Welcome to my blog. This is my first entry. I got the idea for this after recently having a bit of a renaissance with my musical practice. I’m a professional saxophonist (and to a somewhat lesser degree, a flutist) who is deeply in love with improvising. I’ve always been well-disciplined where practice is concerned, but about a year ago I sort of rediscovered that spark that makes me truly excited to practice every day.
Unlike many musicians, I don’t practice for the sole purpose of being prepared to perform. Don’t get me wrong. I love to perform and take my readiness for this very seriously. But for me the act of practicing is itself a reward. One of the consistently most joyful and satisfying parts of my day is my practice time. It’s meditative, invigorating, challenging and always edifying. Practicing is also an ongoing tutorial about learning how to learn. It’s a beautiful thing.
I typically spend two to three hours a day practicing (more on days that I don’t work). Because of this, I must be mindful about taking care of myself. I personally know many musicians who struggle with chronic pain and other health issues because of their practice habits. I used to be one of those musicians, too. But not any more. Some years back I discovered something that has helped (and continues to help) me more than anything else as a musician, not only to avoid injury, but also to support continuous growth, technical improvement and artistic development.
What I discovered was a simple, effective method of self-care called the Alexander Technique. I was so impressed by how I was able to help myself with this work that I decided to train to become a certified teacher. I’ve been teaching the Technique now for a few years, and have had great satisfaction working with musicians, actors and dancers, helping them to improve the quality of their practice and performance.
So I’ve decided to share my discoveries both as an Alexander Technique teacher and as a serious improvising musician (they’re more related than you might imagine!) There are two areas of interest to me where this is concerned:
- To provide simple, practical information and advice to help musicians stay healthy, pain-free and well-coordinated by applying the principles of the Alexander Technique.I’ll be writing about some of the most common concerns where musicians are concerned, such as chronic back and neck pain, repetitive strain injuries, balance and coordination issues (including focal dystonia), breathing and managing performance anxiety. I’ll also be writing from time to time about other health topics, such as nutrition, exercise (I’m also a personal trainer certified through the National Academy of Sports Medicine), rest, self-care strategies and the use of ergonomic products.
- To share my explorations in my quest to continuously develop my skills as an improvising musician. I love jazz, Balkan gypsy music, just about all folk music, conceptual improvised music (free, avant garde, new music…), and just about anything else that involves the supremely human act of spontaneous composition. My primary discipline is modern jazz, and my main passion is finding my own voice as an improviser. I also love helping other musicians find theirs. I’m always finding new ways to practice and study that help me on this journey. I’ll be sharing ideas, exercises from some of the books I’ve written (or am currently writing) about improvisational pedagogy, and other resources and ideas that I discover from others. I’ll also be posting videos of great musical performers (pointing out what helps these artists play so well) as well as my own video tutorials.