Here’s a wee presentation I did a few years back at a workshop. There’s no voiceover…although maybe at some point I’ll add it, if you think that would be useful. The single most important thing that contributes to artistry on…
There was a piece going around on Twitter a few weeks back- an acclaimed author had posted a thread about how much of his success was about luck and privilege, and that it’s completely possible to be good at what…
It’s hard to narrow things down to ten main tenets, but I think these cover most of the important things. I’ve had overwhelmingly positive experiences with students- perhaps 1% had some degree of unpleasantry at some point, but because of…
I originally didn’t want to play the cello: as a young girl, I dreamed of the linear perfection of ballet- the wonderful music, the teamwork, the possibility of being sent far, far away to an academy to train hard and…
As teachers, we are charged with a wonderful but daunting task: to formulate a path, tailored for each student, to reach their goals. The reason it’s daunting is because most students will demonstrate a sincere desire to do one thing,…
This may be the simplest “hack”, but it’s also one I wish more students used. Something as rudimentary as a bandage can work wonders to draw the physical attention (that is, the body’s awareness of what is happening while other…
The cello and the computer (and driving, and knitting, and reading…) seem to promote two dangerous postures: a chin that juts forward, and shoulders that curve inwards, towards each other. Held for short periods, no harm done. Done for hours…
I wrote about this nearly ten years ago, but it’s stood the test of time for a tense/hyperextended/jerk of a pinky. My school of bow technique asserts that the pinky is largely inert during most actions, and although there are…
I once launched my bow into the audience at a CSUN concert after a particularly zesty up-bow release. The inside chair gave me his bow and sat through the rest of the movement quietly, but the person who caught the…
Here’s another snippet from the upcoming collection of essays. One of the highlights of my college years was winning the concerto competition at Kingston University with the Rococo Variations. It was a time of immense personal and professional growth- I’d…