Music, Mind, and Movement Podcast

Gwendolyn Masin is a violist, pedagogue, and artistic director with a passion for the promotion of holistic well-being among musicians. In this conversation, we talk about Gwendolyn's incredible and varied career as a soloist, chamber musician, educator, and recording artist; about Gwendolyn's own experience with injury and what the process of recovery taught her about not just playing and teaching violin, but about how she lives her entire life; about why it can be challenging to get young musicians to invest in habits that might increase the success and sustainability of their careers; and about her new course, The Exhale, which is coming up in April 2020. To learn more about Gwendolyn, visit https://gwendolynmasin.com/. To learn more about or to register for The Exhale, visit https://www.the-exhale.com/en/master-course. Show notes, including links to any resources mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Cody Weisbach is a Doctor of Physical Therapist with an interest in the prevention and treatment of playing related musculoskeletal disorders in musicians. In this conversation, we talk about the "water in the cup" analogy, the importance of intentional recovery, what musicians can and can't learn from the world of sports performance health, pain, resilience, and much more. To learn more about Cody's work or to sign up for his awesome newsletter, visit https://musiciansmaintenance.com/ Show notes, including links to any resources mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement

Barbara Tanze is a vocalist and breathing specialist based in Slovenia. She works with musicians and athletes all over the world to improve performance through better breathing. In this conversation, we talk about the MDH Breathing Coordination Method, rib cage mobility, recoil pressure, the diaphragm, and more. Barbara has a very nuanced understanding of breathing and is a wonderful communicator. There's lots in her for musicians and non-musicians alike. To learn more about Barbara and her work, visit https://www.voiceup.si/ or find her on Instagram @voiceup_institute. Show notes, including links to any resources mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Australian physiotherapist and anatomist Bronwen Ackermann is an international leader in the world of performing arts medicine. She has worked with professional orchestras throughout Australian and as a high performance consultant at the Australian National Academy of Music. She was the inaugural president of the Australian Society for Performing Arts Health and serves as editor-in-chief for Medical Problems of Performing Artists. And, she's an Associate Professor at the University of Sydney. In this conversation, we talk about how Bronwen, not a musician herself, became interested in working with musicians, efficient movement as a component of optimal performance, injury risks for musicians, and much, much more. To learn more about Bronwen and her work, or to contact her, visit https://sydney.edu.au/medicine-health/about/our-people/academic-staff/bronwen-ackermann.html Show notes, including links to any resources mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

For the Season 1 finale, I am speaking with Dana Fonteneau. Dana is part consultant, part career coach, and part therapist. She is the author of It's Not (Just) About the Gig and she helps musicians connect with their deepest sources of vitality and inspiration in order to build meaningful and sustainable careers. In this conversation, we talk about how Dana's career has evolved (and continues to evolve), authenticity, why musicians need to think about success in a holistic way, financial health, and lots more. To learn more about Dana and her work, visit https://www.danafonteneau.com/ Show notes, including links to any resources mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Christine Carter is a clarinetist and music psychology researcher who is interested in effective practice. In this conversation, Christine describes how we can learn to accept and work with our very human tendencies to lose focus during practice by structuring our practice sessions in such a way that they provide the novelty and variety our brains crave. This not only makes practicing more effective, but also more engaging. We also talk about motivation and how, instead of relying on willpower, we can set up our schedules and environments to support work that is in line with our goals and values. To learn more about Christine and her work, visit http://christine-carter.com/ Show notes, including links to any resources mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Janet Horvath was the Associate Principal cellist of the Minnesota Orchestra for 32 years and is the author of Playing (Less) Hurt: An Injury Prevention Guide for Musicians. She has been a passionate advocate for musicians' health since the 1980s and has played an important role in building bridges between the the musical and medical fields and in improving working conditions for orchestral musicians. In this conversation we talk about how Janet became interested in this field following her own over-use injury during her graduate studies and about the process of writing her book at a time when there was very little awareness around musicians' health issues. We also discuss Janet's more recent experience with a severe hearing injury and the impact this has had on her life and career. To learn more about Janet and her work, visit http://playinglesshurt.com/ Show notes, including links to any resources mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Rachel White Galvin is a violist as well as a CrossFit trainer and certified Feldenkrais practitioner. In this conversation, Rachel recounts her own experience with injury and chronic pain and the long journey toward healing. She describes how, in order to get out of pain, she ultimately had to let go of a mindset oriented around constant striving in order to cultivate a mindset of awareness and self-trust. Rachel and I discuss her unique way of working with musicians, the benefits of strength training for musicians, goal-setting, and more. To learn more about Rachel and her work, visit: https://performwithoutpain.com/ Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Tal Varon is a saxophonist and Focusing Trainer based in Isreal. In this conversation, we talk at length about Tal's musical background, including a long break from playing that he took after finishing his post-secondary studies and how he found his way back to music with a restored sense of connection and belonging. We talk about musical identity, the negative effects of comparison and ranking, and what it means to make music from the heart. Finally, Tal explains the process Focusing, a mind-body practice that involves tuning in to the felt sense of experience. Tal describes how musicians can use this practice to bolster and enrich positive experiences so that they become resources and sources of nourishment, as well as how bringing a accepting awareness to more negative or problematic patterns can help to shift them. Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Ruth Phillips is a cellist based in Provence and the creator of The Breathing Bow, a holistic approach to working with musicians that uses the the breath as the starting point for the exploration of physical movement, musical expression, and grounded presence in both practice and performance. In this conversation, we talk about Ruth's musical background and how her relationship with the cello has changed and evolved over the years. We also dig into some ideas about fear and what's behind it and what it means to let go -- to get ourselves out of the way and to truly allow the audience to receive the music. To learn more about Ruth's work, visit: https://thebreathingbow.com/ Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

