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Overcoming the Fear of Failure
Vlog by Dr. Angela Chan

應該堅持讓所有學生參加音樂會嗎？成人學生和兒童一樣嗎？

老師“公开演奏還是不演奏？”就是那個問題。 [英文原文] 由陳寶瑤博士撰寫

作為音樂老師，我們毫無疑問希望我們的學生能夠充分發揮其作為音樂家的潛能-在某種意義上，他們不僅要成為有能力的表演者，而且還要精通其他音樂領域。不幸的是，在音樂教育過程中，最明顯的是進度是表現。在表演的第一樂章中，準備的質量就說明了一切。一場表演顯然價值超過一千個單詞。這是對基礎準備過程的完美啟示-投入的精力，奉獻水平和對實踐過程的關注。表現也是展示師生團隊合作精神的最切實的方法之一。

也許在將我們的學生“吸引”到音樂會平台之前，我們應該停頓片刻，重新考慮幾個問題：音樂老師的任務是什麼？是專為演員表演嗎？演唱會表演一定是每個學生的最佳選擇嗎？在當前的學習階段或當前的準備水平下，他們將從公共表演中獲得什麼好處？最後，潛在的權衡（如果有）是什麼？

我想我們當中許多想學習網球的人永遠不會成為領域的冠軍，我們也不希望參加溫網
比賽。出於同樣的原因，我了解到很多學生都在聽音樂課程主要用於充實目的。因此，我認為他們應該可以選擇是否要表演。

我本人曾作為音樂表演者接受過背景訓練，但我仍然堅決鼓勵我的學生表演。但是這個過程是自願的基礎。表演準備可以豐富學習者的音樂體驗-使學生了解所涉及的過程並體驗音樂會藝術家所遇到的情感的全部境界-從艱苦的練習到彩排中的失誤，再到在綠色房間使腹部的蝴蝶平靜下來，一直到對演唱會進行“事後分析”並處理負面批評。然而，表演只是人們學習如何面對挑戰所可能採取的眾多音樂途徑之一。作為一名音樂表演者，我本人經過背景培訓，但我仍然強烈鼓勵學生們表演。但是該過程是自願進行的。

表演準備可以豐富學習者的音樂體驗-使學生了解所涉及的過程並體驗音樂會藝術家所遇到的情感的全部境界-從艱苦的練習到彩排中的失誤，再到在綠色房間使腹部的蝴蝶平靜下來，一直到對演唱會進行“事後分析”並處理負面批評。然而，表演僅僅是人們學習如何面對挑戰，解決困難以及創造性地制定克服障礙的策略所可能採取的眾多音樂途徑之一。

我認識到，無論表演環境多麼非正式，並非所有學生都渴望追求甚至嘗試表演道路。這根本不是所有人都選擇的道路。就像，我相信我們當中沒有多少人會選擇在車庫里當汽車修理工一天，目的是體驗成為汽車專業人士的感覺（稀有的汽車愛好者除外）。這個過程可能是教育性的，豐富的-但最重要的是-您真的要追求嗎？這是最終的問題。

在這方面，對學生的表現抱有期望可能根本不現實。在許多情況下，對於必須兼顧職業，家庭和其他義務的休閒成年學習者，音樂課主要起到緩解壓力的作用，這也是可以理解的。作為我的成年學生之一，一位大學教授與我分享了“鋼琴是我的天堂。到樂器時，我感到完全放鬆並恢復了活力。它減輕了我日常工作的壓力。”在這種情況下，很明顯，施加不必要的要求（例如音樂會表演）可能有害。

作為音樂老師，我們還認識到一些學生顯然在心理上或技術上都不准備公開比賽。在這種情況下，我不是堅持要他們“咬緊牙關”並可能使他們失敗，而是可以嘗試將表演任務“轉化”為其他音樂項目，其中錄音是其中之一。

