‘Growing up, two of my dad’s favourite words were Motivation and Inspiration. When my sister and I were little that basically went right over our heads, but given time and hours and hours of necessary practice, those two words come in really handy.

‘For me this sometimes involves taking a step back from the endless repetition of practising and looking at what can inspire us to channel more feeling, energy and commitment into our playing.

‘Music and our instruments can open doors into all sorts of learning. And I always believed that stepping into the mind and place of composers could get us to practice empathising. And doing so with those who seem situationally, geographically and culturally far from you is something we must continually readdress and practice throughout our lives.

‘This type of practice not only has the potential to motivate and inspire you musically and emotionally, but to nurture your personality and humanity. Take some moments in your practice to just think on this. It will serve you and those around you, in more ways than purely musically.’

  • See the full series here

TIME CODES:

00:32 Looking Elsewhere and Taking a Step Back

04:07 Motivation

07:14 The Importance of Strengthening the Depth of Our Feeling in Order To Express It

09:27 Prokofiev Violin Concerto No. 2 with The National Children’s Orchestras of Great Britain

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