Trixi Field 

Jazz singer, composer, educator

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Practice tips
Information about private tuition
Information about workshops
Trixi's qualifications


Enjoy Making Music

Tuition in piano, voice, baritone ukulele & recorder

Practice Tips


Set practice goals


So often, when we go to do our practice, we don't always think about precisely what we want to gain from the practice session. Have you ever just found yourself sitting down and plodding through your pieces or your technical exercises one after the other without really planning the session?  Here are some tips to make the most of your time:

  • Put your mobile phone or tablet away.  You don't want any pings or messages distracting you
  • Decide how much time you have to spend on your practice.
  • Take a deep breath and relax
  • Decide what you want to achieve today.  Got a couple of scales that are rather challenging?  Learning a piece which has an awkward few bars in it?  Beginning a new piece and it looks rather daunting?
  • Choose a scale or two that you find easy, and use these to warm up your hands.  
  • Choose your challenging item - say, the difficult scale, the awkward few bars, the beginning of your new piece.
  • Don't bite off more than you can chew.  Just aim to nail that one scale, that awkward few bars of the piece you're trying to master, or the first 8 or so bars of your new piece.
  • PRACTISE SLOWLY!  Let your eyes and brain go before your fingers. Don't let your fingers take command - make sure they wait for your command!
  • Make a few notes about what went well, what challenges still need to be tackled
  • Use those notes to review before your next practice, so that your practice continues to remain targeted.



Private Tuition


Trixi offers tuition in all styles of keyboard/piano for all ages, recorder, baritone ukulele (lower-pitched ukulele with guitar-type tuning), jazz for beginners, pop, jazz and musical theatre voice, improvisation, songwriting and composition, general theory and musicianship.  An experienced musician and educator with over 25 years experience as a tutor, she believes in a rounded music education. This includes learning to read music but also to play by ear, learning the music of other people and creating your own.  Most importantly, learning to sing or play a musical instrument should be an enjoyable activity and certainly not a chore.  Activities designed to build musical skills and confidence, and to inspire enjoyment and laughter are an important feature of her tuition style.

Piano/keyboard

Young or old, experienced or a beginner, Trixi is happy to provide you with high-quality tuition. You can learn jazz or classical, and you're welcome to work towards ABRSM examinations, LCM,  Rockschool or Victoria Board examinations if you so wish.  Pupils prepared for examination by Trixi tend to enjoy exceptional success. 

Singing

An enjoyable approach to singing and vocal production, where you can learn songs of your choice - you can even try vocal improvisation. Trixi covers issues such as vocal health, overcoming tension and developing self confidence. You can work towards LCM exams for popular vocals or musical theatre, or Rockschool vocals exams if you wish. Pupils prepared for exams by Trixi tend to enjoy exceptional success. Many of our candidates presented for examination achieve distinctions or high merits. We have also had excellent results in the Oswestry Music Festival.

Musicianship for Jazz Singers

There's more to being a jazz singer than having a great voice!  If you're new to working with combos, this course helps you create and nurture a good relationship with your band - crucial for a good performance - whether you've been working together for a while, or whether you'll be meeting your band a few minutes before your performance. (It does happen!) You'll learn how to communicate intros, endings, tempo and groove with confidence to your band, how to provide charts in your chosen keys, and how to build a good, varied repertoire.

Tenor, Baritone and Bass Ukuleles

These are lovely. compact and portable instruments, and many people don't realise that there's a whole family of them - soprano, concert, tenor, baritone and bass, and lead ukulele. The baritone is particularly useful: it is tuned to the top four strings of the guitar and, can make an excellent accompaniment instrument, and indeed an interesting solo instrument in its own right.  Currently Trixi is not offering exams in ukulele, but hopes to present candidates through the Victoria Board in solo ukulele playing and in the self-accompanied singers' section of the exams they offer upon the student's request.

Recorder Tuition 

This is both for young children who are just starting out in music, or for players who have already learned the rudiments and would like to develop their playing. You can work towards Trinity Guildhall recorder exams if you wish.


Workshops


Details on any forthcoming workshops in the UK or abroad are listed on the GIGS & EVENTS page.


Trixi also offers private workshops in:

voicework for adults

voicework for primary schools

voicework for choirs

voicework in the workplace

songwriting

setting your poetry to music

song meditation.


You are most welcome to contact Trixi to find out how your group can have its own private workshop

Qualifications


Trixi has an MA in music education, an MEd (both University of Wales), and a DipLCM (London College of Music). She has also taken post-graduate courses in creative music making in education (Orff Institute, Mozarteum, Austria), and jazz voice, jazz piano & composition (Trinity College of Music, London). 


With over 25 years' experience tutoring in keyboard/piano and over 20 years tutoring voice, a fully-qualified sound-healing practitioner and tutor for the College of Sound Healing and the Natural Voice Network, Trixi has worked as a regular workshop leader in voice, songwriting, meditation through sound and song, and has run courses in Greece for Skyros, Liberato and Yoga Plus, in Spain for Cortijo Romero and workshops in the UK for the College of Sound Healing's Annual Conferences. She has run many independent retreats in the UK and in Greece.


Trixi has worked within GCE/GCSE awarding bodies and undertaken scrutinies of UK awarding bodies on behalf of the former Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (now Ofqual).


Trixi holds a certificate of Enhanced Disclosure.