Scales and Technique The second of the six parts of a practice session. In the first blog post of this seven part series, I gave a general overview the elements of typical
Warm Up This blog post is the second in a seven part series about the structure of a typical practice session. In the blog post “Overview,” I outlined the six
Practice Session Structure Overview In this seven part series, I will discuss how to structure a typical practice session. This will offer a solid guideline for what things should be
The Musical Family I want my kids to always love music. At nine and ten years old, they aren’t interested in sitting through an opera at the Met. It’s probably
Alive Inside: A Story of Music and Memory. 2014 film by Michael Rossato-Bennett. At a recent family gathering, a cousin told me about a film she had watched the night before.
Priorities: There’s an Exception to Every Rule In a previous post (Motivation: Parenting and Practicing), I wrote, “If we have to choose between baseball practice and a piano lesson, piano
The Musician’s Brain Science is confirming the “Mozart Effect” through new advances in brain imaging. When I was a music student (not so very long ago!) nobody knew much about the effect
I just finished reading How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why It Happens by Benedict Carey, 2014. From a musician’s perspective, it has obvious applications for practice.
Mental practice can be as effective as physical practice in music. That sounds crazy, right?! You wouldn’t train for a marathon by sitting on your couch and thinking about running 26.2 miles.
Concentration Exercises for Musicians The prevailing wisdom for many years was that our minds could handle about seven things at once. This was supported by research in 1956 that showed people