ad agio
workshops for musicians to bring ease to your playing
ad agio ('at ease') is a workshop series aimed at musicians to help you play and perform in a more relaxed and comfortable way, both physically and mentally. Experts in musician wellbeing will lead workshops in topics such as performance anxiety, breathing anatomy and techniques, Alexander Technique, Feldenkrais, injury prevention and treatment, mindfulness and nutrition.
These workshops are for all musicians aged 18+, of all levels and genres. They are aimed at all players and singers who want to play with more ease, avoid injury, feel more confident and enjoy their playing more. They will help you explore a variety of approaches to find ways which work for you. The events are relaxed and supportive with plenty of time to ask questions and try out techniques.
The workshops run online in short blocks several times per year, and in-person in Sheffield (coronavirus/ lockdown situation permitting). Future workshops will be advertised here, on our Facebook page and Twitter, or contact us and ask to be added to the mailing list.
These workshops are for all musicians aged 18+, of all levels and genres. They are aimed at all players and singers who want to play with more ease, avoid injury, feel more confident and enjoy their playing more. They will help you explore a variety of approaches to find ways which work for you. The events are relaxed and supportive with plenty of time to ask questions and try out techniques.
The workshops run online in short blocks several times per year, and in-person in Sheffield (coronavirus/ lockdown situation permitting). Future workshops will be advertised here, on our Facebook page and Twitter, or contact us and ask to be added to the mailing list.
The July 2020 online series featured:
Performance Anxiety - a new approach with Martin Lawrence
Martin Lawrence is a horn player in the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, a musical coach and has just completed a PhD researching performance anxiety. Martin's research has led him to a thought-provoking conclusion: Your performance anxiety is a new and interesting musician trying to get out!
What a positive first music workshop from ad agio! So much learning, music and companionship crammed into three hours. I shall always remember being sent to find a raw gooseberry from the garden whenever I need to remind myself that I can still sing with a dry mouth. Thank you, Rachel, for your coordination and putting us all at ease.
Ruth Carlyle, singer.
Martin was so kind, knowledgeable and full of insight. I never felt that any observation or question was anything less than welcome and my notes from the day are choc-a-block with useful ideas and suggestions.
Joanna, singer.
Performance Anxiety - a new approach with Martin Lawrence
Martin Lawrence is a horn player in the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, a musical coach and has just completed a PhD researching performance anxiety. Martin's research has led him to a thought-provoking conclusion: Your performance anxiety is a new and interesting musician trying to get out!
What a positive first music workshop from ad agio! So much learning, music and companionship crammed into three hours. I shall always remember being sent to find a raw gooseberry from the garden whenever I need to remind myself that I can still sing with a dry mouth. Thank you, Rachel, for your coordination and putting us all at ease.
Ruth Carlyle, singer.
Martin was so kind, knowledgeable and full of insight. I never felt that any observation or question was anything less than welcome and my notes from the day are choc-a-block with useful ideas and suggestions.
Joanna, singer.
Feldenkrais with Dianne Hancock
Dianne Hancock of 'The Mindful Body' is a qualified teacher of the Feldenkrais Method and of yoga, and teaches classes, workshops and individual sessions in and around the Sheffield area. She also travels to colleges and universities to teach specialist modules for dancers, actors and musicians.
Another wonderful workshop. I found the introduction to Feldenkrais very helpful and enjoyable.
Participant, July 2020 workshops.
Fascinating, so relevant to my playing, and really relaxing!
Participant, Feldenkrais workshop.
Dianne Hancock of 'The Mindful Body' is a qualified teacher of the Feldenkrais Method and of yoga, and teaches classes, workshops and individual sessions in and around the Sheffield area. She also travels to colleges and universities to teach specialist modules for dancers, actors and musicians.
Another wonderful workshop. I found the introduction to Feldenkrais very helpful and enjoyable.
Participant, July 2020 workshops.
Fascinating, so relevant to my playing, and really relaxing!
Participant, Feldenkrais workshop.
