In 2002, I was teaching at a music school in Edmonton, Canada. Most of my students were between the ages of six and sixteen. I was comfortable with that range, and I had a set of expectations for when a child was ready to begin their musical journey.
One day, a parent dropped off their children but brought along a little girl who wanted to ask me something. Usually, questions about starting lessons come from the parents, but this time, the question came directly from the child: "Can I start piano lessons?"
While I knew some teachers specialized in toddlers, I had never taken on students that young. I politely declined. But Diana wasn't ready to end the conversation. She looked at me and asked, "Why?"
I wanted to give her an answer she couldn't dispute, so I told her the reason she couldn't start piano lessons was that she didn't know how to count to twenty. Silence followed. I thought the problem was solved.
The following week, Diana's mother told me that her daughter had something to tell me. As I leaned in, Diana began to count. She got from one to ten with no issues. Then, she paused and continued naming two-digit numbers, but they were completely out of order.
Her mother and I couldn't help but laugh. The moment wasn't funny in a mocking way, but the sheer determination on Diana's face was wonderful. I made a hand motion to signal her to stop, smiled, and told her, "Yes, you can start piano."
That was easier said than done. Diana was in the pre-reading stage and couldn't read any of my instructions so I had to find a different way.
I pulled a sheet of paper from the copy machine and traced the outline of her right hand. Above her thumb, I drew a camel. Above her index finger, a dolphin, and above her middle finger, an elephant.
She recognized the animals instantly. I placed her hand on the keys, and as I pointed my pen to an animal, she played the note. I was surprised. Even for older beginners, following a pointer is not easy, yet Diana played every animal correctly, every single time.
By the next week, I added a fish and a giraffe. This allowed her to play more melodies, and to my amazement, she outgrew those five notes quickly. To expand our "musical zoo," I added a bird and an alligator. Again, she had no problem extending her thumb and pinky to hit the notes correctly. I knew then that we had found something special.
After only five music lessons, Diana was playing so well that I invited her to perform in our year-end concert. She was the first performer, taking the stage in an auditorium filled with around 200 parents, relatives, and students.
Her mother helped her onto the piano chair and placed a single sheet of paper on the music stand. Diana played her own seven-note composition. The room erupted in applause, and the audience loudly requested that she play her composition a second time. She did so, and just like before, she played it perfectly. I will never forget that moment.
In the wake of that concert, the interest from other parents was immediate. They didn't just want their children to learn piano; they wanted them to experience the same confidence Diana had found. I spent the following summer refining my 'musical zoo' into a structured, reliable method designed to help every child succeed.
I am Ernst J Renner. My own journey with music began in Austria, during a time of unimaginable poverty as the country was still recovering from the devastation of World War II. In the late 1960s, my family had no money for an instrument and formal lessons, but there was an old pump organ in the corner of a makeshift library. That was the first instrument I had access to, and enough to build a foundation.
A few years later, I taught myself to play the accordion with much help and inspiration from my Uncle Josef. By age 17, I joined a dance band and enrolled in professional trumpet lessons. At 18, I was accepted into the army band and a year later, enrolled at the Joseph Hyden Conservatory. There, I studied in the Kapellmeister program, which encompassed composition, arranging, conducting, and a broad range of other musical disciplines. By 21, I became the church organist. At 22, I founded a youth orchestra that continues to thrive today with nearly 50 members.
I was steadily climbing the ladder of success in Austria, until something gorgeous caught my eye that spoke French and English and sang like Patsy Cline. After immigrating to Canada, I continued this path as a music teacher and touring musician. Following a two-year stint as a piano salesman for Yamaha, I joined IBM, which opened the door to the world of computer programming. Once the Y2K rush ended, I realized I could merge my musical roots with this new technical skill. This intersection is where prePiano was born.
Now retired in Vancouver, Canada, I offer prePiano as my gift to children everywhere. For many, it will be their very first instrument.