學生可以從錄音過程中學到很多東西。不同於實時表演，他們無需面對現場觀眾現場表演一站式表演。取而代之的是，為學生提供了多種“重塑”他們表演的機會。

在錄音棚裡，學生面臨著各種各樣的挑戰。他們獲得了表演麥克風的經驗，經歷了多次重試（經過幾次嘗試，他們可能很快發現演奏通常會變差），並且參與了錄音的編輯過程。作為新千年的發展中音樂家，使用Adobe Audition進行切片和拼接的學習應被視為與能夠可靠地在舞台上表演一樣重要。

最終，學習音樂的想法是擴大學習者的藝術領域經驗。我接受以下事實：並非所有學生注定要成為音樂會藝術家。我不會引導學習者進入他們不願冒險的方向，而是嘗試為每個學生的獨特需求量身定制合適的住宿。作為教學者的最終目標是幫助學生髮展藝術和音樂。為了充分發揮作用，這涉及到在向學生提供最大挑戰的同時又不給他們的學習經歷帶來過多負擔的情況下保持微妙的平衡。

[ORIGINAL TEXT IN ENGLISH]

Should a teacher insist on all students' participation in concerts? Is it the same for adult students as for children?

“To perform or not to perform?” That is the question.

Written by Dr. Angela Chan. Ph.D.

As music teachers, we unquestionably hope that our students can fully maximize their potential as musicians - in the sense that they not only become capable performers but are also well-versed in other areas of musicianship.
Unfortunately, in the music education process, what is most demonstrable in
terms of progress is the performance. Into the first musical phrase of a performance, the quality of preparation speaks for itself. A performance is evidently worth more than a thousand words. It is the consummate revelation of an underlying preparative process - of the efforts invested, level of dedication, and care put into the practice process. Performance is also one of the most tangible ways of showcasing the efforts of both teacher and student as a team.

Perhaps before “enticing” our students onto the concert platform, we should
pause for a moment and reconsider a few questions: What is the music teacher's mandate? Is it to groom performers exclusively? Is concert performance necessarily the best approach for every student? What are the benefits that they will derive from a public performance at their current stage of learning / or with their current level of preparation? And lastly, what are the potential trade-offs (if any)?

I would surmise that many of us who wish to learn tennis will never become
champions in the field, nor do we ever wish to participate in the Wimbledon
tournament. By the same token, I understand that many students take music
lessons primarily for enrichment purposes. Hence, I think that they should have the option to choose whether they wish to perform.

With background training as a musical performer myself, I still strongly
encourage my students to perform. But the process operates on a voluntary
basis. Performance preparation can enrich the learner’s palette of musical experiences - so that the student understands the processes involved and experiences the full realm of emotions encountered by concert artists - from painstaking practice to making blunders in rehearsals, to calming butterflies in the stomach at the green room, all the way to "post mortem" analyses of the concert and dealing with negative criticisms. Performance, however, is only one of the many musical paths one may undertake to learn how to face challenges, With background training as a musical performer myself, I still strongly encourage my students to perform. But the process operates on a voluntary basis.

Performance preparation can enrich the learner’s palette of musical experiences - so that the student understands the processes involved and experiences the full realm of emotions encountered by concert artists - from painstaking practice to making blunders in rehearsals, to calming butterflies in the stomach at the green room, all the way to "post mortem" analyses of the concert and dealing with negative criticisms. Performance, however, is only one of the many musical paths one may undertake to learn how to face challenges, resolve difficulties, and to creatively develop strategies to overcome obstacles.

I recognize that not all students have the desire to pursue or even to experiment with the performance path, no matter how informal the performance setting is. It is simply not the path that everyone opts for. Just like, I believe not many of us would choose to spend a day in a garage as an auto mechanic – with the goal of experiencing how it is like to be an automotive professional (with the exception of the rare auto enthusiast). The process may be educational, enriching - but the bottom line is - do you really want to pursue it? That is the ultimate question.

