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Today’s episode features a conversation with Josu de Solaun as he describes the new heights and depths of artistic expression he experienced in studying the Taubman work with Edna Golandsky. Josu was not injured when he came to the Taubman approach. He wanted to understand what he did well at the piano and to discover his limitations in order to play with more freedom, power, speed and artistic expression. 

https://www.josudesolaun.com/

In the 2023 edition, the ICMA jury expressed: "Josu de Solaun is one of the most impressive discoveries of the past decade. Not only is he a technically impressive pianist, but his interpretative imagination also knows no limits. His interpretations ideally reflect De Solaun's ability to engage with works symbiotically and at the highest energy levels. Free of aesthetic dogmas, the pianist creates cosmoses of a solitary nature."

He is also the sole Spanish pianist to win first prizes at the José Iturbi (2006) and George Enescu (2014) international piano competitions since their inception in 1980 and 1958, respectively. Esteemed pianists like Elisabeth Leonskaja (1964) and Radu Lupu (1967) have previously won the Enescu Competition.

In 2019, President of Romania Klaus Iohannis appointed him Officer of the Order of the Cultural Merit of the Republic of Romania, acknowledging his artistic work and promotion of George Enescu’s music—whose complete works for piano he recorded under the NAXOS label—and Romanian musical culture globally.

Josu, trained by Salvador Chuliá and pianists María Teresa Naranjo and Ana Guijarro in Spain, later studied in New York under pianists Nina Svetlanova and Horacio Gutiérrez, enabling him to exhibit his musical artistry in various forms. Further studies in New York included composition with Giampaolo Bracali and conducting with Robert Isaacs and David Gilbert, along with chamber music with Robert Mann (Juilliard Quartet) and Isidore Cohen (Beaux Arts Trio).

Jessica Duchen of BBC Music Magazine praised: "De Solaun allows the expression to lead at all times, no matter how intense the virtuosity. There is always an elastic vitality in his interpretations, a warm and intimate approach to his phrasing, and a beautiful, sweet tone."

Justo Romero in Scherzo declared: "It is difficult to imagine a more powerful and creative pianism. De Solaun is one of the most interesting virtuosos of the contemporary keyboard. Spanish and non-Spanish. A vigorous, wise pianism, of refined workmanship and great musicality. We are before a true colossus of the piano, a true virtuoso, in the old style, who makes use of his resplendent technique and the extroverted dramatic, his strong artistic nature to conjugate versions that combine brilliance and effusiveness, fire and delicacy, always with an intense pianistic foundation, all with naturalness, strength, power, sonorous opulence, and intense expressive sense."

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

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On today's episode, Benjamin takes a different approach in that he outlines the basic principles of the Taubman Approach listed on our website here:  https://www.golandskyinstitute.org/resources/
Be sure to listen to this episode a few time as it is full of detail and may be a springboard for further learning and exploration of this life-changing approach to playing the piano.

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

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This is a presentation from the June 25, 2020 Golandsky Institute Online Workshop.
John Bloomfield speaks about applying the Taubman Approach to Mozart's A minor Sonata, K. 310 and Chopin's Scherzo no.3 in C-sharp minor, op. 39.  Please visit our YouTube Channel to watch this brilliant lecture.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOx5Ukkbge0

PDF Handout: https://bit.ly/62520handout

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The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

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We welcome the brilliant pianist Arthur Simoes to the podcast today. You are going to love this conversation. Arthur has tested the Taubman Approach in many mays; from classical literature to Dalcroze and now in jazz and improvisation. What's kind of fun about this episode is that I surprise Arthur with a rapid fire question time at the end of the episode. Stick around for that exciting exchange.

You can be in touch with Arthur on Instagram @arthursimoesmusic,
https://www.golandskyinstitute.org/arthur-simoes/

“We were captivated by the elegance of Arthur Simoes's touch, as he performed pieces from Ginastera with dazzling virtuosity and an ineffable sense of sorrow.” – Arcinfo

Arthur Simoes enjoys a diverse career as a pianist, composer, and educator. He has performed extensively in Europe, as well as in Latin America and in the United States, and he frequently presents lectures, workshops, and masterclasses across the globe.

Passionate about education, Arthur has run a successful private studio for more than 10 years. He has also taught at the Institut Jaques-Dalcroze and at the Haute Ecole de Musique in Geneva, Switzerland. His teaching is rooted in the conviction that every person has the innate ability to learn music, and encompasses elements from Dalcroze Eurhythmics as well as the Taubman Approach. 

Arthur is a first prize winner of the 29th European Music Competition “Città di Moncalieri”, in Italy, as well as other piano competitions. Venues and festivals where he performed include the Victoria Hall (Geneva), La Schubertiade sur la Colline (Neuchâtel), and the Berklee Performance Center (Boston).

