Author Archives: Jen

Do you HAVE TO practice?

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Do you HAVE TO practice?

Nope, that’s not what I mean.  Of course you NEED TO practice to maintain your current level of play, to keep your tunes in your head and in your hands, and to continue to grow.  After all, playing an instrument is a complex task that requires a great deal of memory.  So, yes, you NEED TO practice.

But that’s not the question.  The question is, do you HAVE to practice?

And the answer to that is question is…

 no

You don’t HAVE TO practice.

You GET TO practice!

You have the rare privilege to have daily harp performances in your living room – DAILY!  And you don’t even have to buy a ticket! What a deal!

Yes, practicing is an obligation – but it’s an obligation you have set for yourself.  You have a block of time already set aside by you, for you.  A lot of people have the intention of doing something for themselves, but you have already made that commitment.  And each day that you practice, you GET TO benefit from that commitment.

And that GET TO probably leaves you grateful to yourself for making that time for you. 

GET TO is a choice that you make (just like HAVE TO is).  GET TO is a mindset you select.  Just like you select what to practice, you can select your mindset going in.  When you GET TO experience the practice you NEED, your growth will HAVE TO show! 

What is your mindset?  Do you define your time at the harp as something you GET TO do?  Or does it still feel like something you HAVE TO do? Let me know how you see it – in the comments!

Remember

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Remember

This week we observe Memorial Day and honor those who have died in the nation’s wars.  These fallen have given all to preserve our way of life.  Those of whom can be said, “Uncommon Valor was a Common Virtue”.  This Uncommon Valor has afforded the rest of us the privilege of playing the music we love in relative safety and security.  Please remember them with gratitude as you play and practice this week.

Thanks, Bunches

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Thanks, Bunches

“Your underwear only bunches when you’re on your way to the bench.”

And it’s true, isn’t it.  It’s only when you’re on your way to the bench that you notice it.  In the short walk that takes you to the bench (and takes forever (cut to bad old movie footage of a hallway progressively lengthening as you walk)), that is when the riot happens in your brain.  You’ve been complete calm, comfortable, and bunch-free…right up until that point.  AND THEN YOU FEEL IT.

And you can think of nothing else. Every neuron in your brain, no, in your body, is reporting that on this phenomenon.  It is all you can think about.  You certainly can no longer hear the tune in your head.  It’s drowned out by the freight train of fearsome awareness.

There is no escape.  No matter how well prepared you felt.  No matter how long you have been playing.  No matter how politely the cat and the curtains applaud your efforts.  No matter how many seats in the theatre.  This is the end.  And you can barely walk for the bunching.

But that’s not true, is it? 

When you begin to breathe again and stop hyperventilating, when your muscles relax and release, you realize the freight train is not running on a different track and the danger has passed.  And when the noise abates, the riot calms, and you can begin to hear the strains of the tune once more.  Without the clenching of your teeth and other muscles, you let go of the bunching, and you become more comfortable…as you settle on the bench.

I’d be bunches of happy to hear what you think! Let me know in the comments.

This bit of wisdom comes courtesy of my dear friend Kris.  We were planning our Moving Forward weekend (formerly known as Harp Quest, but we felt like we wanted to leave that sitting there for a bit and focus more on Moving Forward) and we found this statement – in multiple places – in our assembled history (which includes student feedback, our own feedback when we’re still sweaty and exhausted from teaching, and our musings after a good meal and a glass of wine).  It really is our collected wisdom to date, and we review it to launch our planning to…you guessed it…Move Forward!

We are offering Moving Forward to our students this summer.  The first weekend (25 – 27 August) is for less experienced harpers – you are early in your learning and still getting a handle on playing and are looking to learn, laugh, and meet other harpers like you.  The second weekend (8 – 10 September) is for more experienced harpers.  You are intermediate or advanced and are looking for a challenge as well laughing, learning, and hanging out with other harpers like you.  For either weekend you are interested, engaged, excited and enthusiastic while not judging, pulling back, or withdrawing.  Enrollment in each weekend is limited because we are going to be very focused and have group and one-on-one time.   If you have worked with me in regular lessons, irregular lessons, or in coaching you are invited.  If you’re interested in being part of this or in getting more details, let me know – in the comments!

