Fall Recital

My Fall Recital is over! Huzza! The recital has been scheduled for months. Recitals are a lot of work. Jessica and I decided to do another combined recital. Jessica made the chic invitations. I got invitations and posters printed to advertise the recital. I framed my poster and it has been hanging in my piano room. Making the program also took effort. I thought the program was perfect until one of my students pointed out that I spelled her name wrong. Oops. I felt bad about that typo. My finger stayed down too long and pushed a letter twice.

Ditto Studios has taken off. In fact, I technically have a waitlist with 5 people on it. I currently have 11 students! My Monday and Thursday evenings are filled. It’s wonderful.

To prep for the recital this time, I held 2 performance classes the week of the recital. This gave students a chance to play in front of others. We also did a studio competition leading up to the recital. This was Jessica’s fabulous idea. Each student was given a “41 Days of Practice” chart. Students had to play their recital song every day and practice for at least 10 minutes. At the recital, I announced who won. 3 of my students practiced all 41 days! They got a certificate of recognition and won a $10 Swig gift card and 2 fun sets of piano socks. I wanted to keep some of the piano socks myself.

The recital was held at my church building in the chapel. All day Saturday, I was antsy with anticipation. James said he was sick of being in the chapel. I can’t say I blame him. We cleaned the church that morning (and we were in charge of the chapel), he had primary program practice in the chapel, and then we were back again in the afternoon for the recital.

I played a slew of songs at the recital. I accompanied 5 of Jessica’s students. Jessica and I opened the recital with a beautiful rendition of “Beauty and the Beast.” I also performed piano duets with 2 of my students. I was glad that I didn’t end up getting very nervous. Things ran smoothly without hiccup.

I was extremely satisfied with how the recital went! My students worked hard and were well prepared! It was fulfilling to see how much my students have progressed. I have some advanced students who played showy and impressive songs. I was disappointed that a couple of students brought their music up with them during their performances. They have had their pieces memorized for ages. When a third student of mine attempted to bring her music, I stopped her. I’m so mean.

One of my students had to leave early, so she isn’t pictured. Another student backed out of performing a couple hours before the recital, so he is also missing.

At the end of the recital, people were complimentary. One parent told me, she “recommends me to everyone.” A grandma said, “You are doing such a great job with my granddaughter.” These words meant extra to me because this grandma is an accomplished pianist herself. Another person stopped me to ask if I have any openings because they would love for me to teach their child piano. A young woman leader in my ward told me that they talk about their highs and lows in young women’s every week. She told me that a few of the girls said their “high” of the week was the recital. One girl explained that the recital was both her high and low for the week. I can relate. Recitals can be stressful, but Saturday was certainly a teacher pay-day for me! 

After the recital, it was like a weight had been lifted from my chest. Andrew and I went out on a date. We had a lovely time relaxing at “Crack Shack” and going to the movies. The next recital is tentatively planned for May. For now, I’m enjoying picking Christmas music for my students. Ditto Studios is thriving.