Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum NEED YOUR INPUT PLEASE

Good Morning (or afternoon, evening, next day depending on where you are)...

I need your input please...

I am working on a newsletter to go out soon.

I'd like to keep it fairly light and of course piano/music focused.

However there is no ignoring the elephant in the room known as Covid - 19 or the Coronavirus.
It's a scary time for sure, but those of us lucky enough to have music in our lives (and each other through our common interest)
at least have an outlet, and something we can share with others even if it isn't in person.

What I'm looking for is some positive ideas in a decidedly negative situation.

I'm thinking things like ...

~ Hosting and/or joining Facetime piano parties
~ Posting you playing your piano (or other instruments) on YouTube and sharing with us here
~ Neighborhood block parties where everyone stays in their own yard (or corner of the street) but still communicate with each other
~ Sharing your music here on the Piano Forums
~ Personally I've been doing more composing because I'm spending more time inside, and on days when it's warm enough (I'm in Maine) I open my windows to share my music with my neighbors. I will share my music with you via the newsletter.

So if you have some suggestions/ideas please shoot me a quick email frank@pianoworld.com or reply to this post, but do it quickly as I'd like
to get the newsletter out soon.

Stay safe, be careful, and take care.


All the Best,
Frank Baxter (aka Mr. PianoWorld)

I like the facebook / FaceTime idea. Maybe we could utilize the newer Zoom platform / app which allows multiple people to be on line together. I think it would be cool to actually talk to and see many of the people I've "met" here on Pianoworld. I've formed impressions of people from their posts here. I think it would be cool to actually meet them face to face. Those who choose to could show their pianos and maybe play a little bit too.

one idea I have been mulling over is to start a ''lets learn to play this'' sort of group. Specifically I was thinking of beginners because they all want to learn some of the well know classics but often need more guidance, but there could be intermediate and advanced groups just the same. It would need a teacher of course, willing to conduct/coordinate the sessions but if it were live it would be different to the youtube tutorials, and a lot more fun.

I really like the idea of a "let's play this" as mentioned above--perhaps it could include things of various difficulties? For example we could have a beginner's piece, intermediate, an etude, a czerny study and a jazz standard, and people could choose which they want to learn. And then we all post them around the same time and enjoy the variety that comes out?

I've also seen this thing going around on facebook where musicians are all "swapping subscriptions," with the idea that we will all get closer to the 1000-subs mark where youtube starts paying. I am new to this forum so I don't know whether that kind of thing would be deemed appropriate or welcome here, but perhaps some people would like that since many of our income streams have dried up these days.

On that note, (and perhaps I just haven't seen this yet, being a very new member here) what about having a list of those of us who are teaching online?

Again, I am a very new member so I apologize if any of what I've said is uninformed. Very pleased to be part of this forum!

Chrismaninoff, welcome to the forum.

We have just what you described in the Recital thread on the Adult Beginners' Forum. The only difference is that a single category is selected at a time, which stays open for a few months as people submit their offerings. Then it moves on to a different topic.

It's a very friendly place--- fast service, no waiting, and mean reviews are not allowed. The process is highly automated, to avoid burning out the moderators, but it's quite easy to navigate, and if you get in trouble there is a human intelligence very close.

There is also something that goes on with composers, I believe it's on "Piano, Non-Classical."

And, there is a "Teachers" forum. You've probably explored enough by now to find all this.

About advertising. If you are in the business, you're expected to identify yourself as such in the tag line that is printed across the bottom of every post. I believe this is accessed on the Profile screen. So, this is a kind of advertising. But, if you are actually advertising to sell something, the management will expect you to purchase an ad.

And BTW, I thought you had a very pleasant online 'voice.'

Happy surfing to you!

piano teachers can advertise for free
http://forum.pianoworld.com/ubbthre...free-ads-on-piano-world.html#Post2798763

There are several types of recitals in the ABF: every quarter, play anything, and also themed recitals. You do not need to be a beginner to play in them! In fact there are teachers that regularly sign up to participate
http://forum.pianoworld.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/2343291.html

No to sound self-serving but.....

Piano dealerships are especially hard hit. Most are small mom and pop operations with little in the way of financial cushion. We are eligible for Federal assistance but it is meager and hard to come by.

Most dealers have reduced their prices to the bare bones, just trying to survive. They are operating by appointment, doing Facetime, Skype and/or Zoom.

If you were thinking about buying a piano, or know someone who is sitting on the fence, now would be a good time do it.

Steve and Frank and everyone - maybe we could put both your ideas together. Let some Mom and Pop piano shops along with the current members who are dealers showcase some of their pianos on PianoWorld via FaceTime and Zoom. And of course Frank Baxter’s music store.

I use Zoom for my weekly Sax lessons. It is essential that Zoom sound processing is disabled as otherwise its automatic gain control and compression will kick in on too loud or too quiet sound. My tutor and I have had to resort to using headphones and he has a head mic.

Although I have never tried my piano with Zoom I am doubtful that it would be successful but am willing to be otherwise convinced. If the pianos are being miked how then is speech going to be miked? The host is going to have to mute everyone except the person playing. The person playing cannot have a speaker as quality mics will contribute to audio howling feedback. Duets are not possible due to timing delay.
Ian

I have had a number of Zoom "meetings". I use a Bluetooth loudspeaker with my laptop. I do not know why, but I never get a feedback problem.