Due to a lot of things going on in the first half of the year (mainly business/career) and the fact that I had felt like I had hit a wall in my lesons, I decided to suspend my lessons for a couple of months. The couple of months turned into four months and I just started back up again a month ago.
Although I took a break from lessons, I didn't take a break from playing. I still practiced from time to time and still played in a string quartet. With no lesson to work towards, my practice sessions became focused on relaxing my bow arm and bow hold, basically all the things that used to be stressed my lessons, and improving my tone. When I went back to my lessons, I was much more relaxed as it had been the primary focus during my time off.
This was such a nice thing and I would suggest it for anyone who feels like they've hit a wall in their lessons. I've taken many breaks during the seven years I've been studying the cello....some longer than others. I need mental breaks...and this break really helped me from feeling burnt out. After a month of lessons, I feel as I have made a dramatic improvement in my tone. I don't think I would have had this kind of improvement had I not taken the break. I'd still be obsessively trying to bust down that wall I was up against.
It's amazing what can happen when you take a moment to breathe before trying again.
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3 comments:
Good to see you posting again. Look forward to more.
I enjoyed your post. I have recently stopped cello lessons myself. Though I still play in several groups, my life has been very busy, and it got to be very difficult even getting to my lesson on time, let alone finding time to practice. I will probably go back to taking lessons in mid-September, but I hope the break will do me good too.
glad to see you blogging again. hope the break was productive and that you're really enjoying stepping up the playing after your break.
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