PPP129: "Lord of the Chords" Game Developer, Jonathan Ng

In recent episodes, I've alluded to the idea of keeping a video or audio journal of your piano kid's musical progress. This is a way for them to see their growth as a musician. In today's show, we will talk in more detail about the advantage of keep a video journal as well as the practical details like equipment and storage.

The primary reason to video your child is for them to learn from the experience. When we are playing or reading music, our minds are so focused on that activity that we can stop listening to the music we're making.

Having a separate recording gives students a chance to hear themselves as the audience or judge will hear them.

In their imagination, they may have had a bigger contrast in dynamics or tempo or other musical elements but the reality of the recording tells them how accurate they really were.

Sometimes, in their imagination, students think the whole performance was flawed. They focus on mistakes or missteps they made while playing and think the entire performance was terrible. Listening to the recording from a more objective perspective allows them to realize they performed very well, in spite of a stumble or two.

Like all things, there is more value in keeping a video journal if you are consistent with your recording schedule.

Set a reminder on your phone to make a recording every month of whatever music your piano kid is currently playing. You will come to treasure these videos as they show your child growing physically as they also become more skilled with their music.

When preparing for a piano event, record their piece early so they can listen and critique their own playing. Record again in a week or two to let them see the progress they've made in a short time and notice more fine tuning that can be done.

As the date of the event gets closer, make a recording of a mock audition or recital performance. When your piano kid knows they are being recorded, they feel similar emotions to the "real thing". They might experience a surge of adrenaline, sweaty palms, racing heartbeat.

Put under this stress, their brain could become distracted and make careless mistakes in the music. It's better to do this in practice and learn how to deal with those jitters now than to experience them for the first time during the event.

Really, there is no need for fancy equipment. Use what works and what is handy. Most of us have better quality cameras on our phones than whatever video cameras we used to video my wedding 30 years ago!

There is also no need for editing, though, with your child’s consent, you might work on a video project to post socially. Apple's iMovie and Windows Movie Maker are fairly intuitive (especially for our kids these days) and there are plenty of tutorials on YouTube to help you learn how to edit and create nice looking videos with titles and closing credits, etc.

As for storage, don’t just leave videos and audio clips on your phone. How many times has your phone died and you couldn’t recover the data? There are tons of journal apps to use but they could have the same potential problem.

My top choices for longer-term storage are:

• YouTube private channel
• iCloud storage - OneDrive, Dropbox
• Old school DVD or flash drive or external hard drive.

I love to receive videos from my piano parents during the week. The video may be of an accomplishment made during practice that week or my student may have a question about part of their assignment.

I'd much rather my students ask questions during the week than go a full week either not practicing or practicing the wrong way.

When I receive videos of students playing at church or school or a family event, I get to share in the joy and success the student has made.

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