In this regard, it may be simply unrealistic to have expectations on our students to perform. In many cases, it is also understandable that for the casual adult learner who has to juggle with career, family, and other commitments, music lessons primarily serve as a stress reliever. As one of my adult students, a university professor, shared with me that “piano is a haven for me. I feel completely relaxed and revived when I get to the instrument. It alleviates me of the pressures of the daily grind.” In this instance, it is clear that imposing extraneous demands such as a concert performance may potentially be detrimental.

As music teachers, we also recognize that some students are evidently not ready either psychologically or technically to play publicly. In this instance, rather than insisting that they “bite the bullet” and potentially setting them up to fail, I may try to "transform" the task of performance into other musical projects - of which, making recordings is one.

Students can learn as much from the process of recording. Unlike a real-time
performance, they are not confronted with delivering a one-take performance on stage in the presence of a live audience. Instead, students are given multiple opportunities to “reshape” their performances.

In the recording studio, students are exposed to a different array of challenges. They acquire experience in performing for a consort of microphones, going through multiple retakes (which they may quickly discover that performance generally worsens after a couple of trials), as well as participating in the editing process of their recordings. As developing musicians of the new millennium, learning to slice and splice using Adobe Audition ought to be considered as important as being able to perform reliably on stage.

Ultimately, the idea of learning music is to widen the scope of learner's artistic
experiences. I accept the fact that not all students are destined to become
concert artists. Instead of channeling learners into a direction that they have no desire to venture into, I will attempt to make appropriate accommodations that are tailored to each student's unique needs. The ultimate goal as a pedagogue is to help students flourish artistically and musically. To be fully effective, this involves maintaining a delicate balance between providing students maximal challenge yet without imposing an excessive burden upon their enrichment experience.

什麼是音樂才能？ What is musical talent?

Written by Dr. Angela Chan Ph.D.

什麼是音樂才能？(English version at bottom of text)

研究表明，無論年齡大小，學習音樂和藝術都對大腦的發育有益。它有助於培養創造力，紀律，專注精神，身體協調能力和個人表達能力。通過實踐過程，學習者有能力發展自我控制機制，使之與意識，反思，戰略能力和自信心保持平衡。

奧運會銀牌得主耶利米·布朗（Jeremiah Brown）指出，音樂研究無疑幫助他發展了紀律和毅力。學習音樂和藝術還可以幫助有特殊需求（例如自閉症）的孩子集中註意力並找到替代的溝通渠道。

人才培養
在過去的十年中，國際舞台上出現了許多傑出的青年音樂會藝術家，包括郎朗，王佳佳，這給觀眾和青年學習者帶來了極大的興奮。這些人是天生具有藝術才能的人，還是可以培養出來的人？

Lambda音樂與美術學院的院長和創始人，音樂會鋼琴演奏家 Dr. Angela Chan博士擁有音樂表演，心理學和教育博士學位，並擁有超過三十年的專業教學經驗和研究，發現傑出的成就是學生，家長和老師三方有效合作的結果。家長在家裡的參與有助於維持學習者的興趣和動力。加上出色的教學和有利於學習的專業環境，可以幫助學生騰飛。成功不再是運氣的問題，而是一種規範。學生成為熱心的學習者。他們為這一過程感到自豪，並享受著巨大的享受和滿足。結果，它們以指數速度發展。

LAMBDA教學法
Dr. Angela Chan博士的Lambda教學方法是經過實踐檢驗的。陳博士成功地鼓勵學習者以優異的成績和個人滿意度表現最佳。自2008年成立Lambda以來，這種方法已在國內和國際比賽中創造了190多個音樂冠軍；其中包括25位年輕的鋼琴家，他們已躋身國際音樂會舞台，並應邀定期在著名的紐約卡內基音樂廳表演。

