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CREATIVE VIOLIN

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Dinu Lipatti on Practicing as Art and Craft

Practice to Play or Play to Practice

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The Core: 5 Outcomes that Matter

The Core: 5 Outcomes that Matter

It is very easy to get sidetracked and practice ineffectively. You can be extremely efficient, using every moment to do something yet never progress. So how do you make sure you keep growing and improving? A laser focus on outcomes while remaining optimistic and dedicated to fun can help you choose what to, and more importantly what not to practice. There are only so many hours in the day and your practice should not take up most of them! So without further ado, here are the

Dinu Lipatti on Practicing as Art and Craft

Dinu Lipatti on Practicing as Art and Craft

Dinu Lipatti was one of the great pianists of the 20th century despite having his life cut short in 1950 by Hodgkin's Disease at age 33. In addition to his resplendent artistry, consummate mastery of his instrument, and his renowned kindness, he was known to be a master pedagog and deeply dedicated to his pupils. In a letter penned to one of his students Lippati laid out his approach to practice: “What can I tell you about interpretation? I really ought to talk to you about i

Practice to Play or Play to Practice

Violin Playing as Art

Violin Playing as Art

Music is described as a fine art but rarely taught as one. While there may be some few musicians who started off in the field because they wanted a job, most would say it is because they love music. Because they wanted to be an artist and express something. Rarely do pedagogs take much time figuring out what that something is. With the professionalization of music, most conservatories and teachers are in a rush to prepare musicians for the working world and thus push them thr

Posture: The 1 minute exercise that could change everything about your playing

Posture: The 1 minute exercise that could change everything about your playing

Violin can be overwhelming in its complexity but there are technical fundamentals that if you understand and employ can unlock massive returns in the quality of your playing. One of these is posture. As simple as it would seem, posture is a problem for 90% of violinists at all levels. The physical asymmetry of violin playing along with the extreme demands of accuracy, coordination, and tone production can lead to a slowly devolving posture that in turn makes everything you do

Music and Time Travel

Music and Time Travel

It is rare to find an individual who would not like to travel through time. To the future to see distant places, personalized flight, advanced AI, a Trump-free America. Or the past, to visit Shakespeare, Galileo, Newton, Mozart, Paganini. Or maybe more proximally, see Heifetz live in concert at carnegie hall? But anyone who has performed is probably aware of the relativistic time travel that seems part and parcel of the performance experience. We think ahead, we ponder someth