 

 

Prepping your practice

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Prepping your practice 

If you’ve spent even a little time in the socials you have probably not been able to escape seeing loads about Meal Prepping. 

If you haven’t, Meal Prep is an approach to helping you get dinner on the table so that mealtime is not a zoo.  All the cool kids are doing it, apparently.

There’s no magic to meal prep.  It’s a fairly easy process to follow.  And it’s smart because it saves time, money, angst, and the “hangries”.

While seeing that stuff again, it got me thinking* – could we “prep” our practice so that practice time isn’t a zoo?  Why not! 

So, if we were going to Practice Prep, what would we need to do?

We need to understand that practice prep isn’t a “hack” (remember, we talked about that before!).

We need to understand that, no matter how many well-meaning people make cute memes on the socials telling us what to do, our practice prep needs to be our own and that every suggestion is just that, a suggestion.  We can look at, evaluate (maybe even test drive) and decide to keep or toss each one as needed to fit ourselves.

We need to understand that it can be as simple or as complex as we need it to be. Meal prep can be simple (make extra to have leftovers later) or complex (make an entire week’s worth of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners).  Likewise, our practice prep can be as simple or complex as we need (and it can vary from week to week).

So, like meal prep, Practice Prep is based on identifying some important things like – what do we want to get done over the week? What are the steps to get there?  What is missing that we need to build to make progress?

How do we identify these things? There are a few places to start depending on where you are in your harp life. 

The easiest way is to read your lesson notes to find what you have learned and what your teacher is expecting you to accomplish between lessons so that you can continue to progress. You may get very good direction on exactly what you should do.  But frankly, that’s likely only if you are a child or have just started lessons (while your teacher helps you learn how to practice).  You are told what do to and how “on track” is defined.  That’s fairly easy (as long as you do it).

If you are more advanced or if you are self-directed, you have the same information available, you just have to dig a little to find it.  What is your overall goal?  What are the precise steps to get there?  Have you further identified the substeps (iterated to the smallest steps) so that you can work on specific things to move you forward? (NB these will likely change frequently as the steps at the beginning of a tune will look different than the steps when you’re polishing).  Have you noted those steps so that you can 1. remember them and 2. verify that you have completed them (successfully)?  Have you defined your criteria for “good enough” or “done”?  Have you marked your progress (good and not as good) so you know where to start next and what needs more focus?

Now you can organize your time.  That includes doing any prep work needed (pencils sharpened? music ready? distractions put away?) so that you are ready to practice and make the most of it.

Finally, you need to be consistent – doing this one week will be helpful but won’t significantly move you forward unless you continue to build week on week.  No matter how much we try to pretend otherwise, the tortoise always wins the race!

What do you think?  Is my meal prep analagy too much of a stretch? Or am I on the money here?  Let me know in the comments!

 

* you caught me surfing rather than practicing!

Sit Up and Take Notice 2

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Sit up 2

Last week we talked about how the rest of your life (you know – work, home life, hobbies, etc.) can impact your harp playing, possibly leaving you injured or in pain and unable to play.  And that this can happen even if your harp technique is really good.  We talked about being ready to play by maintaining strength, flexibility, and good posture.  This week let’s move from talking to what you can do about it.

We know that at the harp, we need to close, have good space for movement, that the arm must move to support the wrist, and that we will improve with practice (which will include some repetition, no matter how you dress it up).  But do we apply this same thinking and discipline to our other tasks in life?  The sad answer is that most do not.  So, what can you do to overcome all this? 

