2024 6 18 Ep 50 Unlocking Piano Expression

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Jenny Leigh: Welcome to YourCreativeChord Podcast where we unlock creative flow, celebrate the artist within, and find inspiration in every moment. I'm your host, Jenny Leigh Hodgins, and the voice behind YourCreativeChord, where we blend creative living with transformation. I'm here to guide you with empowering stories, insights, and practical tips to fuel your creative life.

We're in this together, from overcoming stage fright To changing obstacles into possibilities. To finding your unique voice. Let's get started. 

In Episode 49, Musical Expression: A Dynamic Chat With Piano Expert Ashlee Young Pt 1, we discussed Ashlee's brilliant and powerful strategy of channeling the encouragement of a favorite teacher during practice; let's continue exploring with Ashlee in this episode how adult piano learners can unlock their musical potential. Join my chat with YourCreativeChord podcast guest Ashlee Young as we further explore the strategies and mindset shifts that empower piano learners to connect deeply with music. Let's jump back into the conversation with Ashlee…

Love that. As I mentioned in my intro, you have fabulous piano performance accomplishments, including your higher education in piano and performances at prestigious venues like Carnegie Hall, Kennedy Center.

And. You know, I kind of want to zoom in on that a little bit because not everybody has achieved that level of [00:01:00] piano skill or performance achievement or opportunity as you have. Having these achievements, though, under your belt, what do you believe music is all about at that highest level of piano performance?

Ashlee : When I was doing those things, for me, it was all about connection. It was all about being able to kind of like tap into the deepest parts of myself so that I could connect with the music as deeply as possible, and then also figure out how to connect to the people listening through that music.

Unfortunately, I think like a lot of the culture around music mmhmm. Watered down. And maybe like, what is the word I'm looking for? Like, it morphs into something that is not that beautiful, unfortunately, and becomes a lot about perfection or about making sure you're playing all of the correct notes and things like that.

So I think that, um, when you're in like that rigorous environment, it can unfortunately lead to a lot of like perfectionism and things like that. But at the highest level, I do think when I've met other artists and people [00:02:00] that are still performing professionally, like, really, it is all about that, that connection element and that, um, um, Yeah.

Bringing the music to life element for sure. 

Jenny Leigh: So it's interesting because I had a traditional classical background myself, and I think what you were talking about earlier kind of, for me, it's reminiscent of what I experienced. It's in the classical piano world in higher education and elsewhere. There tends to be.

Um, an initial kind of, and maybe it's just society itself, and the comparison thing, and where is that person's level of technique, and you know, where's their level of virtuosic ability, those things, the flashier things seem to be where people's focus lies there, but you're saying, and I agree with you, like, and I'm sure other people do too, that, that when you really look at it.

performers who have a longer lifespan as a performer, their focus is on exactly what you focus on, on connection. So I think that's really important for [00:03:00] people to hear, because especially when you're new or intermediate or returning or a piano teacher trying to fit in your practice or whatever, we don't have that necessarily a ability to have the luxury of time to put a lot of practice into things, to reach a level of virtuosic.

You know, accomplishment sometimes. So it's really important to hear that even virtuosic performers, they didn't focus on their technique. I mean, they practiced it, obviously, but their focus in performance as yours has been and is, is on the connection. But for you personally, At the highest level of your performances or your, um, skill development as a pianist, what was your approach to forming connections?

You talked about connecting with the music, connecting in yourself, connecting to the audience. Can you talk a little bit about that? 

Ashlee : Sure. Yeah. And this is where, I mean, I think this is where it gets really fun because this is like the less tangible stuff. But for me, when I'm looking to bring that high level of emotion to a piece, you know, I had a [00:04:00] teacher.

One of my favorite teachers who summed it up really perfectly, and when I would go into even competitions, she would say like, you know, the only thing that matters when you play for other people is Do they feel something? So that is kind of how I would always approach when I get to those, obviously, in the beginning stages of learning a piece, there's so much brain space taken up by just like figuring out the notes and, and the coordination and all of the, all the things that have to happen.

