Graham Johnson Masterclass: What I Learned

Last week, I had the opportunity to attend a masterclass presented by Graham Johnson at Eastman. What a privilege to learn from someone so wise and with so much experience! Eastman students performed eight songs of Schumann and Brahms (one by Schubert). Graham Johnson's perspective on music and performance was inspiring and enlightening.

Here are a few things I took away:

- The original key of a song has a certain color and quality - be wary of alternate keys and transpositions that change the mood and character of a song. - All ritardandi in Schumann's music are "local" or temporary, though often, a return to tempo is not indicated in the score. - The joy of performing is in the challenge, risk, and danger of the musical performance. "Go for the challenge and let it be an enriching experience." - Choose a tempo that leaves room for communicating the text and character of the song. Make it sound as if the thoughts or actions of the character are occurring in the moment, for the first time. - Do not play (or sing) "off the voice." A crooning, whispery sound does not travel expressively - it must be supported. - To the singer: listen to the piano and harmonize with it. - "Cultivate [your] tone." - "All lieder requires time for the notes to be sung, not barked or spoken." - Never allow yourself to go on automatic pilot. "Don't ever find yourself going through the motions. How can that engage your heart?" - Music of the nineteenth century reflects a period that had more time. Consider this when choosing tempi for performance (versus the fast-paced "broadband" culture of the world today). - "We've got to get this sense of communing [between singer and pianist]. . .it's an important part of what we do." - Accompany what is there in the moment, rather than the ideal in your head. - Pianists often sit in the composer's [Schubert] hot seat, playing music he wrote for himself to play. - "What's the message?" What are you trying to convey? - Brahms "treated his songs like a private diary of emotions." - The secret is: more time. - "Intimacy is part of what lieder is about. . . .Less sound, more feeling."

If you ever have the opportunity to attend a masterclass with a world-class musician, I hope you take advantage! It will change the way you think about, hear, and create music.

The Season of Giving + A Giveaway!

A few weeks ago, I found out that my Grampy needed semi-emergency foot surgery.  All went well but he has a long road of recovery in rehab ahead of him (prayers appreciated!).  SD and I had already planned to visit my grandparents in NJ over the Thanksgiving holiday (and surprise them with a short holiday-themed saxophone/piano concert) but given the recent events, we ended up with the opportunity to spend part of the day visiting with them in the rehab facility... and we brought our music with us.

Love is something we do, something we show with our actions, not just our words.  Love does things.

The facility was thrilled to feature us as "special guests" and at 2:00 p.m., they wheeled residents from multiple floors into the Dining Room to hear us play.  We had a 30-minute program prepared - a mix of art song transcriptions, holiday classics, and more modern reflections on the season.  I thought some of the residents might know some of the things on our list so we encouraged them to sing along!  And they did.  Melt my heart.

For those of you who are interested, here is a list of what we played:

Danyew 2013 Holiday Program

Simple Gifts (arr. Copland) Dank sei Dir Herr (Ochs) Ave Maria (Schubert)

Silver Bells (Livingston/Evans) White Christmas (Berlin) The Little Drummer Boy (Davis)

Listen to Christmas (Hayes) The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting) (Tormé/Wells)

This is what it's all about, y'all.  Sharing what we have with others.  Giving of ourselves, our time, our talents, our resources to others.  Loving on others.  This is what matters.

Christmas is two weeks away (TWO WEEKS!) and in the spirit of love and giving, I want to challenge you to go and do something this season that shows someone you really love them.  Bake cookies for your neighbor.  Write a note to a loved one who lives far away.  Be a good listener to someone who needs a friend.  Dust off the hymnal in the piano bench and gather friends and family together for an evening of singing around the piano.  Hug your loved ones a little tighter.  Writing this post made me realize that it would be fun if we shared some of the meaningful ways that we are sharing our love and gifts with each other.  To help encourage this sharing, I'm hosting a... drumroll...

