I had to share this precious photo sent to me by a “music mom”. I am sure this little student was overcome with exhaustion after a particularly productive practice session. I wonder if she was dreaming of playing at Carnegie Hall?
This past week was Composition Camp 2010. This is the second year I have held such a camp. I love to compose and I love to teach composition but regular lesson time is jam packed with so much that there isn’t a great deal of time to focus on creating. The four day summer day…
I love mazes…the big ones made out of shrubs or corn stalks or stone. The ones that you enter into and wander through blindly, hoping each turn will bring you closer to the exit. Sometimes you hit a dead end and have to double back, sometimes you find yourself back at the beginning and have to…
Challenges are the spice of life…well for me anyway. A problem to figure out, a skill to master, pushing my limits physically or mentally…any opportunity to grow and learn is my idea of a good time. I think a life without challenges would be boring, stagnant and lacklustre. When you conquer a fear, solve a…
Want to be a great musician? “Play” music every day! Between baseball, soccer, art class, dance class, doctor appointments, school work, laundry and dishes, shopping, visiting family and all the other goings on of the busy families of today…when are we supposed to fit practicing in? Ideally students need to be spending time every day working on…
My students are familiar with the phrase, “the metronome is your friend!” It is a phrase I find myself repeating frequently. Usually the phrase is greeted with a moan or an eye roll or an “I know”. Despite this,I still repeat the phrase with the hope that eventually my students will realize yes, the metronome really is their…
I was walking through a park one day with a friend, enjoying a beautiful day when our conversation was interrupted by the sound of a revving engine and flying gravel. When we turned toward the parking area we noticed a gentlemen struggling to reverse out of his parking spot. His front tires had dug impressive…
