Daily Archives: August 11, 2025

August 11: Today in Music History

Posted by MaryO on

today

• 1862 ~ Carrie Jacobs Bond, American composer

• 1919 ~ Ginette Neveu, French violinist

• 1925 ~ Mike Douglas (Dowd), TV host of The Mike Douglas Show; singer, The Music Show, Kay Kyser’s Kollege of Musical Knowledge

• 1927 ~ Raymond Leppard, British conductor and harpsichordist

• 1941 ~ Glenn Miller and his Orchestra recorded Elmer’s Tune on Bluebird Records.

• 1942 ~ Mike Hugg, Musician, drums with Chapter Three, Manfred Mann

• 1943 ~ Jim Kale, Musician, bass with The Guess Who

• 1943 ~ Guy Vallari, Singer with Regents

• 1949 ~ Eric Carmen, Musician, bass, keyboards, songwriter, singer with The Raspberries

• 1950 ~ Erik Braunn, Musician, guitar, singer with Iron Butterfly

• 1954 ~ David Ian “Joe” Jackson, English singer, pianist, composer

• 1955 ~ Joe Jackson, Singer

• 1958 ~ Elvis Presley received a gold record for the hit, Hard Headed Woman. The song was featured in the movie King Creole.

• 1973 ~ Hip hop was born at a birthday party in the recreation room of an apartment building in the west Bronx, New York City.

• 1987 ~ Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles was called “the best album made during the last 20 years” by the respected music publication, Rolling Stone magazine.

• 1996 ~ Rafael Kubelik, Czech conductor, died aged 82. He made his debut with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 1934 and went into exile in 1948 and made an emotional return when he conducted the opening concert of the 1990 Prague Spring music festival.

• 2020 ~ Trini Lopez died at the age of 83, and suffered from complications of COVID-19.

School Year Piano Lessons

Posted by MaryO on

Hello everyone!

I hope you are all having an enjoyable summer and that it has been filled with adventures and memory-making.

Wow! What a summer I have had so far! Aside from a ‘little bit’ of relaxing, I’ve also been doing some travel, reading, learning and planning, as I prepare for another exciting year of piano lessons.

A lot of information was given to you in June. I know it was a busy time for everyone so this email is to touch base with you about August Fall Start-Up in the hopes that it arrives when you have a moment to write some things on your calendar.

  1. When do lessons start? Set a reminder and mark your calendar: our fall term of lessons will begin on August 26 – no lessons the first week of school. However, Fairfax County has a holiday on Labor Day, September 2.  If you normally have Monday lessons and want a lesson that first week of September, there is some time available on other days.  Please let me know.
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    For ease of scheduling, I’m keeping the same days/lesson times as last year.  If you need to make a change, please let me know as soon as possible.
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  2. What do your children need? Having your books and notebook ready for the first day of lessons will ensure an efficient start – so please remember to bring them!  A bit of review might be in order.  If you have an iPad, please bring that, too.
  3. Is your piano dusty? Summer is full of family fun and this might mean that your children may not have been practicing as much as they do during the school year. This is understandable.  I can promise, however, that your children will be even more excited about returning to lessons if they feel prepared and ready to learn. Setting up a practice schedule for the weeks leading up to the return of lessons is a great idea. Plan for at least 15 minutes of practice a day during the rest of the summer and, if possible, schedule it in the morning before the day’s activities begin.

In addition to the regular fun we have at the studio, I have been planning some new and exciting ways for your children to enjoy the piano and become even better musicians. Here are just a few things your children can look forward to:

  • New tween and teen piano games! Yes, even the older students in the studio will get off the bench for some hands-on, game-based learning
  • New music! I’ve been busy collecting a lot of repertoire during the summer months and am so excited to share the new music with your children this year.
  • Student Portal: This year I am requiring all students under 17 to log their practice time in our Student Portal.  If you’ve forgotten, there’s more info here.

I can’t wait to reconnect with you soon and I look forward to hearing about your summer fun.

Mary