Kevin Mulligan’s studio

Dion

Dion is working on Love Story, Over the Rainbow, and Moon River. For all three pieces,
he is encouraged to play much more slowly than he thinks – not only for appropriateness
to the songs themselves, but also to help successful music reading and note identification.

Balance is an overarching theme in all pieces. Please watch for twisting elbows and
wrists, as Dion is working on focusing his energy to his fingertips and allowing them to
do the work instead of leading with his elbows and wrists.

Moon River is polished, and his main focus is the middle section of Love Story. We are
practising reading chord progressions (some notes are omitted – please observe) slowly
and in tempo with good fingering, hands separately first. There is also pedal work to go
over in the beginning and end of the piece.

Christian

Christian is polishing up Hallelujah and working on a new piece. Please review any
assigned work if need be and continue on assigning more as you see him fit to learn. He
is working on identifying and playing certain idiomatic rhythms properly. Please write in
counting or clap rhythms with him.

Feel free to review note reading/identification before playing through a new section or
piece.

Elke

Elke is a theory student; however, due to things coming up, she may not have some of it
done. This is totally fine, as she is very willing to move on in the theory book or learn
new concepts; she is also interested in reading chord charts/tabs/symbols and playing
through progressions with good voice leading in both a solo and accompaniment way.

She is also working on creating her own songs. If you are comfortable, you may help her
with listening to pieces she has chosen and studying the rhythms, progressions, and
instrumentation. She is also practising music notation and may have some notation sheets
to try writing on.
Samaneh (Sam)

Sam is a beginner adult student. She has made good progress with note reading and
identification, and we are working on her rhythm and keeping a steady tempo and beat.
She has some written exercises that can be checked over if they are completed. Feel free
to review note reading and note positions on the staff, and please pull songs apart hands
separately first. If her current piece sounds more polished, you can choose a new one
together out of the song book.

Please monitor proper finger and hand positions as we are working on developing and
strengthening good postural habits. She is also encouraged to play through with no
stopping, as she can self doubt at times.

Thank you! Stickers can be found in the pile of papers on the desk. Please record all
lesson progress in students’ notebooks for me to follow up with. If a student forgets a
notebook, please use a blank piece of paper from the front desk.