“The Impeccable Flutist “ by Nandin Baker, PIFR performer 2017
More than Just Flute Playing
with William Bennett, Lorna McGhee and Gwen Klassen
The Art of Flute Playing as a Template for How to Live Life.
The Pender Island Flute Retreat was much more than simply a flute masterclass. Even though it was offered by some of the highest calibre flutists in the world, it not only addressed every nook and cranny of flute playing, but many of the classes were directly applicable to a host of other aspects in life.
Starting with Gwen’s morning classes, we incorporated Brain Gym, Qi Gong and Yoga in order to get as comfortable as possible in our bodies. Breath was then used as a door to our inner selves, as was tuning into the “now”, allowing the next step forward to more easily present itself. Performance anxiety was addressed in the larger context of mindfulness, a proven stress release method for all areas of life. Various techniques (laugh yoga, sharing our experiences, understanding left brain/right brain, as well as looking at the transition stages in our lives and our own resilience) helped the removal of personal blocks which left space for more creativity to blossom. We gave room to stillness and quiet which are the canvas on which we paint our music and ultimately our lives.
Gwen’s incisive coaching techniques and well organized inner work topics opened new vistas for me and gave me the nudge forward that I have been looking for. Her work on the spiritual side as well as the practical side of flute playing was invaluable – a literal mine of information. Fortunately, she offers a follow up after the retreat since one week is just a start on incorporating all of this information into our daily lives.
Alexander Technique with Gaby was another very important physical foray we made into doing less so that the effect was actually more. We found better ways to use our bodies not only for flute playing, but how to use them better on a day to day basis. Especially as flutists, (since we play so asymmetrically, off to one side) this was a big eye-opener. Again and again each of us took giant steps forward simply by following Gaby’s light hand pressure and by making slight adjustments in the specific body areas that she suggested. For example, releasing the jaw, back, neck or some almost invisible way we were holding back or blocking ourselves, often by unnecessarily trying too hard. This then let our playing flow much more easily – the sound improved immensely and the player experienced it all using less effort!
Wibb was wondrous, and delivered his classes with incredible energy and humour as well as taking time for important details. He gave his very special attention to each individual and guided us on our way in terms of expression and sound. He also included a few of his own personal tricks, for example his “Sensitive Fingerings” as well as just how to find that rich full tone of his for ourselves. Simply hearing him play is a learning experience, which fortunately for us, Lorna had distilled and then, by including her own rich background, developed into several fascinating and absolutely invaluable presentations (technique class). The hour that was allotted to each of these classes ended up being too short for her to completely impart everything that she had to pass on to us, but that was partly because we had a so many questions to ask!
In these classes, Lorna shared with us the secrets of her own impeccability, including poems she had chosen for their beauty as well as their relevant message on the topic of the day. “Your body is your instrument, your breath is the expression of your soul.” Her ability to transmit unheard of nuances of speech and emotion through her flute opened up an entirely new world for us. Her inner stillness appears to allow expression to flow through her with an unparalleled authenticity, seemingly effortlessly, although when she shared her practice routine with us, we saw that it was all built on very solid and detailed technique. She distilled Wibb’s wondrous tone, teaching and inimitable delivery with her own wide experience and knowledge and brought it to us in a clear and easy to understand format. In her simple and direct way and with her great generosity of spirit, Lorna’s presentations made the necessary steps to learn “the impeccable art of flute playing” available for us all to follow. This kind of invaluable knowledge was what I had rearranged my life for in order to attend the Pender Island Flute Retreat (including traveling through 9 time zones to get there). It was well worth it!
The whole atmosphere of the flute retreat was very supportive and lacked the usual sort of competitiveness that one often finds at masterclasses. I could learn from everyone – finding gems for myself and jewels for my students. I came away completely enriched and excited to pass the baton onwards. There is no substitute for being in the close presence of such outstanding, upstanding (and - dare I say it again?) impeccable teachers and flutists. We learned partly by osmosis, but mostly by clearly thought out and extremely well presented classes.
