© Yong Hian Lim – Fotolia.com

In a previous post I wrote about rote memorization, the repetitive process that can be summed up in the words “strong” and “long.” If you are “strong” in your repetition, meaning you repeat something correctly every time in practice, the chances that you will repeat it correctly on demand...

I would find it difficult to pick one composer to call my favorite. I love the way Mozart’s music glistens and the intensity of Tchaikovsky. I can get lost in the emotion of Ravel and revel in the clarity of John Field. But on most days, if I had to pick just one, I would pick Johann Sebastian Bach.

I never tire of listening to his music, to the mind-bending complexity of a fugue or the...

Here’s a radical thought – don’t practice so well.But wait! Isn’t careful practice what I am supposed to do, so I can play well, with a solid technique and mostly all the right notes?

The answer is of course, unless that’s the ONLY way you practice. Careful practice can be a trap. If our only focus is trying to play correctly, we will never learn to play much.

An...

Lessons are not given, they are taken.

– Cesare Pavese, Italian author and poet (1908-1950)

                                                    © polydsign – Fotolia.com

First, the facts.

1. Music lessons are foundational. Your teacher will...

 Being nervous is a terrible feeling. It can be physically debilitating, with symptoms from cold, clammy hands to nausea and beyond. But by far, the worst damage that nervousness causes is the psychological. We worry about how our nervousness will sabotage our well-prepared and carefully practiced performance. And in the extreme, it can prevent us from performing at all.

When I was a...

I do not choose to recognize September 11 as a day of mourning any longer. We remember those we lost and grieve their passing. But we as a nation, true to our history, have overcome. We remember but we survive. We mourn but we continue. We honor and we rebuild.

Today I wanted to share with you some of my favorite music. It is music expressive of our country and our people , and I find it...

It is easy to know when we don’t have a piece memorized. It is more difficult to know when a piece is “ready” to be performed from memory.Memorization is a process, and one that requires time and effort. It is not simply practicing a piece until                                     ...

From time to time, we all experience what I call “potentially terminal frustration.” This is the kind of deep frustration that causes us either to give up and walk away or break through and achieve.

The barriers can seem insurmountable. Consider what used to be considered impossible: breaking the sound barrier, running a four-minute mile, a decent frozen...

Sometimes it’s really fun to play the harp.

Practicing is pretty hard work, and while it’s rewarding, I wouldn’t call it fun, particularly technical work like scales and arpeggios.

But the other day, when I sat down to practice, I was regretting the coming end of summer. My train of thought lead me to the famous Gershwin song “Summertime,” and my scales adapted...

This is the time of year to make plans. And if your plans include doing some extra playing in public and maybe earning a little money, you need to read this post.

Sometimes opportunities for playing are right in front of us, but we miss them. Instead we are staring at the phone or checking our email waiting for an invitation. You don’t need to wait to be asked; you do the asking!

Most of...