If your left hand slows you down when the chords show up, then this video is for you. Work through these patterns and watch the transformation in your sightreading and music learning. And it will help your improvisation too!

And you can receive your own copy of a PDF of the exercises I demonstrate here by subscribing to Harpmastery. Just click the link below!

Click Here for the Left Hand...

What will you do next? 

I was able to spend a day at the Somerset Folk Harp Festival recently and it was a great day of harps, harp players, workshops and concerts. It was hard to choose which workshops to attend, there were so many great choices.

It brought to mind a question that many of my students ask themselves and then ask me. They want to know what is next for them. What’s the...

Last week on the blog, I wrote about things that busy professional harpists have learned that every harpist could benefit from. In the spirit of “turn around is fair play,” today I offer things that those same busy harpists need to remember. Actually, we all need to remember these things, and the busier you are, the more likely you are to forget how important they are.

But this...

Are you putting the brakes on when you play or practice? Or are you frustrated with slow progress?

A quick story…

One summer when my husband, son and I were vacationing in Europe, we stopped in the Alps to take a ride on a Sommerrodelbahn, a summer version of a toboggan run. After all, what do you do in the Alps in the summer if you don’t have snow?

This particular ride was a long,...

I was quite young when I fell in love with the music of Claude Debussy. I didn’t know the theoretical reasons that made his music radically different from what came before. I only knew that it was beautiful and expressive and touched me in a special way.

Debussy is often considered the initiator of the Impressionist movement in music. Impressionist painters had recently made their break...

What is Kaleidoscope Practice?

Kaleidoscope Practice is my system for approaching your daily practice with the “finish” in mind. Whether your “finish” is a solo recital or just playing for your own pleasure, Kaleidoscope Practice helps you practice more effectively and efficiently and play more confidently and fluently.

So here are the top seven reasons you need...

This is the third in this three-part series of posts on the Three Stages of Music Learning. This post is about the final stage: the Finish. You can find Stage One and Stage Two here.

I have a cake recipe that my family loves. It’s a recipe for pound cake, and when I bake it right, it’s sweet, moist and delicious. The trick is in the baking.

It has to start in a cold oven, not...

This is the second in this three-part series of posts on the Three Stages of Music Learning. This post is about the second stage: the Messy Middle. Here’s the previous post about Stage One.

“When will we get there?”

The traffic is backed up for miles on the interstate, or the flight is cancelled. Tempers are beginning to feel the strain, and the child picks this time to ask...

When you learn a new piece of music, you take it through three distinct stages of learning: First Sight, the Messy Middle, and Finish. Each stage has different learning objectives and techniques. This series of posts will introduce you to each of the stages to help you focus your practice and speed your learning.

So that new piece of music is on your stand. Maybe it’s one...

The scariest thing I found about compiling this list was that in the space of about 10 minutes I thought of more than 20            reasons. While you read this, I’m going to go practice…

     10. The weather is too awful (or too nice).

       9. I can’t find my music/lesson book.

       8....