Hey Crew!

A few important things to note this week:

Music Against Hunger is Saturday, December 11th 🙂 The sign up sheet for in-person times is available behind the counter at Skyline now. There are times open from 10-5, so make sure to sign up early to get one that works for you. If you plan to do a video, let me know and we will work out a day to record in studio!

Thank you for everyone’s understanding and flexibility with the new piano mishap this week! Monday and Tuesday students, you put up with a lot. Wednesday students, please thank Miss Jill profusely if you see her anytime soon, she was so kind to lend us her room for the day! As I type this, the piano tuner is in the store fixing the problem, so Monday should be set to go with a much better instrument 🙂

Make sure you take this opportunity to ensure your own instrument is kept up with good tuning (the tuner tells me not only did it sound awful because the notes were tuned differently, but the entire instrument was about 20 cents flat. This is normal for a piano that has come from the factory and been stored … but not acceptable to play on regularly 😉 ). If you need recommendations for tuners, we have several cards here at the store – please ask!

Weather Alert – It’s that time of year where I have to give the weather warning. I love talking to parents at the end of each lesson (so important for younger students!) to catch you up on what we’re doing and what needs extra attention that week. However, as weather gets colder and rain and snow begin, I can’t be putting on a coat to come outside each half hour. If you want to talk to me (and I hope you do 🙂 ), make sure to stop in the store the last 2-3 minutes of your child’s lesson in order to keep things streamlined. Thank you for your commitment to your child’s musical success!

Practice-A-Thon – Keep up the good work everyone, we are about halfway there! I have been thrilled to see your practice charts as you bring them in for me. Remember that each minute counts towards helping those in need this holiday season!

Christmas Break will begin December 20th. Lessons will resume January 3rd 🙂

November’s Monthly Listening –

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.

If you find that the Gray Havens aren’t your style of music, that is okay! Check out your favorite artists and do some digging to find if they have produced any concept albums you can dive into 🙂

See you in the studio,

McKenzie

Don’t forget to check out this month’s Family Music Challenge from last week!