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Please Notify Me!

Enter Name and Email Below
and We'll Send You an Email
When Dates Are Known

Name:
Email:

Please Notify Me!

Enter Name and Email Below
and We'll Send You an Email
When Dates Are Known

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Email:

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What exactly are some of the things that you do in this seminar?

Jeffrey: Improvisation - We do improvisations based on the separate elements of music, first as duets, then including the whole group, then as solos. Composing - We do an exercise where everyone writes a piece of music without hearing it, using techniques that guarantee good results, and then I play it on the piano for them to hear. Arranging - We take the exercises that everyone has written and arrange them for whatever instruments are in the room, and then the seminar students play their arrangements for each other. Interpreting - Everyone plays a piece of music that was composed by someone other than themselves and we discuss the issues related to doing that. Kids Class - This is a miniature version of the above, with an emphasis on improvisation. Teaching Improvisation - We go through a list of progressive exercises, demonstrating each one, so that teachers will have a clear sense of direction when working with their students.

I'm afraid to improvise and I don't believe I can do it.

Jeffrey: You already are an improviser. All day long, you do things like make conversation, drive a car, or put together a salad, without knowing exactly what will happen next. Improvisation is your normal functioning. You will improvise music - and easily - by plugging that functioning into musical parameters. It's that simple.

Can I take just part of a seminar instead of doing the whole thing?

Jeffrey: You should attend the whole thing. Continuity and the group experience are important elements of the seminar. We are offering seminars of different lengths on different topics. If you can't do any of those, we offer private lessons also.

How do I know if this seminar is right for me?

Jeffrey: In the seminar, I ask every person what they want to get out of it and I make sure that they get it. This seminar is about you, your needs, and your goals. It is not about me lecturing at you. Yes, there is a curriculum that everyone follows, but it is like a checklist that you measure your experience against.

I'm already taking music lessons. Why should I do this?

Jeffrey: A seminar does not replace your private lessons - it enhances them. The range of topics covered in the seminar will surely include things that you haven't already learned elsewhere. Also, the way the group in the seminar interacts is entirely different from a private lesson, and can lead to new and beneficial discoveries for you.

I'm a teacher and I don't want you to give conflicting instructions to my students if they come to your class.

Jeffrey: I will never contradict someone else's teaching, because I don't teach "my way" to do things. Instead, the goal is to be able to do anything. I ask students to be aware of what they are doing, to identify the results that they produce, and to keep adding to their options. If anything, that will reinforce what you are teaching them.