Accompanying Resources for Students
Fall 2020 Accompaniment guidelines
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting necessary restrictions of face-to-face contact, all accompanying this Fall semester will be done through recorded mediums, using either apps, YouTube, or recordings made by local pianists. This is a stopgap measure for the fall semester and will be reevaluated for spring of 2021. It is certainly not ideal, but there are limited safe options.
Students should consult with their applied faculty members first. There are many online options available to vocalists for downloadable or streamable accompaniments. For instrumentalists there are fewer to choose from. As before, consult with your applied instructor in deciding which source is the best option for you. The link below is a guide to some online accompaniment resources we have found useful.
Guide to accompaniment apps and websites
Your Faculty have a List of Area Accompanists
Your faculty will have a list of area pianists along with contact information. We have contacted each of the pianists to ensure that they are available to record accompaniments. You will need to negotiate fees with them individually. There are more pianists available for this option than in previous years since it will not involve lesson scheduling, parking, and other difficulties. If you have questions about what a reasonable fee for a recording is, please check with Michael Boyd for guidance. (michael.boyd@utoledo.edu)
Student Accompanists
Lastly, piano majors who are enrolled in the accompanying course and have attained an appropriate level of collaborative skills are each required to play for 2-3 students (depending upon skill level). Since they are receiving credit for this, they will receive no remuneration from the students to whom they are assigned. HOWEVER, once the student pianists have been assigned their required number of students, they can also be considered as paid accompanists and will be on the list of local pianists.
If you would like to apply to work with a student pianist free of charge for the semester, please email Michael Boyd (michael.boyd@utoledo.edu) with your name, your instrument/voice type, your applied instructor’s name, and any known repertoire for the semester (title/composer). Obviously, there will not be enough student pianists to fill the accompanying needs of all applied students and we will assign them in consultation with the department chair.
If you are working on a piece with a difficult piano part (particularly instrumentalists), you are encouraged to explore online/accompanying apps or to hire a local pianist with advanced skills. See our reference guide.