But once you get to those later stages where you can play through the piece, there are a lot of, I think, tangible and less tangible ways that you can go about it. So some of my favorite things to do to bring about that high level emotion are one to, to, to, connect back to that original love of the piece.

Like, what did I feel when I first heard it? And for me, oftentimes, like, I get stories, I think, in stories. And so I always imagine, like, a question that makes that more tangible is if this piece were the soundtrack to a movie, What's happening in that movie? And not just like, oh, it's a movie about war. I want to know, like, what's happening in the first act?

What's happening in the second act? What, [00:05:00] who, where's the unrequited love, right? Who's, who's living, who's passing on, like, all of the human things, because We're talking about connection, and when you zoom out to all all forms of art, it's really about like that shared humanity. And I know that that might sound like very ethereal or like, less tangible, but really, that's what it is.

Every piece of music is going to be communicating love or loss or grief or joy or happiness, like, those basic human emotions that we come back to again and again in all of our stories in all pieces of music in all songs with lyrics. Right? Like, those are the themes that keep coming up. And so asking yourself what the soundtrack.

Or what the movie is, that this is the soundtrack to, I think is a great way to do it. And then, you know, you can practice. How do I make that actually happen with dynamics, with articulation, with rubato, with tempo changes and things like that. And then when it gets to the point where I'm actually playing a piece, so I'm going to perform for people are going to listen to me play, I What always happens for me is I [00:06:00] imagine that I, like the second that I'm on the stage and I'm sitting down at the bench, I create this bubble kind of around me and the audience.

And I think, okay, for this amount of time, I'm kind of like the, I don't want to sound like too, you know, arrogant, but it's like, I'm like the creator of this bubble and everything that happens in this bubble. It is a matter of, like, how I do this. Am I going to rush through it? Am I going to psych myself out?

Or am I going to be able to really connect back to that story? Connect back to those original feelings from when I first heard the piece and, like, Help other people experience that as well. And so in that bubble, I oftentimes I'm trying to create that story or create the soundtrack to that movie. And I think just taking that minute when you sit down on the bench, whether you're playing for yourself or 100 people or one friend, taking that minute and like taking three deep breaths.

Connecting back with that feeling of the music. And then the other piece of advice, I always give a start slower than you think you need to start and then go for it. Right. And then everything can happen, but that's, that's kind of [00:07:00] like, you know, how I practice those concepts of musicality. And then how you bring them in when you're actually going to play for someone.

Jenny Leigh: I love that. Basically, and a similar experience for myself, you're setting your intent. 

Ashlee : Exactly. 

Jenny Leigh: In that moment. And however you approach that, we might sound a little woo woo for some of you, but I 100 percent resonate with that. It's all about, so many people are kind of disconnected from the music when they're learning to perform and they're more concerned about I explained from my perspective.

You're more concerned about your vanity and your ego in that moment. If you're worried or you're nervous, then you are about the intent of the music, the intent of the composer, your intent as actually was explaining as you're talking about here to connect with the audience and connect the audience to that.

Yeah. Intent through the music. Right. So I love how I've never used that idea of putting a bubble around the audience and me, but I love how you didn't, because I can hear some [00:08:00] adults, learners thinking, yeah, yeah. Put a bubble around me. , 

Ashlee : yes, 

, 

right. 

Jenny Leigh: Protect me from the audience, you know? But you put the audience in with you in that bubble.

Yes. And then you are the director of the what's going on inside of that bubble. I love how you do it that way. And just a little, we're kind of going in a little bit of a circle, and I love it because. One of the earlier questions that I had for you was how can we use creative imagination and I loved your idea to get, not just for performance, but even just in your practice for learners to look at a piece of music as if it was a character or a book or a story or a movie or whatever.

