meditation Archives

Wellness Retreats for Musicians: Why Are They on the Rise?

I knew there was no way I could practice the amount I needed and not just completely destroy my body. I wondered how other people did it. It never occurred to me in college that it was something I could learn - University of Denver, USA, 1989 On line, or off, pandemic or no, wellness retreats for musicians are all the rage. With so much more now on offer in music colleges and schools in terms of a holistic approach, I set out to find out why so many young musicians are drawn to finding alternative support. In a survey I recently conducted about wellness as experienced by students in music schools and colleges over the last fifty years, it became apparent that, from the beginning of this period, horror [...]

By Ruth Phillips|2024-03-18T13:24:48-04:00June 18th, 2020|Categories: Artistic Vision, In the Practice Room, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: breath, Growth, wellness, power, Practice, meditation, yoga, breathing free, stage presence, inspiration|

“Back to the Breath” —Mindfulness for Cellists

While we are all facing a new reality with the Covid-19 pandemic spreading all over the globe, our way of experiencing life has taken on a new reality in the present moment. Each day, we are presented with innumerable challenges, from following the sobering news on TV and social media, being bombarded with worries, anxiety and panic about what is next to come in your country, your city, within yourself and for your loved ones. It is important to create a positive outlet in the midst of this uncertain time. As a musician and cellist, you have a way to create a positive outlet by playing the cello. Another positive outlet is to quiet the mind through breathing exercises and meditation. I created “Back to the Breath” Mindfulness and [...]

By Shirli Nikolsburg|2023-09-06T02:28:44-04:00April 15th, 2020|Categories: Artistic Vision, Beyond the Traditional, In the Practice Room, Performance, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: Practice, breathing, meditation, breath|

The Buddha, the Brain, & Bach: One Cellist’s Inner Exploration of Practice — by Barbara Bogatin

My bare toes feel cold on the smooth cement. The scent of rosemary is hinted in a gentle breeze, as a bee glances my ear and wild turkeys caw raucously in the distance. I take a slow breath—in ... pause, out ... pause—and become aware of the arising of the intention to take a step. As the weight shifts to the left side of my body, my right knee bends slightly, lifting the heel off the ground, and then the ball and the toe glide airborne over the stone till the tip of my toe reaches its destination. Balance shifts as the right foot bears the full body weight and I stand suspended, legs apart, caught in a slow-motion reenactment of a child learning to walk. Try as I might [...]

By Guest Blogger|2021-11-30T14:03:07-05:00November 6th, 2014|Categories: Artistic Vision, In the Practice Room, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: Bach, San Fransisco Symphony, cello, Vipassana, cellobello, brain, meditation, Barbara Bogatin, Buddha, Mindfulness|

Cultivating Softness, Strength, Clarity, and Calm: 3 Basic Yoga Techniques for Musicians — by Elana Katz

There are many yoga techniques that one can use to cultivate heightened awareness, calm the nervous system, center one’s thoughts, and achieve increased mental clarity. As an artist and performer myself, I can testify that yoga can help to foster creative and artistic clarity as well. What follows is a brief introduction to a few basic principals and practices in yoga that can be useful for musicians, with the instrument and in daily life. 1. Breathing Deepening the breath calms the nervous system and oxygenates the blood. In physical yoga positions, which are called “asanas”, deep breath is used continuously over the course of the whole practice. "Deepening the breath" means an elongation of both the inhale and the exhale. When we are nervous, the breath becomes shallow. Some people [...]

By Elana Katz|2019-06-10T15:15:28-04:00March 26th, 2013|Categories: Beyond the Traditional, In the Practice Room, Playing Healthy, Self Discovery|Tags: Elana Katz, strength, elongation, movement, energize, release, energy levels, softness, nervous system, heightened awareness, exhale, meditation, inhale, cellobello, stretching, integrated into daily life, clarity, artistic clarity, lungs, comfortable position, muscular strength, concentrated creative expression, yoga, Cultivating softness, balance|

A New Year’s Goal-Setting Session — by Mark Summer

As the New Year dawns bright and full of possibilities, (the financial cliff not withstanding), this is a useful time to contemplate where we stand on our path of development as musicians, and to think thoughtfully about where we’d like to be in the coming year. My wife and I make it a priority to take turns, voicing our goals, and writing down each other’s dreams and aspirations for the coming year. It gives us a supportive place to dream big and to begin to put into practice what we are imagining for ourselves. Even if you don’t put much credence in books like “The Secret”, which posits that positive thinking brings us what we think about, I think that we can all agree that it’s useful to know what [...]

By Mark Summer|2024-01-07T22:40:36-05:00February 6th, 2013|Categories: Beyond the Traditional, Performance, Self Discovery|Tags: Summer, embarrassment, practicing, New Year's Goals, string quartets, gauge progress, recording artists, aspirations, gifts, adventures, sessions, trips, hero, specific dreams, travel with instruments, improvising, recording, taking advantage of opportunities, Mark, meditation, jazz, The Secret, action, cello, mentors, Development, Turtle Island String Quartet, Berklee School of Music, cellobello, mindfulness meditation, possibility, Utah, contemplate, goals, musical hero, respect, Zion National Park, decisive action, musical journey, dreams, educator, musicians, New Year|