Madeleine Crouch has been in love with the piano since a piano teacher moved next door when she was eight years old. Music continues to be a part of her professional life. She has taught piano, worked as a music retailer, and is now an administrator for the National Piano Foundation. She also operates her own company, Word's Worth Communicatio...

When it comes to movie sequels, I'm generally opposed. A great movie should be the final word on the subject. Who really needed Gone With the Wind: Scarlet and Rhett Together Again anyway?  But when it comes to sequels for KEYBOARD COMPANION departments, that's another story! We could endlessly revisit many of the topics explored in this magaz...

My piano tuner is also a flutist in a major symphony orchestra. During one of his first service calls to my home, I realized that the man sitting at my piano, casually dressed and listening intently, was wearing white tie and tails on stage the week before. I asked him which came first, the chicken or the egg-was he a player who tuned or a tun...

Did someone ever ask you, "How do you know that's true? Did you read it somewhere ... what proof do you have?" And you answered without hesitation, "I don't know how, I just know it!"  Piano teachers just know that studying music, especially the piano, is good for kids. We believe that piano lessons will help our students in their school lesso...

Once in a while a student comes along that is head and shoulders (wrists and fingers?) above the rest of your studio. Let's call her "Karen Keys." Now Karen is a junior in high school, taking the PSAT exam, and listening to her home room teacher talk about applying to colleges and selecting a major. One day, Karen asks you, "What would it be like, ...

You hang up the phone, and can't believe that someone has just talked you into heading up the publicity committee for your local music teacher association's piano play-a-thon. "Oh, you're so clever and good with words," said your friend, flattering you into that can't-say-no state.  Now you've done it. There's no turning back gracefully, ...

Where Do You Teach and Why? Piano teachers are always looking for another angle. They have to! What works to motivate one of your students fails with another. The suggested fingering in a score may be awkward, so you try another one. This search for alternatives is also true when it comes to where we teach. Let's explore the possibilities. Now...

Sometimes the most remarkable things are those which we tend to take for granted. When was the 'last time you picked up the telephone and thought, ''I'm actually going to speak with someone thousands of miles away."  Now, ask your friends if they can name a common household item that is still in use after almost 300 years. Give them a clue - i...

Madeleine Crouch has been in love with the piano since a piano teacher moved next door when she was eight years old. Music continues to be a part of her professional life. She has taught piano, worked as a music retailer, and is now an administrator for the National Piano Foundation. She also operates her own company, Word's Worth Communications.&n...