Marcel's Piano Notes

Thoughts from the piano bench on learning, teaching, and making music that matters. I'm Marcel, creator of Hey Presto! and teacher to adults rediscovering the joy of playing piano — here's what I've learned along the way.

Playing music that feels real — even on day one!

There's a moment I watch for in every first lesson. A student sits down expecting the usual: scales, finger exercises, maybe "Mary Had a Little Lamb" if they're lucky. Instead, within twenty minutes, they're playing something that sounds like actual music — not just correct notes, but phrases that breathe and flow.

The moment it clicks

Last term, a returning student to the piano who hadn't touched a piano in many years, managed to create a simple yet beautiful sound in her first lesson. Not perfectly, but with enough musicality to make it enjoyable for her. That's when you know something's working.

It's this idea that drove me to write Hey Presto! in the first place. I'd grown tired of watching bright, motivated adults trudge through months of playing before they could play anything they'd actually choose to listen to. There had to be a better way.

Why sounding good early matters

The secret isn't about cutting corners — good playing still requires patience and practice. But there's no law that says beginners must sound dreadful for the first six months. With carefully chosen pieces that sit well under the fingers, a touch of pedal to add colour, and simple phrasing techniques, even complete novices can create something genuinely musical from day one.
What I've learned over the years is that students who sound good early on tend to stick with it. They develop an ear for musical line because they're hearing it in their own playing, not just in recordings. Their confidence grows because they're making music, not just executing exercises.

The Hey Presto! approach

Hey Presto! works because it doesn't pretend technique doesn't matter — it just teaches it through pieces worth playing. Students learn hand position and technique, not through repetitive drills, but through beautifully crafted pieces of music. They discover pedalling through atmospheric pieces that actually benefit from the sustain pedal.
The book's available on Amazon or through my website, and it comes FREE with the Adult Piano Beginners online piano course for those who prefer video guidance and the chance to connect with other learners in our monthly group sessions.

There's something else in the works too — a project I'm rather excited about. More on that soon.
Thanks for being part of this journey, wherever the piano is taking you right now.
Marcel