“Ultimately, your musical progress will depend more on your skillfulness with the creative process than on any talent.” –The Musician’s Way, p. 313 When I teach introductory workshops on The Musician’s Way, I organize concepts using frameworks that musicians can...
“I took lessons as a kid, but it was mostly just practicing scales, and it seemed more like homework… I gave piano lessons three attempts – the first time when I was a kid… Then, when I was sixteen… but it was still the same scales…...
“There are plenty of fine educators in the world – and some not-so-fine ones, too.” –The Musician’s Way, p. 293 I advise numerous aspiring music educators each year, and I find that many lack clarity about a vital aspect of teaching and learning. That is, they confuse...
“We get messed up because we don’t have a clear image . . . and therefore give ourselves too many conflicting messages about how to play.” -Eloise Ristad A Soprano On Her Head, p. 116-117 When we set out to learn a new piece, it can resemble a romance, and we’re...
“I suppose that when I play in public it looks easy, but before I ever came on the concert stage I worked very hard. And I do yet – but always putting the two things together, mental work and physical work.” -Jascha Heifetz The Musician’s Way, p. 42 The Spring...
“Any musician who says he is playing better either on the needle or when he is juiced is a plain straight liar… You can miss the most important years of your life, the years of possible creation.” -Charlie Parker, saxophonist and composer The Musician’s Way, p....
