Instructions on How to Prepare
for Piano Exchange

The following are the general steps for preparing and uploading a video lesson for Mr. Peskanov to review and critique.

1.    Contact Mr. Peskanov to discuss the details associated with the proposed lesson, including but not limited to the following:

a.    A biographical sketch of the student and his or her musical goals.

b.    The purpose of the lesson. What do you want to accomplish?

c.    The music to be presented for review and the student's proficiency with it at this time. (A lesson may include more than one musical selection.) Mention the edition you are using.

d.    Identify what, if any, music needs to be scanned for Mr. Peskanov.

e.    The length of the lesson to be sent (up to 30 minutes).

f.     Specify the delivery format desired. (See Note 1 below)

g.    Agree upon a delivery date, especially if there are stringent requirements.

2.    Plan the video lesson in advance of the video recording session itself.

a.    Include a segment, or segments on technique?

b.    Short segments (five minutes, or so) are usually effective, but the piece on which you are working may dictate a shorter, or longer, segments.

c.    What questions do you want to ask?

3.    Record the video lesson.

a.    Again, preferably, break it into short segments.

b.    Announce each segment, including:

                                              i.     the starting and ending measures

                                             ii.     the goal of the segment. Specify what the student is trying to accomplish in the segment, e.g., 'right hand alone, slowly', 'at tempo without music', or 'performance ready audition', etc.

4.    Transfer the video file to your computer.

5.    (Optional) Edit the raw movie.

a.    Add basic title information

                                              i.     Teacher

                                             ii.     Student

                                           iii.     Composer and music identification

                                            iv.     Recording date

b.    If needed, convert the movie and store it on your computer.

6.    Rename the video/movie file as yyyymmdd_teacher_student_topic leaving the file extension as it is, e.g., 20100301_JaneDoe_JohnDoe_Bach-Courante.mov.

7.    Copy, do not move, the video file to the DropBox folder YourNameForPeskanov on your computer. (see Note 2 below)

 

8.    (Optional) Scan the appropriate, in PDF format, as identified in step 1.d. above.

9.    (Optional) Copy, do not move, the PDF file, e.g., Bach-Courante.pdf, to the DropBox folder YourNameForPeskanov on your computer. (see Note 2 below)

10. The upload will start automatically when your computer is connected to the Internet. The upload time depends upon your Internet connection speed and the size of the file(s) being uploaded. It can easily exceed an hour, even for a high-speed connection.

 

Note 1: There are three basic options to consider.

1.   The first option includes the raw video segments of Mr. Peskanov's review and critique. Mr. Peskanov will provide these to you via the DropBox to which you have given him access. You could then view these segments in their raw, unedited form on your computer, or manipulate them with your own tools to transform them into whatever format you desire.

2.   The second option is an unedited DVD prepared for you, which includes the original video submitted by you to Mr. Peskanov for review, and the raw, unedited video segments of Mr. Peskanov's review and critique. The finished DVD will be mailed to you.

3.    The third option is an edited DVD prepared for you, which includes the video segments submitted by you for review and the video segments of Mr. Peskanov's review and critique. The DVD would include the appropriate menus for easy access to the various segments of the lesson and critique. The finished DVD will be mailed to you.

 

Note 2: A DropBox is only created one time, and it is free to use as long as you do not exceed 2GB. This limitation will not impact this video exchange process. Mr. Peskanov will delete the video lesson from the DropBox after he has downloaded it to his computer for review. Likewise, you will delete any files he sends to you after you have downloaded them to your computer. This enables you to easily share files of any type with Mr. Peskanov. The steps for doing so are:

1.    Use your web browser to access the DropBox website, dropbox.com.

2.    Follow the instructions on the site to setup a free drop box.

3.    Create a folder named YourNameForPeskanov.

4.    Share this folder with Mr. Peskanov via email, as instructed on the DropBox site.