Category Archives: Nerissa

If You Want to Sing Out Sing Out

Posted on May 21, 2013 by

My guitar class is learning this song to perform in The Day the Music Thrived, a concert/barnraiser/awareness raiser/fundraiser for Yes! Northampton to encourage the town of Northampton MA to say YES! to an override to raise taxes to support (among … Continue reading →

Posted in Hoot of the Week!, Nerissa, Uncategorized | Tagged | Leave a comment

All the Pretty Little Horses

Posted on March 13, 2013 by

I am teaching this wonderful lullaby to my HooteNanny Parent Guitar class, which meets on Tuesdays in my living room. We are learning first position, mostly 3-chord songs this winter, but everyone loves fingerpicking. This fingerpick is called an arpeggio, … Continue reading →

Posted in Hoot of the Week!, Nerissa, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

The North Wind Doth Blow

Posted on January 9, 2013 by

Our first Hoot of the Week post! I just taught this song to my guitar group, and it’s really the perfect song for beginning guitarists. It has only two chords, D and A, and they are both among the easiest … Continue reading →

Posted in Hoot of the Week!, Nerissa | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Inching Through Twinkle Variations with Non-Pareilles

Posted on October 10, 2012 by

Johnny has had four violin lessons and one group class. It’s so strange to see how different two children can be. After years of telling friends that my kids were more alike than not, as violinists at least they show … Continue reading →

Posted in Nerissa, Suzuki | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Alignment Enlightenment

Posted on June 25, 2012 by

Nerissa: Each week, our violin teacher gives us a practice plan, a sheet with a grid on it with the days of the week horizontally across the top and various items listed vertically on the left hand side of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Nerissa, Suzuki, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Nields Scream for Liverpool Legends

Posted on May 22, 2012 by

Nerissa: Much has happened since last we visited our heroes. Mostly the mom in the family has been overwhelmed with a new CD coming out, which has wrecked havoc on all other members of said family, but the innate musicality … Continue reading →

Posted in Beatles, Nerissa, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

The Many Uses of the Boom Whacker

Posted on April 23, 2012 by

Nerissa: I was told when friends learned I’d be having a baby boy, that at a certain age, all phallic objects turn into guns. Yet I observed a different phenomenon in Katryna’s house. When William turned four, all phallic objects … Continue reading →

Posted in Beatles, Nerissa | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Why You Should Listen to Music #24

Posted on March 21, 2012 by

I had the good fortune to attend a Suzuki parent talk by my old friend fellow guitar teacher Dave Madsen. Dave and I knew each other 20 years ago when we were both working at the Loomis Chaffee school in … Continue reading →

Posted in Beatles, Nerissa, Suzuki | 2 Comments

How a Three-Year-Old Has a Guitar Lesson

Nerissa: So we started Johnny on Suzuki guitar lessons. Yes, he is three-and-a-half. No, he can’t understand the difference between my gently suggesting that he might not want to dump his glass of watercolor paint wash all over the table … Continue reading →

Aside | Posted on February 14, 2012 by | 3 Comments

Missing Ringo and Hard Conversations

Posted on January 25, 2012 by

I just went on eBay to buy a Ringo doll but was deterred by the fact that Ringo not only costs $49.95, but that to have him shipped to me from Canada will cost me an additional $17.95. I love … Continue reading →

Posted in Nerissa | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments