Episódios
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Let's say you had only 60 minutes to practice in the next week. Would it be better to do 60 minutes all in one day? Or 10 minutes per day for six days?
Would it make any difference at all?
Teachers often tell us to space our practice out, instead of cramming, but how much of a difference does it really make? Two Brazilian studies provide some answers!
Get all the nerdy details (and 500+ other practice tips) right here:
How Important Is It Really to Practice Every Day?* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
Ever find yourself stumped by a tricky passage, where your fingers seem to be a little awkward and uncoordinated and they just don't do what they're supposed to do?
Maybe you tried slowing things down, or practicing with note groupings or rhythms, or doing your darnedest to identify any hints of hidden tension that might be getting in the way. All of which are excellent things to try, of course - but did you ever try practicing that passage with your other hand?
If you have, you know that this is often surprisingly helpful. And if you haven't, I think you'll enjoy adding this new tool to your toolkit.
Either way, I think you'll be intrigued to learn more of the how's and why's about this phenomenon, known as bilateral transfer.
Get all the nerdy details right here:
Improve Coordination With Opposite-Side Practice* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
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Have you ever wondered...how to develop true confidence in yourself and your abilities amidst setbacks? What the right mindset is for auditions? How much of your expressive playing should be planned out, and how much is instinct? How to recover from very direct, critical audition feedback? And how do you stay in the present moment, instead of stressing out about nerves and all the bad things that could happen when you’re on stage?
Web: natesviolin.com
If you’ve ever struggled with questions like this, I think you’ll find helpful answers in today’s episode with violinist Nathan Cole - who was recently appointed concertmaster of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Nathan shares insights, details, and lessons learned from his 20-year concertmaster audition journey, and also demonstrates an exercise (using an excerpt from Brahms’s 4th Symphony) that will help you form clearer musical intentions and play more expressively no matter what music you’re working on - especially in passages where you’re not quite sure what to do.
Get a transcript, show notes, and all the other nerdy details at:
Nathan Cole: Lessons From 20 Years of Concertmaster Auditions
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You can connect with Nathan and get tons more insights, tips, and technical advice at:Nathan will also be teaching a live, 4-day, guided (and free) practice workshop on the Scheherazade solos from September 19-22, 2024 (at 4pm Eastern). Whether you’re aspiring to take concertmaster auditions yourself, or simply want to learn some of Nathan practice techniques and strategies for better intonation, sound, and expressive clarity that you can apply to other music that you’re working on, this will be a great way to jumpstart your fall practice with some new tools.
Sign up for Violin Hero: Scheherazade: https://natesviolin.ac-page.com/violin-hero-ncYou can also study with Nathan through his online group learning program - Daily Virtuoso - where each quarter, he leads an in-depth study of a new set of masterworks from the repertoire. You’ll learn how to approach both the technical and musical challenges in each piece through live calls, practice assignments, and video lessons, alongside a supportive
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
Whether it's picking a tempo that's too fast, or rushing a shift, it's easy for things to feel sped up on concert days when the adrenaline kicks in, and the butterflies are fluttering about.
Is there any way to be a little more centered on stage, and feel more at ease? Rather than hurried and rushed?
Today's studies provide a few clues about what we can do in advance, to slow things down and be less antsy on performance days, starting from the time we wake up, through our last moments backstage before it's time to play.
Get all the nerdy details here:
An Ironic Strategy to Stay Calmer and Avoid Rushing on Performance Days* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
In last week's episode, we looked at a study which illustrated how our own beliefs and expectations about ourselves can affect our performance.
It turns out that our beliefs and expectations - and subsequently, performance - can also be shaped by our teachers/coaches.
So...as teachers, how can we ensure that our natural snap judgments, beliefs, and expectations don't impede our students' learning?
A 2008 study of NCAA basketball coaching legend Pat Summitt provides some clues.
Get all the nerdy details:
How Teachers' Expectations Can Shape Students' Learning & Performance* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
Even from a very early age, I remember being told to imagine things going well. The idea, was that if I could imagine a positive outcome, I'd be more likely to expect good things, which would help me perform better.
Is this just something that people say? Or do our expectations really have a meaningful effect on how we perform?
A classic 1972 study illustrates the effect that positive or negative expectations can have on performance.
Get all the nerdy details here:
How Much Do Positive or Negative Expectations Affect Performance?* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
It's probably fairly common for our minds to go on autopilot when we're brushing our teeth, mowing the lawn, or folding laundry. And that's probably not all that big of a problem.
But have you ever found your mind going on autopilot in a performance, when you're playing something you've played for years, and it's begun to feel a little too familiar...or even a bit stale?
Or maybe this happens in the practice room, when you're working on music that you've already been playing for years or decades?
