“There is nothing more fatal for our musical sense, than to allow ourselves – by the hour – to hear musical sounds without really listening to them”-Tobias MatthayThe Musician’s Way, p. 16 Imagine that you’re watching an artist paint in her studio: She spreads color...
Envision standing at a stage door, seconds before your entrance at a solo or small-group concert. The hall darkens; the audience quiets. A stagehand whispers: “Ready?” Let’s stop here and give this scenario a closer look. The backstage scene probably resembles a...
“By becoming knowledgeable about the nature of performance anxiety and acquiring tools to counteract it, musicians can conquer nervousness and lift their music making to new heights.” When I present workshops for musicians who deal with stage nerves, I...
At a recent national conference of the American String Teachers Association, I gave a talk titled “Fearless Performance” (which is also the name of part II of my book The Musician’s Way). The session attracted a large audience, mostly comprised of music...
