If you’ve ever watched a class at Mountain Melody Music Studio, you might be surprised by how different it looks from traditional piano lessons. Rather than starting by reading notes on a page, we spend a lot of time singing, moving, chanting, and improvising—all key parts of the Music Moves for Piano method, which draws on Edwin E. Gordon’s Music Learning Theory (MLT). This method, grounded in how children naturally learn, might look different, but each activity is carefully designed to help students develop a true, joyful musicianship. Here’s a closer look at why we do what we do in class, and how these approaches foster a deep connection to music.
Why Do We Sing?
Singing is central to our method because it forms the foundation of how we learn music. Music Moves for Piano is an audiation-based method, which means that we start by teaching students to “hear” and understand music internally—just as they learn to listen and speak before reading or writing language. By singing, students develop a strong internal sense of melody and harmony.
We sing in multiple tonalities—such as major, minor, dorian, and mixolydian—each with its own unique character. Like different dialects in a language, each tonality enriches a child’s musical “vocabulary,” helping them recognize and feel a range of musical moods. This diversity in tonalities helps students develop audiation skills, which are essential to becoming fluent in music.
Echoing tonal patterns also strengthens listening and vocal skills. When students echo patterns, they’re practicing the “words” of music and learning to identify pitches and phrases. We also emphasize finding the resting tone, or the “home” note in each key, which teaches children to hear musical resolution. Developing this awareness is essential to feeling the structure and flow of music.
Why Do We Move?
Movement is another core part of our classes. Children learn best through movement, and rhythm is something we don’t just hear but feel. In Keyboard Games, part of the Music Moves for Piano curriculum, students develop body awareness and movement skills, which support a healthy, relaxed piano technique.
By moving, children internalize rhythm and meter in a way that goes beyond the theoretical. We practice moving to various meters, such as duple and triple, so students physically feel how beats flow. This embodied sense of rhythm supports smoother, more expressive playing when they later sit at the piano.
Why Do We Chant?
Chants are essential to developing rhythmic awareness. In class, we practice rhythm patterns through chants, which allow students to focus solely on rhythm without the added complexity of melody. This approach is similar to learning phonetics in language—it’s about understanding the structure of rhythm so that it becomes second nature.
Chanting in different meters helps students internalize rhythmic flow, making it easier to play with a natural sense of timing and tempo. By developing a rhythmic vocabulary through chanting, students build a foundation for rhythmic accuracy and fluency at the piano.
Why Do We Improvise?
Improvisation is a key part of our curriculum and an exciting way for students to learn to play music naturally and creatively. In Music Moves For Piano, students have opportunities to experiment with different sounds, try out patterns, and play by ear, without the restrictions of a set score. This kind of free exploration is essential to developing a musical ear, as it allows children to create, explore, and express themselves without worrying about getting “all the notes right.”
Improvising helps students feel a sense of musical freedom and confidence. It allows them to connect to music as something they can create and explore anytime, anywhere, rather than something limited to the notes on a page. Through improvisation, students develop the skill of “thinking in music” and gain confidence in their ability to create on their own.
Bringing It All Together at the Piano
In our classes, we’re not always at the keyboard. Instead, we spend time singing, chanting, moving, and improvising to build a rich music vocabulary and a solid foundation for music learning. When students do play, they explore the entire keyboard, discovering the unique sounds of different registers. They play duets, improvise, arrange, and create their own versions of pieces. By guiding students to play with ease and comfort, they develop a natural technique that supports their musical growth.
In Conclusion: Building Musicianship from the Inside Out
The activities in our classes may look different from traditional lessons, but each one is an essential step toward building well-rounded, joyful musicians. With Music Moves for Piano and Music Learning Theory, we help students learn music the way they learn language—by listening, imitating, exploring, and creating. Through singing, moving, chanting, and improvising, they’re not only learning to play piano; they’re discovering how to feel, understand, and express music at a deep, intuitive level.
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