Start Your Engines!
Preparing Students for Success

Schedule | Ingrid Jacobson Clarfield | Scott McBride Smith | FAQ | Directions

The University of Georgia is pleased to host an exciting Piano Pedagogy Symposium on Saturday, February 18th, 2012. This symposium will feature renowned clinicians Scott McBride Smith and Ingrid Clarfield, with a special focus on preparing students for successful performances in recitals, festivals, and competitions. In addition to outstanding workshops, you’ll see live teaching demonstrations with typical students at different stages of development; these sessions will offer practical solutions to common problems and help you put your students on the road to success!

The University of Georgia and the piano faculty of the Hugh Hodgson School of Music are pleased to present this special day free of charge. Previous symposia have attracted teachers and students from across the Southeast, and we look forward to seeing you at this exciting event.

This symposium is made possible through the generous support of the Willson Center for Humanities and the Arts, the Despy Karlas Professorship Fund, the Hugh Hodgson School of Music, and the piano faculty and piano students of the HHSOM.

Schedule

All sessions will be held in Edge Hall, 3rd Floor, Hugh Hodgson School of Music


10:00 Check-in, Edge Hall Foyer


10:15 The Road to Chopin: From Method Book to the First Chopin Pieces
Ingrid Clarfield

11:30 Start Your Engines! Initial Learning Steps that Ensure Success
A live teaching demonstration with Ingrid Clarfield, Scott McBride Smith,
and local students and teachers.

12:45 Lunch Break. Buffet lunch available at the Village Summit (see information).

2:00 Preparing for Competitions: What do Judges REALLY Want?
Scott McBride Smith

3:15 Crossing the Finish Line: Polishing a Piece to Perfection
A live teaching demonstration with Ingrid Clarfield, Scott McBride Smith,
and local students and teachers.

4:30 Roundtable Q and A on Piano Teaching
Ingrid Clarfield, Scott McBride Smith, and Pete Jutras answer questions
from the audience.

 

The Presenters:

Ingrid Jacobson Clarfield, nationally recognized teacher, clinician, pianist, and author is Professor of Piano and Coordinator of the Piano Department at Westminster Choir College of Rider University in Princeton, New Jersey. She also directs Westminster Choir College's Piano Week for High School Students and is a frequent guest clinician at Calgary Arts Summer School Piano Camp in Alberta, Canada.

Ms. Clarfield holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Oberlin College where she studied with John Perry. She also holds a Master of Music degree from the Eastman School of Music. Since 1976, she has performed regularly in two-piano recitals with Lillian Livingston.

Ms. Clarfield has given lecture-recitals, workshops and master classes in more than a hundred cities across North America, including presentations at State and National conferences of The Music Teachers National Association. She has presented numerous master classes and pedagogy sessions at the National Conference of Keyboard Pedagogy, the TCU/Van Cliburn Institute, the National Piano Teachers Institute, the Music Teachers Association of California and the World Piano Pedagogy Conference.

Ms. Clarfield has authored many collections for Alfred Publishing Company. Keys To Stylistic Mastery, Books 1-3, co-authored with Dennis Alexander, provide students with tools to create performances that are stylistically accurate. Key pedagogical concepts for efficient learning and artistic performance are outlined in her series From Mystery to Mastery. Her Artistic Preparation and Performance Series provides creative and sequential practice and performance tips for Debussy’s “Golliwog’s Cakewalk,” Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata,” and Chopin’s Nocturne in E-flat Major, Op. 9, No. 2. A sequential approach to technique is presented in Burgmller, Czerny and Hanon: Piano Studies Selected for Technique and Musicality, Books 1 and 2.
 Ms. Clarfield maintains an independent studio in Princeton, New Jersey. Her students have performed concertos with several orchestras and have won top honors in state, national, and international competitions sponsored by the Music Teachers National Association, International Young Artist Piano Competition, the Steinway Society, and numerous others. They have performed in such prestigious venues as Lincoln Center, Weill Recital Hall of Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center, Steinway Hall, and several concert halls in Beijing.