John Howell Morrison is a composer, educator, and long-time educator with an interest in weaving contemplative practice into both his writing and his teaching. In this conversation, John describes how meditation and contemplative practice have inspired his work as a composer and explains how he developed a method of contemplative musical analysis called Sound Energy Aggregate. We also talk about beginner's mind, aural skills, and spirituality in music. To learn more about John's work, visit http://johnmorrison.org/ Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Kelly Mollnow Wilson is a flutist, Body Mapping teacher, and Neurokinetic Therapy (NKT) Practitioner based in Ohio. In this conversation, we talk about Kelly's background in music and her exploration of a wide range of movement modalities. Kelly explains how NKT works to address pain and dysfunction related to poor communication between the brain and the body. We touch on compensation patterns, re-patterning movement, and lots more, including Kelly's experience with an injury that could have been career-ending. It's an inspiring and empowering story. To learn more about Kelly and her work, visit https://precisionperformanceandtherapy.com/ Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Dr. Christine Guptill is an oboist, an occupational therapist, and an Assistant Professor of Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, AB. She is a leader in musicians' health research and has been a driver in changing the way musicians train through her work with such institutions as the National Youth Orchestra of Canada. In this conversation, we talk about occupational therapy and occupational science, Christine's past research on the phenomenology of musicians' injuries, and her current work which is focused on empowering musicians through improved health literacy. We even talk about flow and how it might actually be a risk factor for musicians' injuries! This is a wide-ranging conversation that is full of information from the front lines of musicians' health research, as well as practical tips that musicians can apply immediately. To learn more about Christine and her work, visit https://www.ualberta.ca/rehabilitation/about-us/contact-us/faculty-directory/christine-guptill Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Madeline Bruser is a pianist and meditation teacher and the founder of the Art of Practicing Institute. Both her book, The Art of Practicing, and the approach to music-making it describes draw on her decades of experience as a musician and meditator to offer a radically new perspective on what it means to be a musician. In this conversation, we talk about Madeline's background and training as a pianist, why she left performing to dedicate herself to teaching, and the approach she has developed to help musicians perform with greater technical ease and communicative power. Learn more about Madeline's work by visiting https://artofpracticing.com/ or https://www.artofpracticinginstitute.org/ Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Flute player and Body Mapping instructor Vanessa Mulvey is a movement enthusiast with a thirst for continued learning and integration. In this conversation, we explore Vanessa's various movement adventures, including natural movement, Core Movement Integration, and trapeze(!) and how these have shaped and informed her life as a musician and educator. Vanessa is based in Boston, MA and serves on the faculties of both the Longy School of Music and the New England Conservatory. You can learn more about her and her work at https://www.breathemoveperform.com/ Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

In this week's episode, the tables are turned as guest host Daniel Fuchs talks to Karen about music, mindfulness, movement, and more. The conversation goes in lots of different directions, exploring how and why Karen found her way to mindfulness and somatic movement practices, ways to manage injury, ways to think about pain and injury, and how understanding more about pain and the body can empower musicians to take charge of their own health and artistic development. Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at www.musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1 To learn more about Karen and her work, visit her website at www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Instagram or Facebook @musicmindandmovement.