Pull out all those nuances in that and I love that because it really segues into how do you build connection when you're actually ready to perform that music. That was awesome. Another soundbite. I love it. I think we covered this question, but I'm just gonna hit the nail on the head hard here. What do you see as the biggest obstacle to adult piano [00:09:00] learners or players expressing themselves confidently and musically?

Through your work with many piano learners. What do you think is the biggest obstacle? 

Ashlee : Can I give you many? I'll give you a couple because I think they're definitely connected. So, I think when, I mean, when we come to the actual, like, practicing, I think there's a lot of misinformation, unfortunately, about.

what actually moves the needle in your piano practice. So, you know, making sure that you're approaching your practice and you really are, when you're sitting at the piano, whether it's for five minutes or an hour, you're doing it in an effective way. So going slow enough that you're not making a ton of mistakes over and over and over again, like practicing for a high level.

Jenny Leigh: I'm going to stop you. Highlight that. I'm going to, I just want to stop to highlight what Ashlee just said. Going slow. 

Ashlee : Yes. 

Jenny Leigh: Going slow. 

Ashlee : That's the end of the podcast. Yeah, going slowly. So you're not making those repeated mistakes that get ingrained as a part of your [00:10:00] memory. Um, and, you know, making sure like one of the other things in, in the practice of it is people often like don't count out loud or kind of ignore the rhythm aspect, which then.

makes it so the hand coordination isn't great. And so there's a lot of things in practice that I think you have to make sure you're approaching practice in an effective way, for sure. That is part of it. And then when it comes to wanting to play confidently in front of others, I do think that that is a practice also.

And I don't think people realize that you actually have to practice that skill set. So immersing yourself in communities where you can practice, whether it's posting a video in a Facebook group or joining a piano program or even connecting with another friend that maybe is also learning how to do something artistic and playing for people.

And again, um, to my previous answer, approaching it with curiosity and not using those. So I don't want to say like you shouldn't do these quote, unquote test performances to, like, be hard on yourself or to berate yourself but to approach it with curiosity and remain neutral and say, how did that go? Well, I started a way [00:11:00] faster tempo.

And then if you get curious about that, you can say, okay, well, when I played for this friend, I started way too fast. What are some? Actual strategies I could come up with to maybe not do that next time. Maybe I could start with deep breathing. Maybe I could try starting at half tempo. That's my hack. Maybe I could, you know, sing the first phrase in my head before I start.

So I make sure I'm at the right tempo in my head before I play. And so if you approach it with that curiosity, and you actually give yourself the opportunities to practice performing. Then you can actually like, you know, hone in on that skill set. And that's something I think like when I was in college, I didn't just get to the point that I played at these venues.

I was literally performing twice a week, every single week for my entire undergraduate degree. So by the time I was performing, it wasn't like this magic thing. It was like something I was doing hours and hours of the week. And so I was practicing that skill set. 

Jenny Leigh: I so love that you hit that point because so many people have this performance anxiety.

And so [00:12:00] what do they do? They do the absolute worst thing that thing that they can do. They avoid it at all costs. And the point is it's preparation and practicing in a perfect example that you were performing twice a week. practicing as you were doing your performances, you know, there. And you know, that's why I was going to say all those wonderful, um, ways that you talked about approaching it neutrally, using your curiosity to figure out, okay, I played it kind of fast for my friends.

So how can I make that not happen next time? Well, First, I want to back up and reiterate what you said, you practice performing as frequently as you possibly can and use like your strategy, actually, to use the data of what's happening when you practice to then get results. engage your curiosity and figure out how you can do it better the next time.

So I love all of that. So the biggest obstacles to adult piano players you were mentioning, um, when they're trying to express themselves [00:13:00] confidently and musically are, if I heard you correctly, first of all, prepare really well. And then use that, um, um, these are my words, but this is how I'm perceived that you were saying, use the data from performances to question what you can do to improve it.

In other words, evaluate yourself and come up with ways to improve it, as you mentioned. And then also practicing performance frequently, whether it's in a group, like you said, or for your friend or just hit the record button on something, because even that is a, is a performance in a distraction. Thank you.

So did we cover all the bells in terms of, um, answering the question? Okay. 

Ashlee : Yes. You, you recapped it perfectly. And I think the one last thing I'll say on that is that. The other thing that I think is really important for every single person to know when they're trying to learn how to play the piano is that nobody's performance is ever going to be perfect and perfection is not actually the goal.

Because if perfection is the goal, you really miss out on the opportunity to learn from your mistakes. And [00:14:00] so when you are performing over and over again, it's not that you're going to reach perfection. It's not that it's, I won't even say that it's going to get easier. I mean, hopefully it does, but the only thing that I can guarantee about performances is that unexpected things will happen.

And when you are performing often, you get more comfortable with the discomfort. of the unexpected things happening. And that's what you're doing. You're building that relationship with like handling discomfort. And if you can do that, then you can perform, right? You can totally do it. Once you acknowledge that the discomfort will be there and you make that discomfort your friend, then you're good to go.

Jenny Leigh: That is such good advice. Another soundbite. Oh my gosh. I love it. Just because You know, I think a lot of new and returning piano learners want to avoid discomfort and then they're wondering why they're not making progress or enjoying their piano practice routine. And that's it. Exactly. You're, you're establishing the discipline to be able to endure and improve your progress through experiencing the discomfort that you just described.

[00:15:00] Oh, gosh, sound bites all over the place. Really good kernels of advice for piano learners. And for me, too. And also, I'm just going to add, and again, I'm sorry, we, to the listeners, we're doing kind of circular. Um, conversations because a lot of these questions from the way I'm looking at it, they kind of pull out what we've already talked about and they're kind of going around in circles in some ways, but they're all related.

Yes, exactly. It's important. They're all interconnected. But I think one of the biggest obstacles to adult piano players expressing themselves confidently or musically is what we already talked about. You mentioned at the very beginning that adults tend to be harder on themselves and that blocks their ability to, to endure the discomfort and work on and be curious and work on what they need to improve when you let go of that constant judgment or comparison voice, and you really hunker down and focus on these tips that Ashlee's talking about, it relieves a lot of that pressure. And then you have more chance to be able to express yourself more confidently, I think, but I [00:16:00] do think one of the biggest obstacles, at least from what I've seen in my years, is that inner critic that adults have.

I don't see that or never saw that from children or from younger people. It's adults primarily. It's just what we learn, you know, through society. So, um, anyway, 

Ashlee : I think you're right, because sorry, if, if you, if that inner critic is so strong, you'll never get to the point that you've been trying to perform, right?

Or you'll never even get to the point that you learn a whole piece, like, if that inner critic is strong enough. And so you're right that that is also the precursor to anything I said, is that if that critic prevents you from doing it, then you're not, you're not even getting to those points. 

Jenny Leigh: But you actually said it first at the beginning of the conversation.

I was just regurgitating what you said. So it's all you. Anyway, these are all Ashlee's tips, just FYI. 

Midtro Break:
Just a quick break to share some exciting news. On my birthday, July 16, I'll be launching the revised paperback edition of my book, Start Piano: What You Need [00:17:00] for Successful Learning. This book is your trusted guide to unlocking the secrets of a successful piano learning foundation.

With strategies, tips for finding the right teacher and method, and setting up effective piano practice routines, it's also a perfect resource for piano educators to gift or recommend to students. Plus, right now, you can get a sneak peek with our free Unlock Your Piano Potential eBook. You can download that today at yourcreativechord. com/pianostrategies 

Stay tuned for exciting updates, exclusive bonuses straight from my book, and everything you need to keep making beautiful piano music. Until book launch day, July 16, my birthday, keep nurturing your creativity and listen each Tuesday [00:18:00] for a deeper dive into making confident piano progress.