Dr. Angela 的教學法適用於所有年齡和水平的學習者的音樂和藝術教育。 Chan博士還意識到，幫助年輕的學習者確定自己的位置非常重要，這樣他們才能找到自己的最佳表達方式。一個孩子可能會喜歡繪畫幾個小時，而另一個孩子則可以通過彈鋼琴，吉他或小提琴來發現自己的聲音。另一個人可能未在音樂方面表現出非凡的才華，但最終將成為一名傑出的攝影師或攝像師。關鍵是要準確確定孩子的特定藝術環境。

Lambda School of Music and Fine Arts 的獨一無二的日營和夏令營
在Lambda的夏令營中，孩子們在整個學習過程中都會接觸到各種各樣的藝術領域。涵蓋的領域包括各種樂器的探索，例如鋼琴，小提琴，吉他和合唱團，以及更深奧的樂器，例如豎琴，風笛，高地鼓，長笛，鍾琴和Theremin。兒童還將接觸音樂創作，舞蹈，音樂劇院，繪畫，攝影，攝影，縫紉，烹飪，摺紙，書法，手工藝品，瑜伽等。目的是通過與專業人士的合作，為兒童提供一個發現自己的藝術領域的機會。在訓練營結束時，父母將通過對孩子的藝術形象評估來了解他們的孩子的喜好。這樣一來，父母就可以在哪個領域進一步明確子女的藝術教育了。

Lambda School of Music and Fine Arts 的獨一無二的夏令營還全天為父母提供視頻通知，因此他們可以與孩子的經歷保持完全聯繫

Lambda的傑出聲譽和成功不僅吸引了魁北克省和加拿大其他省份的學生，而且吸引了來自香港，中國大陸，韓國，日本，歐洲，英國，阿聯酋和澳大利亞的海外露營者。

有關更多信息，請聯繫 - 發送電子郵件至[email protected]

What is Musical Talent?

Research indicates that learning music and arts is beneficial for the development of the brain irrespective of age. It helps cultivate creativity, discipline, mental focus, physical coordination skills, and personal expression. Through the process of practice, learners are capable of developing self-control mechanisms balanced with awareness, reflection, strategizing abilities as well as self-confidence.

Olympic silver medalist Jeremiah Brown points out that the study of music has unquestionably helped him develop discipline and perseverance. The study of music and arts also helps children with special needs (e.g. autism) to focus and find an alternative channel of communication.

Cultivation of Talent
In the last decade, a number of outstanding young concert artists have emerged on the international stage ―including Lang Lang, Yuja Wang, who have brought great excitement both to the audience and young learners. Are these individuals born with artistic talent, or could that be nurtured?

Director and founder of Lambda School of Music and Fine Arts, and concert pianist, Dr. Angela P. Y. Chan who holds doctoral degrees in music performance, psychology, and education and with over three decades of dedicated teaching experience and research has found that outstanding accomplishment is a result of effective collaboration between three parties ―namely, student, parent, and teacher. Parental participation at home helps sustain interest and motivation in the learner. This coupled with fine teaching and a professional environment that is conducive to learning can help students soar. Success is no longer a matter of luck, but rather, a norm. Students become fervent learners. They take pride in the process and experience tremendous enjoyment and fulfillment. As a consequence, they progress at an exponential rate.

The LAMBDA Teaching Approach
Dr. Angela Chan’s Lambda Teaching Method is tried and true. Dr. Chan has been successful in encouraging learners to perform their best with outstanding achievement and personal satisfaction. Since the establishment of Lambda in 2008, this approach has created over 90 musical champions in national and international competitions; this includes 15 young pianists who have made it to the international concert stage and have been invited to perform at the prestigious Carnegie Hall in New York on a regular basis.

The Lambda Teaching Approach is applied to both music and arts education for learners of all ages and levels. Dr. Chan also realizes that it is extremely important to help young learners identify their niche so that they can find their best mode of expression. One child may enjoy painting for hours, while another may find his/her voice through playing the piano, guitar or violin. Another may not show exceptional talent in music, yet will turn out to be an outstanding photographer or videographer. The key is to accurately determine a child’s specific artistic niche.

