A few days ago, a friend of mine posted a link on Facebook to a TED talk by the psychologist Guy Winch. It is, as with almost all TED Talks I’ve watched over the years, a compelling and entertaining presentation about the importance of what Winch calls ‘emotional hygiene’. He
Almost a year ago, I featured a post on this blog called ‘Amateur bravery’. In it, I described the joy and then intense upset and frustration of feeling useless in the face of a tap-dancing teacher who did not know how to empathise with his class, and who, in the
How dearly we love to categorise. Whether it’s heading to an event you found under the “Classical music” section of an events guide, steering offspring away from the “Supernatural Fiction” young adult section in the book shop, or shouting at the checkout staff because the eggs weren’t in the “Baking”
Now that the new academic year is just around the corner, I’ve spent a lot of time this week thinking about Being New. Beyond such high-profile press examples as the intimidation factor of concert hall for the uninitiated, being a newbie is a common feature of our daily lives – in
Maybe it’s because I spend so much of my life writing about music, reading about music, listening to music and, whenever possible, making music, that I only very seldom actually watch TV about music. (Any opportunity to flop in front of the telly is usually accompanied by an overpowering urge
This week, my last full week of holiday before pushing my nose firmly against the grindstone once again, I seem to have spent a great deal of time watching Disney films. Whilst my brain refuses to retain specific dates of compositions, Bach Verzeichnis numbers, or a whole host of other
On 1st September, a little over a week from now, I’ll be going to my first Prom of the season. Yes, this might seem a little late… but, being somewhat hermit-like by nature – and particularly in the summer, when I’m tired and in need of a rest – it
A little over a year ago, when I first went freelance, I decided that it was time to pay more attention to the place of classical music in the press. I joined Twitter; I started reading more and more articles in online journals, newspapers and blogs; and in general have
Well, here we are in the middle of the summer holidays. There’s time off to go walking, visit new places, watch too much telly, drink beer with friends… and start noticing things you don’t tend to pay much attention to the rest of the time. As I sat on a
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to August. The sun is shining, the air is thick with the scents of cut grass and barbecues, and after a thoroughly enjoyable but rather busy July, I am on holiday. Or, if you want to make it sound more official in out of office messages,
