I wanted to write this to show that anyone can find the time, and make their practicing effective.

        First off, not practicing is like never studying for tests or doing any homework.  The purpose is to reinforce and retain what you learned in your lesson.  The best time to practice is always immediately after getting home from your lesson.  The worst is to only practice right before your next lesson.  

        Most people make the mistake of waiting a couple of days, only to find out they've already forgotten what was discussed.   One solution is to digitally record your lesson, which can be done easily from most smart phones or handheld recorders.  Then you can review the lesson at any time.  Most teachers have no problem with recording lessons and usually recommend it.

        Most students make the mistake of taking out their instrument, running through their pieces and then think that's enough.  When practicing a certain piece, I recommend that a student only practices running through the piece in its entirety at the beginning in order to diagnose problems and at the end to put everything back together.  If you're always just running through the piece, you're missing out on a lot of the details. 

        Metronomes and tuners will always be your best friends when it comes to practicing.  String players especially need to tune every time before they practice.  If you're always practicing out of tune, your ear will never hear the pitches correctly.  As well as developing your ear, no one has a perfect sense of rhythm without lots of practice with a metronome.  

        Some more sophisticated metronomes have a feature where they can play any pitch you desire.  I use this feature to check my intonation.  Simply set the pitch to the key of the piece and start playing.   This will quickly reveal pitches that you previously thought were in tune.

        Monitoring your child doesn't mean to direct their practice time.  It only means to give occasional feedback and refocusing when they need it.  This can be done from a nearby room, while reading, or working on the computer.

        Want to know the biggest reason people give for not attending a classical music concert? They don't understand the etiquette and are afraid they will make a mistake and embarrass themselves.  This is terrifying news to orchestras all over the world who are desperately trying to capture new audience members.  After you read this post you will know everything you need to know to confidently attend any classical concert of your choosing.

        This one depends on what kind of concert you're going to.  If you're going to see an orchestra or an opera at a concert hall, you'll want to dress nicely.  Business attire should be the minimum.  If the concert is outdoors than business casual will do just fine.  Either way, its always safe to stay away from sneakers, t-shirts and jeans.

        Knowing when to clap is usually the most confusing to understand.  You should clap whenever the concert master (violinist who tunes the orchestra), conductor, or soloist enter the stage.  During the concert you should only clap after complete works.  A symphony or concerto will usually have three to four movements and there will be a brief pause between each one.   This is where there is some gray area, traditionally you shouldn't clap during these pauses but in recent years this rule has been somewhat relaxed.  A good rule of thumb, never be the first person to clap.

        The best thing you can do is to turn off your cellphone completely during the performance and just enjoy the concert.  If you need to be able to check your phone, make sure its completely silenced and you should even turn the vibrator off.  Here are some things you should definitely not do: take a phone call, text, or tweet throughout the performance.  In a dark hall, other concert goers may find your bright screen distracting.  Some classical concerts now have tweet seats to allow tweeting during a performance, but unless you have one of these seats its best to keep the tweeting to a minimum.

        For this one there's not always a simple answer.  Traditionally, concert hall performances don't allow picture taking, but outdoor concerts usually do.  Make sure to listen to the pre-concert announcement.  Most of the time they will tell you picture taking is prohibited, but this rule is becoming more relaxed because of social media.  If picture taking is allowed, then make sure all sounds/flash on your camera or phone are turned off.  Also make sure to never leave your seat or stand up during the performance to get a better shot.

        For this one you'll have to use your own discretion.  Exposing your child to the arts is always a great thing, however bringing a child younger than five or six may not be the best idea.  If you decide to bring a young child, be prepared in case he or she becomes upset and you need to remove the child from the hall.  Try getting seats near an aisle, that way you can make a quick exit to a quieter area, such as a lobby or bathroom.  If you bring something for your child to play with during the concert, make sure its something quiet and won't distract surrounding audience members.  Before going to the concert, it might be a good idea to sit your child down and have them watch a video clip (if available) of the performance they are going to see on YouTube.  This will give them a chance to understand what they are going to, allows them to ask any questions, and gives you an opportunity to discuss what kind of behavior is expected of them.

