Fall has started!
Well, the leaves are not turning yet, and the heat is not all gone but the air is cooler and the light is different. I had a wonderful 3 weeks in Bali and I will post some pictures from the trip. Best of all was having 3 weeks with my eldest daughter and my granddaughter and son-in-law. Next to that was doing a Balinese cooking class! And next to that was meeting so many of the friendly and gentle Balinese people.
Fall semester is a short one, only 14-15 lessons (so few days to Christmas!) so I am looking forward to seeing all my students and getting to work on music. This semester I am hoping that more students will be interested in composing some music of their own. Some students are already into composing and played their compositions at the last soiree. Halloween and Thanksgiving and the holiday season are approaching so appropriately themed music might be heard at practice time!
A word about practice: If you practice any skill you will get better. If you practice regularly you will improve exponentially. However there are two caveats: first, it must be mindful practice (engage brain!), and secondly, there is no use forcing a student to practice. Gentle encouragement and positive feedback are great, but until the student makes the mental connection (ah ha! I practiced and I can play the piece now!) between practice and improvement, forcing won’t really help especially with younger students. They need to enjoy playing and want to come to the instrument, and even playing around with it is helpful in the early stages.
The soiree will be at Croasdaile Auditorium, Sunday December 4 at 3:30 pm (thank you so much to Croasdaile for hosting Flourishing Muse Studio). I know December is crazy busy and some may not be able to make it but hopefully with early notice, most will be able to come and perform for the enjoyment of families and our Croasdaile friends.
I have some spaces in the lesson schedule owing to some graduating teens who are off to college in far flung places like South Carolina. These are the ones most relevant to school students, although I have more daytime places for adults and retirees and home schoolers:
Monday: 4-4:30
Wednesday: 3:30 – 4; 5 – 5:30; 5:30 – 6
Thursday: 3:30 – 4; 4:30 – 5; 6 – 6:30
This semester I am going to keep 5-6 Friday for makeup lessons in case students cannot make their regular lesson.
Thanks for learning with Flourishing Muse!
Lorna
