M.Mus (York U) in-progress
B.Mus (Pontifical Catholic University of Chile)
B.Arts (Pontifical Catholic University of Chile)
Colomba is a Chilean Canadian pianist and musicologist. Born and raised in Chile, she has been a piano and music theory teacher for over six years. She is currently studying an M.A. in Music at York University with the York Graduate Scholarship.
Colomba completed her Bachelor of Music as well as her Bachelor of Arts (Major in History) at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile. During her time there, she served as Teaching Assistant in Harmony, Analysis and Music Theory courses. She also had worked as private Piano Teacher from 2016 and at Schlotfeld’s Online Music Academy throughout the pandemic.
As a pianist, Colomba served in 2019 as keyboardist in the 2022 Pulsar Award Winner (Best Jazz & Fusion Album) “Ensamble Escondido”. She also has experience as a pianist for private events and weddings. Colomba seeks to encourage her students to discover their own music tastes and creativity by balancing traditional skills and innovative methods.
Get to know Colomba…Beyond the Bio!
Hobbies: Piano, music research on Classical and Latin American Popular Music, History, Drawing.
Music influences: Music from the Romantic and Impressionist era; Chopin, Satie and Debussy in particular. Popular Music genres such as Classical and Progressive rock. Folk-rooted Latin American genres (Peruvian Landó, Bossa-Nova, Cuban Son).
Favourite food: Any dessert will do the trick. I also like Italian food, Arepas, Asian food. I’m not a picky eater so I enjoy almost any food.
Least favourite food: Beet salad. It doesn’t have too much flavor.
Favorite music: Anything that has an interesting rhythm and melody. My favorite genres are Jazz, Rock, and Latin American Folk Music. Regarding Classical Music, I’ve always been a fan of the Romantic Era.
Favourite song: I like too many songs to choose just one! Negra Presuntuosa- Susana Baca
Time – Pink Floyd
Favourite movie: No Country for Old Men.
Favourite movie music: Pirates of the Caribbean, The Incredibles.
Favourite musical theatre/opera: Carmen – Georges Bizet.
Best quote from your teacher: “a hard-working student in the long term will surpass a prodigy”.
Favourite quote: “Fools who don’t respect history are doomed to repeat it.” “Traveller, the road is only your footprint, and no more; traveller, there’s no road, the road is your travelling.”
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel García Márquez.
Best thing about teaching at ABC: Helping people to develop a love for music.
Latest Homework from Colomba
Is Colomba Your Teacher?
Sign up now to get your weekly assignments delivered, and never lose your homework sheet again!
March 21th
Francisco:
Practice the B section of the Mario song. Start slow, and ensure you can follow every rhythm at your chosen tempo. For the last bar, remember the fingering (1/3, 2/4, 1/3, 2/4).
Piano Adventures: Read page 40.
Maria Ines:
City of Stars: Practice the first 2 phrases with both hands as seen in class. Remember to ‘jump’, making the long-short motion for the eight notes (‘swing’).
Put together both hands for the third phrase.
In the Name of Love: Figure out the chords for the song. Remember that it is in E minor, and they use only three chords (Em being one of them).
Noreet:
Play the C major scale with the fingering taught in class: 1-2-3-1-2-3-4-(1). The thumb goes in C and F at all times.
Piano Adventures: practice p. 59, Octavius the Octopus. Middle C uses thumb (1), and lower C uses pinky (5).
March 29th
Gerardo:
Practice The Girl From Ipanema with the metronome (50 bpm). The idea is that you can keep going even in you make mistakes. Remember to think about what’s next (the triplet, the chord change, or the count) when you have long notes. That will help you to keep pace between parts.
For the A section of the song, try to play the melody while your left hand plays the root note and the 5th of the chord along with the beat.
Please take a look at Tchaikovsky’s Theme to refresh it, since we will work on it next class.
Eliam:
Piano Adventures, p. 42 “The Dance Band”. Read for the next class. Make sure he is counting on the half notes.
Caedan:
“Paper Airplane”, p. 24: read for next week. When you have both hands together, make sure you are playing octaves (same note in both hands, different octaves). Make sure you are playing f in mm. 9-10 and p in mm. 11-12.
Practice the Overworld theme.
If you want, play the Gravity Falls opening and try to figure out the melody!
Zoe:
“Little Piece”: Play section A with a slow metronome. Make sure you are respecting silences and beats. For the B section, practice the jumps between bars 20-21; 22-23.
For mm.27-35, play in a loop until you feel comfortable. Then try the metronome as well.
Bring new songs for the next class.
Preferred Books for Colomba’s Students
Click to buy them here, and they’ll come right to your house! What could be easier?
Belting - A
Written for ages 5 and 6, My First Piano Adventure captures the child’s playful spirit. Fun-filled songs, rhythm games and technique activities develop beginning keyboard skills.
John Thompson's Modern Course for the Piano
Time-tested bestseller around the world! The legendary Modern Course series provides a clear and complete foundation in the study of the piano that enables the student to think and feel musically. It’s known as the method for quick, dedicated learners. It’s also well-regarded as a self-teaching method for the mature player. The First Grade may be preceded by Teaching Little Fingers to Play and/or Teaching Little Fingers to Play More .
Mikrokosmos
Béla Bartók wrote the first four volumes of the Mikrokosmos as a series of beginning piano exercises for his son Péter. The great Hungarian composer’s complete six-volume collection represents one of the most comprehensive anthologies of contemporary technique ever assembled. This edition, consisting of the first two volumes, presents more than 100 pieces of study material suitable for first- and second-year students.
Rational Principles of Pianoforte Technique