        That's all of my suggestions, if you think I missed anything, please leave your suggestions in the comments or feel free to contact us!

         Today is Valentine's Day and I just wanted to take some time and share some of my favorite romantic music.  Enjoy!

        I'm a cellist, so naturally no list of romantic music would be complete without Saint-Saens's "The Swan".

        Next I wanted to include Elgar's "Salut D'Amour", which he wrote for his wife, played here by the great violinist, Sarah Chang.

        Another great romantic piece from Elgar is "Nimrod" from his "Enigma Variations".

        Next I wanted to include the famous 18th Variation from Rachmaninov's "Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini". 

        For my last selection, I wanted to share Claude Debussy's "Clair de Lune".

        Thanks for watching my list of my five favorite romantic pieces and please feel free to share your own favorites in the comments or contact us if you have any questions.

        Besides learning how to play a string instrument, the second hardest obstacle for a beginner is learning how to tune it.  I've heard parents tell me that their child couldn't practice for a lesson because the instrument wasn't in tune, or they tried to tune it and broke a string.  In this post, I'll give step by steps solutions aimed to help the beginning musician tune their instrument at home in between lessons or classes.

        The first step is to get an electric tuner.  Pitch forks and pipes are great tools, but can be frustrating to young beginners, because they require ear training they probably haven't developed yet.  Snark makes great inexpensive clip-on tuners with colorful displays.  Other great alternatives these days are tuner apps for smart phones.  They all work basically the same, when a string is bowed, the display shows the letter of the pitch being played.  There is also an indicator that shows whether that pitch is sharp (high) or flat (low).   The indicator can vary by make and model.  Some just have three lights, the left one means flat, right means sharp, and in the center is in tune.  Other models can have a wavering line, but it essentially has the same meaning, left is flat, right is sharp and center is in tune.

        Make sure to know the tuning of the instrument.  Violin from highest to lowest (highest being the thinnest string and lowest being the thickest) is E, A, D, G.  Viola and Cello are A, D, G, C.

        The next step is to locate the tuners on the instrument.  There will be two sets, one on the top and one on the bottom.  The ones on the top near the scroll are called the tuning pegs and the ones on the tailpiece are called fine tuners.  The tuning pegs are used when the string is out of tune by more than a half step (ex. F#-G, B-C, etc) and the fine tuners are used when the string is less than a half step out of tune.  

        If you're not sure which ones to start with, always start with the fine tuners.  They work just like a screw, righty tighty, lefty loosey.   Screwing it in, raises the pitch and loosening lowers it.  If it screws all the way in and you haven't reached the desired pitch, unscrew it and switch to the tuning pegs.

        The tuning pegs are more difficult to use.  I usually recommend that young beginners shouldn't use these by themselves, so if your child is younger than 9 or 10, you may have to do this for them.  I also should warn you that its very easy to break a string using these pegs if you turn them too much or too fast.  The pegs are wedged into place, there's nothing holding them other than pressure.  

         Position the instrument so its facing you with the scroll at the top.  Hold the peg firmly in your hand (follow the string with your eyes into the peg box to make sure your holding the correct peg)  and turn it clockwise.  Make sure that you're pushing the peg into the peg box as your turning it or it will slip once you let go.  Only turn it a little bit at a time and check the current pitch with the electric tuner frequently to make sure you haven't passed the pitch.  This will greatly reduce your chance of breaking the string.  Also having your strings changed on a regularly will diminish the chance of it breaking while tuning.

        Once you get the pitch close, switch back to the fine tuners to finish tuning.  After all strings are tuned, its a good idea to check them all once more because they can change slightly while tuning other strings.  If you notice the pegs are slipping a lot or are very hard to turn, bring it to a local shop and they can apply a compound or drops that should make the pegs work easier.  I hope these tips helped, if anyone believes I missed anything, feel free to leave it in the comments.

        One common problem I see as a teacher is when a child has chosen an instrument that doesn't suit them.  These students typically get frustrated quickly and quit after a few months.  When a child chooses the wrong instrument, it can be a negative experience for them and they may have fears about trying a different instrument in the future.