Lambda’s One-of-a-kind Day Camps and Summer Camps
At Lambda’s summer camp, children are exposed to an array of artistic domains throughout the session. Areas covered include exploration of various musical instruments such as the piano, violin, guitar, and choir, to more esoteric instruments like the harp, bagpipe, highland drums, pan flute, glockenspiel and theremin. Children will also be exposed to music composition, dance, musical theatre, painting, photography, videography, sewing, cooking, origami, calligraphy, arts and crafts, yoga and more. The goal is to provide an opportunity for children to discover their artistic niche through working with professionals. At the end of the camp, parents will learn about their children’s preferences through an artistic profile assessment of their children. This will give parents a clear idea in what area to further their children’s artistic education.

Lambda’s one-of-a-kind summer camp also provides parents with video notifications throughout the day, so they remain fully connected with their children’s experiences

Lambda’s outstanding reputation and success have attracted not only students from within Quebec and other Canadian provinces, but also overseas campers from Hong Kong, China, Korea, Japan, Europe, Great Britain, the United Emirates, and Australia to attend.

For more information, please email to [email protected]

我艱難的早期音樂之旅

Dr. Angela's Difficult Early Musical Journey

Written by Dr. Angela Chan Ph.D. May 2020

由陳寶瑤博士撰寫 (英文原文)

摘錄自我的著作《音樂藝術教學指南-音樂表達教學的藝術和科學》

音樂人生史

自2016年以來，寫本書以記錄教學經歷的想法就開始萌芽。我很高興直到現在才寫電子書，因為在過去的幾年中，我積累了很多可以揭示的經驗。我相信，現在無疑是我與讀者分享我的知識的時候了。

我想向您介紹我的身份，以及為什麼您必須閱讀本書並因此在我所提供的內容中找到價值。

這是我的一些背景。我於1960年代中期出生在越南西貢。我的父親是一名醫生，我的母親是一名專職家庭主婦。我是他們唯一的孩子。由於戰爭，我的父母是中國人，被迫作為難民從我的出生地逃到香港。在香港的頭幾年，我們沒有很多東西。

由於缺乏商品和資源，我不得不用我可以稱做玩具的少量補給物。作為幼兒，我與母親非常親密。我養成了非常不尋常的習慣-可能是對母親的一種依戀。我喜歡在她的絲質睡衣褲角上打個小結，並嘗試將這些剛硬的衣服角壓在我的指尖上。我發現它具有令人難以置信的舒緩和安撫作用。我可以做幾個小時直到睡著。我無法解釋為什麼，但是我只是喜歡那種觸感，指尖上有輕微但集中的壓力。這是音樂迷的前身，這是他一生的旅途中的一部分，使我成為了今天的人。

儘管經濟困難，我父親還是設法購買了一個小型電子鍵盤。那是我唯一的玩具，但我喜歡它。父親不僅鼓勵我玩遊戲，還鼓勵我並教我比賽。我從父親那裡學過隨便彈鋼琴，父親是一名業餘流行鋼琴演奏者。他開始教我按照他小心地按在白色鍵上的數字演奏。我父親主要教我如何死記硬背，有時我會根據他為我寫下的數字學習新的樂曲。我最喜歡挑選電視上聽到的新音樂。我可以演奏一曲又一曲。我的父母稱讚我並與我一起唱歌-承認我的努力的一種很好的方式，這使我更加努力。鋼琴是一種玩具，一種歡樂，也是與父母聯繫的一種方式。

有一天，我的鍵盤壞了，我無法再演奏音樂了。出於絕望，我發明了另一種娛樂自己的方式。我調高電視機的音量，然後從客廳的抽屜櫃中拉出中間抽屜。我坐下，開始在電視機的壁架上播放音樂。當我的父母離開廚房時，他們注意到我發明了一種製作音樂的方法。這一集立刻使他們相信我愛彈鋼琴，並且我已經正式為上鋼琴課做好了準備。

