We have thousands of human-written stories, discussions, interviews and reviews from today through the past 20+ years. Find them here:

Search the site Search

Random Stuff, but Good Info!

January 6, 2008 at 7:46 PM

There should be a section on v.com strictly for students to upload videos of them playing a scale or piece of repertoire to receive advice from Mrs. Niles, Buri, Mr. Steiner, and all the amazing educators/violinists on this site. I guess like online lessons, but in reverse because the student places their video online and the teacher gives an analysis. Just an idea. Another one of those things just flashing in my mind that I had to let free...or else.

I wanted to add something else that I have been adding to my practice sessions. Recently, I had a crazy dream where I woke up, and my room, all around me was pitch black. I jumped out of
my bed feeling for the light switch, but it did not turn on, so I thought maybe there wwas extreme power outage in the city. I opened up my bedroom door, trying to guide myself to my mom's bedroom. "Mom, wake up there was a power outage again."

"Jasmine, what are you talking about all the lights are on?" I heard my mom say behind me. Then, that is when I realized that in actuality I was blind. I screamed so loud, that I woke myself up. It was a very painful dream, that gave birth (I love that phrase) to an intense paranoia. I figure I had this dream because I was just talking to my mom about John Milton who had lost his eye sight and had to have his daughter scribe "Paradise Lost" for him. We also talked about numerous other people who had lost a sense or limb, but still worked through it somehow. Also, the other day, we went to go see a movie, but, oh yeah, I still do not have my glasses, because the doctor in California is not allowed to release prescription information without a real life person being in the office. So he had to send it out via mail and I still have not received it! So, the fact that I can not see anything unless it is two inches near my face contributes to the whole blindness paranoia!!!!! Also, a friend of mine recently went blind over the summer due to diabetes. I was devastated for her. But she continues through life with a smile. And naturally her other senses have become stronger. I don't know how she does it, but I know this sounds mean, but sometimes I try to sneak past her because she can talk a long, long time, and I could be a couple of feet away from her and she'll say, "Hey, Jasmine!"

"What? How? When? Where? Oh, nevermind. Hi!" I respond. She's amazing. How does she know it was me?

Well, I added to my practice ear training. I have always had a good ear, but since starting classical violin, I must say that I have become a little dependant on sheet music. But, I figured if I ever did go blind, the only way I would be able to learn new music is if I had an extremely good ear and of course good memory for the braille manuscripts that I am sure exist out there. All I do is listen to youtube videos and play back what I hear. This is going pretty good. I think in a year or so, I should be able to just hear something and play it back pretty speedily.

Anne-Sophie Mutter is my favorite violinist player, Leila Josefowicz is my favorite violinist performer.

Those same two are my favorites. Here's LJ playing the rags by John Novacek. I like the CD version better, but this is good to. I think it's some of the best music ever written for violin.
http://www.npr.org/programs/pt/4a/josefowicz.html

Your friend who went blind, never avoid her. Figure out some honest way to get away from her if you have to sometimes. She's trying to maintain contact with the world.

You are right, Mr. Miller. I rarely ever avoid her, however, since we are good friends. Just sometimes, I gotta go. And her personality has not changed, no matter how many times you say, "I gotta go," she will continue. I love her to death, though, and I would never do anything to hurt her. In plus, everytime I have tried to get away from her, she still manages to catch me, so I have given up when it comes to escaping her ever so keen senses.
"she still manages to catch me, so I have given up when it comes to escaping her ever so keen senses. "

That's because she knows better than to let you get away ;)

Jasmine: Your idea about having a site where students post their own videos to get an evaluation by teachers can be quite a rude and offensive idea to many teachers. I personally don't have problem with it, but too many students try to get FREE lessons/critique out of a teacher (especially top artists or teachers -- no wonder some don't like to interact with audiences). Do keep in mind that many good teachers have had to go through lots of expenses to get their wisdom to teach so try not to take advantage of people so much.

