PracticeMind for Everyone is a groundbreaking method book for all musicians that will transform your practice and performance. Hans Jørgen Jensen and Oleksander Mycyk define a mental practice model for piano, percussion, brass, wind, and string players, filling the book with research-backed practice techniques and methods that will dramatically improve your performance results. The ¿rst section delves into the mental, motivational, and psychological aspects of learning. Demystifying the powerful metacognitive learning cycle, the second part of the book focuses on topics such as goal setting and practice planning. The chapters focusing on implementation explore the active part of practicing and the proven techniques you can apply in your daily practice sessions. The ¿nal section of this definitive guide to developing your practice mind encourages active listening, feedback, and evaluation of all steps of your musical journey. PracticeMind for Everyone promotes a practice mindset that inspires greater motivation, effectiveness, and inspiration in all aspects of a musical life on and off the stage.

PracticeMind is a four-part pedagogical method book that will transform the way you practice and perform. With a primary focus on stringed instruments, PracticeMind guides you on your path toward string instrument mastery through the Complete Practice Model. Co-authors Hans Jørgen Jensen and Oleksander Mycyk have authored this book for all advanced string players and have filled it with research-backed practice techniques and methods that will dramatically improve your performance results. Each chapter contains either musical examples from the repertory or mental and instrumental exercises to incorporate into your own personalized planning and practice routine. The first section of the book, The Practice Mind, delves into topics related to the mental, motivational, and psychological aspects of learning. The metacognitive learning cycle is presented in The Plan, the second section of the book, and the chapters within are focused on topics such as goal setting and practice planning. The chapters in the Implement part explore the active part of practicing and the successful techniques that are applied in the practice sessions. The final section of the book, Evaluate, consists of chapters that are focused on evaluating all aspects of practice- and performance-related issues. This new release from Ovation Press is the definitive guide to developing your practice mind. Through the many music examples, practice exercises and beautiful full color illustrations PracticeMind will inspire and motivate your journey to superior technical mastery and greater freedom of artistic expression in the practice room, the stage and beyond.

ViolinMind is a pedagogical method book that focuses on intonation. It is a transcription for the violin of CelloMind published in 2017 by Ovation Press, Ltd. The co-authors of ViolinMind are Hans Jørgen Jensen, Professor of Cello at the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University and Grigory Kalinovsky, Professor of Music (Violin) at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music. The mystery of intonation is dissected by defining the scientific principles behind it, and providing easy, intuitive examples of the three main kinds of intonation systems used today: Equal Temperament, Just, and Pythagorean. Playing with exquisite intonation has mostly been reserved for those who possess a strong intuitive sense of pitch and harmonic color; however, ViolinMind breaks down this barrier using a highly detailed, systematic approach, making the process of acquiring a sophisticated sense of intonation similar to any other technical skill. Chapters in the book explore in great detail topics such as the harmonic overtone series, the scientific principles behind Cents, the syntonic comma, the just scales, the Pythagorean comma, the Pythagorean semitones, advanced sympathetic vibrations, Tartini tones, and double stops studies in tritones. All chapters in the book include numerous practical samples and listening exercises that bridge the gap between the theory and its application. The chapters on intonation conclude with practical examples from the following repertoire: intonation performance practice in the Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Violin Solo (BWV 1001-1006), and intonation performance practice with piano. The appendices in the book provide detailed explanations about the Helmholtz intonation chart, the harmonic series, just intonation, the Schisma, as well as an illustration of two violin fingerboards from two method books from the 18th century showing pitch distribution for just intonation and Pythagorean intonation respectively.