Most recently, Ms. Clarfield was honored at the Music Teachers National Association National Conference by being named an MTNA Foundation Fellow. This award is given to “deserving individuals who have made significant contributions to the music world and the music teaching profession.” Professor Clarfield was selected unanimously by the Board of the New Jersey Music Teachers Association. She is the first recipient of this award from New Jersey. The award was presented to Professor Clarfield at the MTNA Foundation Gala held on March 27, 2006 at the National Conference in Austin, Texas. In 2009, Professor Clarfield was named the first recipient of the NJMTA Teacher of the Year award.     

   

Scott McBride Smith is a recognized leader in music education. As the Cordelia Brown Murphy Professor of Piano Pedagogy at the University of Kansas, he focuses on national issues of teacher training and piano pedagogy. As President and CEO of the International Institute for Young Musicians, he leads a summer program offering specialized training for gifted young performers from around the world.

A co-author of the groundbreaking new series American Popular Piano, he has helped create a course of study for today's student - providing tools that inspire the necessary hard work while playing music they love. As former president of Royal American Conservatory Examinations, he worked to establish standards by championing national curriculum and assessment in the USA. And as a former division president of Music Teachers National Association and president of the California Association of Professional Music Teachers, he works on concerns that affect all professionals in the music teaching community.

A long-time teacher of prize-winning students in Irvine, California, Dr. Smith;s students have been California State Champions in the years 1988, 1990, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2006 and 2008. Former students have been First Prize winners in the Naftsger Competition, Tchaikovsky Competition and in competitions of the Music Teachers National Association. Amir Khosrowpour, Dr. Smith';s student for 11 years, was the 2001-2002 Steinway National Collegiate Champion while a student of Dr. Jack Winerock at the University of Kansas. His student Jeremy Siskind was the 2002 winner of the ASACAP Foundation Young Jazz Composer award.

Dr. Smith is co-author of the college text The Well-Tempered Keyboard Teacher and associate editor of the magazine Clavier Companion. He is co-author of Christopher Norton's Guide to Microjazz.
The growing interest in his philosophical and cognitive approach to music teaching has resulted in appearances across the US, Canada, Europe, Asia, Australia, and South America, including workshops and showcases at every MTNA Conference since 1999. But he has never lost the ability to see humor in the profession and laugh.
Dr. Smith has served as Visiting Professor at the Bela Bartok Conservatory in Lima, Peru; at the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts;  in China, at the Sichaun Conservatory of Music and at the Shenzhen Arts School; and in Taiwan, sponsored by the International Piano Teaching Foundation.

Scott McBride Smith received his doctorate from the University of Southern California, where he was co-winner of the Outstanding Graduate in Piano award. A former member of the Music Teachers National Association National Board, he is also a member of the European Piano Teachers Association and a Level One Certified member the Early Childhood Music and Movement Association.

Information and FAQ

Is there a cost to attend?
No. The event is offered free of charge.

Do I need a reservation?
Yes. Even though the event is free, it is important to reserve your place. This allows event organizers to properly plan the day. Please reserve a spot by e-mailing Pete Jutras at pjutras@uga.edu. You can also call 706-542-2715.

What is the lunch option?
This year participants will be able to enjoy a fabulous lunch buffet at the Village Summit Dining Hall on the UGA campus. This national award-winning buffet is a short three-minute walk from Edge Hall, and a private room is reserved for symposium registrants. You will be able to choose from hot entrees, deli sandwiches and wraps, salad bar and vegetarian dishes, a grill station (burgers, hot dogs, cheesesteaks and more), pizza and pasta station, and a sumptuous range of desserts.

What is the cost of the lunch?
The price of the lunch is $10.50 (price includes tax) and is payable as you enter the Village Summit. Cash and credit cards are accepted. To aid in planning, please make a reservation for lunch no later than Friday, February 10th.

Is parking free?
Yes, parking is available at no charge in the lot adjacent to the school of music. For a map and directions to the school of music, please click here.

Is the symposium appropriate for students?
While the sessions are geared towards piano teachers, there will be a lot of useful information. It may not be ideal for young children, but many high-school students have attended and enjoyed previous symposia.

Can I share this information with my colleagues?
Absolutely! Please share and invite your friends, colleagues, and students!

If you have additional questions, please contact Pete Jutras at pjutras@uga.edu, or call 706-542-2715.

Outreach