Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
Established 1879
October, 1952
REVIEW
VOL. I l l - N o . 10
THE
PIONEER
PUBLICATION
2,871st Issue
O F T H E MUSIC
I N D U S T R Y
Technicolor Movie for Teaching Group
Piano Lessons Made by Fay Templeton Frisch
N interesting development in the
A
conducting of piano workshops
which has been done during the last
summer by Mrs. Fay Templeton Frisch.
Chairman of the National Committee on
Piano Instruction of the Music Educa-
tors National Conference, is a Techni-
color pilot film of approximately 1,000
feet which was made by Mrs. Frisch
while in California at the request of
one of the Hollywood companies.
In this film, which is a pilot film for
a complete series of group piano les-
sons, Mrs. Frisch uses as her introduc-
tion a foreword from the "Handbook
for Teaching Piano Classes" recently
MRS. FAY TEMPLETON FRISCH
published by the M.E.N.C. From then
the Piano Workshops which Mrs. Frisch
on, all that is seen is the keyboard of
conducted at the University of Southern
the piano, and first the right hand, then
California School of Music which took
the left hand and both hands together,
place from June 23rd to August 1st.
while Mrs. Frisch explains what should
with
such subjects as the first and sec-
be done with the fingers on both the
ond grade beginners' class, controlled
right and left hands in order to play
study of musical progress for third and
simple selections.
fourth grade beginners, intermediate
At the end of each lesson, the silent
class piano, high school ungraded class
caption on the film suggests that the
and high school ensemble teaching situ-
projector be stopped and one of the
ations were discussed and demonstrated
children be allowed to go to the piano
with groups of children.
and play in accordance with the in-
From there, Mrs. Frisch went to San
structions of that lesson.
Diego State College and conducted
Everyone who has seen this film be-
clinics on August 4th and 5th in the
lieves it has great possibilities, but due
college's Campus Music Building. There
mostly to the exorbitant cost of pro-
were afternoon and evening sessions on
duction and marketing no one of the each day. The program included a lec-
music organization has as yet sponsored
ture on the "Psychological Approach
it. There is a possibility that k may be
to Piano Teaching." "The Keyboard
financed and marketed by some private
Approach to Basic Musicianship", "Cre-
enterprise but Mrs. Frisch has demon-
ative Teaching", "The Logical Approach
strated it to the Executive Committees
to Music Reading", and "Rhythmic Ac-
of the A.M.C., N.P.M.A. and other or-
tivities" and "Professional Standards
ganizations believing that it should be
and Ethics."
sponsored by a Music Trade organiza-
A demonstration was given by the
tion.
third grade children, beginners with
The filming was entirely aside from
Lesson I, fourth and fifth grade child-
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, OCTOBER, 1952
ren with two years' piano study, the
junior high school beginners' Lesson I,
adult eginners Lesson I, third grade
Lesson II, fourth and fifth grade Lesson
II. five and six year-old Lesson I and
junior high school Lesson I.
Mrs. Frisch also conducted a piano
workshop at Idlewild with the Fred
Waring group.
These recent Piano Workshops add to
her list of many appearances which
have occurred in Philadelphia, Oberlin
College, Ohio, the University of Wy-
oming, the University of Idaho, Piano
Teachers Congress of New York City,
and many regional meetings of the
Music Educators National Conference
which are held in Atlantic City, De-
troit, Seattle, Tacoma, Wash., San Fran-
cisco and St. Louis. In 1950 she spent
the summer at the University of Hawaii.
For twenty years Mrs. Frisch con-
ducted piano lessons in the public
schools of New Rochelle, N. Y., where
she taught 450 pupils each year in group
classes. Due to the transferring of this
project to the Recreation Commission,
Mrs. Frisch disagreeing with the action
of the Board of Education resigned last
sprirrg.
The success of these workshops, in
many instances, has been reflected in
the comments of some of the pupils
which have been written regarding them
at the end of each workshop.
Commendations
The impressions that these piano
workshops have made on many of those
who have attended the sessions are ex-
pressed in some of the comments of
music administrators and teachers, like
some of the following:
Miss Hazel Guthrie, a public school