His musical journey began at the age of 6, and he enrolled at the Conservatoire de Musique de Genève at the age of 10, from which he graduated with the Arditi Award for the best final recital of the year. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Piano and a Master’s degree in Music Pedagogy – Dalcroze Eurhythmics from the Haute Ecole de Musique de Genève, as well as the Diplôme Supérieur of the Dalcroze method. During his Dalcroze studies, Arthur was awarded the Institut-Jaques Dalcroze Award “for his qualities as eurhythmician”, the Emile Jaques-Dalcroze Foundation Award “for the excellence of his improvisation exam” and the Aletheia Foundation Award “for the excellence of his Diplôme Supérieur choreography”. He has also pursued in-depth studies of the Taubman Approach with his mentor Edna Golandsky, in New York.

His passion for improvised music as well as the desire to broaden his horizons have brought Arthur to Berklee College of Music to pursue a Professional Music Diploma with concentrations in Jazz Composition and Performance, as he continues to perform, compose, and teach.

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

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Today's episode is so inspiring. We welcome Hugo Bermudez to the podcast where he shares his story of incredible recovery from a massive injury sustained in playing the piano. He tried everything to get better. But, it was only after the expert care of Edna Golandsky that he was able to achieve full and complete healing. This journey of healing prompted Hugo to pursue the Taubman Approach in a deep way becoming the first and only certified teacher in Latin America. This episode relays the ups and downs of Hugo's journey. Don't miss the diagnosis given to Hugo from an emergency room doctor! 

Hugo Bermúdez is the first and only certified teacher of the Taubman Approach in Mexico and Latin America. He teaches this approach mainly to commited amateurs, conservatory students, teachers and professional pianists in Mexico, Argentina, Guatemala, Chile, Uruguay, Puerto Rico, Switzerland, Spain, India and the United States.

Working along with the Golandsky Institute, he has created the project “Taubman en Español”, creating original video content in Spanish and putting subtitles into existing Golandsky Institute videos. This effort is key to helping to make this body of knowledge more accessible to the Hispanic community.

Bermúdez holds a Bachelors degree in piano performance from the “Autonomous University of Nuevo León” in Mexico, where he graduated with the highest honors (Academic Merit Award).

He has deepened his musical knowledge by studying interpretation with the renowned expert in music phenomenology, Jordi Mora (Spain), by currently working towards his Masters degree in Musical Interpretation and Investigation from “Valentian International University”, and by continuing to study the Taubman Approach with the world's leading expert, Edna Golandsky.

Here are some links mentioned in this episode:

Hugo's Instagram 

Hugo's Facebook Page on the Taubman Approach in Spanish

Hugo will be speaking about the Taubman Approach for the "Mexican Healthy Conservatories Network".  You can find out more about it at this LINK. The event is on Wednesday, March 20th, 2024 at 6pm (GMT-6).

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

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It's Episode 25! and we are just getting started bringing stories, interviews, tips, tools, strategies from the Taubman Approach.

I wanted to point to our website now before we get into today's episode with Mary Moran. At www.golandskyinstitute.org you can find the latest resources on the Taubman Approach. But let me be more specific - you can get connected to a certified teacher. Our teacher matching service is outstanding. We will get you connected to someone who has been vetted in the process of teaching this life changing work.

Today's episode is a rebroadcast of a video found on our YouTube channel where Mary Moran brings us insight in how to play octaves and chords without stretching.
Here is the link to the original video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mi2ofizjE_A

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

Send us Fan Mail

Born in Santa Monica, California, Debbie Poryes found herself at the piano when she was five, practicing everything from Chopin to show tunes. Playing led to fascination with musical theory and structure, then jazz standards, composing, and improvising. Hearing Monk and Miles as a teenager, she fell in love with their music and decided to become a jazz pianist. At twenty, her first regular paying gig lasted a year at a Berkeley restaurant, playing five nights a week from 5 p.m. to midnight.

Debbie has always gone her own way musically, even while maintaining a constant study through transcription and analysis of her favorite players and composers, such as Bill Evans, Wayne Shorter, Keith Jarrett, Horace Silver, Hank Jones, Sonny Clark, and Clare Fischer. Drawn strongly to 20th century classical music, she has been influenced by many composers, including Aaron Copland and Norman Dello Joio. In her early years as a musician in Oakland, her passion led her to play frequently at jam sessions while continuing to study classical music and jazz with local players. She composed and arranged music, and produced her own concerts with her duos, trios and quartets in addition to freelancing with various local singers and bands. She has performed all over the San Francisco Bay Area notably, at the Stanford Jazz Festival, SFJazz, Yoshi’s Jazzclub, the Berkeley Jazzschool, the Healdsburg Jazz Festival, and the Piedmont Piano Company. True to her beginnings, she still loves playing in restaurants and played twice-weekly for 6 years at the New Orleans-styled Oakland restaurant Pican, only stopping when the restaurant up and closed! 

