ZOOM PIANO RECITAL THOUGHTS

by | Apr 26, 2021

I’m finally relaxing after my piano students’ Zoom recital!  This was the 3rd recital I’ve had on Zoom, and I think there are both  pros and cons.

14 of my students played today, ranging in age from 7-16. (My adult piano recital will be next week.) I started having them on Zoom because…

  1. where else could they all play during the pandemic? And
  2. they needed a performance goal.

I started having Zoom recitals about 9 months ago and today the sound quality was the best. I kept suggesting to the parents that they purchase a microphone, like a Snowball, to plug into their computer. It’s not perfect, but way, way, better than without it. They all got a mic of some sort and the sound was improved greatly!

SO HERE ARE SOME PROS:

  1. I love this one 🙂 Parents can send the link to the recitals to relatives and friends in other places. ….Grandparents who live in another part of the country, cousins who live in a different country.
  2. IT’S RECORDED! All I have to do is send the parents a link to the recording and they and their family can watch it a bazillion times and always have it.
  3. The kids are already nervous enough! What more comfortable place for beginning performances than in your own home? It’s also very inspiring for families to see some of my students who have “real” pianos in their homes, rather than digital pianos.
  4. The parents, who can and want to, get to play duets with their child! It is fantastic!
    (This photo is from today’s recital recording. By the way, I’m very proud of all my students’ hand positions! This student is 7 years old and has been taking lessons for almost a year. They are playing “The Crooked Hat” from the Green Duet Book by Diller and Quaile.)Piano Teacher and young student seated at the Piano
  5. It is easy to replay the recitals and see the progress that has been made. PROGRESS IS IMPORTANT TO RECOGNIZE!

 

CONS?

  1. Nothing can replicate sound quality like an in-person recital. That’s just the way it is.
  2. You can’t have a reception afterwards. (I want my fruit punch and cookies.)

 

Cartoon Cat playing piano

FUTURE STUDIO RECITAL PLANS
When the time comes for in-person recitals once again, I have a plan:  I’m going to set up my computer and ZOOM the recital to those friends and relatives that cannot be there to hear it. And then it will be recorded so I can send it to all my students.

UNTIL NEXT TIME…
Laura