If you've struggled with keeping old music fresh, a 2009 study looks at a strategy that might not only help you stay engaged with this music, but keep the audience more engaged too.
Get all the nerdy details here:
How to Keep Music Feeling Fresh Through Repeated Performances* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
My daughter loved playing card games as a young child. And what was fun about playing with her was how completely transparent she was. Anytime she got a good hand, or picked up a special card, the glee was written all over her face. Her eyes lit up, and I knew something unfortunate was about to happen to me. 😆
This sort of emotional expressivity is an important part of communicating from the stage - but there’s a negative side of this too, of course.
Because I'm guessing we've all been told by a teacher at some point that we should walk out on stage confidently, with a smile. And that we should avoid frowning or expressing frustration when the performance isn’t going well.
Yet...how much does this really matter? Does any of it make a difference, as long as we play well?
A 2017 study by previous podcast guests Aaron Williamon and George Waddell provide some surprising answers.
Get all the nerdy details here:
Why Every Performer Needs a Good Poker Face* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
How frequently do you take breaks during practice?
Ever wonder how long your breaks should be? Or for that matter, how long your practice sessions should be?
If you've ever wondered if there's such a thing as an optimal practice-to-rest ratio that maximizes productivity and effective practice, there's some data out there which provides some clues. But the question is...will the data align with your own experience? 😁
Get all the nerdy details and this week's practice hack here:
What’s the Optimal Practice-To-Rest Ratio?* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
Whether it's writing a paper, studying for finals, or preparing for a recital or audition, have you ever find yourself cramming at the last minute, wishing you had a time machine and could go back and give yourself more time to prepare?
Well, a 2002 study provides some clues on how to set better deadlines - and also, how to make self-imposed deadlines work better, if you haven't had much luck with that in the past.
Get all the nerdy details here:
Is There a Way to Make Self-Imposed Deadlines Work?* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
We're often told to listen to recordings of music that we're working on.
And we often tell our students to do so as well, but is there any research which suggests that this benefits the learning process in any way?
A 2012 study takes a look at this question, and compares both active and passive listening to see what sorts of benefits there might (or might not) be:
Get all the nerdy details here:
Does Listening to Music Benefit the Music Learning Process?* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
Ever have one of those days in the practice room, where as soon as you fix one issue, another problem pops up? And just when you think you have that problem solved, the original thing "breaks" again? And when you try to think about both of those things, a third issue emerges?
This practice room whack-a-mole problem can be kind of frustrating. But it speaks to how difficult it can be to keep multiple things in mind simultaneously when the various parts of a new skill aren't yet in muscle memory.
Is there any way around this? Well, a 2010 study provides some helpful clues!
Get all the nerdy details here:
A Better Way to Learn, Teach, and Perform New Skills?* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
Do you tend to play with your eyes open? Or do you sometimes close them?
Ever wonder if there might be any performance benefit to performing with eyes closed?
Turns out there might be - in certain circumstances.
Get all the nerdy details here:
Is It Better to Perform With Eyes Open or Closed?* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
I remember my teacher saying to me quite early on in my studies, that her job was not to tell me what to do, but to teach me how to teach myself.
I think we all have that goal in our teaching, but like many things, this is often easier said than done. I mean, how exactly do we teach someone how to teach themself?
In a 2011 study, researchers recruited six music teachers and 45 students, and evaluated a teaching method that does exactly this. They were curious to see if it would lead to better learning and performance results than the "regular" teaching approach.
Spoiler alert: it did.
Click below for all the nerdy details:
A Teaching Method That Creates Smarter Practicers
References
Bathgate, M., Sims‐Knight, J., & Schunn, C. (2011). Thoughts on Thinking: Engaging novice music students in metacognition. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 26(3), 403–409. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.1842* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
You know how people say that little kids don’t have a filter? How they just blurt out whatever thoughts pop into their minds?
Well, the voice in our head can kind of be like that unfiltered 1st grader. Because we often say some rather unkind and borderline abusive things to ourselves quite automatically.
We might not truly believe the mean and discouraging thoughts we think to ourselves - at least at first. But if you’ve ever found yourself struggling with confidence, and started questioning yourself, and wondering if maybe your inner critic was right, you’re not alone.
A 1977 study (it’s an oldie, but goodie) explains why this happens - and gives us some clues on how we might interrupt the automatic habit that often undermines our confidence.
Get all the nerdy details here:
The Subtle Habit That Might Be Undermining Your Confidence* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
For most of my life, even through college and grad school, regular ol' repetition was probably my most-utilized learning strategy whether I was studying for a test or practicing for my next lesson or performance.
If you've gone through stages like this, you probably remember that this approach is not particularly enjoyable, and is also quite time-consuming. And pretty demotivating too, when you don't get the grade you want or perform as well as you'd like.
