Oclef Blog

June 25, 2024

“Dare to How”: Embracing Discomfort is the Key to Growth and Innovation

At Oclef, we believe that the path to excellence is paved with challenges. Our faculty members don't just teach music; they embody a philosophy of continuous growth and innovation that sets the tone for our entire organization. This approach isn't about being comfortable – it's about thriving in discomfort and using it as a catalyst for extraordinary achievement.

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July 04, 2018

A Study in Impatience

“Rome wasn’t built in a day.” You could build a miniature replica of Rome in a day, but it wouldn’t be as glorious as the real thing. “Good things come to those who wait.” Then again, you have been waiting for your concert tickets for over an hour so you could leave and enjoy something else in the meantime. But, now you would be missing out on what would have been an awesome night. “Patience is a virtue.” Impatience is a vice.

October 18, 2016

Practice is tough

Practice is tough. I know. I’ve practiced over 30,000 hours since I started. Getting to the point where you feel more fluent with music than your own native language is a sign that you’ve found your calling. But when I hear from parents that, “it’s tough for my child to focus.” or “did you’re mom ever have to ask you to practice?” I can’t help but smile. My answer: Practice is tough for everyone. Even for a child who grew up to be a concert pianist. That’s why we do it. It’s a journey that we...

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September 24, 2016

The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree

I recently ran an audition for students looking to join our studio. It reminded me of my last audition – the day I was accepted into the Royal College of Music in London. But this time I was the one doing the decision making. It’s really tough. You see the students come in and they’re all dressed well and nervous. But it’s the one’s who do the right things: look you in the eye and say hello, place the music on the table, and even say thank you when they’re done; those are ones I’m likely to s...

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September 18, 2016

Avoiding errors vs. achieving excellence (Part II)

A teacher of mine from a long time ago once told me that mistakes in performance are like if someone walks in front of the TV while you’re watching a show. This always stuck in my mind. The person walking in front of the screen temporarily messes up the line of communication that you have with the TV, but it doesn’t effect your understanding and appreciation of the story, characters and setting. You still enjoy the show and by the end, you probably won’t even remember the person who walked by...

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September 15, 2016

Tough love

Every so often I need to reach for the tissue box in lessons. Tears happen. Does it mean we’re too tough as teachers? It depends. I often push students as hard as I think they can go. The result is a deeper student to teacher connection in the long term, but a frustrated student in the short term. I push them because they can do it. Because I believe it’s the right thing to do. It’s tough being a student. I know. I was there and went through every lesson, recital, competition, audition, tours...

September 12, 2016

Avoiding errors vs. achieving excellence – Part I

One of my first blogs on Oclef was a message that I sent to my students before a competition. You can read it here – The Perfection of Pursuit What I work to make clear to my students in every opportunity is that mistakes and errors are not the problem. The problem is almost always maintaining the correct focus or mindset. Do your students fear making mistakes? Or are they more focused on creating excellence in their music? Perspective is everything. I think this is the one big differences be...

September 06, 2016

The piano teacher’s word cloud

I love my job teaching kids. But I often have a feeling like I’m a broken record. The other day, one of my students came to the lesson very prepared and when I asked him what happened, he looked at me and said “I just did what you said to do.” (facepalm) So I decided yesterday to compile all the words that I say most often about practice. It was a fun exercise for myself and I wonder how my words overlap with yours. 🙂 “Practice in sections repeatedly. Hands separate and together. Each time th...

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