Holiday Giveaway! Win a set of eight hand-lettered note cards with matching white envelopes for thank yous, love notes, or thinking of yous (two of each design: "love," "joy," "thanks," and "hello" with blank inside).

Enter any (or all!) of the following ways:

1. Leave a comment below with one of your favorite holiday memories or traditions or a way that someone has blessed you this holiday season. 2. Follow me on Instagram, post a photo of your sharing/giving/loving in action, and tag me. 3. Follow me on Twitter, share your story, and tag me.

Giveaway runs from today, December 11, 2013 through December 25, 2013.  Winner will be chosen at random and announced here on the blog.  Yay!

Grounded in Gratitude

Oh, y'all.  The past few weeks have been hard.  The unrest and turmoil in the government.  A great loss in the Eastman community.  The stress of work and school and teaching and trying to find a proper balance.  The pressure to succeed and make a mark.  It's easy to succumb - to complain and get frustrated, to give in or give up.  It's also easy to become immobilized by these challenges and feel incapable of moving forward.  I write these words from lived, personal experience. But I believe there is more to life than the pressures of our daily lives.  From the midst of these challenges, we can be grounded in true, sincere gratitude.

Image Credit: Lara Casey

Do you believe these words?  Does the seemingly simple act of giving thanks really have the power to change things - big, daunting things?  I believe it does.  So, I'm starting over.  I'm starting with gratitude.

First, this is my favorite time of year.

There are so many wonderful things I love about the fall season - the crispness in the air, the crunch of leaves beneath my feet as we take an evening stroll, the need for scarves and boots, hot apple cider on a chilly evening, and the beautiful colors that greet you at every turn.  It's glorious.

With fall, comes my very favorite holiday - Thanksgiving.  I love the traditions, the hustle and bustle of gathering together, cooking, preparing a meal together, serving each other, and visiting with friends and family.  And I love that though we've progressed as a society since that first Thanksgiving, it's name hasn't changed.  Thanksgiving - a time to give thanks.

Here's what I'm doing to stay grounded in gratitude this season - making a gratitude list (you can download the [download id="1" format="6"] here).  Hang it above your desk, print it out and add it to your planner, or if you're like us, post it in your kitchen so that you see it every day.  Make a list of everything you are grateful for in life and add to it each day.  Look for the little things, the things we tend to overlook in the hustle and bustle and business.  Live a life of gratitude.

NCKP 2013: Part III

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy.  In this series, I’ll share my notes and a few favorite quotes from the sessions I attended.  You can read more about NCKP here.

*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

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The Art of Group Piano Teaching presented by Christopher Fisher

"Students become responsible for their own and each other's learning."

Positive Benefits

• limitless performance opportunities build confidence and poise

• group teaching fosters critical listening and problem-solving skills

• students can take on specific roles for listening and providing feedback ("players" and "checkers" who check feet, posture, wrist, thumb, knuckles, etc.)

• discovery-based learning environment with teacher as facilitator

• ensemble playing develops a strong rhythmic foundation

Suggestions

• start small; begin with one age group or level of advancement

• try partner/dyad lessons: 15-minute private lesson + 30-minute overlapped group lesson

• try summer camps; one idea is to have each student bring in their favorite pop music/lead sheet and have a few other students join them to form a rhythm section

Materials

• most materials for group teaching can be tailored from any standard method (see Piano Safari)

8 Group Piano Games

1.  "Pass the Rhythm"

• based on the children's game, "Telephone"

• students form a line: the person at the back of the line reads or creates a rhythm and taps this pattern on the back of the person standing in front of them

• once the pattern has made its way all the way down the line, the person at the other end claps and counts the rhythm out loud

• variation: "Play What I Play"

2.  "Rhythm Bee"

• based on the spelling bee

• students form a line: students take turns drawing a rhythm card and clapping and counting the rhythm out loud

• if the rhythm is incorrect, the student is out

3.  "Musical Chairs"

• one student improvises, based on a given set of basic parameters; other students walk around a circle or row of chairs until the music stops

• the person left standing is the next improviser

4.  "Musical Editing"