Violist and movement educator Kayleigh Miller is on a mission to empower musicians to learn more about their bodies in order to have more fluid technique, a stronger embodied connection to music, and fewer injuries. In this conversation, we take a look at common assumptions about stretching and strengthening and how these assumptions, if they remain unchecked, might hold us back from embracing our full movement potential. We talk about Kayleigh's awesome blog, Musicians' Health Collective, and explore differences and similarities between movement education and music education. To learn more about Kayleigh's work, visit her blog at http://www.musicianshealthcollective.com/ or her personal website at http://www.kayleigh-miller.com/. You can also follow Kayleigh on Instagram at @kayleighmm Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at https://musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Tina Margareta Nilssen is a pianist and educator based in Oslo, Norway. Through her unique system of movement and body awareness education, Timani, Tina has helped thousands of musicians access their potential and play with greater physical ease and musical depth. In this conversation we talk about Tina's background as a reluctant body nerd, the basic principles of Timani, the unexpected ways that improved body understanding can affect a musician's life and playing, the difference between mental effort and physical effort, and so much more. To learn more about Tina and her work, visit: https://www.timani.no/en/ Show notes including links mentioned in this episode live over at: www.musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen Bulmer and her work, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com/ or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Jennifer Johnson is a violinist and licensed Andover Educator who travels all over the world teaching musicians to move according to the design of their bodies in order to address and prevent playing injuries. In this conversation we talk about Jennifer's journey of recovery from injury -- a journey which eventually led her to Body Mapping. We discuss how Jennifer found Body Mapping after a long search for relief from chronic pain, what Body Mapping is, and why it is so helpful for musicians. Jennifer even leads us through some movement explorations that you can follow along with while you listen! For more information about Jennifer’s work, visit http://jennifer-johnson.co/ Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at https://musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit https://www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Vanessa Cornett is an Associate Professor at St. Thomas University where she also serves as Director of Keyboard Studies and co-directs the Project for Mindfulness and Contemplation. In this conversation Vanessa shares various practices that musicians can use to develop mindfulness through music practice and we explore how the cultivation of mindfulness can help musicians connect to ineffable dimensions of human experience. Visit http://www.vanessacornett.com/ to learn more about Vanessa and her work. Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at https://musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit https://www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Cellist Barbara Bogatin has been a member of the San Francisco Symphony for 25 years and a dedicated meditation practitioner for over 30 years. In this conversation, we talk about the impact meditation has had on her life as a musician and on her approach to both practice and performance. To learn more about Barbara, visit www.barbarabogatin.com. Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at https://musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Frank Diaz is an Associate Professor of Music Education at Indiana University and the founder of the Mindfulness-Based Wellness and Pedagogy program (MBWP). In this conversation we explore what mindfulness is and isn't, the role of ethics in a musical life, peak performance as an ecological contruct, and lots more. To find out more about Frank's work with performers and educators, visit https://mb-wp.org/. Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at https://musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit https://www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Travis Baird is a violist, meditation teacher, and performance coach for musicians, and the founder of Dynamic Music Teacher. In this episode, he shares insights and stories from his own experience as a student, teacher, and performer, plus lots of practical tips for more effective practice and more confident performance. You can learn more about Travis and his work at https://www.dynamicmusicteacher.com. Show notes, including links mentioned in this episode, live over at https://musicmindandmovement.com/podcast-1/ For more about Karen, visit https://www.musicmindandmovement.com or connect on Facebook or Instagram @musicmindandmovement.

Ep 1: Welcome to the Podcast! by Karen Bulmer