In this video, Mark talks with SPARK Practice founder Sarah Niblack. The two of them talk about effective practice techniques, adopting a healthy mindset, plus a whole lot more!
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You expect that once passing your trial for your dream orchestral job, you can really relax and settle into your new permanent role. But unfortunately this wasn’t the case for Frankie Lo Surdo. A potentially career-threatening injury soon after completing his trial led him down a path to completely rebuild his playing from scratch. His newly formed business, Brass Rehab, is now helping fellow musicians work through similar problems with their playing, and brings the latest scientific research on musician’s overuse injuries to the fore.
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After an early musical upbringing, a twist of fate lead Berenice Beverley Zammit to uncover the science behind music performance, and ultimately lead her to become a researcher in the field. Her ground-breaking work on pre-performance routines for musicians is leading the way in uncovering new and effective strategies to optimise performance. Here she speaks of her work, and the launch of her latest research project.
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With a career spanning over four decades, Andrew Joy has had to overcome significant obstacles to maintain an elite level of performance. In this interview he talks about the strategies he’s used, and how these have helped him sustain a long and successful career, and thrive under the pressure.
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Many of us fear public speaking worse than snakes, heights, zombies and even death itself.
There’s something petrifying about having everyone’s eyes on you. It’s like they’re just waiting for you to embarrass yourself in front of the crowd…
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As a clinical psychologist and researcher, Dr. David Juncos is on the cutting edge of developing effective treatment for musicians with Music Performance Anxiety. In this interview I found out more about his approach using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and what exciting developments he has in store for performers and teachers in the future.
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A long and distinguished career in New Zealand, Australia, and around the world, Wilma Smith has spent a lot of time in perhaps the most pressure seat in the orchestra, the Concertmaster’s chair. I got to ask her about how she has dealt with the expectations in such a high-profile position.
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Performing hasn’t always come easy for Tom Burge. Having forged an extremely successful career as a performer and teacher, he talks to us about how he overcame his fears, and how that moulded him into the musician that he is today.
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After 34 years as Principal Trumpet of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Dan Mendelow has had a long career of performing under pressure. I was able to talk to him about his career, inspirations, and his mindset when sitting in the hot seat.
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Performance anxiety is a phrase many musicians are pretty familiar with.
Whether we experience it ourselves or know someone who does, it can sometimes feel like it is a necessary (and debilitating) evil of a musician’s existence.
Tasmania Symphony Orchestra trumpeter Mark Bain would argue otherwise.
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