You're probably utilizing more effective learning strategies nowadays, but there's an interesting mindset shift that can make a big difference in your learning and retention, that you may not yet have in your toolbox. And no, it's not the growth mindset, if that's what you were thinking! It's something else entirely. 😁
Get all the nerdy details and links to related articles right here:
Learn More Effectively with This Lesser-Known Mindset Shift* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
We all procrastinate on things from time to time. And sometimes we pay the price for doing things at the last minute. But then there are times when it actually seems to work out pretty well!
So is procrastination all bad? Or could there be a productive and unproductive sort of procrastination?
Well, the research seems to suggest that the answer could be...yes?
Get all the nerdy details and find out how to know if you're the "good" or "bad" kind of procrastinator:
Are You the “Good” or “Bad” Kind of Procrastinator?
Also, I mention spaced, interleaved, and variable practice at the end of the episode. If you're wondering what those things are, you can learn more about them here:
The Learning-Performance Distinction and Why Your Practice Gains Don't Stick* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
This episode is sponsored by Musician's Maintenance - safe, simple, maintenance exercises that specifically address the muscle groups that matter most for musicians.
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When I was first starting out on the violin, I remember there were more fun games and practice challenges involved in my daily practice. Like free improvisation. Or playing with various weights and stuffed animals clipped to my bow.
And then at some point, practice became much more "serious." Where the goal was to play things correctly. And to practice the same thing over and over, not just until I could get it right, but as the saying goes, until I couldn't get it wrong.
But is this really the most efficient and effective approach to get to the consistency that we ultimately want on stage? Or is there a better way? (spoiler alert: there is 😁)
Get all the nerdy details here:
Why Practicing for Consistency May Be Less Effective Than You’d Think* * *
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Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
In the age-old debate about nature vs. nurture, I know the correct answer for most things is that it's a blend of both.
But sight-reading, at least for me, always felt like one of those things which leaned more on the nature side than nurture. Some folks just seem to have a knack for it, while I always struggled.
But what does the research say? Could I have gotten better at sight reading if I applied myself more diligently?
And what would that have even looked like anyways? Are there specific things that I could have worked on, that would have made me a better sight reader?
A 2014 meta-analysis provides some clues and pinpoints a few specific skills that could help you improve your sight-reading ability as well.
Get all the nerdy details right here:
Are Great Sight-Readers Born or Made?* * *
...
Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials -
This episode is sponsored by Musician's Maintenance - safe, simple, maintenance exercises that specifically address the muscle groups that matter most for musicians.
* * *
I think we’ve all had teachers tell us that the technical and expressive aspects of music-making are inextricably connected, and that we shouldn’t just work on technique, and expect to add the expressive details later.
But how exactly do you do this? Like, what does it look like to connect both the technical and expressive aspects of music-making into a practice session?
Michael Bridge is a virtuoso performer of an instrument that you probably don’t know very much about. I’m not even going to tell you what it is quite yet, to make sure your brain doesn’t jump to any premature conclusions. 😁
I’ll just say, that in this episode, you’ll learn how to use your daily practice to develop more expressive virtuosity (as opposed to impressive virtuosity). And you’ll also learn more about “horizontal” playing (as opposed to vertical playing), how to create more compelling and expressive phrases by “cheating” with your dynamics, the four key elements of effective performances, and much more.
Get all the nerdy details here:
Michael Bridge: On Cultivating Expressive (vs Impressive) Virtuosity
*NOTE: The audio in this episode is optimized for voice, rather than music, so my apologies in advance for the portions where the sound of the music is less than awesome. If you'd like to hear Michael's playing as it should be heard, check out the performance videos on his website here: https://www.michaelbridge.ca/music* * *
...
Has performance anxiety been a nagging issue that tends to get in the way of your playing, no matter how prepared you feel before performances, auditions - or even lessons? Or have you just been feeling a little stuck, like you’re not making much progress in the practice room?
If you’ve been wanting to experience more joy in the practice room and play more like yourself on stage, but haven’t been quite sure how to make that happen, starting October 6, 2024, I’ll be teaching a live, online, 4-week class on the most essential mental skills and practice strategies that can make a difference in your practicing and performing.
We’ll meet once a week via Zoom and explore the relevant research in four essential areas, experiment with a curated set of exercises and techniques together as a group, and to make sure the ideas become consistent habits, I'll show you how to gently integrate these new skills into your (or your students’) daily practice through bite-sized practice challenges alongside a supportive group of practice buddies from around the world.
Registration begins next week - Sunday, September 22, 2024, and runs through Sunday, September 29, 2024.
Over 1800 musicians, educators, and students and learners of all ages have participated in the course to date. You can get all the details and learn how to join Cohort 20 at: bulletproofmusician.com/essentials - Mostrar mais