Let's get back to the show. 

Jenny Leigh: So on that note, what steps do you think adult piano players need to take to reach a high level of expression through music? We kind of touched on that a little bit through your take, but what do you, what would you advise adult piano players do to reach a high level of expression through their musical performance?

Ashlee : Yeah, so for me, I mean, it kind of goes back to to that answer of like, making sure the practice is effective. And this is what I teach adult piano players to do. So I have something called the confidence road map, which is kind of like all of the milestones that you have to hit with a piece. So, 1st is like rhythm, understanding the rhythm of the piece and the notes and fingering and the road map goes on and on.

And the last stage of that road map is confident musical expression. Right. So if you're learning it correctly, and you are, in fact, going through all of those milestones, so you're practicing effectively and efficiently, you're giving yourself the best shot, you're preparing the best you can, then by the time you learn a piece [00:19:00] with that level of understanding, right, then you are prepared.

To perform it confidently, and so then that becomes the work of like, okay, now practicing the performing now the mindset issues that come along with performing and being able to work through those. And so then having a place that you can go to play regularly or to engage with other people to do that regularly.

Exactly. Um, is key. And I've found, you know, it's really helpful for people to have a community of people that are also along the same journey. It's a different experience to play for your spouse or a friend who can say, yeah, that was awesome. Versus to play for someone. Yeah. Versus play. I mean, both are great.

But then when you can play with someone that's like, wow, I understand. The path you're on, because I'm also on it. And I know how hard it is to do that. That also can, can be meaningful in, in a pure, 

Jenny Leigh: pure feedback. Perfect. I love that. Beautiful advice. And on that note, it segues perfectly into my next question, community engagement and accountability are core values at YourCreativeChord.

And piano learning [00:20:00] is, as we mentioned before, a more solitary activity than most other musical instrumental learners. You know, they're in bands or orchestras, and we're basically on our own. You just touched on that, you know, the idea of community. How do you foster a sense of community among your students?

How can we leverage community support to motivate and encourage piano learners as they work toward establishing their strong foundation and nurturing their musical expression? You just touched on that. I that, but talk a little bit about how you do that with what your offerings are so they understand how you can, how they can foster a sense of community for themselves.

Ashlee : Yeah. So, I mean, one way that I do it is I have a Facebook group, I think same as you, and we do something called fearless Friday posts and it's a little bit of a cheeky name because everyone's fearful. Um, Yeah. Right? It's not about being fearless. Uh, we just called it out, right? Everybody's gonna be afraid to post in those posts because you share a video and you specify if you want feedback or not, or if you're just sharing with the group, and it's scary for everybody, but people show up and do it very [00:21:00] consistently, and there are people who, like, I remember telling me before, like, there's no way I could ever post to a That would be my biggest fear, is posting a video, and now they post them regularly.

So there's that. And then in my program, my paid program where I work with adult piano players, you know, we have an actual online community that is exclusively for them, where we do a lot of fun things like a book club and like, where they can ask questions and get feedback and all that kind of stuff.

And then I teach, the way that I teach nowadays is in group classes. And I will do master class style classes, which is where people are getting one on one feedback in a group. And I always describe it as like, nobody thinks that's going to be very helpful. It's hard to imagine how that's helpful. And in fact, I just, I don't want to show up to the group.

That sounds scary. But every single person that has ever joined my program is one of the biggest pieces of the feedback I get is like, I had no idea how profound it could be. To hear other people get feedback, because to your point about mindset, your ego is not involved when you're hearing someone else [00:22:00] play and you're hearing someone else get feedback.

And because we're humans and we want that connection, it's very easy to hear someone else get feedback and take that feedback and apply it. To where it needs to be applied in your own learning journey. 

Jenny Leigh: Be in that neutral zone that you've recommended. 

Ashlee : Exactly. And so you can stay in that neutral zone and you hear all these people get feedback.