I'll give you one example that piss me off recently in my studio. There was a high school kid who came to me and kept "forgetting to pay me" for lessons. As soon as he got the fingerings/bowings from me for the Mozart Violin Concerto No.3, I never heard from him or even received a payment or even a courtesy to let me know he doesn't want to continue with me. I felt used and taken advantage of. Of course, i'm not suggesting that you would do such a thing but it's this type of mentality among many students that sometimes causes teacher and myself included not to be more generous with our time.

I think v.com is a great place to get ideas from each other, but I find that some students abuse the privilege and expect a FREE lesson. There is a difference between exchanging ideas and getting a FREE lesson.

With this type of mentality, your career won't go very far. You have to invest $ to try to build a career. If you're aiming for a bigger career, then you'll probably be required to invest even more $.

I know you have freedom of speech, etc but please for your sake -- think before you write! This messge is not meant to offend you. I think you need to learn better manners when dealing with professionals (it is like asking a family friend who is a physician for a free prescription -- I think that's soooo rude).

Lay off her, money grubber. Do something besides try to make money for a change.
Jim: If I was a money grubber, then I would not be giving my serious and loyal students 2-3 hour lessons for the price of 1 hour. I wouldn't provide free consulting services to any artists. I wouldn't be volunteering on arts organization boards.

I actually used to be more like Jasmine when I was younger. But I learned an interesting example from a famous concert pianist-Jean Yves Thibaudet. He illustrated the point of keeping professional manners even among friends/colleagues through an incident that happened to him. He would always get angry when friends asked him to perform the piano at a party. He said "Am I invited to a party to relax and have fun or to entertain when I'm not getting paid? This is the same rudeness as if you asked a lawyer or physician for free legal or medical advice." Of course, professionals have the right to accept or reject help but atleast showing some courtesy is never a bad thing.

A famous pianist and so on and whatever.

Ingnore him Jas, he's out of it some way.

Hello Mr. Song,

I am sorry. I had no intention of offending you. I thank you for your opinion, though. However, I was not speaking of free lessons. I was talking about the exchange of advice on playing. Basically, like a critique. I got the idea because there are already so many sites on the internet, i.e. youtube, where you can post videos of yourself and get feedback from fellow site users. Maybe I should have worded differently. I just believe it would be nice for Ms. Niles to have such a section because it seems like beginners are intimidated to post videos in the section that Ms. Niles already has up, which mostly professionals and really advanced students post on. I think it would be just nice to hear more beginners and when I wrote that blog it was more meant to encourage beginners to post, since not only professionals visit the site.

Just so you know, I have never taken advantage of any teachers. I understand how hard it is to be a musician. I work very hard for my lessons. I wanted them so bad, I worked 30 hours per week, on top of school, college, household duties, and practice. I also try to be the best student I can be. But I understand that there are many out there who would take advantage of amazing people like you. So, I understand where you are coming from, but I also hope you understand that I made the suggestion from the heart and not somewhere crooked and criminal. And I in no way intended to be rude, and I meant what I said as a compliment to the professionals on the site, as a way of saying I appreciate you. I am sad that the message did not get across.

Mr. Miller, thank you for your defense, but Mr. Song is right. Maybe I should have worded what I said differently. I will have to think before I write.


Jasmine
Just keep expressing your thoughts, Jasmine. Your blog is delightful and I don't feel that your idea was out of line at all.
Jasmine:
Thanks for clarifying your intentions. It did seem unclear from your writing what you actually meant.

You do have creative and wild ideas. :)

SDS

Thank you, Mr. Song for your understanding. Sorry again.

And thanks Mitchell and Jim for your encouragement. I like writing, so no one could stop me from doing that, but I do understand that this is a public site and I should be careful what I write. However, I am glad to know that you enjoyed my blog; it lets me know I am not terribly offending anyone too much. I coninue to learn what buttons too push and which ones I better not touch, you know like the big red button. I find it a joy to learn what makes people happy and what just plain ticks them off. In other words, I am not discouraged.

