B.Mus (Humber) in-progress
Adina is a singer-songwriter based in Toronto completing her Bachelor of Music degree at Humber College in vocal performance. Trained classically in piano since the age of 5, she has branched out into pop and jazz as well.
Vocally she is well-versed in many genres including jazz (she loves to scat!), musical theatre, pop, singer-songwriter, country, R&B, and acappella. She has 7 years of choir experience in both chamber and jazz styles. Adina has been writing and singing original songs since the age of 12, and has two singles as well as an EP out on all platforms under the artist name Adina V.
She has performed all across southern Ontario singing with the Toronto All-Star Big Band, as well as at various venues in the GTA with her own jazz duos and trios. As a member of the Cawthra Park Chamber Choir she performed at Roy Thompson Hall with the TSO for two years in a row. At Humber College she is part of the Vocal Jazz Ensemble led by Lisa Martinelli; this group performs advanced repertoire at events like the Ontario Vocal Jazz Festival.
Adina has been teaching music for the past 7 years and loves helping students meet their personal goals while fostering a love of music that lasts forever!
Get to know Adina…Beyond the Bio!
Hobbies: reading, puzzles, video games, painting
Musical Influences: Ella Fitzgerald, Nancy Wilson, Doris Day, Joni Mitchell, Taylor Swift, John Mayer
Favourite Food: Pad Thai
Least favourite food: eggplant
Favourite music: Indie rock and folk
Favourite song: All I Need by Jacob Collier ft. Mahalia & Ty Dolla $ign
Favourite movie: Matilda
Favourite movie music: The Pirates of the Caribbean theme
Favourite Musical: Dear Evan Hansen or The Last Five Years
Best Quote from your teacher: “It’s an amazing and wonderful experience to be able to be intentional about, in the moment, making music”
Favourite Quote: “Even as we are, we are becoming”
Favourite Book: The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo trilogy – Stieg Larsson
Best thing about teaching at ABC: Sharing and fostering a love of music with students of all ages
Latest Homework from Adina
Is Adina Your Teacher?
Sign up now to get your weekly assignments delivered, and never lose your homework sheet again!
Wednesday, March 3, 2021
Dvorah
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes a day
What to practice: Men From Mars, Ode to Joy
How to practice it most effectively: In Men From Mars, pay extra attention to bars 3-4 and 7-8; notice how the stepping is similar to the “sticky fingers” warmup we’ve done before. For Ode to Joy, first play the song while singing the letter names, then play while singing the new “1-2-3-4” counting. Watch the repeated notes and which direction the melody moves in!
Marco
Recommended minutes to practice: 10-15 minutes a day
What to practice: Lemonade Stand, All My Friends
How to practice it most effectively: In Lemonade Stand we learned about ties – this is where instead of playing the second note of the pair, we keep holding for the full amount. For the dotted half note ties, count all the way to 6. Use the sayings Good Birds Don’t Fly Away and All Cows Eat Grass to help you with the LH notes. For All My Friends, be extra careful with your counting when it comes to the quarter note ties. These are tied over from beat 4 to the next bar’s beat 1, so make sure not to accidentally count “5”! Sing the counting out loud to help you.
Oliver
Recommended minutes to practice: 15 minutes a day
What to practice: G position 5-finger scale up and down (hands together), A Friend Like You, When the Saints Go Marching In (first 2 lines hands separately)
How to practice it most effectively: For the G position warmup, think of the notes having slurs above them – they should be nice and legato (smooth, connected). A Friend Like You is a review piece this week – RH remember that you’re starting on the higher D, not the one right next to middle C. Pay extra attention to where the hands come in together. For When the Saints, only do the first two lines and notice the repeated patterns. Use the sayings for the clefs to help with your sight reading, as well as watching out for steps vs. skips.
Alice
Recommended minutes to practice: 20 minutes a day
What to practice: Lose You to Love Me, Russian Folk Song, Come See the Parade
How to practice it most effectively: For Lose You To Love Me, you are absolutely ready to sing with just the karaoke track. Make sure your posture, breathing, and open vowels are solid so your melody stays in tune; you should also be actively listening to the video to ensure you hear the key. In Russian Folk Song there are two main patterns – LH make sure you are holding your longer notes (half notes and dotted half notes) for the full number of beats. See if you can play this one quickly! In Come See the Parade we learned a new LH note: low G. This note is on the top space of bass clef. Please also remember RH’s G on the second line of treble clef! RH please double check which note – higher or lower – plays first.