Here are some suggestions that are all over the place.  You can treat this list as a pick and mix or you could acknowledge that this is a wide problem and needs a wide solution. Here goes:

  • Pay attention. It is challenging to pay attention to your posture when you’re in the middle of solving a problem, typing a masterpiece, or reading a good book.  It is important though, to take a short break to check on yourself – and make corrections if you have lapsed.  If you need help, set a reminder to poke you into paying attention.
  • Don’t sit like a shrimp! Don’t slouch at the harp, at the dinner table, at the desk.  Just don’t. If you already do, sit up. Notice your posture.  Also notice the fatigue you might feel after you do sit up.  This is a sure sign that you need to strengthen your back muscles to help you sit upright.  Practicing sitting up will make it easier (seem familiar?).
  • Don’t be the hipster. Sit in any Pete-bucks (really any coffee shop with free wifi) and see how many people you can find that are not sitting curled up, head forward, neck in a weird curve, staring at a screen.  As I look around, I see – zero people sitting with healthy posture*.  See those bowed curved shoulders?  That’s those strong chest muscles overpowering the back muscles.  Remember too that your head weighs about 15 pounds (even for airheads) and your neck is a very weak set of joints, so keeping your head centered over your body is a good idea.  Keep your ears over your shoulders.
  • Leave room for expansion – sitting up will straighten your spine which will also give your ribs room to expand….and then you can breathe! Novel concept.
  • Practice like a pro. Do you think (your favorite athlete or performer) just runs out on the field or stage to play?  NO – they warm up and stretch.  You might not see them do it, but they do. So should you.  It doesn’t have to be an elaborate routine – wiggle your fingers, stretch your hands, arms, and shoulders.  Warm up your legs, hips, and back.  You’re going to be doing a lot of work, might as well prepare for it.
  • Get up. When you’re practicing, don’t plant yourself for the duration. Plan to get up.  I break my practice into segments (warm up, technical, learning, working, polishing, improv or composing, and then fun) and set a timer for each.  Sometimes I ignore the timer – if I’m working and good things are happening, I’ll ignore it (actually I’ll reset it because my plan is to do the work but not to overdo the work).  I use different times for different things – I might work for 45 minutes but only warm up for 5.  It also depends on the day and what I’m hoping to accomplish – but it’s all informed by my self-knowledge and experience.  
  • Get up too. Getting up isn’t just about keeping your mind sharp and giving yourself a break.  It’s also an opportunity to practice some back care.  Your back is a long chain of bones and connects with your ribs, hips, shoulders, arms, and legs.  All that sitting can lead to stiffness or pain that feels like your back but could be more.  Get up, stretch, move, strengthen your body so you can not only sit (comfortably, correctly) but also so you can get up!

We don’t often think of playing the harp as a rigorous activity but you do need to have a basic level of strength so you can be successful and resilient.  You might be wondering 1. do you do these (bad) things? or 2. how do you know if you’ve stopped doing them?  I have an answer for that too – record yourself.  I know, there are still people who don’t want to see themselves on video (even after years of covid).  Get over it – there’s too much to be learned to get stuck in a hangup.  Besides – you use a tuner, don’t you? And you use a tuning wrench, right?  Well, your phone recording is just another tool, so stop arguing.  Set it up on your music stand, push record and do the thing.  Do it for a while to capture your real self and see what you need to work on…and what you don’t.  I am always delighted to see that my thumbs are up, for instance.  Most importantly, when you’re done learning from the video – delete it!

These are all good ideas, but it is very important that you remember that if you have an injury – acute or chronic, any type really – seek medical help.  Not Dr. Google.  Don’t shake it off.  Go see a real physician, chiropractor, or physical therapist. 

Do you have other challenges or solutions? Let me know in the comments!

 

* Now you know my little secret writing spot.

Sit up and take notice

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Sit up and take notice

It’s May, which is a lovely time of year.  It is daylight longer, the temperatures are fairly palatable, and we are ready to emerge from the winter (and to escape spring cleaning).  It’s also a time that many think about our general health and fitness – and how fortunate we are to have (generally) good health while being fit enough to do the things we love (like play the harp).

And yet, as I write this, I have three students in treatment for various hand and arm overuse injuries and more that are preparing to seek help for sore forearms, tired fingers, tightness in the palm, neck pain, and more.

Yikes!

