Send us a text

In this episode, we welcome back April Choi to talk about the skill of tightrope/ and slack line. She holds a Guinness book of world’s records for the most whip cracks while standing on a slack line. I found myself comparing violin playing metaphorically to walking a tightrope, but then realizing that understanding the issues of physics and balance involved in that might be very beneficial for string playing, Turns out, there are a surprising number of things we can learn from this skill that relate to string playing. From balancing and counter balancing to issues regarding the physics of string tension and how one compensates for that. Her background in engineering as well as string playing makes her uniquely qualified to talk about that. I discuss the take aways that apply directly to string playing after the interview.

Send us a text

In this episode I interview Dr. Jan Svennevig who is a professor of linguistics and a prolific researcher and publisher of numerous papers and articles on various aspects of communication. He has taught at the university of Oslo and his current post is the University of Agder. He has also been a guest lecturer at Stanford University. We talk about the nuances of communication, the cues that others give us as to their comprehension and receipt of information, as well as cultural aspects of language. We also discuss some of the research that has come out of his linguistics lab over the years. I believe that analyzing language in this way is not only helpful in communication but also because music follows similar language elements and structures, it helps us to understand musical phrasingl, flow and emphasis.

Send us a text

In this episode, we talk to Nasa aerospace engineer, world famous Whip artist and mutliple Guiness world record holder April Choi. We discuss her motivations, her career, her learning methods, and her feelings about being a performer as well as her records. It's a fascinating glimpse into the mind of an extraordinary human being, who I am fortunate to also consider my friend.

Send us a text

Today's guest is associate professor of Art History Dr. Frida Forsgren at The University of Agder in Kristiansand Norway. She is a notable art history scholar, author of books and has numerous published articles on the subject. She teaches a course in the Beat era (1946-1963). We discuss it's impact on the arts, from the perspective of historical context, motivations, and cultural attitudes of the times. The Beat era represented a cultural renaissance and an interdisciplinary approach that produced a lot of innovative art in all areas (literature, visual art, music, dance, and theater).

Send us a text

In this episode, we speak with violist Derek Reeves He is currently principal violist of the Fort Wayne symphony in Fort Wayne Indiana and teaches at The Purdue University Fort Wayne School of Music as well as serving as viola faculty at the Brevard Music Center summer institute and music festival. We talk about about his musical journey and his exposure to many world class teachers as well as Synesthesia, his exploration of other musical genres, his transition from violin to viola, his practicing habits and his ideas on teaching based on the overtone series.

Send us a text

In this episode, I interview Dr. Laurie Barron. She is an award winning super intendant of the Evergreen School District, in Kalispell Montana. She is a former English teacher, former middle school principal, an author, a motivational speaker and a consultant for school districts around the country. She has extensive knowledge of the application of psychological and educational models in education. I met her when she presented at our school district at the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year. In this episode we talk about the importance of belonging and becoming for students. We talk about how that leads to developing a community of learning that yields higher achievement, better behavior and increased student engagement.

Send us a text

In this episode, I talk with one of my former violin teachers, Shmuel Ashkenasi. Throughout his career he distinguished himself as an extraordinary soloist and during his time in the Vermeer Quartet as one of the greatest chamber musicians of our time. Given all his advancements in technique and musical ideas, I believe him to be one of the most important violinists of our time. He was a graduate of The Curtis Institute and now currently teaches there. In this interview, we discuss his former teachers Ilona Feher, Toshia Eto, and Efrem Zimbalist, and his views on technique, phrasing, vibrato, the release and articulation of notes as well as intonation, and practicing tips.

Send us a text

Just wanted to say thanks for all the support in helping make this podcast a great success, fill the listeners in on the progress so far and wanted to say a little about the upcoming episodes.