A Presentation Proposal: The importance of body and mental awareness as a major tool for helping performance musicians develop authentically and effectively

I believe that the principal role of teachers is to help students become aware of who they are and to help them grow. It is not to define their faults nor cure them. The driving force in this process is the curiosity in the unique makeup of each student. As teachers, we should challenge our students to understand the intentions of each composer, but we should also help them to explore their inner world, and to express their unique voice within the context of each composition. Most of the learning occurs in the process of working towards a musical goal. When I teach, I often guide my students to attend to their habitual ways of musical expression. Musical expression encompasses the whole range of human emotions. Although the exploration of expressive nuances does not necessarily lead directly to the ultimate mastery of a composition, it frequently results in the expansion of the student's personality and music-making abilities. This way of learning is organic rather than linear. Instead of setting concrete, simple goals and learning the prescribed tools to attain them, in organic learning, experimentation with different ideas provides the student with the freedom to choose among a whole array of options for expressing a musical intention. rather than linear. Instead of setting concrete, simple goals and learning the prescribed tools to attain them, in organic learning, experimentation with different ideas provides the student with the freedom to choose among a whole array of options for expressing a musical intention. The same principle of encouraging the search for a variety of options applies to the technical mastery of the musical instrument. To gain the ability to meet any musical demands, students must have a vast repertoire of movements that will give them the freedom to use their bodies with maximum efficiency. I believe that the real vehicle that allows the musical instrument to function optimally is the performer’s body and mind, and its ability to constantly change to meet the musical demands. Most of us accept the way we move as if it is a part of our genetic makeup, whereas in reality, we learned how to move through trial and error, and our nervous system was wired according to our experiences. Unless we are challenged to question this wiring (the habits), and to explore new possibilities of movement, we limit our range of expression. I believe that we should constantly challenge our students to explore new ways of moving while playing, and to correlate them with minute differences in the quality of sound. Through my experience of over fifty years of teaching, I have found that when students discover the power of becoming aware of minute differences in their movement, it is not only their sound that changes, but also their coordination, concentration, motivation, and overall technical proficiency. The most fascinating aspect for me in approaching teaching in this manner, is that students come to not only discover their personal involvement in the communication of a musical composition, and their ability to efficiently express it on their instrument, but The most fascinating aspect for me in approaching teaching in this manner, is that students come to not only discover their personal involvement in the communication of a musical composition, and their ability to efficiently express it on their instrument, but very often they also gain self-confidence and imagination. The benefits of body/mind awareness also help them in the prevention of injury, and in the healing after a disabling injury.