          Many people think it doesn't matter which instrument their child plays because they're all the same, but that isn't true.  Children have very sensitive hearing, more so than adults, and they will quickly gravitate towards and away from certain sounds.  The first step is to have your child listen to various recordings of bands and orchestras, iTunes and YouTube are great places to start for this.  Simply searching for videos using terms such as symphony orchestra, symphony band, jazz band, or marching band will bring thousands of results.  Live performances work even better, check to see if there's a local orchestra or band in your area. They will quickly begin to narrow down which instruments or instrument family (ex. brass, woodwinds, strings, keyboard, or percussion) they like. 

       Once they've got it narrowed down to a couple of instruments or to an instrument family, have them watch videos of soloists playing these instruments. YouTube works perfectly for this and is as simple as typing the name of the instrument into the search bar.  This will show your child what each instrument is capable of.  They will also discover whether they like the look of the instrument being played as well as understanding the different sounds of instruments in the same family.  This means the difference between the sound a french horn and a baritone, violin and viola, etc.

       Now that they are pretty sure of which instrument, contact a local music store and bring them in to try out this instrument.  This is to help them discover if they like the look and feel of the instrument in person.  They will quickly decide whether the instrument is going to be too heavy or cumbersome for them to hold.

       The last step is to have them take a trial lesson with a private teacher.  The child will learn how to blow into the instrument and make a sound.  They'll also learn the basic set up and maintenance for the instrument.  Flutes have fairly easy set up and maintenance, but are the hardest to get a sound out of.  Brass instruments on the other hand can make a sound quickly, but have to be oiled and greased regularly.

        I know this sounds like a lot of work just to get your child set up with an instrument, but it will save time and money down the road, especially for the child that wants to switch instruments every two months.  The last thing is that parents should be objective during this process.  I've seen many children that are unhappy with an instrument simply because their parent picked it for them.

I have been told countless times that classical music is a dying art form and a terrible career path.  Nonetheless I decided to ignore all of these people and became a classical musician anyways.   What I’ve found out in my career is that classical music isn’t disappearing, but evolving.  More after the break.

Among many names, classical music has been called old fashioned, boring, inaccessible, and irrelevant.  Today’s musicians are constantly combating these stereotypes to find new ways to make their instruments and music more popular.  Here’s a few examples:

Classical Revolution:

Founded in 2006 in San Francisco with the sole purpose of making chamber music more accessible.  Instead of playing in traditional concert halls, these chamber groups play in local coffee shops.  They play a wide variety of genres in a relaxed setting where people are free to come and go, move around, and hold conversations.  In six years, the movement has grown to include 30 chapters around the US, Canada, and Europe and has even spawned a record label of the same name.
Classical Revolution Website
Classical Revolution Los Angeles

The Classical Crossover Showcase at SXSW:

This showcase features classical musicians who have crossed over to popular music.  Many of these musicians have left traditional careers playing in symphonies to venture into this emerging genre.  In its first year in 2010, the showcase sold out and was wildly popular.
SXSW Classical Crossover Showcase

Classical Crossover Artists:

Here’s some noteworthy classical crossover artists you may want to check out.

The Piano Guys- This group features pianist John Schmidt and cellist Steven Sharp Nelson who started playing together at a piano store in Utah and now make videos that are viewed by millions of people worldwide.  The videos range from popular music covers to movie parodies such as “Star Wars” and "Bourne".   

Bond-String quartet formed in 2000, current members include Elspeth Hanson, Eos Chater, Tania, Davis, and Gay-Yee Westerhoff, who are all classically trained musicians from the UK and Australia.  The music is usually original, but in a pop style.  A similar group to check out is the Vitamin String Quartet, which does all popular covers rather than original music.

Zoe Keating-A Canadian cellist who creates the effect of multiple instruments playing simultaneously by making repetitive sounds that she records, loops, and then can play over.  She has even brought her playing to television and film.  A similar artist, Mark Summer, the cellist of the Turtle Island String Quartet has become popular for his own compositions which include celtic and fiddle elements.  His most well known song is Julie-O.

