:: Simply Music

By: Carmine Pascuzzi

Simply Music is a revolutionary, Australian-developed piano and keyboard method that presents a breakthrough in music education. It pioneers a new direction in music learning for all ages by looking at music in a totally different light. After much success in the US, the method is gaining recognition in Australia for completely transforming the learning and teaching process, and, in addition, is making remarkable inroads for those with Autism, Tourette’s, ADD, ADHD and other cognitive, behavioural and physical challenges.

Simply Music is the brainchild of Neil Moore. Born and raised in Melbourne’s western suburbs, Moore based the method on his childhood experience of hearing music and visualising shapes and patterns. Now celebrating its 10-year anniversary, Simply Music has become the largest playing-based music education institution in the world, with trained and licensed Simply Music educators at 325 location over three continents.

A turning point for Moore was when he successfully taught a blind boy to play, proving that Simply Music has broken down the barriers associated with traditional teaching methods. “Everybody is musical - nobody needs to fail - anyone can easily learn to play an entire repertoire of great-sounding music” stated Moore. In stark contrast to traditional ‘reading-based’ learning where you are taught to read music before you play, Simply Music is a ‘playing-based’ method that introduces concepts and perspectives that transform the process, and culturally redefine who is capable of successfully teaching and playing music. As a result, beginning students play contemporary, classical, gospel, accompaniment and blues piano from their very first lessons.

Simply Music temporarily delays music reading, and immerses students in the actual experience of playing. It begins by distilling entire pieces into simple shapes, patterns and concepts that students can clearly see, and easily play on the keyboard. With no attention on music reading, students are free to relate directly to the piano and develop a natural connection to the instrument unlike its competitors.

As children first discover language and freely talk for years before learning to read and spell, Simply Music adopts this concept by teaching students to play music before they read. At the age of 7, Moore began formal piano lessons and spent many years in this environment, he did not learn to read music during that time. Instead, he intuitively saw a direct correlation between the shapes and patterns he would visualise, their placement on the keyboard, the order in which notes were played and the subsequent outcome of immediately playing comparatively advanced music. Moore spent most of his life exploring this ‘playing-based’ approach to music, and over a period of years formally codified his perspective into a comprehensive and fully structured curriculum for both students and teachers. He officially launched Simply Music in January 1998.

The Simply Music Teacher Program looks at music in a completely new light, allowing teachers, from their teens to 70’s, who might otherwise have never been capable of teaching music, to now successfully teach Simply Music’s playing-based approach with or without qualifications or prior music training. Approximately 6,000 students are currently learning with teachers throughout the world, and more than 25,000 families have participated in Simply Music’s self-instructional DVD program. Plans are now underway for Simply Music to expand into Europe and Asia. Currently there are 130 Simply Music teachers in Australia. Students can learn to play piano either with Simply Music’s Learn-at-Home DVD program, or through a Simply Music Licensed Teacher.