To celebrate my second favorite month, I’m going to post every single day in December (giant meteor notwithstanding). I would absolutely love to devote some of these posts to Q and A, so please lob some questions my way! Today’s…
I’ve got all kinds of irons in the fire these days: NaNoWriMo has inspired me to get rolling on some projects, including a book of essays. The following is a favorite memory from my development as a young professional, and…
The previous posts were designed to provide conceptual and technical underpinnings of a solid shifting practice. Today’s is all about developing inner hearing and the ability to generate music inside of your mind, because when you shift, you’re not just…
So last post we talked about getting a feel for the distance the arm travels to put the hand in the right place for an accurate shift. Today is all about the mechanics involved and a bit of the mental…
There are only a handful of reasons we miss shifts: no clear idea of the note’s physical location on the fingerboard technique is inconsistent or maladaptive cannot hear the interval between the first and second note Any one of these…
Just a fun randomizer for those times when you know you need to practice but then fall into a well of ponderous ennui. [advanced_iframe securitykey=”a603d5b9c02c6917edfc85ab48202ee80258aaea” src=”<iframe src=”http://wheeldecide.com/e.php?c1=long+tones&c2=sight+reading+&c3=half+speed+repertoire+run+through+with+metronome&c4=orchestral+excerpts&c5=listening+along+with+the+score&c6=record+yourself+and+listen+back&c7=one+measure+of+a+Bach+Prelude+50+times&c8=anything+but+Popper&c9=cat%2Fbaby+goat+videos&c10=left+hand+tuner+work&c11=go+back+to+an+old+piece+and+apply+new+technical+adjustments+&c12=all+12+major+scales%2C+slurring+2&c13=time+to+map+out+shifts+in+that+tricky+passage+you%27ve+been+avoiding&c14=audiation%2Fvisualizing+for+phrasing+and+musicality&c15=get+out+the+Grout%3A+research+the+historical+context+of+the+piece+you%27re+working+on&c16=mirror+practice%3A+where+should+the+bow+be+to+get+the+sound+you%27re+after%3F+&c17=Schroeder+mix-up-+add+dotted+rhythms%2C+add+or+remove+slurs%2C+or+play+notes+in+groups&col=light&t=cello+practice+randomizer&time=5″ width=”500″ height=”500″ scrolling=”no” frameborder=”0″></iframe>” width=”100%” height=”600″]
Well hello! Yes, it’s been a while- I’m supposed to be up to my ears in grapes, and organic chemistry, but fate has had other things in mind these past few months. I had an unexpected reaction…
It’s been just over two weeks since the injections, and as expected, I’m in a whole lotta pain. It’s like plate tectonics: one thing has moved, and the other parts are absolutely freaking out. It’s unpleasant nostalgia, as this is…
United Healthcare waited until I had to resign (or was fired from) every cello position before approving the Botox injections. I now know it’s a common tactic- an insurance company will try to wait and obfuscate until someone who needs…
One of my students is really in the thick of things. She’s working on the Swan AND the Sarabande from the 3rd Suite. Like many who came before her, the Swan is this wonderful elixir: it challenges and comforts, it’s…
There hasn’t been much cello-y news until now. Since my last post, I’ve been seen by an amazing physical therapist who works with a bunch of the NHL guys. He did some manual decompression of my neck and back, and…
I’d fallen into bad habits over the past 2 or 3 years: I used to be an ardent red wine drinker, but found so many syrupy/cloying/medicinal notes in the Malbecs, Cabs, and Pinots that were in my (modest) price range…
I’m pretty proud of these girls, throwing together some not exactly simple pieces in about 3 weeks’ time. We could have used another month to get used to new cellos (!), agree on bowings, and make it perfect, but you…
Longtime readers may remember I used to have a separate Blogger site devoted to wine and food called The Thirsty Cellist. I abandoned it to focus on school and cello-y things, and it has since been taken over by some…
It seems like self-promotional small potatoes to post about my next book after the shock and tumult of this week, but working on it serves as a diversion from the feelings of helplessness and despair that come from living in an…
After getting lots of emails asking for a retreat or other such event, I’ve only gotten 2 people saying they’re more likely than not to come to the tentative event in Middleburg. I know it’s tough because I have only…
Thoracic outlet syndrome is complicated. It can be caused by any number of things, from trauma (like a car accident or fall) to genetic predisposition to, as is my case, a subtle accumulation of overuse injuries that led to a…
If you are interested in this (or future retreats), please subscribe to the mailing list (halfway down the main blog page) or send me an email, and I’ll add you- so you can be kept in the loop and we…
About an hour south of Washington, DC, nestled between acres of rolling farmland and a two-block colonial downtown area is the Wellbourne Inn. An old farmhouse that has, since the 1770s, been lived in, added onto, loved and adored…
A few people have contacted me either here or on social media to ask what’s up with my arm- I’ve been posting pictures from rehab and expressing frustration with the various setbacks. I’d intended to make the “long and winding…
It’s easy to get lost in the struggle to be an excellent cellist. We take lessons, go to concerts and master classes, listen to recordings, flail away in the practice room. Remember that in the end, the cello is vehicle…
Natalia Gutman’s tone absolutely drenches you. This is a woman who knows how to use the bow with great efficiency, subtlety, and power.
A slight rewind. On October 20, 1997, my parents and I were in a car accident. They had come into LA to celebrate my birthday, and as we crossed Nordhoff St. on Etiwanda Ave., an octogenarian having a diabetic seizure…
I’m interrupting the “long and winding road” injury posts to try and collect some data and design a workshop series dealing with stage fright. I’ve had spells of performance anxiety several times in my career, and have done extensive trial…
Pictured: Cathy and Doug (middle two) on their wedding day. Oxford, England, 1967. Part 2. Through high school, things got worse. My parents had Kaiser, so I was confined to the Kaiser system, and I don’t think they even considered going outside…
I had a lot of time to think, driving back and forth from Heartland SCOR this weekend. It’s about 12 hours round trip from Minneapolis to Le Claire, Iowa. This picture was taken after nearly running out of gas in…
After 8 months in Mpls, I’m headed back to DC! Nothing against the Twin Cities: in fact, I am inspired by so many people and things about this place. But DC feels like home, and I’ve been offered a…
Now that the new theme has been installed, it will be a week or three until things look and function like they should : posts need to be retrofitted with images, colors changes, logos designed, all that stuff. Still, the…
I’ve been largely away from the blog, but starting in June, I hope to be up to an improved version of my old tricks, with lots of content (that will be better organized and nicer to look at) and opportunities…