10 years ago, I would have said no to any parent wanting me to teach their 4 year old. How is that possible? Don't they wiggle around constantly? Aren't their brains merely capable of understanding shapes and some alphabet letters? Boy, was I wrong. I can't take much credit at all for this. The reason I feel so comfortable teaching such young students is because of the incredible...
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by Jamey Mann Often students and professionals find themselves at a plateau that can be difficult to work out of. Just like athletes need to change up their workouts to make gains in sports, musicians need to get out of comfort zones to make gains musically. At a certain point everyone’s routine begins to get stale which in turn, is mentally exhausting. Doing the same technical...
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It’s never too early to think about warmer weather and planning for summer vacation travels – why not plan a trip to one of Virginia’s music history sites? Virginia is full of folk music traditions that are being preserved throughout the state. We may not have the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but there are plenty of neat places to listen to and learn...
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One of the problems we have as musicians is a plateau in development and drive. It’s happened to almost everybody I know in one way or another and it’s the most frustrating thing to deal with. Over the years I’ve found that the most common reason for a plateau is a lack of clearly defined and achievable goals. Let me make a very clear distinction, practice...
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Does anyone else out there notice their long time students starting to lose enthusiasm once they reach 12 or 13? Maybe even younger at age 11? Many teachers I speak with say the same thing. It's a tough age. Many of those kids have been with you since they were very young. It's really amazing, isn't it? To see someone once a week from the...
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