, Lewis describes his life through the series of ways he searched for Joy, until he found the ultimate source. If you’re interested in more, check out an interview with The Gray Haven’s Dave Radford here.
October 2021
September 2021
The latest from the Piano Guys 🙂
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
You know a song is popular when it’s recorded in the 1920s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s, 80s, and 90s! The composer originally wrote it about his daughter, and since then it has been used in 13 films and had 8 television appearances.
Check out how the song evolved over the decades, and decide which style you like best 🙂
1920s – Gene Austin
Frank Sinatra
The Beatles
April 2021
This month’s listening is short and sweet … Check out this amazing arrangement of Bach’s Goldberg Variation #5 (originally written for harpsichord).
Interested in the original?
March 2021
It’s Women’s History Month!
Interested in more?
Check out the history behind 21 more Women Composers here.
Or pick up this listening activity book here.
February 2021
1 – I had mentioned earlier this month that NPR’s Tiny Desk Series put out several videos from various black artists across many different genres. They are all up and very worth checking out!
https://www.npr.org/series/tiny-desk-concerts/
2 – Louis Armstrong … a favorite that I often share in lessons because a lot of lesson books have this tune.
3 – Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington … a true classic highlighting Ella’s AMAZING scat.
4 – Jon Batiste… music consultant for Disney’s SOUL. “Above all our problems is purpose.”
January 2021
Piano Possibilities 