This bothers me because 1. I don’t like to see anyone in pain (except maybe that mean girl from 8th grade), 2. It interrupts their practice and our lessons, and 3. As a Human Systems Integration expert and a Certified Music Ergonomist it is painful for me to watch these things develop.  I will say that, although these students are feeling the effects in their playing, they have done me proud by working on their technique so that we can be assured that it is not the harp that is the problem.  However, the same cannot be said for the rest of their lives and there are still problems that have to be addressed.

A long time ago I heard/read someone say that it didn’t matter if you spent 30 minutes every day in the gym strengthening your abs if the other 23 and half hours of every day you let them slag off! (can’t remember where I got this, but it stuck with me)

This is so true for our harp playing body (and for all your other muscles (and fascia and tendons)).  You can have brilliant technique and practice habits at the harp, but if the rest of your day is not similarly managed, you can develop issues that will spill over into your harp life.  We don’t focus on our bodies while we sit at our computers, tablets, phones, paperwork, stovetops, or in front of the television.   Working from home, our current world, and busy minds have all contributed too. 

Contributed to what? Primarily poor posture and long periods of stasis – sitting still.  Age also works against you as you calcify ingrown habits as well as losing both flexibility and strength.  There may be some truth to those people who say their day job is killing them!  Let’s not let us be one of them!

If you’re a kid (define that as you wish), you might think that’s a problem for other people.  That it won’t happen to you. That you’re different.  Go on telling yourself that. <deep sarcasm>  Whatever – of the eight billion people on the planet, a very large proportion of those grow to older adulthood and along the way they lose strength and muscle mass, experience reduced flexibility, and develop age related injuries.  It would be good if we maintained good posture, strength, and flexibility to avoid injury and loss.

This week, think about this and the relationship of (the other parts of) your life to your ability to play.  Next week, I’ll give you some things to work on to assure that pain, injury, or loss of mobility don’t derail your harping!  Are you experiencing any of these things?  Let me know in the comments!

Home again, jiggedy-jig!

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Home again, jiggedy-jig!

Harpa are back home after a wonderful trip to Scotland!  I was traveling for over two weeks and loved every minute (even the ones that will eventually be funny stories!). 

This trip Harpa were (from top left): Sue Richards, Beth Kolle, Therese Honey, and (from bottom left) Donna Bennett, me, and Martha Hill, and for the Edinburgh International Harp Festival, Kelly Brzozowski.  We posted photos of our visit on the Harpa Facebook page here. 

Harpa 2023

We started our trip at the Edinburgh International Harp Festival which was an incredible experience.  We participated in courses and workshops (the latter are long format, the former are shorter) learning Scottish, Breton, and Irish music as well as learning to release our inner Diva (laugh not – we didn’t think we needed help with that either, but wow did we learn a ton!). The high point for us was playing a concert – no pressure to play for a room full of harpers – no pressure at all.  But we performed beautifully and were really pleased with it.   We also attended some amazing concerts by friends old and new.  It was delightful.

Once EIHF was finished we headed off to the Highlands. We had three more performing opportunities, including a sold-out show at the Tollbooth in Forres.  At one time, the Tollbooth was the court and county lockup (not the automated money-snuffler we think of today).  It’s a historied building and we were privileged to play in the Courtroom.  While there we also got to share tunes with Cheyenne Brown’s adult students – some that they had performed earlier at the Inverness Music Festival!  Is there anything better than meeting other harpers?  The bummer was that, like any vacation, you never have as much time as you think you will, so we didn’t get to spend a great deal of time with them and we were done playing before we knew it.  At performances I always feel like I’m trying to cram 10 hours into a 1-hour sock. <sigh>

We also performed in Lossiemouth and at Ballindalloch Castle.  I still had the “1-hour sock” problem at each of them, but still got to meet and perform for some lovely people and in support of good causes.  In and around those performances we had the business of vacationing to deal with.  We enjoyed tea (twice! once on a steam train), saw castles, did some shopping, devoured fish and chips, found lovely ice cream, ate more than a few scones, and wandered cathedral and castle ruins. 

