How to Get Feedback on Your Playing

If you want to become a skilled pianist, you have to find a way to get an expert's feedback on your playing with regularity. This is especially true if you are a beginner!

As a Flex Lessons Studio Member, you have a few different ways to do this:

1. Upload a video of your playing to the discussions area of a relevant course

2. Upload an unlisted video to YouTube or some other video platform and send me a link

3. Schedule a lesson with me via Zoom

1. Uploading a Recording

My preferred way to give you feedback is in response to a recording that you upload. This actually works quite well for most situations. You are welcome to try multiple times until you capture an attempt at a piece or exercise that reasonably represents where you are at with it.

I will offer feedback to anyone who creates a post. Additionally, you are all welcome to comment and offer constructive criticism to one another as well. You’ll benefit from seeing other members post, and others will benefit from seeing you post.

For more information about uploading recordings, please read this post.

2. Sending a Private Link

You may be uncomfortable with the idea of sharing your work with others. While it may help you to know that the other members are on the same part of the piano journey as you, it is reasonable to prefer some privacy.

If you would like to share a recording with me privately, you can upload an unlisted video to Youtube or use some other video hosting service and send me a link. Please do not send me a file directly.

While I am happy to give you feedback in this way, know that I cannot respond to you in video form unless you post inside one of the discussions or in the community. Note that I usually do not respond with a video, but there are times where the situation calls for it.

3. Scheduling a Lesson

Some situations are best dealt with in a lesson environment. If there is anything that requires us to go back and forth on a topic, you should consider getting lesson. This is a chance to get significantly more value out of your piano education on Flex Lessons!

Another situation that justifies getting a lesson is when you have uploaded multiple recordings for the same piece without me suggesting that you move on. At this point, it’s much more efficient to schedule a lesson where we can dialogue back and forth about how to forward with the piece. In some cases, we can make enough of a change to call it done right in the lesson!

Lastly, you might consider getting a lesson if you have collected a ton of questions for me or would like me to help you create a practice plan that is specific to your situation. This is a great use of a lesson and you’ll likely benefit significantly from the experience.

You can learn about scheduling a lesson with me by clicking here.

Let’s Work Together!

I cannot overstate how important it is for me to see you play. If you are serious about becoming a skilled pianist, you and I should work together to develop appropriate standards for each aspect of piano practice.

You might be thinking "I will try and get some skills first and then post a recording." This is a great idea! However, you should know that many people tell me this and never end up posting a recording or booking a session with me. When that happens, I have no ability to help these students course-correct.

I hope you’ll take advantage of one of these options for getting feedback on your playing. You would be surprised if you knew what I can learn from watching a video of a student for 30 seconds. This is what I am trained in and it’s what I do for a living!

Let me know if you have any questions on this by commenting below. Otherwise, happy practicing!