"Piano teaching doesn't need to be lonely", says Nadia Lasserson BMus, GRSM, ARCM, ARAM, this year's music adjudicator for the Sri Lanka Festival for the Performing Arts, organised by the Institute of Music Speech and Speaking Skills (Pvt) Ltd, Colombo 3 and affiliated to the British & International Federation of Festivals UK.

Nadia Lasserson

Nadia, who has 21 years experience as an examiner for the Associated Board of Royal School of Music (ABRSM), London, shared her expert advice on teaching piano in an interview held on Tuesday- just five days before the All Island Final of the 2010 Music Festival.

As she points out, piano teaching in Sri Lanka is a lonely act as music teachers are not given any support by any organization in the country: as such teachers feel as if they are on their own with no one to seek guidance from.

Nadia who travelled throughout Sri Lanka judging performers and speaking to teachers in Negombo, Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, Kurunegala, Galle, Matara, Gampaha and in Colombo where the Festival is held, has come to the conclusion that with some expert guidance, these performers could do much better as they have inborn talent.

She points out that if the teachers are enthusiastic about what they do, it is generated to the students automatically and if the teachers feel as if they are on their own, battling against all sorts of problems, be it lack of music, problems about technique, or even not knowing much about new and upcoming piano music composers whose music appear in ABRSM and TCL examination books, it is disheartening for the teachers and students alike.

Therefore, it is best to have a support network for the teachers where they can seek guidance from an expert in the field. She says "piano teaching and learning should be a fun activity…." If the teachers form an association or a forum where regular master classes, seminars and workshops can be conducted by local and visiting foreign experts in the music field, the young generation of music teachers could get much guidance, stimulation and support from this.

As a stepping stone, she points out that teachers could become members of the European Piano Teachers Association (EPTA) which offers a myriad of support to piano teachers. EPTA is an organisation that was founded by Nadia's mother Carola Grindea, Piano Professor at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, in 1978, to support all piano teachers and piano lovers who feel alienated in their profession. EPTA has now spread to over 42 countries and it offers piano teachers as well as piano students, guidance alike.

The members are entitled to a 3 issues a year of EPTA UK's magazine called Piano Professional which includes articles on all aspects of piano playing and teaching, as well as reviews and original compositions. Also, the members get a Members' Handbook where they can look up a piano music teacher in Europe and anyone who is seeking master classes with a professional would find this handbook invaluable. Moreover, EPTA gives information regarding scholarships or funds for deserving students.

Nadia invites all piano enthusiasts to meet her in person at the Festival Finals , to be conducted on Saturday at the Bible House Auditorium and on Sunday at the Sri Lankan Tourist Board Auditorium to get further information on EPTA.

Nadia, who hails from a musical background, where her mother was a music professor and her father was a music critic and the editor of Adam International Review UK, has authored several books on piano playing as well as teaching: Piano Needn't be Lonely, Piano Technique Doctor- How to Play the Piano Better are some of her books.

What she mostly emphasizes is ensemble playing. In her works she recognizes the need for a source of graded chamber music repertoire and after researching the literature she offers an assortment of effective compositions for diverse instrumental combinations and for multiple pianos that work for students representing a wide range of abilities.

Nadia practices what she preaches. As the founding member of 'Piano 40', and ensemble for 8 hands and 2 pianos she points out that sometimes piano playing at exams is not as enjoyable as playing in ensemble.

It is true that in ensemble playing one becomes an avid listener as well as a performer. So she highlights that piano duets, trios or even music intended for 8 hands have more potential to offer 'fun' as the players are not under a spotlight and they hone group work skills as they become interdependent.
She says this is where the Festival comes in handy because the Festival offers a number of categories of piano ensemble with various combinations.

She believes that ensemble playing is also the closest that one could get to performing concerti with an orchestra. That is why she is a passionate teacher of ensemble playing at Trinity College as well as Royal School of Music.

She also points out that all graded examination candidates could try out their pieces at the Festival where they are offered constructive criticism, guidance and stimulation by the adjudicator to ensure a better performance at the exam.

The Sri Lanka Festival for the Performing Arts of which the British High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Dr. Peter Hill is the Patron, is conducted annually in the months of May, June and August. The Festival offers the opportunity for young and talented performers in Music, Speech & Drama throughout the island to perform in public and be judged by an international adjudicator for an affordable fee.

The Festival is organized by the Institute of Music Speech & Speaking Skills (Pvt) Ltd.