Jenius Creations

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  • Sorry to be late…

    Sorry to be late posting, I am having a bit of an emergency.  Travel, focus, caring, fatigue, etc.  You’ve all had emergencies, so you know.

    I did think to grab my little harp on the way.  I spend so much time teaching and writing and arranging and practicing and blahblahblah, that I sometimes forget that I really enjoy playing my harp.  It not only provides distraction and pleasure, it adds a soothing balm at the end of a hectic day.

    I’m not spending a lot of time with it but, like my good friends, it is there at the end of the day, waiting to provide it’s own form of help.  It assuages my heart and quiets my thoughts.

    Don’t forget why you fell in love with your harp.  And don’t wait for the universe to prompt you to remember.  Go play, and enjoy, and don’t ever let the mundane everyday suck the joy from your relationship with your harp.

  • Just be silly

    Sometimes you work so hard that you forget to have some fun. Well, not in my world!  I am delighted to have spent last weekend teaching with my good friend Kris Snyder at the 19th Annual Harp Camp.  We had a blast!  We had wonderful students, lovely tunes, and loads of fun.

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    And sometimes we got silly… and that lead to some great tunes made together!  We played directed ensemble music, and our students generated amazing creative ensembles – each year they are more amazing than we could possibly imagine.  I think these photos sum it up!

  • It’s Summer – time for Harp Camp!

    I’m off to this year’s Harp Camp and I’m so excited to be invited again to teach with Kris Snyder at this, the 19th annual!  I’m looking forward to seeing you there – we have a lot of good stuff planned for this year as we explore this year’s theme – the Game of Music.

     What better way to spend a part of your summer – learning and sharing and having fun!  See you soon – I’m off for a good game!

  • Basking in the glow

    Summer is a wonderful time.  Not only is the sun shining and the warmth of the days calls us to spend more time in that glorious light, but perhaps more importantly…it’s festival season!

    I am basking in the afterglow of participating in the Somerset Folk Harp Festival in a summer full of enjoying the thrill of the middle of the summer Games and Competitions season, while getting ready for this year’s Harp Camp, and gearing up for the Harp the Highlands and Islands tour for this year*. Picture1

    Summer is just chock-a-block with great opportunities to learn, to play, to meet new friends, to see old friends, and to just enjoy our music!  I hope you have had to occasion to avail yourself of the discovery, the camaraderie, and the pure joy of making music.

    Summer is fleeting though and soon we’ll be in the bitter cold of winter when there are fewer opportunities to get together, time will be spent alone, practicing for Christmas gigs, and the shortened days seem to suck some of the joy from the day.  With the waning daylight we will miss the carefree days of playing through the summer.

    Find your opportunity to join with others, to make music and have fun!

    *there’s still time – if you want to get in on this year’s Harp the Highlands and Islands tour, get more information here or send me an email.

  • Make your mark

    There are a number of basic things that we can do to help us learn music, play better, and have an easier time of getting from one to the other. Usually these things are simple, easy really.   Marking your music is one of those things. So why do so many people skip this important step?

    Ok, I don’t have an answer for that, maybe because it seems difficult?  Or because we never want to do the fundamental work which looks easy but usually is anything but?  Since we don’t have an answer, instead let’s focus on what marking your music can do for you (besides get you from first look to easy playing!). Here are six reasons to mark up your dots!

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    1. Marking your music requires that you read through the music first. I always tell my students that reading music is like reading Greek – if you keep practicing it, a little at a time, it will get easier. Practice enough, it will become effortless.
    2. Writing in reminders (in pencil – things change!) will help you remember! Pencil in your fingerings and placements until you’re comfortable (then you can erase and fill the space up with phrasings, dynamics, tempo changes, and other notes.
    3. Mark your lever (or pedal) changes. You might think you’ll remember to make the lever change, but when push comes to shove, the reminder is good to have (it also helps your remember to practice the change as part of the music not as an afterthought).
    4. If you’re in an ensemble you can mark reminders of what other players will be doing. Or you can pencil in changes the director adds to your notes.
    5. You can mark passages you are having difficulty with and need to practice more – you can break them down, rearrange them, and mark how you’d like to proceed.
    6. You can also mark to remind you when you get to your lesson of specific questions you’d like to ask.

    Never forget that you have the dots in front of you to help you remember. Adding marks to the dots will allow you to remember more. Marking in pencil gives you room to develop, grow, learn and change how you play. And remember — the marking is there as a guide – nothing is sacrosanct about the marks – just erase when you’re ready to move along! Enjoy making your mark!

  • Take it slow

    Why are we so impatient with ourselves?  We are always sure that other people are having an easy time of it, but really, we all struggle from time to time – with a technique, with a phrase, with a tune, with reparation for a gig.

    But really – why are we in such a hurry? You might think we’d rather slow down and enjoy the time at our harps, but instead we pressure ourselves.  We can really work ourselves up.  Sometimes we pressure ourselves right out of enjoying playing!