Catching our Breath: Balance through Breathwork in Uncertain Times with Xenia Pestova Bennett
Dr Xenia Pestova Bennett is a professional pianist, certified yoga instructor and performance coach. She delivers individual and group sessions on anxiety management.
Dr Xenia Pestova Bennett is a professional pianist, certified yoga instructor and performance coach. She delivers individual and group sessions on anxiety management.
Alexander Technique for Musicians with Lucy Ascham
Lucy runs 'With Poise' Alexander Technique courses in Sheffield and Manchester. She began learning the Alexander Technique in 1989 as a music student in Dartington, where she graduated with a degree in trumpet and Balinese gamelan. She has taught players of the BBC Philharmonic and at Manchester University Wellbeing Programme and Manchester Buddhist Centre.
Lucy runs 'With Poise' Alexander Technique courses in Sheffield and Manchester. She began learning the Alexander Technique in 1989 as a music student in Dartington, where she graduated with a degree in trumpet and Balinese gamelan. She has taught players of the BBC Philharmonic and at Manchester University Wellbeing Programme and Manchester Buddhist Centre.
The October 2020 online series featured:
Performance Anxiety - a new approach with Martin Lawrence
Becoming Music Strong with Angela McCuiston
Angela McCuiston is a NASM-CPT, CES, SFS and CETI-CES (Certified Personal Trainer and Corrective Exercise Specialist, Senior Fitness Specialist and Cancer Exercise Specialist) and owner of Music Strong, a business that specializes in personal fitness training for musicians. Angela covered basic anatomy as it relates to the musician, incorporating body awareness methods and covering the basics of weight lifting form, and led us through several basic exercises to use in a warm up or as a workout alone to prevent or overcome injury.
Meditation, mindfulness, self hypnosis - strategies to unhook yourself from that pesky inner voice! with Jean-Paul Wright
Jean-Paul is host of the popular ‘Talking Flutes’ podcast channel and is the creator of thehappyflutist.com website for stressed and anxious musicians. He qualified as a Clinic Hypnotherapist 25 years ago, studied NLP with its co-creator Richard Bandler and has spent many years searching for strategies to help musicians understand the power of their mind over performance. He is a passionate advocate of ‘mindfulness’ for musicians and ‘Taming that pesky inner voice’. Since 1995, he has worked with sportsmen, actors and musicians on strategies to overcome a pending performance or event and has given many classes on ‘Calming the Inner Voice’, ‘Thought Unhooking’ and the use of ‘Marginal Gains’ for musicians using the mind as the root.
What Every Musician Needs to Know About the Body® with Kelly Mollnow Wilson
Kelly Mollnow Wilson teaches musicians to move with ease and comfort, which allows them to deliver musically convincing, effective performances. She teaches Body Mapping for Musicians at Oberlin Conservatory as a Licensed Body Mapping Educator, teaches private flute lessons and performs in Northeast Ohio. As the owner of Precision Performance and Therapy, she uses her skills as a Neurokinetic Therapy practitioner to help musicians with pain and discomfort. Body Mapping is a tool that performers and teachers can use to enhance performance, maintain wellness, and prevent injury and discomfort. In this workshop, participants learned how to use bones and muscles efficiently, identify common Body Mapping problems that instrumentalists and vocalists have and learn how to solve them, and uncover global relationships between arm/leg use and breathing and discover strategies for self care.
AndBreathe - performance anxiety, exam nerves and creating a more positive approach with Gillian Watt
Gillian Watt began her music studies at Napier College, Edinburgh, then gained a MMus in Flute Performance from Northern Illinois University, Dekalb, Illinois. Alongside her career as a musician, Gillian has had a couple of career changes along the way, including becoming a primary school teacher and head teacher. She has always been passionate about health and wellbeing and after having Sepsis a few years ago, re-trained and now works as AndBreathe. Her mission is to share the tools she has used, so that when others experience tricky times, they will have their very own toolkit. Her tools include EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), Reiki, Mindfulness and 16 Guidelines, using the outdoors and woodlands skills as often as possible. This workshop focussed on performance anxiety, exam nerves and creating a more positive approach to life.
