Claire Allen, violin
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Easy Ways to Expand Your Child's Musical Consciousness

12/31/2012

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1. Go to concerts.  Go to lots of concerts.  Go to many kinds of concerts.  Go to concerts given by professional orchestras, soloists, chamber groups, jazz musicians, anything.  If it's in your family's budget, I urge you to go to a professional concert.  The tickets might be a bit pricey, but it's so important to support the arts both with your presence and with your ticket price.  However, here's a hint to save money if you're on a tight budget: Look at your local universities and music schools.  Student recitals at the college level are almost always free and of a very high quality.  College orchestra concerts, again, will be at a high level and free or at a much lower cost than a ticket to the professional symphony. 

2. Listen to classical music in your home.  The more your kids hear music, the more they will develop an ear for it.  Have music on in the home while they're doing homework, playing with their friends, just hanging out.  Check the local listings for the public broadcasting station for programs such as "Live from Lincoln Center."  Plan a television night around watching the concert!

I urge you to purchase classical albums, if it's possible for your family's budget.  Give your kids classical albums as birthday and holiday gifts.  It's important to support recording artists!  However, again, for the money-conscious family, it's now easier than ever to access free classical music on the internet.  YouTube has some great videos of performances.  There are other online resources such as Pandora and Spotify.  A word of warning about Spotify to parents: it requires a Facebook account (so ages 13 and up) to access.  Also, some of the ads that are played during the "commercial" breaks may not be appropriate for young children.  Another place to get recordings is to subscribe to a music database like Naxos.  You can also visit your local public library and browse their cd collection for classical albums.

3. Read books about classical music or ones that feature characters who play instruments.  One of my favorites of all time is The Mozart Season, by Virginia Euwer Wolff.  I also like Leslie Namioka's series for children about the Yang family, where each child plays a different instrument and they have a family quartet.  The first book in the series is Yang the Youngest and his Terrible Ear.  Many authors also have biographies of the famous composers written for a younger audience.

For the adult wanting to learn more about the music world, there are any number of great books out there.  Aaron Copland's What To Listen For In Music.  Arnold Steinhardt, the first violinist of the now-retired Guarneri quartet has written two wonderful books, Violin Dreams and Indivisible by Four.  Shinichi Suzuki's Nurtured by Love is a must-read for the parent of young students.  

4.  Do all of the above with your family.  Being a musician is more than a hobby or an after-school activity.  It's really a way of life, and the more you can welcome music and violin into your life, the more you and your children will grow in it!
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Finding Time To Practice

12/28/2012

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One of the challenges that every musician faces is how to find enough time to practice.  Busy parents with young students may struggle to fit practicing into their family's schedule.  Here are some suggestions to make life easier!

1. Be consistent.  Pick a time every day that is designated for practice. For kids in school, practicing as soon as you get home from school, before you do your homework, can be a good strategy.  Another good time is right after dinner.  It's good to practice before too many other things can distract you.

2. Schedule your practice time.  If you have a planner or a calendar program you use on your computer, make an appointment with yourself for practice, and set reminders so that you don't forget. I like to set alarms on my phone and computer for an extra level of reminding!

3. Break up your practice blocks.  According to physical therapists, it's not good to play for more than 20 - 30 minutes consecutively.  So, set a timer, then take a break, and then come back to it.  If your goal is to practice 90 minutes throughout the day, you can do it in three 30 minute blocks.  This makes it easier to focus and easier to fit in a busy schedule.  Younger students can practice in three 10 minute blocks for a total of 30 minutes in a day.

4. Set goals.  Set long term, medium, and daily goals.  For example, when I was taking graduate auditions, my long-term goal was to get into a graduate school.  My medium goal was to learn the whole first movement of the Tchaikovsky concerto.  My daily goal was to learn the 2-3 pages of the concerto that I assigned myself.  Setting goals helps you remember why you're practicing.

