Timothy's Blog

Timothy's blog on dulcimers, music, nature and life!
JAN
20

Play music in the moment!

When you’ve developed a performance piece, or even just something you’ve learned which you like to play on your own, it may be easy to simply draw on your memory of the way the composition goes, and bring it out and replicate it.

Or it may turn out to be a big challenge to reconstruct all the details in the way you intended originally, and you have to struggle to get it right.

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2851 Hits
MAY
26

Playing an instrument or playing music?

When I perform, people often ask me how long I’ve been playing the hammered dulcimer.  I think they mean this question to compliment my apparent years of study, probably many, you know, to learn from teachers how to develop the appropriate virtuosity on the instrument.

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4055 Hits
SEP
05

Experiential music, architectural music

Experiential music, architectural music

Throughout a lifetime of listening to Classical music and making my own music in a broad variety of genres, I've come to the conclusion that there are two primary approaches to how the performer relates to the music.

One is experiential: the musician takes the music as it comes to him or her and purposely cultivates an active experience of response to it, living in the present and developing a unique personal event associated with the amazing original art coming out from the page.

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5315 Hits
SEP
22

A few quotes from great musicians about the performer's relationship with the music

A few quotes from great musicians about the performer's relationship with the music

Although these three quotes are all from Classical performers, I think they apply to any genre of music and indeed to many roles in life!

This is an element of my own view of musicianship, as articulated by three of my favorite players. By the way, it's an honor to the Jewish people that all four of these guys are of that lineage (as are many other great musicians).

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14923 Hits
SEP
11

Trio StringWind's September 11 and 13, 2001

Trio StringWind's September 11 and 13, 2001

On September 11 of every year my thoughts go back to our Trio StringWind: Phil Skeens, Ardie Boggs, and myself.

In 2001 we were about to celebrate the release of our live album Three-Fold Joy: a Williamsburg Christmas by giving a free concert at the Hennage Auditorium in Colonial Williamsburg, and the date was September 13, 2001.  It was well advertised by the Foundation’s people, as usual.

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6993 Hits

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