Does the type of motivation matter for your performance? This weekend I’ve got lots of creative work to do, but find it hard to get going. What would be the best way for me to motivate myself? A. Focus on negative
Celebrate the Return of Light in Your Music
Happy Winter Solstice! How are you celebrating the return of the light? Years ago as a classroom teacher, I discovered that many cultures celebrate with light throughout the year: Ramadan. Diwali. Chanukah. Kwanzaa. Christmas. Furthermore, in yogic traditions the solstices and
Yo-Yo Ma: Spiritual Master Musician or Musical Spiritual Master?
I was in the front row for Yo-Yo Ma’s solo recital last night. It was a life event that opened doors both musical and personal. He performed the 1st, 2nd, and 6th Bach Suites, each preceded by a short piece evoking a folk style
Pay It Forward from the Audience
Last weekend I heard an amazing concert by the Pacific Youth Choirs with guest director Dr. Rollo Dilworth. As a father, frequent guest artist and clinician with PYC, I had a choice: I could focus with a critical ear, or I could
What Is Beautiful in Your Music?
On Tuesday I was a panelist for a philosophy of music class on “What Makes Music Beautiful?” at Lewis & Clark College. Dynamic discussion! Is it structure? Is it emotion? Is it context and memory? Is it tone? For 90 minutes we
Leverage Your Powerful Memories to Enhance Today’s Practice and Performance
I walked onto campus last night to begin my work at Lewis & Clark College. As I met with the new collegiate orchestra players, I felt the memories from my own college years come flooding back, the good the bad, and
How to Make Sacred Music Truly Sacred
It was hot—really hot as I wound my way up the Historic Columbia River Highway to the Royal School of Church Music Retreat. The river glistened in the evening light as I entered the beautiful grounds of the Menucha Retreat Center in Corbett,
An inside view of my year with BRAVO
Last August I became a Teaching Artist at BRAVO Youth Orchestra in North Portland. It is an after-school music program based on El Sistema, founded in Venezuela in 1975 by José Antonio Abreu. Gustavo Dudamel, Music Director for the Los Angeles Philharmonic,
JOY—the ultimate motivator
Behind every great success is great motivation. What’s your motivator? An external reward or a pure JOY of doing? The final moments of the BRAVO Youth Orchestra Winter term had finally come. All week the kids were wound up and excited. I would have imagined that the final
Unwrap Your Magical Moments in Music
December, with its open-hearted spirit of giving and some of the most beautiful music ever written, provides the perfect opportunity to feel for the moments of magic in our lives. Like what happened on our road trip last week to California: My daughter, stretched out on