Jennifer Roig-Francolí / Musician's Coach, Bestselling Author, Alexander Technique Teacher, Prize-Winning Violinist Helping musicians break through physical and emotional obstacles to making great music with ease and enjoying a healthy, balanced life. * Author of the #1 Amazon Bestseller 'Make Great Music with Ease! The Secret to Smarter Practice, Confident Performance, and Living a Happier Life' / Get it here: a.co/d/3k9iGhn * Creator of The Art of Freedom® Method for Conscious Living & Masterful Artistry * Owner/Director, The Art of Freedom, LLC * Website: www.ArtOfFreedom.me * Certified Alexander Technique teacher, M.AmSAT, ATI * Former Associate Concertmaster and Soloist with Grammy Award winning ensemble Apollo's Fire, Cleveland Ohio USA Join my FREE facebook community, "The Musician's Advantage" here: facebook.com/groups/J30DPC/
There’s a song sparrow who lives not far from me here in Cincinnati (also!), but she hasn’t been coming around lately-maybe because she doesn’t need to hear me trying to revive the C Major Fugue! I wonder if your bird likes to hear you playing outside, definitely not interested in leaving you. Just as a favor, you could record and post this fugue on RU-vid! BTW, love your Chaconne-stands as your unique version among the great recordings of this magnificent work.
Yes, sometimes I feel like I live in an aviary! Who would have thought there could be so many birds near a city! Thanks so much for listening and commenting, and I'm really honored by what you say about my rendition of the Ciaccona. Thank you so much, David. I don't have any plans to re-learn the fugue any time soon, but I'll definitely upload it to YT if I ever do! (Just don't hold your breath! ;)
@@JenniferRoigFrancoli Thank you so much for answering, Jennifer. I’m pretty familiar with Ciaconna by now with all the recordings made, and also I’ve played this, though not at your level! I first heard this music when I was 13 in 1956, in a cello [!] arrangement by Laszlo Varga, principal cellist of the NY Phil, who played this as an encore to the Dvorak Concerto in Chautauqua, NY. I actually met Laszlo in Sarasota, Florida, much later in life, a couple years before he died. He told me that when he announced the encore, the entire orchestra sighed, realizing that it would be another 15 min until their cigarette break! BTW, I especially liked how you played a simple short passage (at about 7:20). It’s probably just me, but this part seems like the heart or soul of the entire piece, something like the Pastoral Symphony in The Messiah. You might like Hélène Grimaud’s rendition of Busoni’s version (with the pastoral passage at about 8:45 and wisps of this melody returning slightly later in the left hand): ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-dOHiI_5yycU.html
Hi! First of all, it's GREAT that you're aware of the tension and you're linking it to stress. Lots of people have that going on but aren't aware of it and don't connect the dots. So this is a good thing! Then... of course, you need to have tools to help you let go of the tension. I'd love to help you with this, if you're interested. I would suggest that you start with my free 5-Day 'Best Warmup Challenge' here that will help: artoffreedom.mykajabi.com/cycle-warmup-challenge And if you want more personalized instruction, or you want to go deeper, use this form to inquire about my online programs: forms.gle/Ju51XRCMgtDMpD2C7 Thanks for commenting, and good luck! You CAN learn this, and it's actually not difficult when you have the tools to learn how. :) ~ Jennifer
Thank you so much! I like to use an aluminum wound Eudoxa 'E' string, and Evah Pirazzi strings for all the rest. I also like Obligato strings, but the EPs work better on my violin. I hate Dominants, by the way, even though I used them for years! Thanks for commenting!
It's nothing special, just a center mounted chinrest. I do have a system for creating my own shoulder rest, though, which is something I teach to all of my students. Thanks for watching and I'm really glad you enjoyed the video!
You're right - she DID fix it. However, it doesn't do any good to "fix your intonation problem" if every time you play, things continue to be out of tune. She was only able to play in tune after I worked with her for a while on things OTHER than her intonation. That's what was so amazing. Yes, she did very good work on her intonation on her own, BUT she was entirely unable to take the last step in manifesting that when actually playing a piece - in large part because of (1) what her teacher was telling her (to do nothing else but fix her intonation) and (2) how she was reacting to that dubious advice (by trying really hard to follow his instructions to fix it - and to not make music until after she'd fixed it). She simply could not play in tune until after I'd helped her think about it differently (in a very specific way, by doing ConstructiveThinking™) and make music with that instead of focusing on the intonation. As soon as she did that, her intonation problem was finally solved. Thanks for commenting! :)
It's not always the role of a teacher to tell a student exactly how to do something. "Go fix it. I don't care how" is often a way for a teacher to help a student gain independence. By doing so, she was pushed to find a wonderful resource like you. Now she has a new perspective on a common goal. Your approach is exactly what she needed. And moving forward she has more tools to handle future challenges.
