Nicola Benedetti Foundation's Spring Virtual Sessions Focus on Wellness

March 23, 2021, 11:22 AM · Nicola Benedetti and her educational team will focus on the physical and psychological foundations of playing an instrument, in an upcoming set of Benedetti Foundation Virtual Sessions that will begin this Sunday and run through April 18, with a final celebration event on April 25.

The Benedetti Foundation was launched in January 2020 to offer educational programs to large gatherings of children and teachers across United Kingdom, only to find that it had to pivot abruptly, due to pandemic restrictions. The foundation had great success in doing so, expanding its reach worldwide by offering three Virtual Benedetti Sessions throughout 2020 that were available to anyone who could sign up in time.

The upcoming Virtual Sessions, called "Building Foundations: Exploring the Physicality and Psychology of Playing," are open to students and players of all instruments, ages and levels, and here is the link to register. The sessions are meant to complement regular individual or group lessons with a teacher. Tuition is free, with a recommended donation.

The upcoming sessions are designed to help students work on their mindset, intention, confidence, and comfort levels in playing. There will be live sessions, improvisation sessions, well-being sessions and daily challenges available for any instrument. They will be taught by a group of teachers that includes violinists Elena Urioste and Melissa White, cellists Leonard Elschenbroich, Hetty Snell and Robin Michael -- and of course, Benedetti herself.

Participants can join in as often as they want, and each live session will be repeated each day to allow those in different time zones to attend live.

"If we stand on shaky ground, we do not walk with the same confidence," Benedetti said of the program's focus on physical and psychological foundations. "Our mind and body work together in magical ways, and when we are trying to learn an instrument we often get consumed by very small, specific problems....in trying to solve these smaller problems, we lose sight of the bigger picture."

BELOW: Benedetti shares her thoughts about the upcoming Virtual Sessions: