“Fire the Critic (And hire a Self-Coach)” is one piece of advice in Noa Kageyama’s excellent Bulletproof Musician course – which I recently took at Juilliard’s evening division. When you’re trying to get in the ‘zone’ and play freely, the last thing you need is a pesky little voice in ...
Read MoreThe tyranny of music teachers
J. K. Simmons certainly deserved Best Supporting Actor for his chilling portrayal in “Whiplash” of Fletcher – the monstrous jazz instructor who subjects his drummer protégée to repeated humiliations and profanity-laden insults. Many musicians doubtless have horror stories about tyrant teachers – some who perhaps still managed to be inspirational ...
Read More“Diversity is Good Business” – My Report on Efforts to Promote Diversity in Classical Music
The movie “Selma” is a brutal reminder – not that any is needed given recent events in Ferguson and elsewhere – of America’s troubled past and continuing problems with discrimination. In the music world, segregated concert halls and attempts to prohibit performances by African American musicians were common. In 1964 ...
Read MoreChickens and Divo Pianists
One of my favorite parts of Jeffrey Fleishman’s excellent, lively profile of LA Philharmonic president Deborah Borda was the revelation that a pianist booked to play with the orchestra needed to stay in a hotel within three blocks of live chickens. I can imagine that artist managers (and hotel staff) ...
Read MoreIt’s a Golden Age For Chamber Music Fans
Music Review: Amphion String Quartet at Alice Tully Hall. What is in the water these days? It’s a golden age for chamber music fans in NY – serenaded by a bountiful supply of polished, energetic and deeply musical young ensembles. The Amphion String Quartet showed their mettle at Alice Tully ...
Read MoreHow Much Life Experience is Necessary to Perform ‘Profound’ Music?
Feature Article: Wait, You Need To Suffer More. I loved researching this article, which explores whether musicians need to have ‘suffered’ in order to effectively perform particularly ‘profound’ music – ie late Beethoven or Schubert. I think the pianist Leif Ove Andsnes sums it up perfectly: “It’s not true that ...
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