@@robinshen8364 Hi Robin! I understand your perspective, and I agree with you, up to a point. There are lots of situations where a student just isn't getting something and isn't really trying. In that case, it's certainly not the teacher's fault if they can't do whatever it is. Teachers aren't meant to babysit, coddle, or fix everything, and I agree 100% that the best teaching inspires a student to teach herself and figure things out on her own. Like you say - to be independent. But in this case (and in many others I've seen), the student was highly intelligent and well-intentioned, and was doing her absolute best to follow the teacher's instructions. She was doing everything he told her to do. But the more she tried to fix this problem in the way he told her, the worse it got. And yes, she was independent enough to figure out she needed somebody else to help her because she couldn't do it on her own (and I'm grateful for that, of course). But wouldn't it be nice if a violin teacher could actually teach a violinist how to fix her intonation in a way that didn't mean she had to go hire another teacher who could? This was not a helpless, dependent, or irresponsible student, this was a scared student. I don't think scaring students is the best way to help them learn. This teacher was simply UNABLE to help her because he didn't know how, and he was actually contributing to the problem with bad advice. To me, that's very different from fostering critical thinking and independence. Make sense?
I feel really low when I don't have enough time to practise. The practise I manage to do also ends up being less productive because I'm stressed about it.
Yes, I think that's a very common issue among musicians these days. Life is so full, so busy... and we have so many responsibilities that it's hard to find time to care for ourselves and take the time to practice the way we wish to. This is something I help my coaching students with frequently. Thanks for commenting, Serena!
This was definitely my favorite one so far of the five pillars, and one that is very neglected today. We are not just bodies with minds, but we do have hearts and spirits. The moment of silence, and being fully present really resonates with me. Thank you for sharing! ❤
Thanks for this video! I'm watching the replay. I love my current violin- and from time to time renew my wonder and gratitude that such a precious instrument was donated for me to use. Watching your video was a reminder of some of the great blessings I have received.
Thanks for your feedback! If I'd been playing gypsy jazz for most of my life like Grappelli - and not just 2 weeks - I'd probably be more relaxed, too. :) But learning how to live and make music with less tension and more ease is actually my specialty, and I'm always interested in improving. it's all relative. I'm much less tense in this video than I was a decade earlier; and I'm much less tense today than I was back in 2019 when I made this video. We all do our best. Have a great day!
Thank you for your very prompt reply. I guess I am not a very compliant person, as I have looked into the book review route to make a comment, and find that I have to. allow my contacts list oto be available . I find this too intrusive, and resent the way IT can "force us" into tighter and tighter corners where they call the shots if we are to proceed, as in this case. Am I interpreting this incorrectly?
I want to be gentle with you, as you genuinely believe in what you do. Love is the key to it all. I find your approach very wordy, and and hard to follow as you wander around without getting to anything I find meaningful. I have gone on Amazon to rate the readings I have heard, and the response is I do not fulfil their criteria to allow me to comment. The implication is also that your approach to getting reviews does not align with their practice. I will try your other approach that you recommend.
Hi Tim, First of all, thank you very much for taking the time to comment here. As you know, it's impossible to please everyone, and not everyone will appreciate my way of communicating, of course. That's just fine. I'm glad we can agree that "Love is the key to it all". :) Regarding leaving a review, my approach to requesting honest and unbiased reviews is 100% in compliance with amazon's policies. Many authors offer free review copies expressly for this purpose, and no purchase is required to leave a review. People who are unable to leave reviews and get the response you got from amazon typically haven't spent at least $50 on the site within the last year. That's likely the only reason your review was denied. I really appreciate your taking the time with my book and hope you enjoyed it enough to leave a positive review, especially considering that my videos don't offer anything meaningful for you. Sorry about that! I do my best. :)
