@pianoloverus the question of who chooses the piece is something Iāve a lot about about over the years.
pianoloverus I think a better approach would be to ask the teacher for several choices for a new piece and then select among them.
Interestingly enough, the way Iāve done it for probably most of my time playing, across many, many teachers, is the reverse of this. I bring in several choices for a new piece and have the teacher help me choose which to work on. More recently, I rarely even consult, but bring in the next piece I want to work on. From the outside, people might think this isnāt appropriate (or perhaps pedagogically sound), but Iāve never had a teacher who was uncomfortable with it. Of course, thatās probably partly because Iāve made sure the teachers I work with are a good fit for me. But also I think itās because I have clear musical goals, the pieces I choose fit the goals, and I practice every day and make progress. Another detail is that I generally work with classically trained teachers, and they almost never know the composers I bring in, and most of them tell me how much they enjoy learning about the music Iām working on.
Now, having said all that! š I expect that this university class will be different. First of all, itās part of a university program that I believe has a few set requirements, so I will obviously adhere to those rules. Secondly, weāll be required to work on pieces from different genres, something I havenāt really done before (not regularly anyway). Thirdly, thereās the jury at the end of the semester, so whatever the rules for that are will also have to be followed. So I am assuming that I will be taking a lot of direction from the teacher in terms of which pieces I play.
pianoloverus For example, if you want to improve polyrhythms, there are probably dozens of possible pieces at your level and some of those might be more appropriate then the few choices that have been mentioned so far
Most definitely. So this is something Iām looking forward to, learning about pieces I donāt know. And if the teacher says ānope, donāt work on polyrhythms, work on X instead,ā I doubt I will be resistant to that (although it depends on what X is.) But separate from the actual pieces, I will be really surprised if a teacher looks at my goal set and says theyāre not appropriate for me for where Iām at. If they do, Iāll be sure to report back!
pianoloverus I don't know how teachers typically work with adult students
This is an interesting question, and based on discussions here and at PW, I donāt think all teachers of adults work the way I have experienced. There are pros and cons, but I imagine that the teachers Iāve had have been ok with my system (i.e. I choose the pieces) because it works. I practice daily, set and achieve musical goals, and work on a significant number of pieces, polishing most of them as I go. Iām not going to become a teacher myself, so it really doesnāt matter if my playing is limited to primarily contemporary pieces.
But obviously Iām looking for something to push me further, so Iām trying this uni program. Weāll see how it goes, and whether I change to a completely new model or not.