• students are given copies of a score

• the teacher performs from the score, adding expressive markings that are not marked

• the students "edit" the scores, based on the performance

5.  "Technique Tournament"

• group students into teams of mixed abilities at the end of the term

• each player draws a key signature from a cup at the piano and performs the technique exercise for the round

• example: Round 1: all major scales/arpeggios, Round 2: all harmonic minor scales/arpeggios, Round 3: Hanon Exercises Nos. 1, 2, 5, 6, Round 4: Technical Skills, Book 4 (Magrath)

6.  "Style Improvisations"

• teacher gives students a basic introduction to two musical styles (i.e. blues and country)

• students self-form into two groups, research their style, and present an overview lecture

• the experience culminates in an ensemble performance by each group (ex. one plays the harmonic progression, one improvises a melody, one performs a rhythmic cell; then, students rotate)

• this prepares students for solo improvisation

7.  "Performance Today"

• assign students a composer and composition to research (you can even include age-appropriate biographies for them to read)

• students should do their best to become that composer

• in the final class, students are interviewed as their composer by other students in the class

• the class ends with the students performing their assigned compositions

8.  "Sight Reading Composition Exchange"

• students compose a brief sight-reading example, based on given parameters

• students exchange their compositions with a friend or draw one from a hat

• each student previews and prepares their assigned example and gives the world-premiere in class

For more ideas, see Teaching Piano in Groups

Teaching Demonstration by Amy Glennon

Preparatory/reinforcement activities for learning landmarks

• have students remove non-landmark notes (magnets) from the grand staff

• sing "this is the sound of Treble G" on Treble G

• have students move note heads to landmark lines on a whiteboard or smartboard

• call out landmarks and have students play the notes on the piano

Preparatory activities for spot-placing

• play the "landmark or not" game with a wooden floor puzzle

• "Is this a landmark?"

• ask students to put an x on the closest landmark to the given note (no interval ID or note-naming just yet)

Preparatory activities for eighth notes

• preparation for reading eighth notes should begin at least 4 weeks before the new piece is introduced

• speak the words to "Peas Porridge Hot" and put the rhythm in your feet

• next, clap the rhythm without speaking the words - ask one student to improvise on the rhythm while the rest of the group speaks the words and taps the steady beat

• speak or sing the words to "Yankee Doodle," marching to the steady beat, then putting the rhythm in your feet

• ask a small group of students to play the steady beat with rhythm sticks, ask another group to improvise on the rhythm, and ask the others to chant the text

Preparatory activities for dotted quarters

• have students move with the piano accompaniment: quarter notes + eighth notes

• have students move with the piano accompaniment: dotted quarters + eighth notes

• ask students to point and sing, showing the words only (add extra spaces to illustrate the dotted rhythm)

• have students move + sing with the piano accompaniment

• introduce the notation (using straight eighths and quarter notes); transform to the dotted rhythm using ties

• demonstrate how to count the rhythm

• divide students into two groups and perform both rhythms at the same time (reading) with rhythm sticks

Preparatory activities for crossing 2nd finger over thumb

• teach this away from the piano (try playing in the air)

• teach a warm-up pattern (by rote) that concentrates on this, singing the finger numbers

• introduce a piece like "Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho"

Preparatory activities for marking the score

• ask students to point to intervals of a 2nd and "circle the 3rd"

• ask students to "put a rectangle around the repeated note in the first line"

//

Previously:
NCKP 2013: Part I
NCKP 2013: Part II

NCKP 2013: Part II

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy.  In this series, I'll share my notes and a few favorite quotes from the sessions I attended.  You can read more about NCKP here. This post includes my notes from three NCKP sessions related to intermediate-level students: interviewing transfer students, developing a curriculum, and teaching technique.