More than Just Flute Playing
with William Bennett, Lorna McGhee and Gwen Klassen
The Art of Flute Playing as a Template for How to Live Life.
The Pender Island Flute Retreat was much more than simply a flute masterclass. Even though it was offered by some of the highest calibre flutists in the world, it not only addressed every nook and cranny of flute playing, but many of the classes were directly applicable to a host of other aspects in life.
Starting with Gwen’s morning classes, we incorporated Brain Gym, Qi Gong and Yoga in order to get as comfortable as possible in our bodies. Breath was then used as a door to our inner selves, as was tuning into the “now”, allowing the next step forward to more easily present itself. Performance anxiety was addressed in the larger context of mindfulness, a proven stress release method for all areas of life. Various techniques (laugh yoga, sharing our experiences, understanding left brain/right brain, as well as looking at the transition stages in our lives and our own resilience) helped the removal of personal blocks which left space for more creativity to blossom. We gave room to stillness and quiet which are the canvas on which we paint our music and ultimately our lives.
Gwen’s incisive coaching techniques and well organized inner work topics opened new vistas for me and gave me the nudge forward that I have been looking for. Her work on the spiritual side as well as the practical side of flute playing was invaluable – a literal mine of information. Fortunately, she offers a follow up after the retreat since one week is just a start on incorporating all of this information into our daily lives.
Alexander Technique with Gaby was another very important physical foray we made into doing less so that the effect was actually more. We found better ways to use our bodies not only for flute playing, but how to use them better on a day to day basis. Especially as flutists, (since we play so asymmetrically, off to one side) this was a big eye-opener. Again and again each of us took giant steps forward simply by following Gaby’s light hand pressure and by making slight adjustments in the specific body areas that she suggested. For example, releasing the jaw, back, neck or some almost invisible way we were holding back or blocking ourselves, often by unnecessarily trying too hard. This then let our playing flow much more easily – the sound improved immensely and the player experienced it all using less effort!
Wibb was wondrous, and delivered his classes with incredible energy and humour as well as taking time for important details. He gave his very special attention to each individual and guided us on our way in terms of expression and sound. He also included a few of his own personal tricks, for example his “Sensitive Fingerings” as well as just how to find that rich full tone of his for ourselves. Simply hearing him play is a learning experience, which fortunately for us, Lorna had distilled and then, by including her own rich background, developed into several fascinating and absolutely invaluable presentations (technique class). The hour that was allotted to each of these classes ended up being too short for her to completely impart everything that she had to pass on to us, but that was partly because we had a so many questions to ask!
In these classes, Lorna shared with us the secrets of her own impeccability, including poems she had chosen for their beauty as well as their relevant message on the topic of the day. “Your body is your instrument, your breath is the expression of your soul.” Her ability to transmit unheard of nuances of speech and emotion through her flute opened up an entirely new world for us. Her inner stillness appears to allow expression to flow through her with an unparalleled authenticity, seemingly effortlessly, although when she shared her practice routine with us, we saw that it was all built on very solid and detailed technique. She distilled Wibb’s wondrous tone, teaching and inimitable delivery with her own wide experience and knowledge and brought it to us in a clear and easy to understand format. In her simple and direct way and with her great generosity of spirit, Lorna’s presentations made the necessary steps to learn “the impeccable art of flute playing” available for us all to follow. This kind of invaluable knowledge was what I had rearranged my life for in order to attend the Pender Island Flute Retreat (including traveling through 9 time zones to get there). It was well worth it!
The whole atmosphere of the flute retreat was very supportive and lacked the usual sort of competitiveness that one often finds at masterclasses. I could learn from everyone – finding gems for myself and jewels for my students. I came away completely enriched and excited to pass the baton onwards. There is no substitute for being in the close presence of such outstanding, upstanding (and - dare I say it again?) impeccable teachers and flutists. We learned partly by osmosis, but mostly by clearly thought out and extremely well presented classes.
