Well, the title says it all. Nothing of note happened today. It's been so unbelievably hot that I just had to go someplace cool for the afternoon. The heat is actually driving me crazy. It's no fun to practice flute when it keeps sliding down your chin. And the piano? Nothing feels worse than fingers sticking to the keys. I don't even have enough energy to sing the blues.
But . . . I find that my students are also experiencing the same thing right now. It isn't unusual to have periods of time that look non-productive. You don't really want it to last too long, but it's pretty normal. People, especially children, spiral in and out of learning. It doesn't mean that nothing is happening, it just means that it isn't happening at the instrument.
That's one of the reasons that, this summer, I've included more improvisation in the lessons. Very often, I find that small bits of the lesson material appear in those improvisations. Usually, it's something enjoyable or even challenging. I consider that a very important aspect of the process. It's something that can make the lesson nearly painless.
When I watch someone working out a problem in an improvisation, I know that they will retain that information and be able to apply it to a written piece of music. I find it very rewarding to watch the "Aha" moment when the student actually performs a complex move on the instrument. Spiral out and spiral back.