SESSION I

Conducting the Transfer Student Interview presented by Linda Fields, Immanuela Gruenberg, David Husser, Gail Lew, Elissa Milne & Arlene Steffen

Many of us have had transfer students in our studios at one point or another.  What questions should we ask the family up front to ensure a smooth transition?  How can we quickly assess the student's level of musical development in order to recommend appropriate repertoire moving forward?  The panelists offered a few suggestions:

1. Ask about the student's musical background - Is the child involved in school or community choirs, bands, orchestras, etc.? - What is the parent's background in music?  What are their expectations for their child? - What are the child's practice habits?  Consider recommending an amount of practice time per day that is equal to the student's lesson length. - Ask, "What role does music play in your family?" - Does the child have other interests in sports, dance, theater, etc.?

2. Ask why they want to take lessons - Ask the parent(s), "What are your musical goals for your child?  Consider asking parents to play classical music for their child a little bit every day - in the background, in the car, etc. - Ask the child, "Why do you want to study the piano?" - Ask, "Why do you want to study with me?"

3. Observe how the student interacts with you and with the parent - What do you observe in the child's personality, trust, enthusiasm, and responsiveness to you and to their parent? - How do the parent and child interact?  How does the parent respond to you?  How does the child respond to you? - Does the child have any learning/physical challenges? - How does the child process new information?  Try giving a mini lesson on a simple sightreading piece.  How does the child respond?

4. Evaluate the student's level of musical development - technic - musicality (their connection to instrument) - sight-reading (consider creating reading exams by level) - aural skills (use playbacks: 1-3-5, 1-2-3; singing/matching pitch) - written music theory (consider creating theory exams by level)

Download the handout from this session.

SESSION II

Developing a Curriculum for the Intermediate Transfer Student presented by Jane Magrath

Objectives - "Start with the areas you teach best" - Start where the student is and discover what they respond to

Developing a Curriculum Step 1: Level the student Ask the student to sightread 1-2 lines of three different pieces (classical or romantic) from a leveled series (see Masterwork, Celebration Series, Keith Snell).  Choose three pieces from 3-4 different levels.  Prepare students for success by setting the tempo for them, counting off, and choosing relatively easy-to-read pieces.  Start from the highest level and work your way backwards.

Look for skills in counting, recognizing key signatures, and the ability to read a score.  Keep going until you find the student's reading level.  The student's performance level should be approximately two levels beyond their reading level.

Step 2: Establish a core repertoire plan Plan to use 4-6 books: at minimum, a core repertoire book (well-leveled, generally classical; see Masterwork, Helen Marlais, Celebration Series), a sheet music selection or other repertoire book, and a fun book (hymns, musicals, pop music, jazz; see Gillick: Lyric Preludes; Martha Mier: Jazz, Rags, and Blues; Just for You).

Step 3: Establish a sight-reading plan Find repertoire appropriate for the student's reading level (see Faber & Faber: Sight Reading series, Bastien: A Line a Day, Frederick Harris: Four Star, FJH: Sight Reading & Rhythm Every Day).

Step 4: Assess additional areas - Technique (see MTNA state syllabi leveled technical criteria) - Etudes, exercises (see Czerny, Hanon, Kohler, Concone, RCM Etude books, Clark/Goss/Holland Etude series, Edna Mae Burnam: Dozen a Day, Frances Clark technique books) - Theory, keyboard progressions, jazz, etc. - Composition projects: Give the student a starting place - i.e., "Compose a piece containing sudden changes," or "Create a piece containing sudden dynamic contrast," or "Compose something with contrasting legato and staccato passages" (see Alfred Valerie Cisler composition books).

Determining the difficulty level of pieces 1.  Find similar pieces, one step harder and one step easier.  Note the skills required and notice the number of ideas. 2.  What is the feel on the keyboard? 3.  Consider what the piece requires vs. what the student does well.  Note the presence or absence of patterns. 4.  Does it require double notes (two notes in a hand - around Level 6)?  How thick is the texture? 5.  Notice the number of skips and the distance between them.  How predictable is the melody and phrasing?

