Teaching Philosophy
Learning how to play any musical instrument to the highest level must be a holistic experience. It involves not just the essential physical mechanics of playing but also a maturity in emotional and mental attitudes. It is wonderful to be an active part in both a student’s musical and personal growth.
As a personality develops, so can the musicianship. They go hand in hand although each may not develop at the same rate but, over time, it is obvious that growth in both culminates in a complete artist.
The greatest joy comes when all the elements become aligned, the physical works instinctively with ease, the emotional content is allowed to express itself freely, and the mind may be detached yet actively tuned to observing the musical/physical process. At this point we might reach the true nature of the music, that which the composer intuited onto the printed page.
I hope all my students might learn to express their individual voices, with their own personality and color, with confidence and faith in their own abilities, gaining the utter pleasure and joy of being able to play some of the greatest music ever written.