March 2020 Member Spotlight - Paul Toal

[Chris W]

Hey guys,

Hope you are all having a good weekend and enjoying playing the piano! 

The member spotlight for the month of March goes to someone who gives a lot of encouragement and support to other members and frequently posts videos of his playing......

So the Member Spotlight for March goes to Paul Toal!

Thank you Paul for all your contributions to PWJ and what you do for this community! Here is his spotlight:

1.    Where are you from?

Originally, I was born and raised in a fishing town on the east coast of England called Scarborough. I lived there until around 21 when I moved just south of the wonderful medieval city of York, about 60 miles from Scarborugh.

2.    When did you start playing piano?

I grew up with a piano in the house. My Mum was a great pianist and both of my sisters learned. Me, I didn't. As a child I didn't stick to anything. At primary school, I started the violin and quit it, then the drums, just the same. So, my parents didn't want me to have piano lessons and quit like everything else. However, I liked tinkering. As a child, I messed around on the piano. I could play simple melodies with one finger, just the right hand. Mum had some simple books (Edelweiss, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Tie a Yellow Ribbon, Summer Holiday etc) and I used to play the right hand melody from those. Around 18, my nextdoor neighbour was a lovely, if not slightly eccentric piano teacher and I decided to learn properly. She was definitely a ‘classical’ piano teacher but brought my playing on in leaps and bounds. I found it difficult given all of my own bad habits. For example, comparing my playing to my Mums. When she played, her hands always looked natural. She always had her hands in the right place at the right time and never seemed to be stretching or struggling. When I play, my hands look like a fight between two spiders, running over the keys. However, despite that, I did a few grades with her (ABRSM g3,4,5 and ABRSM Theory 3&5) before work got in the way and I was working away a fair amount. I stopped lessons since I wasn't practising enough. 

As my girls grew up they showed an interest in music. These days, both play a bit of piano but my eldest's primary instruments are flute and bass guitar, whilst my youngest is trumpet. When they started lessons I got the bug again and restarted my own lessons. Interestingly, the next teacher I had, I would say wasn't a classical teacher but more of a musician. He taught far closer to Jonny's style of improv. With him it was all about chords, progressions, and lead sheets. However, either I couldn't digest his content or he wasn't very good at getting his message over, but I struggled with him and quit. By this time, both of my girls were getting better and nights would often end up with dueting (or trios) sessions with me on the piano and them on their instruments. I needed/wanted to improve my playing. I had always had in my mind that ABRSM grade 8 was unobtainable for me. It was this out of reach goal that I never thought I would achieve. However, purely by chance I was in a music shop one weekend with my girls and just decided to browse my next grade’s (6) piano exam pieces. One of them was "Somewhere over the rainbow". At that point, and based purely on that one piece and the fact that I love the tune, I decided to take my grade 6. Mad eh? I restarted lessons at the music studios where my daughters went for their lessons. I found a lovely (again classic teacher) who got me through my grade 6. All of a sudden, grade 8 was looking attainable. I looked at g7 but didn't like the pieces so took the plunge and decided to go straight for g8. 18 months later, in Autumn 2016, I finally passed my grade 8. I was ecstatic. I only just scraped through, but a pass is a pass as my teacher says. It's funny, looking back when I started my lessons, I used to think that anyone at g8 would be able to play anything. Just pick up a book and play. I know now that this isn't the case. I was done with exams but wanted to carry on improving. 

I can't remember how I found Jonny, but I came across his website some time ago. I bought a couple of lessons (Endless Epic Chords if I remember correctly), but I never actually did the courses. Then I came across it again a couple of years later. I took the trial, bought the membership and have never looked back. 

3.    What got you interested in learning music?

I think it was the fact I grew up around music. As well as playing around on the piano, one of my sisters started the flute. So, there was always some sort of music going on. She was in the school band and we would travel to various concerts, performances, and competitions. I used to love the sound the orchestra made.
    

4. What is your favorite style of piano music? 

Oh wow, what a hard question. I like all sorts and my book case is filled with lots of different styles. I think, like most people, I go through phases of liking (and therefore playing) different genres. In classical, I like Burgmuller, Clementi’s Sonatinas, and some of the modern composers like Yiruma. I learned quite a few Einaudi pieces, but now I find them too repetitive.

Believe it or not, I didn’t used to like jazz, either to play or listen to, but I started coming around to it around 10 years ago. My favourite type of jazz is when you hear a popular tune being ‘jazzed up’. I still find some jazz a bit too abstract and just too much like noise!

