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At the AHS Conference in San Francisco, there was a bulletin board for people on the Harplist to find each other. When you all come to Vancouver for the World Harp Congress in 2011 (you ARE all coming, right?), if I have somehow forgotten a bulletin board, find me and I’ll have one put up. We will definitely have name tags.
Dear Mel, I am very impressed that you speak five languages! I have been really lucky that I have had very few students who would not listen to my advice. I have dropped the few defiant and headstrong ones, though it has been a long time since I have had to do this. If they cannot understand the importance of developing a good fingering and being consistent with it, then they are not going to progress well. Perhaps they should record themselves and hear the difference when they use a good fingering and when they don’t. Best of luck!
I played in a master class for Osian Ellis in the 1970’s, and I still remember it like it was yesterday. He had lots of inspiring tips for all of us and played several pieces for us from memory to illustrate his points, such as the Handel Harp Concerto, Malcolm Arnold Fantasy, and Britten Suite. My favourite quote from that class is “Never bore your audience”. There are so many wonderful harpists now, it would be hard to choose only one as a favourite, but I guarantee we’ll have some great master classes at the World Harp Congress. I will keep an eye on this thread to get some ideas.
You would be amazed at what can be accomplished if the technology is good enough! I have given a couple of master classes using Telestudios at UBC. There were several life-sized screens, so I could see the students as though they were behind a large window, and there was no delay in the sound. The sound quality was very good as well. You could position the cameras any way you liked. I was able to work on fingerings, interpretations, unevenness, phrasing, harmonics, etc., all the things you would do in a normal situation. I realize that it gets a little more difficult with only one screen and cheaper equipment, but this technology can be useful if a student lives in a place where there are no teachers, or if they just need a fresh pair of ears and eyes once in a while.
This process of stopping practising before you’ve beaten something to death was beautifully put into words by Judy Loman’s late husband, Joe Umbrico. He said, “You have to let the cream rise to the top.” It is really true! The muscles need time to rest, and the mind needs time to process the information.
I should have clarified: that posting was from Cliton Nieweg, and I was just forwarding it! He did all the research.
If you have to learn pieces with a lot of playing up in the top register, you can still practice those sections in a lower register and then put them back up there when you have gotten the finger patterns sorted out. This will avoid putting strain on your elbow. You can also do mental practice, without playing at all. You would be surprised at how much you can learn by visualizing yourself playing. I have found that ice works very well for bringing down inflammation, but you have to ice the area on a regular basis. Heat brings blood to the injured area, so therefore promotes healing, but it also promotes swelling, so you have to ice it to bring it back down. I agree that it is very worthwhile to read up on tennis elbow on the internet; you will recover so much more quickly if you know what you’re dealing with. Best of luck!
I forgot to mention another important thing: make sure your hands are warm before you play. Get to the hall early enough to warm up, but even so, you may not get all the warm-up time that you would like. For at least two minutes before you play, get the fingers moving to get oxygenated blood going to them. I pretend to play chords, surreptitiously, with my hands in my lap. This is also a great strategy for those times when you are sitting in an orchestra for half an hour and then you have to play a cadenza. Also, make sure you are not breathing in short, ragged breaths. Take slow, deep breaths to control the body’s tendency to produce adrenalin. If you still feel full of adrenalin, that’s okay. That’s what the “practice auditions” are for: so that you get used to playing with adrenalin in your system and it becomes much less frightening.
Mel, on the thread about the Grandjany Fantaisie on a Theme of Haydn, there are questions about some of Grandjany’s notations. You might find some answers there.
At UBC, first of all, the student has to have high enough marks to be accepted into the university before he or she can be accepted into the School of Music. They also have to play an audition, which can be sent in as a DVD. The school expects a high enough level of playing that the student can function well in orchestra, opera, and chamber music while still keeping up with their academic classes. The requirements for solo performance get more demanding as the student progresses from year to year.
They can be fast and flashy or more solid and musical; after all, it takes all kinds to make a harp department! As long as they are able to get around the instrument, and show all the usual signs of musicality such as good rhythm, intonation, and nice phrasing, they have an excellent chance of getting in.British Columbia has all that as well as the Pacific Ocean, but Vancouver’s housing market is very high-priced. There is a vibrant lever-harp community on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. We have various universities in the province, including UBC in Vancouver and U. of Victoria on Vancouver Island.
Washington State has some great places, too. The whole Pacific Northwest is lovely.
