Photo by Redd Angelo on Unsplash To go on stage and rock out is something, many musicians dream of. But there’s one thing holding them back: stage fright. Stress, anxiety and general discomfort – for some students, just coming to music lessons unprepared is enough to cause these feelings. Luckily, at Modern Music School we […]
Get your Trinity Rock & Pop Certificate!
“Exams for Rock & Pop musicians? What’s up with that?” you might ask. And we understand. “Not for us!” was our thinking for many years but now we’ve come full circle. Now, we view these exams as a great opportunity for our students to experience a sense of joy, pride and self-confidence. I’ve written about […]
Music and personality – what your favorite music says about you
The question “What music do you listen to?” is a crucial one among young people. Showcasing one’s musical taste – be it through clothing, hair, accessories, etc. – symbolizes to which group or social milieu one belongs, and at the same time serves as a distinction from other groups. “…you and your friends can’t consider […]
What does it mean to spend our time well?
“What does it mean to spend our time well?” Tristan asks at the beginning of his TED talk “How better tech could protect us from distraction.” Tristan Harris is a former Google employee who now runs an initiative called Time Well Spent, which advocates that software and websites be designed to help people make good […]
Better together – how to unleash your full potential
Standing at the bottom of a steep hill, a person will perceive the angle to be 20-30% steeper when they’re alone than when they’re with a friend. (“Social support and the perception of geographical slant” published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology.) What does that tell us? Well, it tells us that things become […]
Music lessons for seniors – why it’s always a good idea to play music
More and more seniors choose to learn a musical instrument. And they should because more and more research shows that playing a musical instrument can slow and sometimes even reverse the effects of aging – especially for hearing and memory. At Modern Music School, we offer music lessons for students over 50. In line with […]
6 tips for “frustration-free” learning
A little every day is the key to good, frustration-free learning. I like that: A little every day. That sounds doable, doesn’t it? I’ve always held a passion for learning, and I want the students at Modern Music School to be passionate learners as well. The “6 tips for frustration-free learning” I’m giving you in […]
Music makes us smarter
Music is one of the greatest joys in life. Just try to imagine a world without it – a birthday without singing, a wedding held in silence or a sports game without your favourite tracks blasting in the background. It would probably be a sad and boring world. Music is beautiful, and most of us […]
Talent, it all starts with a passion
In this guest post, Sebastian Quirmbach, Modern Music School’s education director, busts the myth about ‘natural talent.’ Talent isn’t something God-given or fixed at birth, it’s a muscle we can grow with time and practice. In fact, all children can develop talent in almost any area — as long as they experience a positive and […]
Exams for Rock & Pop musicians? What’s up with that?
Who likes exams anyway? For most of us, exams mean stress, pressure, and anxiety. “What if I don’t pass?” “What if I’m not good enough?” are the questions our critical inner voice is telling us. And these questions make it hard to take another view. Who doesn’t love success? We all connect success with joy, […]