Update to previous post

Wow. My student, who was nearly comatose last week (you know, end of semester…) played SO WELL today! She learned how to reliably produce the substantial variety of sounds required to play Debussy’s “Sunken Cathedral” ~ in ONE WEEK!

What does your music say?

Often when we are tired, the music disappears from our playing.

Sticky fingers

What? Sticky fingers? On the piano?

Want something done? Go to the top!

One of my aunts, who held a high-level position in Washington, frequently reminded all of us to go to the top. I thought of her today and said “thank you” in spirit. Background My health insurance was a mess for at least a month.  Every time I talked to a person, I was given a [...]

Poll: would you like to see detailed practice notes?

The question is, how many readers would be interested in detailed, play-by-play (sorry!), down-to-the-wire practice notes?  These would pertain to the program I will be performing 3 times in November. Please vote! Your suggestions are always welcome.  Please leave any and all in the comment section below! Thank you!

What we need to do when we’re not progressing

When a piece plateaus, what can we do?

Why practice?

Do you make progress when you practice?

E-book available in print, too!

Goal-oriented Practice How to Avoid Traps and Become a Confident Performer by Gretchen Saathoff Welcome! My E-book shows you how to make steady progress starting right now! Eliminate negative self-talk, overwhelming feelings, and practicing with little improvement. Written in plain English, no musical jargon. Shows step-by-step actions you can take. The print version is produced [...]

Student clears a hurdle!

One of my adult students made an extraordinary leap last week!  It’s right up there with getting religion and learning to walk. The hurdle Just as she finished playing one of the exercises in A Dozen A Day, I happened to glance at her hand.  She had developed a bridge! Why not sooner? I’ve asked myself that [...]

Emily’s Movie: Take 2

This is the first update about my work for an upcoming film about Emily Dickinson, the 3rd in a series of documentaries. I have been practicing seven of the Mendelssohn “Songs Without Words” and Beethoven’s “Pathétique” Sonata. Background We will be videotaping in order to make a scratch audio track so the producer can organize [...]