Actually, you didn't say anything even remotely wrong, but if you want to think you did, it's your business.
:)
Thanks Jim. No, I don't think I was wrong; I just think that it possibly could have been worded better. As a writer, I can see where Mr. Song could have misread it. Also, as a newswriter, I am constantly trying to find a way to write where intentions are clear from the start and not subject to misunderstandings/misinterpretations. As a creative/poetry writer, I live for double meaning. :) You can see where the two might conflict.
The wording was fine. Somebody just felt like making somebody walk the plank.
I do some freelance work as a scientific/technical writer/editor. I have some advice for you: Write with greater accuracy and fewer words. I had the same impression as some others here did: you were asking for free advice from some very accomplished players. I would have opposed that. Try rereading what you've written and making your intended meaning clear before posting it.
i think it takes a lot of courage to put up a video of one's playing and open up for suggestions/criticism. most students will not do it because they will be too embarassed. in life, there are more good talkers than doers. for some, like jasmine who is passionate, it can be a very interesting interaction to watch. many readers can benefit from reading it.

as far as providing "free" lessons to those seeking for advice/teaching, those who do offer "free" services are obviously willingly doing them on a voluntary basis. i don't see any problems with that. this internet site is about the collective wisdom of many...

as far as jasmine's writing, sure, anyone can improve but this is a blog format so read as one pleases and write as one pleases, as jasmine does:). confucius did say the more one says the more one makes mistakes. so that is all from me:):)

Thank you, Al Ku. And thank you Pauline for your advice. I am trying to write for the newspaper, so I do want to write more clearly, but also as Al Ku said, this is a blog and I am more working on my freestyle writing. Although, I will write blogs in the future that will put my news writing and more technical writing to practice.

As far as my idea, Al Ku made a great point. I do not think it is wrong to ask accomplished players on this site for advice. We already do that when we ask questions on the discussion board. The place where beginners post videos of themselves playing would be in the same formatt as the discussion board. If an accomplished player, or amateur, or fellow student visits the video and happens to see that someone is bowing incorrectly, they can make a quick suggestion as we already do when it comes to the discussion boards.

I do not think it was out-of-line to ask such a question, since the "accomplished players" already use their time to give wonderful advice, such as Buri and Drew Lecher who posts blogs intended as "free advice" very regularly. If this was a tennis site and I happened to see a very famous violinist on the tennis site and I started asking him or her tons of violin questions on the tennis site, then I would feel I was extremely out-of-line or rude. But this is a violin site where everyone can come of free will and ask advice on violin playing, so what's wrong with suggesting "further ways" of how students, professionals, and amateurs alike can find more productive ways of learning?

(And just like the discussion boards could never take the place of real life lessons, what I suggested above also wasn't an idea to take the place of lessons. I never suggested that they be a replacement for lessons, just a place where you can receive support and advice.)

Greetings,
I think this whole issue is so complex it will never be resolved. There are just too many contradictions and evryone is corretc to a large extnet ;)
However, I think there is one point that young and dedicate dplayers should keep in mind before jumping in at the deep end in a format where there are no real gua- buyer beware.
When you approach a teacher and agree to work together you are beginning a serious and comitted relationship which is founded on a deep sense of trust. In music it is much more personal than leanring a foreign language or word processing. If one then goes out onto the Internet and asks specific questiuons about issues addressed by the teacher then this trust is beginning to be be violated. The studnet has to be really careful to preserve the integrity of their relationship with the teacher. Indeed, after I began writing on this site many years ago now I began meeting and talking to teachers and more than once one of thes epeople has remarked `You know, I was really pissed off when studnet x said you had told them xyz, although I have got to know you I am not bothered so much....`
That really mad eme stop and think. It doesn`t happen thta often but I have had students contradict or bypass plans I had carefully worked out for them because of certain Internet sites and it does not help in teacher studnet relationships at all.
Like I said, no clear solutions but juts a lot of care needed on all sides of the equation.
Cheers,
Buri
Thanks, Buri. That is a valid issue that I did not think of because there are so many of those sites which students go to besides listening to their teachers. Yeah, not a lot of students check with their teacher first before taking certain online advice, so I see what you mean.