5. Make a plan.  I find that the best way to practice is to make a plan as soon as you finish the previous day's practicing.  It's much more productive than opening your violin case and going, "Well, what should I do today?" Look over your notes from your last lesson with your teacher.  Think about what you practiced and what you would like to improve on tomorrow.  Also estimate how much time each thing will take you.  This way, you know exactly how much time to fit in your schedule for practicing.

Sample Practice Plan for a Suzuki Book 1 Student:
10 minutes: Warmups (violin hold and bow hold, bow games, finger taps and slides)
5 minutes: A Major Scale (pick 3 different Twinkle rhythms.)
5 minutes: Arm scrubs while singing through the Twinkle variations
10 minutes: Sing new piece, play practice spots, play new piece 5 times.

Further Practicing Resources for Students and Parents:
Online:
The Bulletproof Musician
The Musician's Way
Free Printable Practice Charts for Suzuki Students

Books:
Helping Parents Practice,by Edmund Sprunger
Practicing for Artistic Success, by Burton Kaplan
The Musician's Way, by Gerald Klickstein
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Creating Practice Space in Your Home

12/15/2012

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Practicing becomes a lot easier when you have a special space in your home just for your music.  It helps you focus faster and stay organized! Here are some tips for creating your own practice space.

1. This should be a space designated solely for the practice of your music.  Whether it is an entire room or just a corner of another room, nothing else should go on in this space except for practicing.

2. Freedom from distractions.  Especially for young students, the television, cellular phone, computer, and all electronic devices should be shut off.  If you use a metronome or tuning app, your phone should be set so it cannot receive calls or text messages during your practice session.  Family members and roommates should know that when you are in your practice space, they are not to bother you.  Ideally, one should be completely alone in the room or just with their practice helper (generally a parent).

3. Instrument, music, lesson notebook, and pencil.  It is a good idea to keep all of your musical belongings in one place.  This way, when going back and forth from lessons to school to rehearsal, you know exactly where to go to get everything.  It also means that everything is handy and you do not need to frequently stop practicing to go hunt something down.

4. Music stand.  All but the most elementary beginners will be reading music of some sort, and even the beginners may find it helpful to put their lesson notebooks on a music stand so they can read them without having to hold them.  This stand should ensure that the music is at the eye level of the student.  Spectacularly tall students may need a chair to place their stand on.

5. Mirror.  While not absolutely essential, being able to watch oneself in the mirror while practicing is a very valuable practice technique, especially when working on posture or technique.

6. Recording device.  Again, while not essential, being able to hear exactly what you are playing is invaluable.  There is no substitute for really listening to yourself play.  

7. Something inspirational. Whether it be a quote that you really like, pictures of your favorite composers or violinists, or a supportive card received from a loved one, put something a little personal in your practice area that will help motivate you to play even on the days where you might not feel like it.  Once, to prepare for an orchestra audition, I printed out a picture of the conductor so I would get used to him looking at me when I played! 

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Countdown to Recital Day

12/6/2012

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There are three days until my recital.  This recital is the result of a year and a half of study, practice, and frustration. Since starting my master's degree at Peabody, I have literally rebuilt my violin playing from the ground up.  My first lesson started with how to hold the violin and bow.  I'm not even kidding.  And now - now I'm giving my master's recital, which for the non-musicians out there is the musician's equivalent of a master's thesis.  It's kind of a big deal.

I did a practice performance of my program in my violin class this evening and listened to it, noting very carefully all the spots where my intonation could be a little better, figuring out what timings still need to be adjusted...but I found myself feeling something I haven't felt about my playing in a long time: pride, and joy.

I know my music is far from perfect.  I know that I will never be completely satisfied with it.  But I'm really happy with the work I've done, and I can't wait to share it with the world on Sunday afternoon.  I've cut and pasted a few little clips of it in this post as a "preview" for you all.

My recital is this Sunday, December 9, at 3:30 pm in Griswold Hall at the Peabody Institute in Baltimore, Maryland.  I hope you can all be there!
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    Claire Allen

    Written thoughts on my musical life.

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