Building a Curriculum (ex. 9th or 10th grade student) 1.  Literature collection 2.  Repertoire samples 3.  Quick study pieces: 2-3 weeks, 1-2 pieces at a time (see Classics Alive!, The Hymnal - 1982 or UMH, Melodious Masterpieces) 4.  Special pieces, fun pieces, collaborative/accompanying 5.  Sight-reading: Consider assigning semester-long sight-reading projects for more advanced students (see Clementi sonatinas, Grieg Lyric Pieces, Burgmüller, Op. 100) 6.  Theory (see Keith Snell: Fundamentals of Piano Theory books, Joanne Haroutounian: Explorations in Music, Edith McIntosh: Theory and Musicianship worksheets, Frederick Harris: Sound Advice, MTNA state syllabi) 7.  Keyboard theory: cadences, sequences, chord progressions 8.  Music history/listening: consider assigning a composer biography project - let students create their own presentations once a month 9.  Technique: warm-ups, double thirds, scales, arpeggios, etudes, miscellaneous exercises (stretching/relaxing, Hanon)

Note: Try starting lessons with a little sight-reading.  Consider sight-reading duets together or see Diabelli: 5-finger studies.

Download the handout from this session.

SESSION III

The Technique Behind Intermediate Repertoire presented by Nancy Bachus

Technique "is a complete command of the instrument."  It includes tone production (gravity or weight), keyboard patterns, touches, and physical aspects (gestures and motions).  Did you know that ninety percent of keyboard literature is made up of these six basic patterns: scales, chords, arpeggios, double notes, trills/ornaments and octaves?  This is the foundation for successful playing.

Technique for Elementary Students - 5-finger patterns in 24 keys: half notes, quarter notes, and eighth notes (with metronome) - Triads in all major/minor keys: solid, broken, and staccato - Arpeggios in all major/minor keys: hand-over-hand - Technic and etudes (see Pischna, Frances Clark technic and etudes)

Technique for Intermediate Students - 3-note chords: solid, broken, and staccato - 4-note chords: solid, broken, and staccato

1.  Clinging legato vs. overlapping legato: for more romantic styles, such as Chopin - mold, create, feel (see Elegie, Op. 126, No. 7  by Chaminade). 2.  Finger staccato vs. wrist staccato: for finger staccato, think of flicking dust off the keyboard.  Try this simple five-finger pattern in triple meter: 5543354432 4432243321.  For wrist staccato, try knocking on keys with your wrists first to get the motion, then try it with your 3rd fingers. 3.  Two-note slur: teach the release first - wrist falls to being level with the keyboard; aim energy to your fingertips.  Think "Fall-feel-pull" or "fall-transfer-pull," where the wrist follows the fingers in the "pull."  Remember, the last note is still melodic. 4.  Larger slur groups: try playing multiple notes within one gesture. 5.  Mix of legato and finger staccato, two-note slur + staccato: practice this with scales - one hand plays eighth notes while the other plays (finger) staccato quarter notes (see Minuet in F Major by Mozart, Imitation by Köhler, Minuet in G Major from Anna Magdalena). 6.  Repeated chords: "throw with an energy."  Your fingers stay on the keys.  Ask, "How much energy do we need?"  Practice this with the Left Hand Study from For Children, Vol. 1  by Bartok (see "Minka" by Beethoven, Tambourin by Gossee). 7.  Repeated notes: remember, it's one motion.  Start from the edge of key; pull fingers back in a reflex motion (see Old Tale by Tcherepnin). 8.  Voicing within one hand: practice balancing on one finger - keep the weight there without shifting (see Stuck on Five and One by Gurlitt, Swineherd's Dance, No. 12 by Bartok). 9.  Divided hand: point your 3rd finger toward your 5th finger to weight that side of the hand, point your 3rd finger toward your thumb to weight that side of the hand.  Practice melody + bass alone, then add the inner line but make it staccato (see Old French Song, Op. 39, No. 16 by Tchaikovsky, Rose Rock by Gurlitt, Three-Quarter Blues [very accessible!] by Gershwin). 10.  Rotation: think of it as turning around a fixed point.  Keep the connection between the fingers.  Think of "turning a doorknob" with your entire forearm.  Remember, you must have a firm arch between your thumb and fifth finger (see Chimes by Tcherepnin).

