How to get ready for a video piano lesson

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Requirements

Setup

  • Please set up the phone camera, so the hands and the keys are clearly visible. This helps me to monitor and correct finger and hand position if necessary. An easy way to achieve this is to set up the phone on a tripod to the right or left of the piano bench looking at the piano keys. Eye level of the student, or slightly below seems to work best. Please tilt the phone slightly downward towards the hands and the keys.
  • Please have the Google Hangouts Meet app downloaded and ready to go. You will receive a calendar invite for the lesson that contains an easy link to click.
  • Note: Video Apps are power hungry, so please have your phone connected to a charger during the lesson. We learned in a couple of lessons this week that the phone might run out or go to sleep otherwise.

This is all that’s required for the lesson. It can still be a fun and productive lesson, even though I will not be there in person.

Good position for the camera
Please make sure the keys and the student’s hands are easily visible

Advanced setup

If you should have more than one device available, we can make the lesson even more fun and immersive. For example, if you should have an extra device, like a tablet, you can put that on the note stand of your piano (keyboard). This will allow me to face the student and vice a versa. I have my setup with two cameras and the student can switch between facing me and looking at my hands and the keys.

  • Note: if you do use two devices, please make sure only one device (preferable the one closest to the student) has both microphone and speaker on. The second device should be on mute and the speaker off (volume all the way down) otherwise, there will be endless feedback echo which will make teaching pretty much impossible. But this is the only piece to remember.

Links and resources

Please let me know your ideas and tricks and tips and I will add them here.