Um, and that's, that's a kind of community that I think is really powerful. And then also, you're getting that feedback too. And you're giving other people the opportunity to stay in their neutral zones and you're getting practice receiving feedback and getting those actual strategies and, and, um, you know, You know, practice methods that will help you get better as well.

Jenny Leigh: I love that. And it's funny. It reminds me of hot seat coaching. If listeners have ever heard of, you know, when you're in the business world, you do often you hire business mentors and they often do group coaching and you'll be in the hot seat one week and other entrepreneurs have to listen in. And weigh in on their peer feedback for you, as well as the coach giving their expert feedback for you.

It's the master class group [00:23:00] setting for piano learners that you're describing that you do in your program is very similar to that and I've experienced that i've also taught, you know group lessons myself for for all my students in over years But it is so helpful not just All the reasons that you touched upon, but they're getting performance practice, they're getting clear feedback, which they seem to really crave.

They want to hear from other people, particularly you, the educator, they want to hear how they're doing and how they can improve it. But I think one of the most valuable things from group lessons like that is the peer feedback that they get, not just the feedback they're getting themselves, but when you're a listener to your peer and you're, Able to get in that neutral zone.

You don't have your ego involved. You can hear and relate what you need in your learning to what you're seeing your peer piano player is doing and getting, and you're hearing the feedback from the teacher or the other students in the class. It's just a really, um, non pressured kind of environment to learn and to get into that neutral zone.[00:24:00] 

Also, I think we hit this a little bit on the head. I'm gonna hit it again, but, piano learning is, can be a lonely thing if you're just doing it by yourself all the time. So of course we have performances and sharing the joy of, you know, and the beauty of music with other people. But when you have that community to be able to share not only your piano playing and learning, but when you get to hear other people, wow, the, It just exponentially expands your, your, um, level of learning and your enjoyment of it because you're getting so much different feedback from it.

And that goes into your ability to go back to your piano session and take what you've learned and move the needle forward a little bit on your own. So I love that. Tell us what the name of that program is, though, that you offer. 

Ashlee : It's called Casual to Confident Piano Player. 

Jenny Leigh: Thank you. And it's going to be in the show notes.

I just want to make sure everybody knows what it's called. Okay. So I want to say this has been, I mean, that's why, ladies and gentlemen, when I announced in my introduction, Ashlee Young, as vibrantly energetic, [00:25:00] like when I listened to your podcast or your, I had to literally slow the speed down. 

Ashlee : You're not the only one.

Jenny Leigh: You're very energetic and I love that. It's, the cool thing about it is that you can always rewind. Yes, you can always rewind. 

Ashlee : And you can always slow it down, right? On YouTube and on the podcast, you can listen at half tempo. 

Jenny Leigh: But you do pack a punch. And I want to kudos to you again because all the videos that I've heard or seen of yours and all the Podcast episodes that I've heard, they're jam packed full of really high value tips and content and educational, um, ideas and encouragement for people.

So I'm really grateful that you've come to share that with us. Yeah, no, thank you. And so I want to say also Ashlee's ideas you've shared today on piano practice and learning approaches and strategies. I really thank you for all that, because I know that it's. Providing valuable perspectives that are meaningful to all the piano playing listeners that are here today with us.

And before we wrap up, do you have any [00:26:00] final thoughts or advice for our audience as they continue on their piano learning journey, focusing on building a solid foundation and nurturing their creative expression and discipline? 

Ashlee : Yeah, I'll leave everybody with one more thought, kind of in the vein of your philosophy about mindset, which is that I like to remind all of the piano people that I work with that I've never encountered someone that inherently lacks the ability to play the piano, wherever you are in your journey.

I have always. It's seen any type of person able to play the piano as long as they are willing to stick with it and be consistent and keep trying. And so if you're encountering roadblocks or you're feeling like it's not going how you want it to go, it's not because there's something wrong with you inherently.

