Ep. 24 Chee-Hwa Tan: Piano Music Inspired by Poetry

This week on the Piano Pedagogy Playlist, we step into a world shaped by poetry and imagination. The music featured in this episode is inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s beloved collection A Child’s Garden of Verses—poems that take childhood seriously without over-sentimentalizing it. That same spirit can be found in the piano music of composer Chee-Hwa Tan, whose works capture the feelings behind the poetry. Join me as I perform five of her pieces, ranging from elementary to intermediate level, and discuss their pedagogical value, imagery, and expressive possibilities. These works invite students to engage with imagination— planting musical seeds that can grow over time. The Wind Printed & Digital Versions Land of Nod Printed & Digital Versions Winter Time Printed & Digital Versions The Swing Printed & Digital Versions Windy Nights Printed & Digital Versions