Warm-up idea: play all 30 Hanon exercises in succession.  This works all five fingers continuously for about 20 minutes.

Teaching the physical aspects (body position, use of hand/fingers, larger gestures/motions)

1.  Shoulder tension: this can even occur between the shoulder and the collarbone. 2.  Natural hand curve: find the student's natural hand curve by having them open their hand on the crown of their head (Nelita True) 3.  Firm nail-joint: "Knock" on the keyboard cover to get heavy nail-joints.  Place a flat hand on the keyboard, pull fingers up, and flatten again.  "Shake" weight into hands (at side).  Hold firm nail-joint (finger by finger) on the edge of the keyboard.  Have someone shake your upper arm and try to hold the nail-joint steady. 4.  Arch: this connects your fingers to your thumb.  Make a fist and walk your thumb and fifth finger on your leg ("bug walk").

"Anything we repeat often enough will become automatic."  Ask students, "What does your brain think is the right way to play this?"

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Previously: NCKP 2013: Part I Look for more of my notes from NCKP over the next few weeks!

NCKP 2013: Part I

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending the National Conference on Keyboard Pedagogy.  In this series, I'll share my notes and a few favorite quotes from the sessions I attended.  You can read more about NCKP here. Beauty and the Beast in the Piano Studio Marvin Blickenstaff

Beauty

1.  "Beautiful music has the power to change human beings." 2.  "Beautiful music nurtures souls; it enriches lives." 3.  "Momentarily, our lives are changed by beautiful sound." 4.  The human being needs beauty more than bread. 5.  Teaching beauty should be our highest priority.

Here are a few assignments for piano teachers:

Monitor your use of the word "beautiful."  Limit your use to 2-3 times in any given lesson.  Use it with discrimination and discipline; use it sparingly, use it meaningfully.  Students need to hear a beautiful sound and know the standard of what you consider to be beautiful.

Avoid using these words: "Okay" - lacks meaning; be more specific with your responses "Little bit" - you'll get a better response from your students when you exaggerate rather than diminish "Sort of" or "Kind of" - like "little bit" "But" - use "and" as a transition from positive to constructive "Good" - lacks meaning; articulate specifics; document praise with your perspective as a teacher (you only hear the student's performance once a week; students hear their own performance every day of the week)

Improve your teaching vocabulary with adjectives that describe sound.

Start a file of beautiful pieces, things that nurture the "musical soul" of your students.  Here are a couple of examples: "Echoes of November" (Stephen Chapman) "The Lake" (Alec Rowley) "Northern Winter" (Lynn Olson)

Believe in modeling.  Play for your students.  Your sound is worth a thousand words.

Play duets with your students.  "Duets are a pedagogical gold mine;" they teach rhythm, balance, ritards, accelerando, and diminuendo.  The teacher part guides the inflection of the piece and it's a great way to teach beauty.  Beauty, after all, is shaped sound.  "Our emotions are touched first and foremost by dynamic inflection."

When teaching a phrase, give students one thing to listen for, one hint for shaping the phrase.  Say something like, "In between phrases, we take a breath" and experience this in singing.

The Beast: Negative Teaching Attitudes

1.  Repertoire: a teaching year that is focused around only a few pieces

When repertoire is limited to only a few pieces, the student's reading skill is not developed, there is no excitement of new pieces, the narrow focus becomes boring and stagnant, and there is a loss of the student's sense of accomplishment.  Remember, "variety of repertoire is the spice of our musical lives" and "short-term accomplishment is tremendously encouraging to the student."  Instead, focus on building repertoire.  Try beginning one lesson each month with a mini recital of repertoire.