我從六歲開始上鋼琴課，而我的第一位鋼琴老師是一位女高音，恰巧在旁邊教鋼琴。我的父母通過介紹一位朋友找到了她。這位朋友告訴他們，作為老師，她非常認真，嚴格，為我打下良好的基礎。

我可以清楚地記得，在上完第一堂課後，我對彈鋼琴失去了興趣-主要原因是我的老師對我太嚴格了。我被教導要讀一堆筆記，並按照她對某些手部姿勢的調整，這是我不介意的。但是她的授課方式無疑使我感到恐懼。如果我第一次沒看清楚內容，她會大喊大叫（考慮到她的背景有職業危害）。她是一位高超的女高音，這一事實進一步加劇了這種情況。結果是我避免練習鋼琴。我開始看到彈鋼琴是一件繁瑣的事。我要等到下一堂課的一天深夜，然後去上鋼琴，練習幾分鐘，為第二天的鋼琴課做準備。這種情況造成了一個惡性循環，一直持續到我上小學的最後一年。

在我上小學的最後一年，我必須參加一系列的中學入學考試，稱為“ SSEE”（中學入學考試）。為了準備這些考試，我不知所措，幾乎沒有足夠的時間睡覺，更不用說時間彈鋼琴了。結果，我上課之前沒有練習鋼琴。我媽媽看到我的老師對我的耐心正在減弱，所以她向她道歉，並警告她，我將無法按照她的苛刻標准進行練習（由於我的學業）。我可憐的母親指望鋼琴老師的理由還沒有為意外的反彈做好準備，在這種情況下，老師譴責我的母親沒有適當的優先次序。她不可避免地引起了激烈的爭論，我的鋼琴老師對我媽媽大吼大叫，對她大喊：“學術研究不如彈鋼琴重要！”我相信，這是導致與我的第一任老師六年恐怖關係結束（期待已久）的最後一根稻草。

經歷了這段經歷之後，我的父母決定另找一位寬容的鋼琴老師。通過口口相傳，他們找到了我的第二位老師。這位老師畢業於上海音樂學院。她確實是一位非常善良的女士。儘管我花了大部分時間只是看書，但她從不譴責我，也不反對我的演奏。我不是一個好學生，我很少練習課程。我相信我之所以能夠成功，是因為我的視線閱讀能力足夠，鼓勵我的老師對自己的進步保持樂觀的態度。...

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"音樂感教學指南-教音樂感的藝術與科學"

Written by Dr. Angela Chan Ph.D. (Original text in English)

Excerpt from my book "A Guide to Musical Artistry - the Art and Science of Teaching Musical Expression"

My Musical Life History

The idea of writing a book to document my teaching experiences has been germinating since 2016. I am glad that I haven’t written my eBook until now, as in the last few years, I have accumulated much more experience that I can reveal. I believe that now it is undoubtedly the time for me to share my knowledge with my readers.

I would like to give you a background of who I am, and why you have to read this book and therefore find value in what I have to offer.

Here is a bit of my background. I was born in Saigon, Vietnam, in the mid-1960s. My father was a medical doctor, and my mom was a full-time housewife. I was their only child. Due to the war, my parents, who are Chinese, were forced to flee from my birthplace to Hong Kong as refugees. We didn’t have many belongings in the first few years in Hong Kong.

Due to the lack of goods and resources, I had to make do with minimal supplies that I could claim as toys. As a pre-toddler, I was very close to my mother. I had developed a very unusual habit - probably as a form of attachment to my mother. I loved to tie tiny knots at the corners of her silk pajamas and would try to press these hardened corners of her clothing against my fingertips. I found that to be incredibly soothing and pacifying. I could do that for hours until I fell asleep. I couldn’t explain why, but I simply loved that tactile feeling of having gentle but focused pressure applied to my fingertips. It was a precursor to a musical captivation that has been part of a lifelong journey that has molded me into the person I am today.

