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Silence.   We tend to understand that serious art needs to incorporate silence to portray the human act of thought. When we give a speech, we try and avoid filler words like “um” and “uh.” In monologues, actors make sure to give enough natural pauses to help their character convey a more realistic cadence. In … Continue reading “What thinking sounds like”

Last week I wrote about 10 possible sources of anxiety in music lessons.  Each of these strategies will apply to the corresponding number in that post. In 14 years of teaching music, nothing has positively impacted the experience for me or my students more than adopting these 10 strategies:   1. Cut up material into … Continue reading “10 strategies to reduce anxiety in music lessons”

  1. Synthesis is required too early on.  Take reading music, for example.  There are so many different concepts wrapped up into one task: What notes do the dots represent? Where are they on my instrument?  How long do I hold them down for?  What’s a time signature?  How many sharps?  What’s that triangle looking … Continue reading “10 possible sources of anxiety in music lessons”