We had an awesome trip! We all have great ideas for the next one and we’ll get to planning that soon.  Until then, check out all our photos! I am still the worst at taking pictures, but I did post photos on the Harpa page, my “professional” page and my page (same photos, different accesses).  The Harpa page is where you’ll find all the really good photos that other people took. 

I also need to make a shameless plug for the Dusty Strings Flight Case.  It is light weight (I carried up and down stairs all week!), sturdy, good looking, and protective!  You might think it’s expensive but if you consider how much physical therapy, back surgery, or shoulder surgery might be (from carrying your old, heavy flight case), it’s downright parsimonious!  The harp traveled well (including the time it lingered in Ireland while I came on home).  I particularly like the detachable front wheels that made “driving” a breeze.  The snug fit left me confident that my case could “take a licking and keep on ticking”.  Brief chats with ground crew also suggested that it’s (relatively) light weight made it easier for them to deal with.  Even TSA seemed to have no problem working it.  My one regret?  I looked at the shoulder strap connections before I left and decided I wouldn’t use them – wrong!  I am not quite tall enough to effortlessly carry the case up flights of stairs.  I had to bend my arms more than was comfortable to clear the stairs so it took me about one day of going up and down stairs to really wish I had brought a strap.

I hope you check out and enjoy the photos.  If you want to know more about a specific part of our trip, let me know.  And if you have questions about how you too can travel with your harp – I’m happy to try to answer.  Let me know in the comments!

Harpa 2023 Post 1

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Harpa 2023 Post 1

I’m arrived in Edinburgh today (hence the slightly late post).

But, Edinburgh never disappoints, and today is no exception – clear skies and beautiful – as always. 

Harpa are gathering in Edinburgh and are preparing to spend a little time in Edinburgh participating in the Edinburgh International Harp Festival! So excited to see everyone, learn new things, perform our new set of American tunes.  Then we’ll head out and see more of Scotland and play a few more times for various charities.  Does anyone have a better life? I don’t think so!

Harpa LogoHarpa was started by Beth Kolle creating a cultural exchange tour.  Over the years, the group has traveled to Norway, Sweden, and Scotland.  The composition of the group changes with each trip and this year Harpa is Beth Kolle, Sue Richards, Therese Honey, Kelly Brzozowski, Martha Hill, Donna Bennett, and me.   Each HARPA member pays their own way and each tour is hard work, from the initial rehearsal on the first day to the closing concert. Each musician must take time off and turn down paying performance jobs to join the tour.  

We’ll be posting to our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Harpaniks and our individual pages – Keep an eye there!

Sprummertime

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Sprummer

I know it’s just barely spring but it’s not too early to think about what you want to do this summer!  That means, it is Spummertime – not spring or summer but the time to think and plan now for what will come later!  And there are loads of harp events in the summer but you only have so much time (and so much money!) so here are my favorites:

Ohio Scottish Arts School (OSAS) – It’s hard to put into words how much fun OSAS is or to tell you how much you will learn at OSAS.  It starts immediately after the Ohio Scottish Games in Barea OH (just outside Cleveland.  This year’s instructors are stellar – Corrina Hewat, Haley Hewitt, Allison Miller, and me!  And fiddlers will have Elke Baker (invite your favorite fiddler to come!).  Classes will focus on basic harp technique for beginners and intermediates, repertoire at all levels, including tunes for competition sets, and Scottish style, including ornaments, lilt, and dance types.  Nylon/gut/wire harps are welcome.  We’ll study Scottish dance music, airs, and songs, focusing on ornamentation, Scottish style, accompaniment, and learning by ear. We’ll have lectures, practice time, and playing in sessions. Classes will be available for beginners who have played for a few months, intermediates, and advanced players.  It’s the 45th Anniversary so we have even more to celebrate!  Class sizes are limited and harp is getting close to being full so go to https://ohioscottishartsschool.com for more information and to register before the class fills!  24 – 30 June, Barea, OH

