Bio
Elliot is a Louisville native who incorporates many styles into his music and curriculum, including classical piano, Appalachian folk, jazz, rock, pop, electronica, film and game soundtracks, and avant-garde. He has performed internationally with the UofL Cardinal Singers in Korea, China, Taiwan, and Italy, studied with acclaimed pianists and orchestral conductors, and performed his own minimalist compositions and experimental improvisations for piano.
His curriculum incorporates interdisciplinary learning, paying attention to language, history, technique, and culture. Students who wish to compose and arrange will learn music theory and music history. Students who form ensembles will practice social skills for organizing with peers and administrative skills to create performance opportunities. Students are encouraged to engage across disciplines to broaden their horizons and take in new ideas.
Whether a student has a passion for playing sports, playing outdoors, or playing an instrument, good technique will be a necessary foundation for lifelong health. Some of his hobbies outside of music which contribute to a rich social and musical life are yoga, folk dancing, hiking, board games, calligraphy, reading, theatre, and travel.
Elliot believes people of every identity should be welcomed in the arts, and that every community becomes more resilient for knowing and celebrating its artists.
Potential Residency Project
Learning Music by Heart
Keyboard methods to practice well and play confidently
What does it mean to learn music by heart?
Learning music and memorizing music are distinct from learning music by heart. In this curriculum, students will learn music with solid foundations, breaking down phrases note by note and putting them back together to tell a musical story. Learning music by heart requires intentionality towards every aspect music, starting with a few simple foundations: A musician must know the notes, must know the phrase, and must breath well!
This curriculum is suitable for complete beginners as well as students considering a career in music. It teaches the foundations of breath and movement as it relates to musicality and general wellness, and rewards students who study rigorously with musical independence.
Weekly curriculum modules
Module I
- Practicing to relax; with breath, and simple warm-up stretches.
- Making a quality sound at the keyboard using the natural weight of your body.
- Follow-through motion: the foundation for a quality sound and good phrasing.
- Articulation: Making a staccato and legato sounds
Module II
- Practicing playfully: Making a new sounds without reading from a score
- Scales & Arpeggios: grouping and introduction to music theory
- Improvisation games and polyrhythms
- Balance: Practicing finger-independence in chords and melodies
Module III
- Grouping - supplements playing with no tension in wrists/thumbs; making an even tone
- Ghost-playing - supplements ear training and thoughtful memorization, not muscle memory
- Emphasizing - Playing tricky passages slowly and forte. With consistency and control a pianist to play fast, difficult passages effortlessly at any dynamic.
Suggested Materials
Beginners:
- Technique books: Faber, Bastien, Bartók Mikrokosmos
Intermediate to Advanced:
- Classical Piano repertoire: Bach, Czerny, Mozart, Chopin, Schubert, Beethoven
Accompanist and contemporary genres:
- Art song, jazz standards, pop songs, show tunes, film score orchestral reductions
Why should a student dedicate so much time to self-disciplined practice
Practicing well leads to performing well. Students will identify their own passions in the process of music making. Whether someone is loud and charismatic, or soft and enigmatic, they can practice and perform with confidence. Everything we do in life beyond art becomes a richer experience if we always act convidently!
Confident musicians can make the impossible happen. Musicians who are confused, practice poorly, and waste their time will not manage to inspire anyone. Practice is not always easy, and it is not always fun. But practice can always be meaningful and rewarding if students are willing to love music, other people, and to love themselves for the effort they put in. If time is spent making something special, the process ought to be meaningful. If the process is glum, then the art will be boring!
How can I learn music by heart?
The Confidence Practice Techniques are a toolbox of practice patterns and musical games which facilitate learning and develop intentionality in decision-making. Stale, repetitive practice — called woodshedding or hacking through it — gets in the way of learning by heart.
Students of all skill levels will use three primary Confidence Practice Techniques; Grouping, Ghost-playing, and Emphasizing. The Confidence Practice Techniques should be used at greatly reduced tempos, often as slowly as is needed to play well! They are not meant to sound like good performance-ready sounds; rather they are for exploring the range of sounds we can make, and to practice identifying a good sound so that it may be intentionally recreated.