A significant aspect to Debbie’s musical life has been her experience with tendonitis in her wrists. In her thirties, pain forced her to stop playing for two years, during which time she explored many avenues of healing. A breakthrough came when she happened upon Dorothy Taubman’s piano technique, which emphasized maintaining the natural coordination of the fingers, hand, and arm. Absorbing this new way of thinking, Debbie continues to study it with her teacher John Bloomfield in New York and pass it along to her grateful students. The injury turned out to be a blessing in disguise, as it led not only to Debbie’s development of a beautiful sound without harshness but also an ease and control she didn’t have before. One has only to see Debbie play to appreciate how comfortable her hands are at the keyboard.

Debbie felt the call to teach early in her career and continues to adore helping students understand jazz and further their own playing. Debbie has internet students around the globe in addition to her students at her home studio. She taught at the Berkeley Jazzschool for over 20 years as well as many summers at the Stanford Summer Jazz Program and has given presentations to the California Music Teachers’ Association on how to teach jazz. 

In the summer of 2018 Debbie moved to Philadelphia. Her husband Tony Fels retired from his teaching job at the University of San Francisco and they, along with their daughter, returned to his hometown. She continues to teach her California and global students through the internet and is enjoying her new students and gigs in Philadelphia.

Please visit  https://www.debbieporyes.com/ for Debbie's incredible website. 

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

Send us Fan Mail

In a previous episode we mentioned that the Taubman Approach is for everyone. For example, if you are an older adult that played the piano when you were younger and want to begin to get back into playing the Taubman Approach is the best way to accomplish your dreams!  

Today's episode with Nathan Kaplan goes through the ups and downs of learning the Taubman Approach as an Adult Learner. Nathan is a retired public school teacher in the New York City Public School system where he taught music and even played professionally. 

Nathan came to the Taubman Approach at the age of 65 wanting to play the piano at a higher level. At first, Nathan's experience in learning the work was a difficult one. But,  through the patience and perseverance of both John Bloomfield and his own, his playing has totally been transformed. Nathan is an inspiration! In this episode he shows that through the Taubman Approach the sky is the limit for what can be achieved. 

We will update the show notes as Nathan's upcoming recital is publicized! 

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

Send us Fan Mail

Today's episode features an interview with pianist and teacher, Jacob Silver. He teaches full-time out of his Brooklyn studio. Jacob faced an injury in graduate school where he reached out to Taubman expert, John Bloomfield. Jacob was able to retrain under the direction of John Bloomfield. His website references that 6 out of 10 musicians have debilitating pain. We get into this epidemic that faces musicians in both the jazz and classical worlds.   

And, stay tuned until the end of the episode where Jacob turns the table and begins to interview me! We get really personal about the idea of bringing hope for pianists around the world.

Here is Jacob's website:
www.jacobsilverpiano.com

Jacob Silver graduated with a Bachelor of Music from The Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University. He then went on to get his Masters of Music at Manhattan School of Music.

Jacob has 15 years of experience and is an incredibly in demand teacher. Known for breaking down the fundamentals of piano technique for all ages and styles. He gives students the tools to solve playing problems on their own and develop a fluid piano technique. 

He specializes in teaching and applying the Taubman approach. A revolutionary piano technique developed by Dorthy Taubman and continued on by the Golandsky Institute. The technique teaches pianists how to play any repertoire, no matter how difficult, with ease and utmost musicality. It focuses on a piano technique free of pain, stress, or fatigue.

Jacob discovered the Taubman approach after being injured during his masters program. The Taubman approach allowed him to fully recover and play even better than he had before. 60% of musicians will develop a disability over the course of their lifetime. Jacob recovered and is driven by making sure every student he works with has the tools to prevent playing injury. He also works with pianists who are currently injured to help them retrain and heal.

His performance career has taken him around the globe. Touring with Jazz groups in Japan and Singapore. As a composer, his works have been featured by the American Studio Orchestra in Baltimore, MD.

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.

Send us Fan Mail

Today presents for us a different episode. Yours truly, Benjamin, gets into the 'why' of Inside the Taubman Approach. 

I also get really bold in this episode and make some claims that I would love for you to test and respond to! 

I really think that the Taubman Approach as taught by Edna Golandsky and the Golandsky Institute has come to the world of piano teaching, and piano playing at a critical time. Yep - that's a big claim but take a listen and I think you will agree. 

Dr. Benjamin Harding is the host and producer of "Inside the Taubman Approach". He wants you to join this incredible community at the Golandsky Institute! 

The Golandsky Institute's mission is to provide cutting-edge instruction to pianists based on the groundbreaking work of Dorothy Taubman. This knowledge can help them overcome technical and musical challenges, cure and prevent playing-related injuries, and lead them to achieve their highest level of artistic excellence.
Please visit our website at: www.golandskyinstitute.org.