When an opportunity comes to you, how do you decide whether or not to pursue it? What factors should you consider? Do you take every opportunity or should you be selective? I have some guidelines that may be helpful when you have this kind of decision to make.

 Knock, Knock. Who’s there? Opportunity! Some people naturally embrace every chance that presents itself. This apparent lack of fear is as...

Carlos Salzedo: harpist, composer, teacher, innovator, born April 6. 1885. I never met him, but my teacher was his student, and I have had many opportunities to talk with others of his students.  I love the stories, much like I love hearing family stories about relatives I never knew. But in the true tradition of music, my deepest connection to Salzedo comes through his recordings and his composit...

With recital season upon us, it may be the perfect time to check your memorization techniques.

Memorization mistakes are probably the most dreaded of all performance difficulties. But it is possible to learn to avoid making them, or at least minimize the aftermath.

How do you make certain your music is well memorized? I have a few suggestions.

First of all, you need to understand the real natur...

In today’s post I share with you some of the lessons I have learned on my musical journey.

I am often asked for my opinion on the most important things for a young harpist to learn. Usually students who ask the question are looking for the ultimate practice secret or repertoire piece. Parents of students are looking for practical information on harp buying and colleges.

But the things I think ar...

This week I heard two fabulous graduation recitals at Temple University. Afterwards the performers received kudos and congratulations from their friends and family. And many of their well-wishers had the same question for them: “What’s next?”

It’s the day after. After the big recital, after the orchestra concert, after the important audtion, after whatever it is that you have been working hard to...

Here is a collection of a few weird music tips and facts. I hope these enlighten and entertain you!

Disclaimer: take the science behind some of these tips with a grain of salt. After all, you’re reading this on the internet.

 Are you a night owl or morning person? Practicing at night may be more effective. Apparently, brains learn better at night.

Wonder why...

It’s that time of year when we are dreaming of summer. Summer is the perfect time to put some extra focus on your harp playing by attending a harp camp. And today I want to offer two ways you can step up your playing this summer: the Harp in the Mountains Summer Festival and the first ever Harp Mastery Retreat Weekend.

Harp in the Mountains Summer Festival, now in its seventh year,  is dedicated to...

Seth Godin is an author and marketing guru and the man behind the idea of permission marketing. In his daily blog, he writes with succinct and sometimes painful clarity on marketing, respect, our society and the way ideas spread. I find his writings always give me something to think about and often, as in this post, something to write about.

In a recent blog post called “Those People,” Seth descr...

There is a simple equation for success. Not that success is simple; it isn’t. But the formula is not at all complicated. And the formula is the same, whether you want to be a successful musician or a successful auto mechanic.

What is success? Is it superstardom? I don’t believe most of us yearn for that. For most of us, success is being good at what we do. We don’t need to be superheroes. We just...

I don’t watch much television. There are some shows I love, (NCIS, I Love Lucy reruns, and Turner Classic Movies) and many I don’t. And it’s my personal policy never to watch celebrity reality shows or awards shows, not even the Grammy awards.

But although I won’t watch the Grammy’s, I do like to know what classical artists and recordings made the nominations list. I thought I would pass on a few...