    So, how can you tamp that impatience just a little, and in the process not only learn more and play better but also enjoy your time on the bench more?  Here are 5 things you can do to be more patient, take things more slowly, and likely play better:

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    1. Set a goal.  I know, you’re probably tired of hearing me say that, but it really does help.  Goal setting will allow you to make a schedule (even if it’s notional) and then you can be sure that you have enough time to meet your goal.
    2. Part and parcel to the goal setting is to write it down!  In addition to capturing your goal, you can capture your progress in a journal.  Your journal can be written or audio – the form is not as important as being able to gauge your progress.  In addition, reviewing your journal will help you get through those times when you are only focused on how far you have to go rather than how far you have come.
    3. Be positive – you will get there…how long and how easily is directly related to the time and effort you put into getting there.
    4. Practice patience!  Like everything else, becoming more patient with yourself, allowing yourself to take the time you need to attain your goal, requires practice.  Don’t be disheartened if you slip, don’t give up if things don’t look like they are going well.  Enjoy the journey in anticipation of the destination!
    5. Be kind to yourself.  Talk to yourself as you would a good friend – give yourself encouragement to continue and permission to develop.

    Spend the time you need to become the harper you want to be.  Be patient.  Take it slowly. Do the work…and reap the reward in good time!

  • Time to act

    Its about that time – we’re a little over half way through the year.  That makes it a great time to review how you are progressing toward your goals for this year.  You’ve had plenty of time to forget your resolutions, to have slid off your goals, to need to be gently reminded of where you wanted to go this year.

    Back in January I suggested you do these six things:

    • Write it down
    • Think first
    • Focus
    • Keep your space neat
    • Make a habit
    • Develop a ritual

    So, how are you doing?  If you’re making progress – congratulations!  Keep it up and you’ll have a really productive year.

    If you’ve “fallen off the wagon” you have plenty of time to get back on course.  Review (or actually set) your goals, identify the specific steps to get you there, and then schedule time for yourself to perform those steps.  And within the year, you’ll have done really well and made progress!

  • Don’t miss your chance! Harp the Highlands and Islands 2014 tour

    We’re running out of time and space!  Don’t miss your opportunity to join us on the 2014 Harp the Highlands and Islands Tour.  We are looking forward to seeing beautiful Scotland and its breathtakingly views!  See it with us – we are planning a great time for all.  Whether you are a harp player, play another small traditional instrument, or just appreciate Scottish music, you’ll enjoy a wonderful time.

    Each year we build on the previous outings leveraging the resounding success of our previous Harp and the customized Scottish Highlands tours. We include music of course, but also history, stories and anecdotes that enhance your visit and make the scenery come alive!

    We have expanded the tour this year to encompass the magnificent route through to the west coast of Scotland, the source of so many wonderful tunes.  And we are so excited to be able to be working with the Cromarty Arts Trust to offer you the opportunity to expand your trip and add on participation in the Harp Village.

    This will be a veritable musical feast – I hope you’ll come along.  There are only 2 seats remaining – details and additional information on www.jeniuscreations.com/

  • Performing


    Some people love to perform.  The thrill of being on stage, the excitement of sharing with others, the anxiety of it not going well,the possibility that it will be brilliant, the comfort of a well-known program.  Other people, not so much. 

    Culturally, we revere performance and performers.  And as musicians we hold those that get on stage on occasion or all the time in high regard…precisely because we know what they are going through. And often we’re glad it’s not us!
    But if you look at the etymology of the word “Perform” it is enlightening.  It comes to us through Middle English from the Old French Parfournir to see something through to completion, to accomplish something. 
    Well, that’s not so bad….or terrifying, is it?  To see something completed is a goal for many people.  And to perform on a stage for a collection of interested listeners (see – doesn’t that sound less horrible than “audience”?) is certainly one fitting end to the hours of practice that you have put in to each piece you have painstakingly learned, refined, and polished.
    You are leaning away, thinking that I am only talking about other people.  That you’re not interested in performing on a stage, that someone else will do such a better job of it.  And that is fine…if you mean it.  But if you mean it, why do you envy those that do it? Are you afraid that you’re not good enough?  Or that you’re not prepared enough?  The first is doubt driven, second is correctable if you do want to be on stage.
    So, be certain to define your parfournir for yourself – define what seeing your practice to completion means…and then work your way there.  Performing can be done at many levels – just don’t stop at a level that is comfortable but doesn’t fit your definition of complete.

  • Relaaaaax


    We all know that we should close our hands when we’re playing.  Teachers make up funny names to help students learn and remember (clam hands, puppy paws, etc.).  We exhort our students to “Close!  Close!  Close!” 
    And many of you know that the point is to allow your hands (and forearms) to relax, to let those muscles rest, ever so briefly.  That musicians are athletes of the small muscles.
    But in the midst of learning something new, we are focused (or possibly stressed), trying to learn the tune, or to master the hard bit, or to get the timing just right.  We are focused on the notes, the passage, the phrase.  And what we’re not focused on…is our hands!  What can you do?  Here are three things to incorporate into your practice to improve your ability to relax while playing:

    1. When you are learning new things is it important to occasionally open your focus – knowing the notes won’t help if they sound terrible, strained or tinny.   
    2. Pay attention to what you are doing.  Just as you need to remember to breathe, remember to check your hands – how is your technique?    
    3. Slow down!  There is no race to learning – you will get the tune, learn the notes, master the passage – so quit trying to compete with everyone else – there is no race!

    Enjoy – playing is enjoyable so don’t stress yourself out – just relax…and play