There's an inner battle we have with ourselves that can make even the most prepared person fall apart on stage. Having the right outlook on things can make all the difference in the world between success and failure when performing. In Part 2, I wrote about physical things you can do to help prepare
In Part 2 of How to Practice Creatively, I talked about Focused Practice sessions where you pinpoint the problem areas and work only on those, with a play-through of the entire piece as close to tempo as possible every 2-3 days. This intentional kind of practice is one way to keep the mind engaged and
Having taught many students over the years, I’ve seen various levels of readiness to perform. I would say most students did what they thought was preparing and working hard, but what I’ve learned over the years observing myself and others is that there’s always more one can do. This means that it’s a process
In Part 1 of How to Practice Creatively, I spoke about blind repetition inducing a phenomenon in the brain called "masking," whereby the brain doesn't pay attention to a repeated, predictable event like a clock ticking or a whirring of a fan after it knows that event will continue as before. So the "cure"
So you’ve decided to take the plunge into studying piano. Maybe it’s been a lifelong dream and now is the perfect time in your life to finally begin, or maybe you had lessons as a child and always regretted quitting. Or perhaps your children want to take lessons and you’d like to learn alongside
Playing for your piano teacher at lessons. Playing in a formal recital. Playing at a nursing home. Playing for friends gathered around the piano to hear you play once they found out you were learning piano. Taking piano exams. Playing at a competition. Auditioning for college. Recording yourself for an online submission recital or
Most adults who take up piano have an image of what it means to practice piano that often involves spending hours of pure enjoyment listening to themselves play beautiful music. Then they sit down at their first or maybe even 10th practice session and realize that it's actually quite far from what they imagined.
My husband, Peter, and my two cats, Shoga and Futo, and myself all make the long trek up from south Florida to Wisconsin for the summers. Back when we decided to move to Florida for more musical opportunities for me (and OK, better winter weather!), we kept this place in WI. We love this