Feeling Trumps Technique

By -
I attended a violin workshop with the Irish fiddle player Martin Hayes a few evenings ago. Hayes is known for his lyrical and emotive playing. He has the ability to reveal unexpected beauty in the simplest Irish tunes, even those that are common to the point of cliché.

A lot of what Hayes said in the workshop amounted to:  Feeling Trumps Technique

Here are a few of the ideas I took with me. Most of these are things I have heard and understand well, but they are reinforced when a great musician repeats them. Interestingly, each of these ideas also applies to aikido practice, and therefore, I imagine, to other disciplines.

  • Taking the leap from playing technically well, to playing with your entire body and heart is a big one, and requires a lot of attention and effort. The result may seem very subtle, but it makes all the difference to the way the music affects the listener.
  • In responding to questions about phrasing, slurs, bowing patterns in general, his advice was to sing the tune, and to play the dynamics and slurs as you would sing.
  • There are always people who will play technically better than you, (even if you have received multiple international awards for your playing!). Playing with feeling, playing with your heart, is the most important thing to focus on no matter what your level.
  • Playing slowly or at a "mid-tempo" allows you to bring more out of the tune. You're unlikely to find this subtlety if you are only playing fast.


I've taken on the humbling project of learning the violin in my 50s. It's easy to be overwhelmed when I see 12-year-old virtuosos on YouTube. 

Reminding myself that feeling trumps technique is going to be a larger part of my practice.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Make a "Rush" Woven Seat Chair Using Old Jeans (or Fabric Scraps)

By -
Image
I used the technique for weaving a rush chair seat to make a chair seat using old jeans. The antique ladderback chair is just the right height for me to practice my Québécois button accordion. Fabric Choice Although at first I considered using t-shirt strips (also called tarn), I decided to jeans because denim is stronger and not stretchy. I had some old heavy linen fabric that would have done the trick, too, but I didn't have enough for the whole chair with either linen or jeans. I decided not to mix them, at least not for my first chair. I was advised, (correctly!) by other crafters, that all I had to do was out the word out, and I’d get donations. I sent out 4 emails and literally went shopping and there were two pairs of jeans on my doorstep. I had five more pairs by the weekend. (Now I need another chair!) Some Pointers Before I describe the process, here are some pointers. I don't recommend doing this with a stretchy fabric. Therefore, if you use jeans, avo
Read more

Keep One Point

By -
Image
I've been slowly but surely writing of a series posts devoted to each of the  four basic principles of Kokikai Aikido . One of these is Keep One Point to Develop Calmness. We spend about 90 minutes in each aikido class, and most students practice once or twice a week - only a small proportion of the of hours we are awake each week. It may be plenty of time to spend doing a demanding physical exercise, but we need to spend more time working on the underlying principles for them to become second nature in our bodies. Fortunately, all of the basic principles are easily practiced at any time, not just in class. We can easily practice finding and keeping One Point while off the mat, and test the results when we're back on the mat. What Is One Point? One Point is a concept closely related to your center of balance. Centuries ago martial artists discovered that if the mind is focused on keeping this point low, one becomes stronger and harder to move. In Kokikai, we first learn
Read more

Kotsu-Kotsu

By -
Image
Several years ago I visited Japan for the third Kokikai Aikido International Convention. Because of the language barrier I wasn’t able to talk to very many of Maruyama Sensei ’s Japanese students in depth. However, I did spend some time talking to Shuji Ozeki, founder of Kokikai Australia , who speaks English fluently. Ozeki Sensei has practiced Kokikai Aikido for over 25 years. He now lives in Seki, Japan and runs the Ozeki School of Japanese Cuisine .  We immediately slipped into a discussion about the core of Sensei’s teaching, and whether it was different for Japanese or American students. Ozeki Sensei was effusive about the way that Sensei’s teaching has greatly benefited his own life and benefits others by encouraging all human beings to respect one another. with Shuji Ozeki at Kokikai Aikido International Convention Ozeki Sensei explained to me the Japanese phrase, “Ichi go, ichi e.” I had purchased this calligraphy at a temple in Kyoto. I have heard it interpreted in
Read more