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
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February 28th
Francisco:
Piano adventures p. 34-35. “Sailors Tall Tale”: Play from beginning to end. Don’t worry about the ties in the right hand for now. Just remember that the second A in the left hand doesn’t sound (i.e. mm. 1-2, the A in bar 2). If possible, read p. 37.
Mario Song: Practice the A section and the little transition with both hands.
Maria Ines:
“In the stars”: Play complete. Try to memorize the chord sequence. Say or sing the lyrics while playing.
“City of Stars”: Read the first page. I recommend you to listen to the song several times, so you get the “swing” eight note more accurately. The pattern in the left hand is repeated for each chord there.
Noreet:
Compose a song using just the black keys. You can write it if you want.
Piano Adventures p. 57, “A joke for you”. Play for next class. Be careful with the fingering.
Miabella:
Alfred’s Library (Book 1 for the Later Beginner), first song in the staff: Play for next week. Pay attention to the articulation (for the tie: remember to let your hand fall in the first note and lift in the second note). Try to add the dynamics as well (f-p).
March 8th
Gerardo:
Practice the A section of “Tchaikovsky’s theme” with both hands. Always keep counting in your head the six beats, until you can feel you have the rhythms solved. Once you feel comfortable playing with both hands, add the dynamic marks.
(rit.= gradually slowing down the tempo).
Also, take a few minutes of your practice time for The girl from Ipanema. We’ll do 1 make-up class for each piece.
Eliam:
Piano adventures p. 42, “March on D-E-F”. Make sure he’s starting with the right fingers. It would help a lot if the parent could make Eliam explain what he learned and ask questions (‘which note is this one? and this one?’)
Caedan:
Encourage him to hear the Mario Song a few times before practice. Tell him to play slow, so he has time to think about the next note. That way he’ll make fewer mistakes while playing.
About the book, maybe what he can work on in the meantime is to practice identifying the following notes in the staff:
If one of the parents can grab a staff paper and just make him tell you which note you’re writing, that would help him a lot.
I will do such an exercise next week since the make-up class is longer. In the meantime, if you can help him correct mm. 2-4 and m. 6 of “Li’l Liza Jane”, it would be great. If not, I’ll do it in the next class.
Also, encourage him to write another song using only black keys and A. He has a great ear, and he seems to enjoy it.
Zoe:
August: Use a metronome to practice, and practice slower than the original tempo, so you can be precise with the rhythms. Specially in the last part of the song, try to mentally keep track of the sixteenth notes at all times. That will help you with precision.
Memorize the structure so you don’t have to read the lyrics while you play.
Read up to the second line of “Little Piece” (RCM 3).
Preferred Books for Colomba’s Students
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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
