1001 Creative Ideas
I always ask my students to come up with a list of (at least) 10 different ways to play a melody or solo. Sparkling creative spirits in music is all about figuring out new and exciting ways to do manageable and pleasurable things sound different. Add character,...How To Deal With Creative Blocks
Have you ever felt stuck in a rut? Jazz is all about expressing oneself creatively. But sometimes that liberating state of mind kind of feels closer to a rat in the cage than a lion out in the wild. Unleashing creativity is all about thinking outside of the box....The Inspired Student: Performance Practice
Did you know that the areas of the brain activated while playing from memory are deactivated during improvisation? Playing a written melody and improvising a solo activates different regions of the brain. We all have a Classical musician friend unable to improvise or...The Inspiring Teacher
“The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” (William Arthur Ward) The Center for Music Learning (in the University of Texas Austin’s) is at the forefront of...Defensive Pessimism
It’s Summertime! “The livin’ is easy Fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high Your daddy’s rich and your ma is good-lookin’ So hush little baby, Don’t you cry” Sunny weather, drinking cocktails by the pool, bikini girls...