I also absolutely love musicals.

4.    Do you have any favorite pieces to play?

My absolute favourite piece to play is Go The Distance and not just because I’m being asked for this spotlight. I have been so tied to sheet music, that being able to sit down and play without the music is so liberating, and there is just something about Jonny’s arrangement of that tune and how it builds and builds that I’m drawn to. I absolutely love it, although my 15yo daughter says Jonny plays it too fast . I also enjoy Cruella Da Ville, but I still make a mess of it every time I play it. 

In my sheet music, I have certain books that I will quite regularly grab off the shelf and play. These include Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables. My other favourite piece to play is Jar of Hearts. When I play that my two daughters will often sing along and both harmonise each other. It’s a very special moment. I would love to record it for you all to see, but I’m not allowed.

6. What has most helped you most in improving as a pianist?

Other than the “P” word, PRACTICE, having a good teacher has been crucial. As I mentioned above, I’ve had a few different teachers over the years and having someone who can disseminate the information in a clear, concise, structured, and most importantly, fun way is critical. Of course, now that I have found PWJ, I won’t be going anywhere else. Jonny has all of those facets in bucket loads.

7. Do you have any tips for other PWJ members?

Something I realised quite recently actually. PWJ is a journey and a long-term commitment. There is so much content and so much to learn that it is easy to either get overwhelmed or distracted, or to try and go too far beyond your current ability. Within the community there are always people working on something that you haven’t done yet, or haven’t come across before. The temptation to ‘give it a go’ is always there. However, I’ve realised that I need to focus. I don’t have endless hours to practice, with other commitments also pulling on my time. Therefore, I think it is important to stick to what you are working on and make a note of anything you see/hear that you want to come back to later. Of course, don’t be 100% rigid on this. If someone starts a challenge that really takes your fancy, join in and make it part of your current attention. Also, know your current ability. If you are a beginner, don’t try a course way above you. You will only get despondent when you can’t master it. I know that I would love to improve my ragtime, but I know that I probably won’t get to that this year. Similarly, when Jonny starts talking about some of the jazz theory it still blows my mind. But, I know I will get there eventually, with patience, practice, and persistence.

8. What is your favorite part of the PWJ Membership?

There are two things I love about PWJ. The first is the fantastic content that is created and released so regularly. You can pretty much learn any skill, style, technique you want, as there is a course for it. The second is the community. Everyone is SO supportive. There are no egos, no competitiveness. Everyone is genuinely striving to be their best, whilst helping and encouraging everyone else. You are all amazing.

9. What are your future music goals?

I don’t have a fixed goal. I still have so much to learn and as long as I am enjoying it, and am able to carry on, then I will continue to play and strive to improve. That being said, one of my main aims for joining PWJ was (and still is), to be able to take a tune, ‘jazz it up’, improvise with it, have fun with it, or even just take a progression and mess around with it (e.g. cocktail piano type playing). Having that skill and freedom is something I would love. A second aim, sort of related to the first is around improving my accompanying skills so that when I am dueting with my daughters, it sounds better than my standard, go to ‘four on the floor’.

10. Do you have any words you try to live by or a favorite quote?

Actually, I came across this quote quite recently and it has stuck with me. In today’s world, with all the negativity, especially on social media, it’s important that we remember to be kind. The quote I like says:

“Blowing out someone else’s candle won’t make yours shine any brighter”

On a lighter note, I can’t finish without this music-related one. This is my absolute favourite quote of all time and it comes from the legendary comedian Eric Morecambe, who, whilst playing the piano in a sketch with Andre Previn once said

“I’m playing all the right notes, just not necessarily in the right order.”

 

[Joe S]

AWESOME!!! Congratulations Paul Toal! If there ever was an obvious choice.  You are very helpful and friendly.  And you put out a cool app too! 😃😎😃

[Steve West]

Paul, congratulations! You're an inspiration to all of us in the PWJ community.  Your answers were very insightful.  Keep up the good work.  Would really enjoy hearing your "musical family" some day if you're ever given permission to video it.  😉

[Gwendolyn W]

Congratulations Paul. This is such a well deserved mention for you. Your text and answers were so interesting and it was a pleasure to get to know about you in a more personal manner. I would so love to hear the family trio playing also. Maybe you could send it in private messenger to those who want to ? I certainly would love that. Thank you for your kind support and positive energy you bring to this awesome community of music lovers and we'll be looking forward to hearing much more about you  in the weeks and months ahead.  ❣️

[Suzanne H]

Well done Paul! Great to read your Spotlight answers and always enjoy your Facebook posts. 👍

[Paul Toal]

Thanks everyone. I'm working on getting the family to let me record a session 🙂

[Eiress L]

Congratulations Paul! 