- Grouping is a way of practicing many scalar and arpeggiated passages, designing suitable fingering patterns, and ensuring practice is relaxed. Students will play scales and arpeggios in different groups, (2-, 3-, 4-, 5-, and 6-note patterns are all common) to explore evenness of tone and playing without tension.
- Ghost-playing, or pretending, is a way of placing the fingers over the correct keys in one hand, as if pretending to play them in-time while the other hand plays notes aloud. This develops the inner ear, helping students to learn the notes by heart. This is often a good direction to steer practice after students learn a passage hands separately.
- Emphasizing in practice lets students explore the extremes of sound and of individual finger strength. Holding the hand on the keys, then lifting and holding one finger to its maximum comfortable height, students will play a note as forte as possible — or as piano as possible. This develops individual fingers, building a connection with the weight and strength in our hands, arms, and spine. Playing soft and quick passages well often benefits from contrasting practice, such as using loud and slow sounds. Playing from above is a similar emphasis technique which uses the full weight and strength of the arm and fingers, and always calls for follow through motion.
The ultimate goal of the Confidence Practice Techniques is to teach musical independence, and to cultivate intentionality in decision making. With simple, repeatable procedures for breaking down phrases, and the creative challenge to develop new practice strategies, students will be able to apply their skills to any topic in music or to other instruments beyond the keyboard.
How can students & teachers prepare for this residency?
Preparation to learn new methodology can be supplemented by creative movement and mindful breathing practices. Activities such as walking, sports, or playing in nature can improve daily health which will empower practice time. Creating stillness through stretching, yoga, or simply laying down in a quiet space can teach transitions between activities and thought regulation.
Social skills are essential for music, so outdoor recreation or indoor activities such as board games augment the benefits of physical health, memory retention, and creativity. Students who do not play sports are encouraged to play with manipulatives, games of dexterity such as puzzles, building blocks, or creative single-player action and strategy video games.
Creating planned time away from screens and devices is another way to benefit focus and healthy decision making. It's essential for everyone, artist or otherwise to become periodically bored, and to let thoughts wander. Cultivating stillness alongside activity by using planned time away from screens is one way to invest in a positive musical practice routine.
How is a culture of inclusivity and diversity incorporated in lessons?
Everyone in the world has a unique experience and a special perspective in the world, and deserves to be known and celebrated for their individuality. These practice methods never set hard limits on how to engage in learning. If a student cannot, or decides not to read music, plenty of other avenues to learn will remain. People with atypical bodies may have widely differing ranges of motion from what their teachers or peers experience. But as long as good breathing, playing relaxed, and follow through motion are used at the keyboard, then we can all learn together to cultivate good movement technique for any shape of body.
How are students assessed, and how can these methods continue in the classroom?
During lessons, the instructor will offer individual feedback identifying which practice techniques are a good fit for musical passages, and which techniques students use to good effect.
For weekly practice outside of lessons, students will learn how to use musical journaling to describe what steps they took during time and to develop self-accountability. Listing actionable goals as well as setting intentions for effective practice is integral to each artist's growth.
Additionally, students may give written responses or have dialogue with the instructor regarding the following questions about making sound:
- What Groupings and fingering patterns did use to practice scales and arpeggios?
- What does it feel like to listen to your inner ear when practicing with Ghost-playing?
- How did it feel in my hands and arms to make loud and soft Emphasized sounds?
- 4. What are some sounds and articulations in my toolbox that are fun to play and hear?
For improvisation lessons, students will play twelve-bar blues changes as an ensemble, taking turns with direct imitation and improvisation. The teacher (I or another music instructor) can demonstrate riffs with varying articulations and attitudes to keep fresh ideas flowing for the classroom.
Essential questions for students:
Q: How do we make an inspired, and creative musical sound?
Q: If practicing helps to improve at music, how can I improve at practicing?
Q: How does music change over time, with new instruments, songs, and dances?
Q: How does music fit with other art, like dance, theater, film, games, and poetry?