Duane Shinn (that would be me) has good news for you if you want to play the piano. He (me) has little fat hands & stubby little fingers - not at all suited for playing the piano - more suited to making mud pies or some such. I am also fairly uncoordinated with just average musical ability - certainly not a great piano player. But I've learned a ton about music over the years and people tell me I'm pretty decent at explaining how music works & how to progress more rapidly on the piano. Over the years I have developed about 150 techniques for conquering the piano. Most professional pianists can do these techniques, but very few can explain them in a way people can understand. I specialize in making complex techniques simple. I invite you to watch a few of my free videos and see some of these for yourself before making any decision about taking any of my courses.
“I want to play music!” How many millions of people have either said or thought that? And why not? Music is the universal language that we all speak, and we all want to express ourselves and communicate our feelings to others. Music is the perfect vehicle for that.
Continue reading →Chopsticks was originally named the “Chop Waltz”. It is a simple song written by a 16-year old girl, and is probably the most popular song ever for the piano, since it can be played by people who don’t play the piano.
Continue reading →In music there is a type of note which is never counted — it falls between the beats, and you never count it like you would count an 8th note or a 16th note. When I was a kid I used to skip rocks on Lake Tahoe — you’re probably done it too. Grace notes are like that rock that bounces across the surface of the water. You don’t count it, but it sure adds a lot and its fun, too.
Continue reading →Today, jazz is still one of the most influential music forms in the world. Jazz music has asserted itself as a contemporary force in the music world, and the success of current jazz artists is a testament to that.
Continue reading →When Isaac Watts wrote “Joy To The World” based on a score by George Frederick Handel’s “The Messiah” he was writing about the 2nd coming of Christ — not the first advent as we almost all assume. Notice the words – particularly of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th verses
Continue reading →You can make an old Christmas Carol (or any song, for that matter) really come to life through the use of chord substitutions. Watch this short free video as I demonstrate how you can create an entirely new “feel” to an old carol such as “Silent Night”
Continue reading →There are many songs which can be played with just a few different notes, and Jingle Bells is one of them. A piano beginner can play it easily just with the 5 fingers of their right hand — 5 notes, 5 fingers. And since there are only 4 different chords in the song, it’s easy to put hands together for a two-handed arrangement.
Continue reading →A single note played is termed a unison. Two notes played together (or close together) is termed an interval. Three or more notes in combination is called a chord. Chords can have any number of notes in them, but the most basic type of chord is termed a triad.
Continue reading →Will learning to play the piano make you more intelligent? Could the brain grow larger than normal by learning to play a musical instrument such as a keyboard or piano? Questions such as these have been arising everywhere over the past few years and not only in science journals either. The interest of the general public in these studies involving music and the development of the brain has led to the publishing of many articles, to the delight of music-lovers everywhere.
Continue reading →When is a C not a C? It’s not a riddle or a trick question. It’s
a musical principle. The answer is: a C is not a C when you’re
playing a transposing musical instrument. And it’s not the
instrument that transposes, unfortunately — some arranger or
the player himself must do that.
