Stacie Armijo, Staff Reporter | Photo by Stacie Armijo
At the Westside campus there is a new Piano class being taught by Dr. Vincent S. Schenck that gives students the opportunity to learn piano on the 20 Yamaha pianos provided in the classroom, said Schenck.
The thing that makes this class so unique is that students can work together or work separately and the students learn how to play melodies and harmonies as well as proper techniques, he said.
“To have the piano class, I think it’s important because the piano is a basic instrument that is very visual,” he said.
In addition to learning how to read music students will have the benefit of knowing how to play basic songs, Schenck said.
“My favorite thing about teaching piano is that it is an important skill for people to learn when it comes to music,” he said.
For the final in this innovative course students play a song of their choosing in front of the class, he said.
By the end of the semester students will learn how to play music themselves and be able to read music, he said.
“There are a lot of things learned; hand and eye coordination and memorization. It’s just the discipline of sitting up straight, actually playing the instrument and dedicating the time to it,” he said.
Schenck said he believes his students appreciate the fact that he offers an open studio before classes where students can come in earlier and catch up or have their questions answered before the class starts.
“I am not under any obligation to have studio hours but I think it’s a good time for them to come in and ask questions and work on things, who doesn’t want to come in early to play the piano more if you are interested in it,” he said.
One of the things that Scheck stresses in class is to not get easily frustrated and to have patience while learning this instrument or any other, because it can be somewhat discouraging at first to learn and keep practicing, he said.
“Once someone learns to play the piano it is easier for them to pick up another instrument,” he said.
Schenck said that he not only teaches piano, but he also teaches Music Theory, Fundamentals of Music and an online Music Appreciation course as well.
For more information on the new piano class students can email Dr. Schenck at vschenck@cnm.edu.