[Jonny May]

@Paul Toal, congratulations on the March Student Spotlight!! I could not pick a student more deserving of this recognition than you.  You are a constant light and source of positivity in our community, and it's truly a joy and honor to have you in our community! 

I thoroughly enjoyed reading your responses. I didn't know your daughters played other instruments! You've got to post a video with you all jamming together. That would be so fun! I love the advice you gave our members about focusing and seeing piano as a long-term journey. Those are words that I live by as well.

I look forward to seeing you continue to grow at the piano!

[Dina M]

Congratulations Paul! That was so nice reading your story.  Very good advice you gave also. Well done, very happy to have you in our community. 

[BRIAN H]

Hi Paul, I've just joined the 'family' here : ) but Brendan D kindly gave you a mention and said you were a fellow brit and might be close by... Stevenage, Hertfordshire isn't exactly that close to York, but in the US, they probably consider it just down the road maybe?! : )

Anyway. Don't know if you'll get to read this as the last posting was around March time - still finding my way around here, but perhaps peeps get an alert when someone posts something up to a previous mail, I'm kinda guessing?  Just like to say though, apart from the fantastic achievement that you gained here and well deserved, I really enjoyed reading your bio, it was so well put together too.

Also really loved that quote that you'd included - 'Blowing out someone else’s candle won’t make yours shine any brighter” - and have 'borrowed that  - hope that's okay! -and posted it onto to our 'be kind' channel at work and already a lot of people have picked up on it...the ripple effect goes a long way!

Finally. That thing you said about 'when I got my g8, thought that was it, I'd arrived and yet still not really able to play everything' ,etc. That really chimed with something a piano teacher said to me once - was my dad actually, a full- time pianist - when he recalled having a new pupil who came to him once. She said, 'you know what Chas, I've got my G8 and did all the exams etc and someone at a party we were at, had a beautiful Bechstein grand in their house. They knew I'd recently passed my exams and enthusiastically said, 'lets hear you play and jolly up the evening on this lovely piano!. She then had to sadly decline because ' I can't because I don't have any music with me! That's when Chas - my dad - said. Right, we're going to get you playing tunes so you'll be able to entertain without having to carry a suitcase of music with you! Basically  he taught her how to learn the piece quickly from the music/melody line, then cast the music aside and commit to memory and to make her own arrangements . 

Anyway. Great achievement Paul on your award and obviously so well deserved, well done!

All best. Brian

[Brendan D]

1 hour ago, BRIAN H said:

Hi Paul, I've just joined the 'family' here : ) but Brendan D kindly gave you a mention and said you were a fellow brit and might be close by... Stevenage, Hertfordshire isn't exactly that close to York, but in the US, they probably consider it just down the road maybe?! : )

Ah, common, isn't England just a tiny little country surrounded by water??? 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Edited May 15, 2020 by Brendan D

[Ido B]

Hi Paul!

Just read your member spotlight now!  Very well deserved!!  I really enjoyed reading all of you answers and it's so cool that you have such a musical family.  

I also enjoy sitting at the piano and just reading through sheet music and actually last week i was going through some books and found my Phantom of the Opera music book . I sat and played through the entire book cover to cover.  Now you're making me want to look for my Les Mis book this weekend! 😉    

[BRIAN H]

Ha!, yeah, got to agree with that fact  there Brendan about your old ancestral home!  Funny that they call it Great Britain too?, can't deny that one either!   All best buddy : )

[Gail S]

Congratulations!  I just joined about a month ago and the community is so supportive and friendly!  I love your quote.

[Yvonne Y]

 Congrats, Paul! It’s great to hear more of your story. I’ve always appreciated your presence here- you have a great way of explaining things. It’s such a win- win to have great students  to learn from along with a great teacher. I liked the bit about how you arrived at the testing level you used to really aspire to be at without hardly noticing you had arrived. That is soon encouraging to me. I feel that way this year at PWJ- I can do things now there was NO WAY I could do just a year a go!! It’s a long and extremely satisfying journey, isn’t it?! I also love Go The Distance. Thanks for reminding me I need to learn that one.....What was that you said about not getting distracted ??!!! 😅