Despite financial difficulties, my father still managed to purchase a small electronic keyboard. That was my only toy, but I loved it. Not just because I enjoyed playing on it, my father also encouraged me and taught me to play. I learned to play the piano casually from my father, who is an amateur pop piano player. He started teaching me to play by following numbers he carefully stuck onto the white keys. My dad mostly taught me to play by rote, and sometimes I would learn new pieces following numbers that he wrote down for me. I most enjoyed picking out new tunes that I heard on television. I could play tune after tune. My parents praised me and sang along with me - a great way of acknowledging my efforts, which led me to play even more. The piano was a toy, a joy, and a means of connecting to my parents.

One day, my keyboard broke, and I could no longer play my tunes. Out of desperation, I invented another way of entertaining myself. I turned up the television set volume, and I pulled out the middle drawer from the drawer chest in the living room. I sat down and started playing on the ledge of the drawer as music emanated from the television. When my parents came out of the kitchen, they noticed that I invented a way of making music. This episode instantly convinced them that I loved to play the piano and that I was officially ready for piano lessons.

I started taking piano lessons at six years of age, and my first piano teacher was a soprano who happened to teach piano on the side. My parents found her through the introduction of a friend. They were told by this friend that, as a teacher, she was very serious, strict, and would set a good foundation for me.

I could clearly remember that after my first lesson, I lost interest in playing the piano—the primary reason being that my teacher was too strict with me. I was taught to read a bunch of notes and to follow her adjustments to certain hand positions, which I didn’t mind. But the way she taught unquestionably scared me. She would scream at the top of her lungs (an occupational hazard considering her background) if I did not get the content right the first time. The fact that she was an accomplished soprano further exacerbated the situation. The result was that I avoided practicing the piano. I began seeing piano playing as a chore. I would wait until the late evening of the day before my next lesson and go to the piano and practice perfunctorily for a few minutes “in preparation” for the piano lesson the next day. This situation created a vicious cycle that remained unchanged until my last year of elementary school.

During my last year of elementary school, I had to attend a series of public examinations called the “SSEE” (Secondary School Entrance Examination) that we need to pass to enter high school. In preparation for those examinations, I was overwhelmed with assignments, and barely had enough time for sleep, let alone time to practice the piano. As a result, I did not practice the piano before my lessons. My mom saw that my teacher’s patience towards me was waning thin, so she apologized to her and forewarned her that I would not be able to practice (because of my academic studies) according to her extremely demanding standards. My poor mother expecting reason from my piano teacher was not ready for the unexpected backlash, where my teacher reprimanded my mother for not having the right priorities. She inevitably caused a heated argument, where my piano teacher lashed out at my mom, yelling at her, saying that “academic studies are not as important as piano playing!”. I believe that was the last straw that caused the (long-awaited) end of our terrifying 6-year relationship with my first teacher.

After this experience, my parents decided to look for another more lenient piano teacher. Through word of mouth, they found my second teacher. This teacher was a graduate of the Shanghai Conservatory of Music. She was indeed a very kind lady. She never reprimanded me, did not disapprove of my playing, despite the fact that I spent most of my time just sight-reading through my pieces. I was not a good student, and I seldom practiced for my lessons. I believe that I was able to get by because my sight-reading skills were adequate, encouraging my teacher to keep a buoyant outlook in my progress.

For more... order my book on Amazon
A Guide to Musicality - The Art & Science to Teaching Musicality

Overcoming the Fear of FailureVlog by Dr. Angela Chan

什麼是音樂才能？ What is musical talent? Written by Dr. Angela Chan Ph.D.

我艱難的早期音樂之旅Dr. Angela's Difficult Early Musical JourneyWritten by Dr. Angela Chan Ph.D. May 2020

Overcoming the Fear of Failure
Vlog by Dr. Angela Chan

什麼是音樂才能？ What is musical talent?

Written by Dr. Angela Chan Ph.D.

我艱難的早期音樂之旅

Dr. Angela's Difficult Early Musical Journey

Written by Dr. Angela Chan Ph.D. May 2020