This Crazy Business – Part 1: Hard-wiring the musical mind

An insider perspective on the psychology of performing musiciansThe essay that follows is intended to serve as a theoretical foundation for the arguments presented in subsequent installments of this series. It is based on contemporary theories on arts education plus...

Weekly Wrap-Up

This is my first real week of vacation in over six months, and it is a humongous relief to finally have come time to kick back and relax. As a result of all this discretionary time, I have made some big behind-the-scenes changes to the blog and the podcast–the...

Auditioning at 54 – guest post from Jean-Yves Bénichou

This is a guest post by double bassist Jean-Yves Bénichou. Benjy is bi-national, being a citizen of both the United States and France. He has lived in France for the past 30 years and has been a member of the Strasbourg Philharmonic since 1985. He studied double bass...

Peter Lloyd to teach at Northwestern Universty

Double bassist Peter Lloyd has been hired to teach at Northwestern University starting Fall 2007. He will be replacing double bass instructor DaXun Zhang, who has accepted a faculty position at the University of Texas-Austin. For some background on this institution,...

Weekly Wrap-Up

I am wrapping up my portion of the Midsummer’s Music Festival in Door County, Wisconsin this week with some fabulous performances. This is my third summer with this ensemble, and it is a great way to decompress after getting up at 4 a.m. and working until 11 p.m. for...