The Musician’s Sketchbook
| February 13, 2012 | Posted by admin under Blog |
The other day I was browsing through An Illustrated Life – drawing inspiration from the private sketchbooks of artists, illustrators and designers, by Danny Gregory. it’s the type of book that when you flip through the pages, I can guarantee you’ll want to run out and get a sketchbook and a set of pens and… more
Old Repertoire – Old Friends
| February 12, 2012 | Posted by admin under Blog |
Last night I recorded Chopin’s Nocturne in c# minor Op 27 No 1, the seventh piece in my “Go Play Project.” This particular Nocturne has always been one of my favorites. I find the opening strange and mysterious. And I love how out of the stormy middle section comes a ray of sunshine before returning… more
Gestures In Music
| February 11, 2012 | Posted by admin under Blog |
Everyone has their own way of approaching a new piece of music. Most often we sightread through the first time, just to get the “lay of the land.” Then, if it’s a piece we’re going to dig into, we go back and start the real work. For young students (depending on their skill level, they… more
A Word About Play
| January 25, 2012 | Posted by admin under Blog |
Stuart Brown, author of Play: How it Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul has spent a career studying play and how even just getting a little play in our lives can make us more productive and happier in everything we do. One example of this is Laurel, the CEO of a… more
My Favorite Online Master Classes
| January 24, 2012 | Posted by admin under Blog |
I love browsing the piano master class videos on YouTube and I have a few favorites that I return to time after time. These are the great pianists and teachers who speak in more general terms about the music, concepts that can be applied to all music. Below are links to a few who have… more
Using Failure to Find Focus
| January 23, 2012 | Posted by admin under Blog |
Failure is a word that hasn’t popped up too much in my vocabulary recently except maybe for some baking and sewing projects and even some frustrating experiences with my minimal computer skills. However over the past few weeks the word failure has appeared in some unexpected contexts. In late December I stumbled upon the new… more