2.  Studio atmosphere that is strict, harsh, critical or unstructured

The "we're just here to have fun" mentality does not work for most students.  Also, type-casting (i.e. boys only like loud and fast pieces and girls only like soft and melodic pieces) does not promote learning or musical development.  "Music is the expression of the entire human condition, through organized sound."  Aim for a wide selection of repertoire for all students

3.  Musicianship skills: getting bogged down in analyzing every note and nit-picking technique

"Keep the magic of the piece alive in our students."

4.  Practice: not teaching the basics of successful practicing

"We don't practice enough with [our students] in the lesson."  Teaching effective practice should be a part of every lesson

5.  How we celebrate success:

Our students are desperate for affirmation; they need to know when they've done a job well.  Communicate this well and often.

//

Look for more of my notes from NCKP over the next few weeks!

Music and Worship Arts Week

I know it's been a few weeks since our trip to NC but our time at Lake Junaluska was too good not to share!  Here's a quick recap of our experience at Music and Worship Arts Week 2013:

- observing the middle school choir, under the direction of Dan Stokes
- meeting new people and catching up with good friends
- buying new music to play with SD
- accompanying two reading sessions
- attending an amazing organ recital, given by Andrew Henderson
- singing around the piano at the house
- learning a few new handbell techniques
- discovering the Blue Rooster Southern Grill (we ate there twice in one week AND we ran into our former pastor from Rochester and his wife BOTH times we were there.  Really, what are the chances?!)
- inspiring worship + inspiring sermons by Susan Leonard-Ray
- huddling under an umbrella on the deck in the evenings during summer rain storms

Love the Blue Ridge Mountains - there's something so peaceful about this view and that fresh mountain air.

The Rose Walk at the Lake did not disappoint and I loved making this walk to worship each morning and to seminars and rehearsals throughout the day.  Such beauty!

In the evenings, we spent some quality time at the lake house - so many memories here, including having the guys grill for us last summer!

SD had been waiting for this moment for an entire year - the best pulled pork sandwich (ever?) from Bogart's in Waynesville.  We had more than our fair share of good southern food during our week's stay!

On our last day, we took a drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway - can you ever get tired of this view?

The hydrangeas were in full bloom everywhere we went and I could not get over the blues and purples - my favorite!

Read about last year's trip here.

Off to the Lake!

It's Lake Week!

We're off to North Carolina for a week of worship, seminars, reading sessions (I'm even accompanying this year!), and a little R&R (including our share of southern food).  This is my sixth time attending Music and Worship Arts Week and I learn something new each time.  It's a time of renewal, inspiration, and fellowship and I always feel refreshed when I leave.  Here's to a great week!

P.S. Read about last year's trip here.

Image Credit: unsplash

7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess

*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

With the recent holiday weekend and a long car ride on either side, I finally finished reading 7 by Jen Hatmaker (please be impressed that I stuck with this bit of pleasure reading throughout the spring semester).

The book chronicles the author's seven-month experiment: seven categories (food, clothes, possessions, media, waste, spending, and stress) stripped down to seven essentials for a month. 

Seven food items.
Seven articles of clothing.
Seven items to give away each day.
Seven forms of media to do without.
Seven ways to reduce waste and become more environmentally responsible.
Seven places to spend money.
Seven prayers a day to remind us to pause, give thanks, reflect, and focus on what matters.

My heart has been challenged by this "mutiny against excess" — our lives are so full, so busy, and yet we strive for more. We live with more than we need and yet we buy more. We value our abundant wardrobes, earthly possessions, and excessive lifestyle spending habits. 

Consumerism and the need for more have become part of our societal identity. Whatever happened to that life of simplicity, abandon, and giving that Jesus talked about? It's easy to lose sight of what we really need in our lives versus the things we want.

Where are our priorities in life? What do we value? Do our spending habits reflect this? Are we responsible with the things we've been given? Do we freely give away what we don't need or do we feel the need to hold onto it? Have we ignored opportunities to help those in need?

If you're looking for a witty, easy-to-read book that will challenge you to live a more fulfilling life, I encourage you to read 7!

Have you read this book?  I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Related post: The Go-Giver