Most previous research on human cognition has focused on problem-solving, and has confined its investigations to the laboratory. As a result, it has been difficult to account for complex mental processes and their place in culture and history. In this startling - indeed, disco in forting - study, Jean Lave moves the analysis of one particular form of cognitive activity, - arithmetic problem-solving - out of the laboratory into the domain of everyday life. In so doing, she shows how mathematics in the 'real world', like all thinking, is shaped by the dynamic encounter between the culturally endowed mind and its total context, a subtle interaction that shapes 1) Both tile human subject and the world within which it acts. The study is focused on mundane daily, activities, such as grocery shopping for 'best buys' in the supermarket, dieting, and so on. Innovative in its method, fascinating in its findings, the research is above all significant in its theoretical contributions. Have offers a cogent critique of conventional cognitive theory, turning for an alternative to recent social theory, and weaving a compelling synthesis from elements of culture theory, theories of practice, and Marxist discourse. The result is a new way of understanding human thought processes, a vision of cognition as the dialectic between persons-acting, and the settings in which their activity is constituted. The book will appeal to anthropologists, for its novel theory of the relation of cognition to culture and context; to cognitive scientists and educational theorists; and to the 'plain folks' who form its subject, and who will recognize themselves in it, a rare accomplishment in the modern social sciences.

In those times when we want to acquire a new skill or face a formidable challenge we hope to overcome, what we need most are patience, focus, and discipline, traits that seem elusive or difficult to maintain. In this enticing and practical book, Thomas Sterner demonstrates how to learn skills for any aspect of life, from golfing to business to parenting, by learning to love the process. Early life is all about trial-and-error practice. If we had given up in the face of failure, repetition, and difficulty, we would never have learned to walk or tie our shoes. So why, as adults, do we often give up on a goal when at first we don’t succeed? Modern life’s technological speed, habitual multitasking, and promises of instant gratification don’t help. But in his study of how we learn (prompted by his pursuit of disciplines such as music and golf), Sterner has found that we have also forgotten the principles of practice — the process of picking a goal and applying steady effort to reach it. The methods Sterner teaches show that practice done properly isn’t drudgery on the way to mastery but a fulfilling process in and of itself, one that builds discipline and clarity. By focusing on “process, not product,” you’ll learn to live in each moment, where you’ll find calmness and equanimity. This book will transform a sense of futility around learning something challenging into an attitude of pleasure and willingness.

A treasury of meditations for living from your heart--from a top teacher at the #1 online meditation service Insight Timer"Heart Minded offers us guidance on the sacred journey home ... to the heartspace where love is always and already right here." -Tara Brach, author of Radical Acceptance"Heart Minded is all at once a centering meditation, a practice, and an olive branch extended to the depths of your soul." -Pixie Lighthorse, author of Prayers of HonoringIn our noisy world, it can seem impossible to turn off our busy minds, which are so often flooded with worry and unending lists of tasks. So, when you feel overwhelmed and afraid, how can you return to grounded connection?"When we turn toward our hearts, we arrive like a bolt of lightning in the present moment, and all our arguments against ourselves and life go quiet," teaches Sarah Blondin. "No matter where you are, you can touch this place in yourself to feel free and alive."With poetic brilliance and skillful instruction, this renowned teacher brings you Heart Minded, a treasury of meditations and spiritual teachings to help you tune into your feeling heart. As the students of her popular online trainings can attest, these simple and powerful practices can instantly bring you into a deeper connection with yourself and others.In this new paperback edition, Heart Minded presents a full course in living a life guided by the wise heart. Open to any page for a reminder that, beneath your burdens and troubles, you are fundamentally whole and free.

Dr. Suzuki questioned why all vocalists vocalize every day to improve their voices, but instrumentalists do not do so every day with their instruments. He believes that on any instrument, one needs to practice to make a more beautiful tone. First he talks about playing a beautiful resonant tone with the bow while plucking the string with a finger. When a pizzicato is played, the resonance goes on for a long time. Students should listen to that resonance and play the same kind of clear beautiful sound. He talks about how to make a difference in the tone by using a different bow speed, how to practice to find the resonance point, how to change the weight of the arm on the bow to produce a different kind of tone, and how to change tone color. This book includes all of Dr. Suzuki's basic ideas about tone.