Linda
Recommended minutes to practice: 20 minutes a day or 30 minutes every other day
What to practice: 4-note chords in G major (RH) and C major (LH), The Swing, L-O-V-E
How to practice it most effectively: Before playing the 4-note chords, play through the major scale once so you see every note that is involved. For The Swing, still take it section by section, playing each hand separately first, then trying it together. Be especially careful about which bar you are in when you reach the middle part (with all the ledger lines). For L-O-V-E, start adding the LH in when playing through the chords. Remember that from the Cmaj7 to the C# diminished 7, both C and B move inwards to become C# and Bb. Tonight we talked about using inversions for our II-V cadences: A-7 and D7 share the notes A and C, so let those stay and simply move the E and G down to a D and F#. Practice going back and forth between these two shapes, then also include the Gmaj7 that completes the cadence.
Kollel
Recommended minutes to practice: 20-25 minutes a day
What to practice: F major scale (2 octaves, hands separately), Pachelbel’s Canon, Prelude
How to practice it most effectively: In RH’s F major scale, the Bb is always played with the finger 4. For Pachelbel’s Canon, play the first 3 lines hands together, then continue until bar 29 hands separately. RH bar 15 could use some isolation a few times (where the fingerings are 1-2-3-4-5 in a row). RH pay close attention to exactly where you are during the 16th note section so you don’t get lost. Please use all the written fingerings. In the Prelude, isolate RH bars 3 and 4 a few times: note that these bars actually are stepping for the most part, and don’t use any notes outside the key signature. RH can look ahead from bar 13 to the end – be sure to play all the correct accidentals when doing the scales in bars 14, 16, and the final line. For that last line please just use regular scale fingerings.
Emet
Recommended minutes to practice: 20 minutes a day
What to practice: A and E major triads hands separately, Piano Man, La Raspa
How to practice it most effectively: When playing your triads, make sure you switch up which hand is doing A/E, solid/broken. For Piano Man, you are ready to put verse 2 hands together as well. Read ahead hands separately from bar 35-46. For La Raspa, please make sure RH is lifting for all those rests in the first half; for the slurs, think down-up, with the first note of the pair getting more weight. Note that this doesn’t mean that the second note in the pair is staccato. LH practice the second half of the piece in time, doing all the sfs. Keep this hands separately for the first part of the week, but feel free to try the first half hands together once it feels comfortable.
Preferred Books for Adina’s Students
Click to buy them here, and they’ll come right to your house! What could be easier?
Alfred's Basic Piano Library Lesson Book 1A
This easy step-by-step method emphasizes correct playing habits and note reading through interval recognition. Lesson Book Level 1A begins by teaching basic keyboard topography and fluent recognition of white key names in relation to black keys. It focuses on simple rhythms and prepares students for intervallic reading with entertaining songs that focus on “same,” “stepping up” and “stepping down.” It then introduces lines and space notes in treble and bass clefs, melodic and harmonic intervals of 2nds, 3rds, 4ths and 5ths, and graduates to reading on the grand staff. It also introduces the flat and sharp signs. This course is most effective when used under the direction of a piano teacher or experienced musician. Songs Include: Balloons * Batter Up! * The Donkey * A Friend Like You * Hand-Bells * A Happy Song * Horse Sense * Totem Pole Song * It’s Halloween! * Jingle Bells! * Jolly Old Saint Nicholas * July the Fourth! * Just a Second! * Love Somebody * Merrily We Roll Along O’er the Deep Blue Sea * Mexican Hat Dance * My Clever Pup * My Fifth * My Robot * Old MacDonald * Old Uncle Bill * Play a Fourth * Raindrops * Rain, Rain! * Rockets * Rockin’ Tune * Rock Song * Sailing * Sea Divers * See-Saws * Skating * Who’s on Third? * Willie and Tillie * Wishing Well * The Zoo
Alfred's Adult Basic All-In-One
Alfred’s Basic Adult All-in-One Course is designed for use with a piano instructor for the beginning student looking for a truly complete piano course. It is a greatly expanded version of Alfred’s Basic Adult Piano Course that will include lesson, theory, and technique in a convenient, “all-in-one” format. This comprehensive course adds such features as isometric hand exercises, finger strengthening drills, and written assignments that reinforce each lesson’s concepts. There is a smooth, logical progression between each lesson, a thorough explanation of chord theory and playing styles, and outstanding extra songs, including folk, classical, and contemporary selections.
The Brown Scale Book
This essential resource includes all major and minor scales, triads, arpeggios, dominant sevenths, and chromatic scales organized by key. A favorite for decades, The Brown Scale Book belongs in every student’s library.
The Real Vocal Book
The Real Vocal Book has many of the selections from Volumes 1 and 2 of the instrumental Real Books, but now with complete lyrics added to the pre-existing melody line. This edition features 300 essential songs arranged for low voice, including: Alfie * All of Me * Autumn Leaves * Bewitched * Bluesette * Don’t Get Around Much Anymore * Fever * Georgia on My Mind * Misty * Moon River * My Funny Valentine * Satin Doll * and more. Looking for a particular song? Check out the Real Book Songfinder here.
