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Contact Testimonials Advice Lessons Latest Home
Home  * About me  * My musicCOVID-19 LatestLatest NewsArticlesLessons  * Practical  * TheoryAdviceTestimonials  * Page 1  * Page 2ResourcesContactTerms of use
Contact Latest Home
Home  * About me  * My musicCOVID-19 LatestLatest NewsArticlesLessons  * Practical  * TheoryAdviceTestimonials  * Page 1  * Page 2ResourcesContactTerms of use
 

Latest news

A summary of what's been going on with music lessons, exams, and my website.

NewsOlderChanges



Dec 2025

The Today Page
If you don't already know about it, take a look at my Today page. There's a link to it on my Home page. The content changes every single day and covers all sorts of musical snippets (and the occasional non-musical one). Others have commented on how interesting they've found it, and some have said that they have learnt something new. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Exams & zoom!
Firstly, well done to all who have taken exams during this winter session. I hope you are pleased with your results!

For me, I have had a 'first' this time: a practical exam where I had taught my pupil almost exclusively online using zoom. I say almost because there were a couple of 'in person' lessons along the way but all the rest were carried out remotely. The result (a good one!) proved to me that it's not only possible but can be very effective and successful if approached with care and a bit of planning.

For one thing, communication has to be 'one way'. You cannot both talk, or play, at the same time. It simply doesn't work as the technology will mute one or other of you (the quietest one, I gather) and on top of this, time lags occur which, even thought only a fraction of a second, are significant. You have to adopt a 'one at a time' protocol and make sure you keep quiet until it's your turn. If your pupil plays something incorrectly, you cannot interject with a quick 'Ooo, F♯ there'. Save your comments until they finish. (You can butt in with an 'Ok, let's stop there and have a look at this', if you need to. As long as you are assertive (i.e. loud enough for zoom to not mute you), they will hear you and (hopefully) stop)

One example of the time-lag issue is that I cannot play an aural test piece and expect the pupil to clap along. He or she won't here what I play at the same time as I play it, and his or her claps will be delayed on their return to me. So how can I tell if it's being done correctly? Short answer, I can't.

With a little thought though, workarounds can be developed. If the aural test is played at their end, and they (obviously) clap at their end, they will be 'in time' and I will see and hear exactly what they are doing. It will be delayed but at least the music and the clapping will arrive together, at the same time. So, make sure they have all the materials, such as paper sheets and mp3 files available and it works a treat. Sight-reading too. Make sure they have a copy, either on paper or their screen, and it works. Make sure their camera is able to capture a good image of the keys and their hands, and you can check position, posture, fingering and everything else. It works.

So, like I say, with a little thought and adapting your methods, teaching online can work well and everything that is needed to be covered as you prepare for an exam can be achieved not only adequately, but completely effectively and successfully. I've proved it!

Caveat: My equipment and set up is good and works well. But the online approach is only as good as the weakest element in the chain. A poor connection, or a dodgy microphone, camera, or overloaded laptop at their end and results will not be as good. It might not work at all. Test it first!

May 2025

It's busy!
A busy time with new pupils, practical exam preparations and theory exams on the horizon too.

There have been many changes made by the examination boards and those will take some adjusting to. The Resources area of my website is currently being overhauled to make it better and easier to use but also to reflect the changes imposed on us by the boards. In the meantime, some pages have been temporarily removed as they were irrelevant anyway, but new pages will replace them as and when details and time become available.

A new feature of the website is the Today page. It shows a varied selection of snippets of information about music and, as its name might imply, it changes every day. Hopefully it will be interesting, useful, and sometimes amusing. It's like a box of chocolates: you never know what you're going to get. There's a button to access the new Today page on the Home page.

You might have noticed that the Latest page has finally been sorted out and, I hope, made a bit more logical and easy to navigate. It's now split into three areas: Latest news, older news, and a Change history.


ViewBack to the top of this page

Latest news

A summary of what's been going on with music lessons, exams, and my website.

NewsOlderChanges



Dec 2025

The Today Page
If you don't already know about it, take a look at my Today page. There's a link to it on my Home page. The content changes every single day and covers all sorts of musical snippets (and the occasional non-musical one). Others have commented on how interesting they've found it, and some have said that they have learnt something new. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

Exams & zoom!
Firstly, well done to all who have taken exams during this winter session. I hope you are pleased with your results!

For me, I have had a 'first' this time: a practical exam where I had taught my pupil almost exclusively online using zoom. I say almost because there were a couple of 'in person' lessons along the way but all the rest were carried out remotely. The result (a good one!) proved to me that it's not only possible but can be very effective and successful if approached with care and a bit of planning.

For one thing, communication has to be 'one way'. You cannot both talk, or play, at the same time. It simply doesn't work as the technology will mute one or other of you (the quietest one, I gather) and on top of this, time lags occur which, even thought only a fraction of a second, are significant. You have to adopt a 'one at a time' protocol and make sure you keep quiet until it's your turn. If your pupil plays something incorrectly, you cannot interject with a quick 'Ooo, F♯ there'. Save your comments until they finish. (You can butt in with an 'Ok, let's stop there and have a look at this', if you need to. As long as you are assertive (i.e. loud enough for zoom to not mute you), they will hear you and (hopefully) stop)

One example of the time-lag issue is that I cannot play an aural test piece and expect the pupil to clap along. He or she won't here what I play at the same time as I play it, and his or her claps will be delayed on their return to me. So how can I tell if it's being done correctly? Short answer, I can't.

With a little thought though, workarounds can be developed. If the aural test is played at their end, and they (obviously) clap at their end, they will be 'in time' and I will see and hear exactly what they are doing. It will be delayed but at least the music and the clapping will arrive together, at the same time. So, make sure they have all the materials, such as paper sheets and mp3 files available and it works a treat. Sight-reading too. Make sure they have a copy, either on paper or their screen, and it works. Make sure their camera is able to capture a good image of the keys and their hands, and you can check position, posture, fingering and everything else. It works.

So, like I say, with a little thought and adapting your methods, teaching online can work well and everything that is needed to be covered as you prepare for an exam can be achieved not only adequately, but completely effectively and successfully. I've proved it!

Caveat: My equipment and set up is good and works well. But the online approach is only as good as the weakest element in the chain. A poor connection, or a dodgy microphone, camera, or overloaded laptop at their end and results will not be as good. It might not work at all. Test it first!

May 2025

It's busy!
A busy time with new pupils, practical exam preparations and theory exams on the horizon too.

There have been many changes made by the examination boards and those will take some adjusting to. The Resources area of my website is currently being overhauled to make it better and easier to use but also to reflect the changes imposed on us by the boards. In the meantime, some pages have been temporarily removed as they were irrelevant anyway, but new pages will replace them as and when details and time become available.

A new feature of the website is the Today page. It shows a varied selection of snippets of information about music and, as its name might imply, it changes every day. Hopefully it will be interesting, useful, and sometimes amusing. It's like a box of chocolates: you never know what you're going to get. There's a button to access the new Today page on the Home page.

You might have noticed that the Latest page has finally been sorted out and, I hope, made a bit more logical and easy to navigate. It's now split into three areas: Latest news, older news, and a Change history.


ViewBack to the top of this page

E&OE.
Copyright © 2020-2026 Robin Padgham.

Terms of use

E&OE.
Copyright © 2020-2026 Robin Padgham.
Terms of use