Somerset Folk Harp Festival – Somerset is the festival for everyone!  There are workshops for you no matter if you’re beginning or advanced.  There are workshops in different genres, covering topics you might even know that you wanted to know! And it is in person and online – a hybrid we can all love.  There are options which can help you tailor the event to you.  In person is in Parsippany NJ and you’ll be able to wander the (very large) Exhibit hall where you can see harps, listen to harps, play harps, talk harps, meet harp makers, compare harps…and (maybe best of all) buy harps! And Harpstuff (including exquisite jewelry, music, learn about other training experiences available, and more.   And did I mention that in addition to a huge cadre of great instructors – every day there are concerts!  What’s not to love?  Go to https://www.somersetharpfest.com for more information and to register so you don’t miss out.  20 – 23 July, Parsippany NJ

Harp Quest – We are excited to begin another Harp Quest in 2023!  Our quests are each different as we seek to learn what our harp is there to teach us, so plan to join us for a new Journey forward with our harps – becoming what we’re meant to be.  The Quest will remain easily accessible to harpers from anywhere and at any level.  Our focus will be a short and intense experience that we will each take with us into the coming months and years – perhaps not fully appreciating what we have learned until much later.  But secure in knowing that we will get there – each of us.  And we’ll get there together!  This year kids will quest together, and adults will follow their own quest.  In the pastoral and relaxing valleys of South Central, the setting is just the thing to learn and grow and go a little farther on the road we travel. Harp Quest focuses on very personalized time sharing and learning.  We will have fun, support one another, and work together to expand technical skills and exercise our brains.  As always, we will work on building healthy self-esteem and encourage ourselves to try new things.  Our format is tailored to assure that the journey is not rocky – not that you won’t work hard or occasionally need to breathe!  We’ll work individually in a limited sized group and together experiencing three days of creativity, sharing, and fun.  Kids Quest 25 – 27 August, Adults Quest 8 – 10 September.  For more information contact me. 

What do you want to do for your summer?  Are you going to register for any of these?  Are there other events we should be considering?  Let me know in the comments!

Just one thing

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Just one thing

When you have an unexpected variation occur (less charitable people might refer to this as a mistake) what do you do? 

If you’re like most people, you might do a bunch of things all at once.  You wince, you stop playing, you look at your hands, you look at your harp, you look at the music, you look at your teacher (or other audience), and you panic a little. 

And then you might try to fix everything – all at once. But is this the best thing to do?  Probably not.  Because what’s the most important thing to come away from a mistake with?

The lesson that was buried in it. 

To learn the lessons the “variation” can teach you, you need to unpack it from all the detritus in which you found it.  And to do that, you have to look at each thing – just one thing at a time. 

What things are you going to look at?  Well you need to know how you ended up there.  Were you going too fast? Was your fingering not solid? Did you lose focus? What happened once you ended up there? Was it a trainwreck or were you just off a little? Did you know where you were?  Were you able to quickly determine what happened or were you completely lost? Were you surprised or did you know it was coming and were hoping you could ride it out? Did you have a solution immediately or did you need to figure a bunch of stuff out?

Of course, there are a nearly infinite pool of possible questions but to get at the answers, try to answer one question at a time – don’t try to solve everything at once. Parse the problem and identify solutions. And then go from there.  The solution for going too fast is a very different than for losing focus, for example. 

So, the next time you have an “opportunity to excel” try doing one thing at a time in pursuit of an answer or a way forward.  Stop! Don’t move.  Be still.  Rather than be a flurry of activity, take a breath.  Because being a flurry of activity works well – until it doesn’t and something doesn’t go right.  Now you can think, observe, and assess what’s happened.

Give it a try yourself – it does take a little practice to pause, but that gets you time to replay in your mind’s ear what you heard and feel where you are in space.  Commit to only doing one thing to get your bearings! Don’t fall prey to the impulse to fix everything – because you probably don’t know what is wrong, so how can you fix it?  If you forge ahead you’ll just confuse yourself and make it more difficult to find the solution.

Next time you find you’re in a “variation” give yourself a beat to stop, be still, think, and decide what to fix first.  Give it a try and let me know what you learn in the comments!