Author Archives: aliveinthewild

There has probably never been a music student who didn’t wish they could play their instrument easily and immediately, or any musician who didn’t wish they could play a complex new piece without practicing it. I saw a cartoon recently in which a music student is telling his teacher, “I want to skip ahead toContinue reading “Instant Gratification: Help or Hindrance?”

My new CD “Infinity”, and the sheet music for my composition “Island Girl” are now available! Please click on the Books & CDs link above.

Every musician can benefit from taking an occasional workshop or class related to their instrument, regardless of whether you take private lessons as well. Getting extra instruction and a fresh point of view is always a good idea. Classes and workshops are usually designated by category of instrument and/or style, and by skill level. MakingContinue reading “Getting the Most out of Workshops and Classes”

We tend to think when we are practicing that we are not being successful if we make mistakes. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Even if you know your pieces well, mistakes can and will happen, just as they can in performance. The fact that they do occur in performance is the key elementContinue reading “All About Practice”

Why teach? Should you? Do you? What if someone asked you to? Are you ready? Many students regard a teacher as an absolute authority, and many teachers prefer to be regarded as such. Although there are some awesome teachers out there, no one is really a perfect teacher. That is both a good thing andContinue reading “Teaching to Learn; Learning to Teach”

The real music is not on the paper. What’s on the paper is a series of symbols. You could listen to that page all day and never hear a thing. Notation is just a guideline. The music is in your head (and your heart). Unless you’re a Mozart or a Salieri, it’s nearly impossible toContinue reading “It’s All in Your Head”

Almost every musician has a favorite other musician they’d like to emulate. Mine is… hmmm… there are so many! On harp, I’d love to sound like Kim Robertson or Harper Tasche. On banjo I’d like to sound like Adam Hurt. You get the idea. Only one trouble: I will never sound like them. If IContinue reading “I Want to Sound Just Like…… But Do You?”