My Winter Break 2013 Reading List

Christmas Break. Now, that my final concert review for 2013 has been put to bed and playing at Christmas services has been completed, I can breathe a sigh of relief and relax for a few days.

Aside from spending time with family and friends, I do hope to make a dent in my book reading list. I’d love to add more, but I think I’ll just start with these.

Here is my musician’s Christmas reading list with links to my affiliates:

• The Inner Game of Music by Barry Green (with W. Timothy Gallwey)

• Flawless Consulting: A Guide to Getting Your Expertise Used, 3rd edition by Peter Block

• Consulting Fees: A Guide For Independent Consultants (Consultant Journal Guides) by Andrea Coutu

• Higgledy Piggledy Jazz by Elena V. Cobb

• blue riverby Elena Cobb

• Complete Works for Solo Keyboard by Jean-Philippe Rameau

• Collected Studies for Piano, op. 100, 105, 109by J.F. Burgmüller

The nice thing about adding a bunch of music scores to my reading list is that I can practice my sight-reading. I can also leisurely pick a couple of pieces to work on for 2014.

I am not sure if I am going to get through all of the books. If I can get through half of them over the Christmas Break, I’ll be happy. I can always save the rest of my musician’s reading list for my Reading Week.

Petcam Video: Canuck Winters from the Dog's POV

Now that Maestro's canine arthritis and I.V.D.D. appears to be stabilizing, he has started to use his Mr. Petcam a bit more. We have some friends and family who have never seen snow before, so he happily puts up with the Petcam to show off Canadian winter. I think it's mainly because he likes the attention he gets when wearing it:

This is Maestro's first Winter 2013 video with his petcam. It was taken on Friday, December 13, 2013:

One friend from Australia is completely fascinated by how crunchy the snow sounds when we walk on it.

This is a video in which Maestro shows off a typical day of errands. If you can stomach the motion, he shows his pre-acupuncture arthritic gait (listen for the uneven rhythm). Towards the end, he shows off his post-treatment gait, which is a bit more fluid:

Maestro had barely a limp (if at all) after his treatment. Last week, Dr. Mark from the Bridlewood Vet Clinic said that the arthritic pain is under control and that now, we are just managing the stiffness with his canine acupuncture, angelica-mastic medication and his laser therapy. A nice Christmas present for the guy.

Brr! It was cold that day (-18 degrees Celsius). Not as cold as it was earlier this month. With the petcam, the snow looks more intimidating from a small dog's POV.

Christmas 2013 Greetings and Musical Faves

It seems that everyone I have spoken to has had a busy 2013. It is my wish that you all have a wonderful Christmas. May you enjoy some quiet time and some quality time with your family and friends.

As a musician and music teacher, I find it a huge blessing that there are so many arrangements and interpretations to classic Christmas music. Here are five of my favourite Christmas songs. Perhaps, some of these versions are new to you. Enjoy!

"Cry of the Poor" and "What Child is This?" performed by The Notre Dame Group:

Jackie Evancho sings "Silent Night":

Amy Grant’s "Breath of Mary":

"O Come, O Come Emmanuel" performed by The Piano Guys

Carol of the Bells performed by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir:

Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones. May 2014 bring you good health, happiness and abundance.

Reducing Hand and Wrist Tension at the Piano

Lately, I have been harping on my students about their wrist technique. Some are playing with locked wrists or excess hand tension, even with us working on it during their lessons. The bottom line is that we teachers can only help you so much in a lesson, the rest comes down to how you practice at home.

Here are a few videos by some of my esteemed colleagues on hand and wrist technique:

Irina Gorin and Wrist Relaxation Exercises:

I showed this to an intermediate student. He started to make some progress after viewing this. Irina has more useful videos on her YouTube Channel.

Josh Wright on Reducing Hand Tension

Although he still has some tension (those pesky octaves!), Josh does have some good points. Let's chalk it up to the fact that he's showing you a section that he is working on, so it's a work in progress.

Robert Estrin on Wrist Technique with Octaves:

Robert Estrin has a treasure chest of wonderful piano tutorials on his website. Every pianists should bookmark his site.

The Allan Fraser Institute's Lecture-Demonstration on Hand Tension and Proper Arm Weight Technique

Thanks to Brian Riker for sharing this one.

I promised my students that I would send them some clips to help them play with more relaxed wrists and a less hand tension.

Sometime during Christmas break, I will record some videos in which I deconstruct my piano technique. When I mentioned this to my students, they immediately asked if we could use the GoPro POV camera and the other cameras to film them as well. What a great way to analyze your basic piano technique!

I think I will start using an elastic band. Up to this point, I've either had my students put their hand on mine (or my forearm) to feel the arm weight and tension I use to play their trouble spots. Or, I'll hold their forearm and won't let go until I sense they have relaxed sufficiently.

We've been using imagery a lot too. That's something you might want to try if your teacher hasn't asked you to yet.

Last night, I asked a student to imagine that he was in a pool and he was dragging his arm back and forth in the water. Then, I asked him to imagine that his arms were made of air and that gravity was pulling his hand down towards the keys.

Make sure you stretch regularly to reduce hand tension and prevent musician injuries. Finally, I will leave you with something I say regularly to my students: Spongy wrists, firm fingertips.

Heartwarming KODA Performance for Deaf Parents

This was making the rounds on the social networks earlier this month. This is a video taken at a kindergarten Christmas concert. It captures a sweet child of deaf adults (a "CODA" or "KODA") who chose to perform in ASL instead of the usual choreography. That way, her parents - as well as other deaf people - could appreciate the performance fully:

Highly expressive. She's a delight to watch.

If you would like to learn more about Children of Deaf Adults (CODA), also known as Kids of Deaf Adults (KODA), here are a few websites:

• American Sign Language University

• Children of Deaf Adults, Inc.

• Communication and Parenting Issues in Families with Deaf Parents and Hearing Children

• Understanding Children of Deaf Adults