“To rely on muscular habit, which so many do in technique, is indeed fatal. A little nervousness, a muscle bewildered and unable to direct itself, and where are you? For technique is truly a matter of the brain.” –Fritz Kreisler, violinist (quoted in, Kato...
“If you want to be creative, get out there and do it.” –Michael Giacchino, composer (March 2010 Oscar acceptance speech) Almost all of the ambitious music students I meet share two common concerns. They wonder: 1.”Do I have what it takes?” 2.”Will I...
“For you to perform with native inflection, you have to listen and listen until you break through to the soul of a style.” –The Musician’s Way, p. 98 We all enjoy listening to music. But there’s a level of musical perception that transcends ordinary hearing. Deep...
“Of all my skills, none is more important than the ability to organize my time.” –Twyla Tharp, choreographer The Creative Habit, p. 178 Whether you’re a mature musician or a rising one, your creative output will hinge on your knack for allocating practice time and...
“People think I am disciplined. It is not discipline, it is devotion. There is a great difference.” –Luciano Pavarotti, singer The Musician’s Way, p. 106 What empowers some musicians to keep growing while others fizzle? I’m convinced that, above all, it’s...
“The single most important goal for performing artists is to see how they are doing.” –Itzhak Perlman The Musician’s Way, p. 202 Suppose that you’re practicing a new piece. How do you know that one portion is learned securely enough for you to tackle another? Later...
“Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” –Ella Fitzgerald, singer When we marvel at the feats of musicians like Ella Fitzgerald, it’s easy for us to overlook the hurdles they...
“You’ve got to think about ‘big things’ while you’re doing small things so that all the small things go in the right direction.” –Alvin Toffler, author When we veteran performers practice, we begin with objectives and learning methods in mind. If we’re preparing a new...
“You must play for the love of music. Perfect technique is not as important as making music from the heart.” –Mstislav Rostropovich, cellist/conductor The Musician’s Way, p. 133 To practice music is to pursue perfection – or so we often hear. What nonsense. Rather, we...