It's likely just because you need access to some different information. Right, or you need to tweak your practice or the way that you're approaching things a little bit, but there's nothing wrong with you and you can absolutely reach your piano goals. I like to remind people, I can't promise you when it'll happen, but I can promise you if you [00:27:00] practice correctly and you keep practicing, it will happen eventually.

Jenny Leigh: That is so important because I'm sure you've heard as I have many horror stories from adult piano learners who, you Whatever happened in their histories, it's created kind of a mental block and they think that they can't break through and you're absolutely right. A lot of people think that, you know, I've heard so many people say, I don't have any talent.

Talent's overrated. It's putting yourself in the consistent seat and like Ashlee was talking about the 15 minute a day routine, a lifelong practice and cutting yourself some slack mentally and just keeping at it. And like she just said in her final tip there, if you're still blocked. Go check out Ashlee Young's links and get involved in some of these wonderful opportunities.

Um, so anyway, I just wanted to say so much for sharing your expertise based thoughts with our audience today and Ashlee, your insights and your attitude are super inspiring and your energy definitely makes piano learning exciting and [00:28:00] fun, though. You might have to slow the speed down if you're if you're like me, I hope you do continue your good work with many students and piano educators and entrepreneurs and because the world really does need the effective path and the beauty of the musical learning adventure that you provide.

And if YourCreativeChord listeners would like to connect with you, can you just tell us how they can do so? Sure. Yeah. 

Ashlee : So I have, I think you said you put it in the show notes. I have my YouTube channel. That's a great place to go. There's literally hundreds of videos on all topics. So going there, if you haven't already, that's a great place to go.

Um, I have a free Facebook community where we have those fearless Friday posts and where I post about other events and things like that. I post up on Instagram pretty regularly as well. Um, and then if you're hearing this before June 12th, Casual To Confident Piano Player enrollment is open. So enrollment opens twice a year, and this will be the last time that it's open for 2024.

I'm like, what year is it? Yeah, for this year, this will be the last time that it's open. [00:29:00] Um, so if you are really wanting to connect in a super high value piano community and kind of get access to what I was talking about, that is the spot to do that. 

Jenny Leigh: In 2024, just to be clear. 

Ashlee : Yes, exactly. 

Jenny Leigh: Okay. Thank you.

And as we wrap up today's episode, I want to sincerely thank again, our wonderful guest, Ashlee Young, for sharing her wealth of knowledge and expertise with us. Ashlee, honestly, you, you are inspiring and you have some really great, um, ways of expressing and teaching the music world to people in a very accessible way.

I'm sure our listeners have gained a valuable understanding of the world of piano learning and teaching from you today, Ashlee's energetic and compassionate wisdom and clarity of approach to piano learning reinforced the importance of embracing creativity, motivation, and community support in piano learning.

Again, I express my sincere gratitude to Ashlee for her valuable contributions to this episode and taking time to speak with us today. And to [00:30:00] those listening, thank you for joining us. If you enjoyed today's episode and find it valuable, be sure to subscribe to YourCreativeChord Podcast for more inspiring conversations and insights into the place where creativity and inspiration meet transformation.

Remember, learning the piano is not just about mastering the keys. It's about discovering the beauty of your authentic expression and opening the path to your full musical potential. If you'd like to go further into the world of piano progress, please check out the show notes for ways to connect with Ashlee Young and all the things piano.

Until next time, I encourage you to listen to your heart and go after your musical dreams. Talk to you in a few days. Thank you again, Ashlee. Remember, on my birthday, July 16, my new book, Start Piano: What You Need for Successful Learning, launches in paperback on Amazon. Mark your calendars and thank you for making this launch so special.[00:31:00] 

In the meantime, don't miss out on the free Unlock Your Piano Potential ebook available right now at YourCreativeChord.com/pianostrategies 

It's packed with valuable insights to kickstart your piano momentum. To learn about the paperback and purchase from July 16, visit YourCreativeChord.com/books

Talk with you soon.