Technique & Musicality

rhapsodydmb

Nov 187 min read

UNEXPECTED GIFTS -- THE BEST KIND!

Do you notice how sometimes you set out in one direction toward a location only to end up headed in another direction and landing at...

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BETA BLOCKERS: ONE OPTION TO HELP WHEN YOUR BODY BETRAYS YOU IN PIANO LESSONS OR PERFORMANCE

rhapsodydmb

Jul 1912 min read

BETA BLOCKERS: ONE OPTION TO HELP WHEN YOUR BODY BETRAYS YOU IN PIANO LESSONS OR PERFORMANCE

My body betrayed me a few years ago during lessons with two piano teachers. One was my third teacher since taking up piano lessons after...

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CORRECTING THE ERRANT FINGER - OR ACHIEVING THE DESIRED AUDITORY EFFECT OF A PASSAGE: TWO UNIQUE VISUALIZATION OR "SENSING" SOLUTIONS

rhapsodydmb

Jul 27 min read

CORRECTING THE ERRANT FINGER - OR ACHIEVING THE DESIRED AUDITORY EFFECT OF A PASSAGE: TWO UNIQUE VISUALIZATION OR "SENSING" SOLUTIONS

There is pain in learning the piano. And there are solutions to reduce the hurt. I'm not talking about tendinitis pain which I battled...

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LUCID DREAMING.2 - TO IMPROVE PIANO TECHNIQUE OR WRITE POETRY

rhapsodydmb

May 225 min read

LUCID DREAMING.2 - TO IMPROVE PIANO TECHNIQUE OR WRITE POETRY

Rated 5 out of 5 stars.(1)

View of the aurora borealis on May 10, 2024 across Mono Lake. Photo: Samantha Lindberg from the Mono County Newsletter. Listen to...

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LUCID DREAMING.1 - OF MUSIC, POETRY, AND IMAGE? AN INTRODUCTION (See the May 22 followup blog on improving skill in playing an instrument)

rhapsodydmb

May 118 min read

LUCID DREAMING.1 - OF MUSIC, POETRY, AND IMAGE? AN INTRODUCTION (See the May 22 followup blog on improving skill in playing an instrument)

"Wave of Emotion" (Photo (c) Jeanette (Stringham) Vonier 2022) ("Ein Traum" by Grieg (orchestral version)) "Music is like a dream. One...

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"LONELINESS" - A SERENDIPTOUS MESSAGE FROM THE UNIVERSE

rhapsodydmb

Jan 97 min read

"LONELINESS" - A SERENDIPTOUS MESSAGE FROM THE UNIVERSE

In this second week of the New Year, yet another message from the universe has come to my attention: a call to contemplate "loneliness."...

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rhapsodydmb

Jan 56 min read

IS THE FIRST THE BEST?

My November music-themed birthday party table decorations; photo courtesy of guest Grace Hueunemann. Thelonius Monk always said that the...

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EMBRACE "GOALS" - ESCHEW "RESOLUTIONS" and CONCENTRATE ON "THE GOOD"

rhapsodydmb

Dec 23, 20236 min read

EMBRACE "GOALS" - ESCHEW "RESOLUTIONS" and CONCENTRATE ON "THE GOOD"

New Year's Resolutions represent the ultimate folly as far as human beings and my personal experience go. I've learned not to bother;...

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rhapsodydmb

Apr 23, 20232 min read

SELF-CONFIDENCE IS OVER RATED

I wonder if pianists of top calibur like Yuja Wang (pictured here at a March 2023 symphony where I heard her play Rachmaninoff's Third...

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rhapsodydmb

Apr 12, 20234 min read

EAST VS. WEST PIANO TEACHING METHODS

After almost two years of zoom lessons and a ton of YouTube research on music and "how to" technical skills since returning to the piano...

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rhapsodydmb

Apr 11, 20234 min read

"COMPLICITE" AKA "PARTNERSHIP"

Reading the French word "complicite" (accent aigu) had a powerful impact on my understanding about the learning environment when it...

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HOW JUSTICE & AMBIVALENCE CAN MOTIVATE PERSISTENCE & REDUCE STRESS IN LESSONS & PERFORMANCE

rhapsodydmb

Apr 2, 20234 min read

HOW JUSTICE & AMBIVALENCE CAN MOTIVATE PERSISTENCE & REDUCE STRESS IN LESSONS & PERFORMANCE

Theories in the field of psychology about motivation are vast. What can we use to motivate ourselves toward lessons with a goal of...

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THE PAUSE THAT REFRESHES, AND MAKES MUSIC LIVE!

rhapsodydmb

Mar 30, 20235 min read

THE PAUSE THAT REFRESHES, AND MAKES MUSIC LIVE!

The COCA-COLA company claims that "Advertising slogans are a part of everyday life for consumers around the world,and Coca-Cola has...

43 views0 comments

PLAYING WHAT ONE LOVES, BUT LISTENING TO ALL

rhapsodydmb

Mar 26, 20236 min read

PLAYING WHAT ONE LOVES, BUT LISTENING TO ALL

One of the principal elements I seek in any piano teacher with whom I work, is that I be allowed to choose the pieces I want to learn,...

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HOW TO USE YOUTUBE - & - THE LAW OF UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

rhapsodydmb

Mar 5, 20234 min read

HOW TO USE YOUTUBE - & - THE LAW OF UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

HOW TO USE YOUTUBE: Cello teacher Hans Jorgen Jensen (from Denmark) taught me the "right" way to use many performances on YouTube to...

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WHY IS DEFINING THE ELEMENTS OF PIANISM SO DIFFICULT?

rhapsodydmb

Mar 2, 20234 min read

WHY IS DEFINING THE ELEMENTS OF PIANISM SO DIFFICULT?

Why is explaining how do make something happen on the piano, or what a term in the piano vocabulary means, so difficult for my piano...

19 views0 comments

rhapsodydmb

Feb 28, 20235 min read

WHY DO SOME PRACTICE DAYS GO SO WELL?

Last night I played Schumann's "Traumerie," Mendelssohn's "Confidence (intermediate arrangement)," Schumann's "Foreign Lands," Aram...

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FIFTEEN TRANSFORMATIVE LESSONS FROM MAESTRA MEZZO-SOPRANO JOYCE DIDONATO

rhapsodydmb

Feb 26, 20235 min read

FIFTEEN TRANSFORMATIVE LESSONS FROM MAESTRA MEZZO-SOPRANO JOYCE DIDONATO

Opera singer Joyce DiDonato, a mezzo-soprano, is a miracle maker. In a 45-minute Mistress Class mezzo-soprano DiDonato transformed a...

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rhapsodydmb

Feb 22, 20238 min read

LANG LANG FOREVER!

Love him or hate him -- there's just no "in between." Is he the best (or worst) pianist who has ever lived or who is alive today? Some in...

27 views0 comments

FRIENDS, PIANISTS, & COUNTRYPEOPLE: LEND ME YOUR EAR!

rhapsodydmb

Feb 20, 20233 min read

FRIENDS, PIANISTS, & COUNTRYPEOPLE: LEND ME YOUR EAR!

Today after a short conversation with my composer-pianist friend Bruce, this strange idea came to me: Do you think up there somewhere in...

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