Apocalyptica- An all-cello group from Finland that has merged cello with heavy metal, at first they did only Metallica covers, but now has included original music in the heavy metal style.  They have also collaborated with numerous heavy metal musicians including Metallica, Slayer, Slipknot, and Rammstein.  2Cellos is a comparable group, but mainly covers rock and pop music and has surged to fame after their recent appearance on Glee.

Yo-Yo Ma-While being heavily regarded in the traditional classical world, he has also been one of the leaders in classical crossover music.  He latest crossover work, The Goat Rodeo Sessions, mixes classical with folk and bluegrass.  Like Yo-Yo Ma, violinist David Garrett took a similar career path starting in classical and then crossing over into rock and popular music.

More and more I’ve seen bands include classical instruments, especially since the rise of electric violins, violas, and cellos.  Some examples would be Yellowcard, ZOX, Rasputina, and Avery Watts to name a few.  A simple search on YouTube for any popular song will yield tons of covers by many classical musicians, from any instrument, age, or ability.   My conclusion is that classical music and musicians will always remain relevant as long as they can adapt to changing musical trends to attract new listeners.

One common problem I see too often with young musicians is that they're unmotivated and their parents are struggling to get them to stick with a particular instrument.  So I decided to put together a list of tips for parents to help their children love music and love playing. 

Here they are after the break:

Tip #1 Fun Music Books
This one may seem a little obvious, but you'd be surprised at how often it gets overlooked.  Introduce your child to fun music books from their favorite movies and artists, such as Harry Potter, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, The Beatles and many more.  Even if they are playing in school and/or taking private lessons, sometimes that music isn't enough to get them motivated.  The music they get in school will probably be either band/orchestra method books containing mainly folk songs and short ditties the author came up with or parts intended for group playing which don't tend to be a ton of fun to play by yourself at home.  On the other hand, the music they get in private lessons can be technical and academic, which can also be difficult to stay focused on.  The fun books provide the child with a break from their other music where they can just enjoy playing some of their favorite tunes.  It can also be used as a treat to allow the child to pick out a new book as a reward.

Tip #2 Get them to know their instrument
Have your child listen to a wide variety of recordings featuring their instrument, from classical to pop/rock.  This could mean taking your child to the music store to pick out some CDs, have them sample music on iTunes, let them download some music they like, and watch videos with them on YouTube.  Here are some great YouTube videos of popular music being played on classical instruments your child might enjoy.

Tip #3 Get Them to Experience Live Music
Take your child to see a symphony or band in your area.  Summer pops concerts are great because the concerts tend to be outdoors, feature popular music, and are usually inexpensive or free.  The LA Phil at the Hollywood Bowl has its annual Looney Tunes and John Williams concerts and collaborates with various popular musicians.

Tip #4 Private Lessons
My next suggestion may also seem a bit obvious, but I thought it would be worthwhile to mention; private lessons.  Working with a private instructor will take your child out of the group environment at school and allow them to work one on one with an industry professional.  School bands and orchestras are great places to start, but your child might be hindered by peer pressure, loud distractions, and a learning pace that is either too slow or too fast.  In private lessons the student can set their own pace and feel free to ask any questions they want without fear of of what their classmates might think.

Tip #5 Youth Ensembles and Music Camps
Youth band and orchestra programs provide an environment for more serious and motivated students to interact.  They supply harder music and coaches to help  and challenge students.  The orchestra coaches are usually private teachers themselves and frequently perform in the area.  Youth programs also offer chamber groups, which are usually not offered in schools.  I also want to include summer camps as well.  Besides offering musical enrichment, a lot of them also offer outdoors activities such as swimming, boating, tennis, basketball, etc.  I know these programs come at a cost, but most do offer scholarships.

Tip #6 Playing with Friends
So my final tip, may also be the best because its 100% free.  Tell your child to invite over a friend or two who also play instruments so they can play together.  Don't try to over control the situation by rehearsing them or giving advice, even if you have some musical experience yourself.  The point of this activity is just to let them play music with their friends in an unstructured environment.  In school and in lessons they are always being told what to play and how to play it.  This way they can just experiment and have fun playing their instruments with others.

I hope my tips helped, if you think I missed anything, please feel free to leave your suggestions in the comments.