The iPad is much more than a gaming or reading device.  With more than 200,000 apps available now and more added daily the iPad is a delightful recreation.  I readily admit my attachment to the slim, sleek powerhouse.  (I love catching up with my favorite blogs on Flipboard and I love to play Lego Harry Potter!) But what about productivity?  Can the iPad also be a useful tool for the private studio?    Search the broad category of music and you’ll find more than 12,000 apps.  How to choose?  I started with a couple of objectives--modernize my studio while putting technology to its most efficient use;  and, adapt in order to streamline and simplify my process.  By filtering the enormous field of choices my iPad functions as a music library, a recording studio, a home office and the perfect tool to share information with parents.

My favorite apps for the private studio are selected for:
Usefulness--do they make teaching and/or managing a studio easier and more effective?  Do they enhance the parent/teacher/student dynamic?

Value--all of my picks come in under $5.  Even though they’re a bargain it’s important to spend wisely.  Look for apps that can serve more than one purpose.  Keep in mind that the “lite” version is not always free.  From the app store check the left sidebar of the app’s description for these words--“top in app purchases.”  You may have to pay more for the features you really need.  

And, Simplicity--are the apps quick and easy to use?  Do they simplify a process or create extra work?  Remember, there’s no time to learn how to use an app while you’re teaching a student.

I like to use a floor stand for my iPad in the studio to keep my resource close at hand.  A floor stand also functions as a tripod for making video recordings.  Shar Music has folding floor stands for iPad and iPad2 (and the new iPad) that come with a shoulder bag for travel.  The only drawback is the Peak iPad stand’s desk covers the rear camera.  I can work around this bug by switching to the forward facing camera.  Unfortunately my attempted modification with a Dremel wasn’t successful.

Not included in this article are metronomes and tuners.  If you’d like to add them to your iPad start your search with free versions and be sure to read reviews.  

Before you get started with apps save time by setting up a couple of accounts on your computer.  First, Dropbox.  Dropbox is a free cloud storage service that lets you store documents, photos and video.  This is especially handy because video files are very large files.  Anything you upload to Dropbox can be accessed anywhere and shared between your computers, smartphone and iPad.  In addition you can designate public folders to share your documents with students.  Once you have uploaded a folder you’ll get access to a link you can share via email.   Second, YouTube.  If you’re interested in using the following video apps in your studio start out by setting up a YouTube channel for your studio.  I recommend setting it up as a private channel for your website and studio performance videos.  Once your channel is set you have the option to subscribe to other channels that you think would be good student resources for performances and examples.  Third, SoundCloud.  SoundCloud is a free sound-sharing app that allows easy sharing of sounds.  Sounds are displayed in waveforms that allow users to post comments and memos.  SoundCloud can be inserted into websites as a widget and then easily shared through social media.  Just like YouTube, set this up so tracks of student’s performances stay private.  You can also use SoundCloud to share your own performances with students.

Apps for Running Your Business.

Square Card Reader. Free.  This credit card slider connects to the headphone jack of your mobile device.  Funds are deposited into your account the next day.  Sign up online and they’ll send the device free of charge.  Each swipe costs 2.75%.  Some information on credit cards from the merchantcouncil.org site:  However,...... In the very same documents VISA continues to state that, "You may, however, offer a discount for cash transactions, provided that the offer is clearly disclosed to customers and the cash price is presented as a discount from the standard price charged for all other forms of payment." MasterCard goes on to say that, "A merchant may provide a discount to its customers for cash payments. A merchant is permitted to charge a fee (such as a bona fide commission, postage, expedited service or convenience fees, and the like) if the fee is imposed on all like transactions regardless of the form of payment used."

Use iMovie or Videolicious to make promotional videos for business listings and promotional materials.  
iMovie. $4.99.  iMovie can be used for a few different purposes in your studio.  Sophisticated editing tools allow you to create videos with camera roll pictures and video, music and titles.  Make a movie to advertise your studio.  Export to YouTube via camera roll.  Share your video with your business listing on Bing and Google.  This is a handy way to maintain a web presence without the expense of a website.  Also, create a QR code from the YouTube url and print on business cards, flyers and brochures.  Read more about QR codes here.
Videolicious. Free.  There are no editing capabilities so it’s very simple to use.  Choose a template where you will receive step-by-step instructions.  Select photos from your camera roll and add music from your iTunes library.  Next, you will be prompted to make a short video with the in-app video camera.  The app creates a short photo/video montage with no editing required.  And your video clip is automatically saved to your camera roll where you can easily export it to YouTube.

Genius Scan. Free.  This is an iPhone app but I find it works fine for my purposes on the iPad.  I use it for receipts for my studio--more specifically for taking photos of tuition checks and for copying music for unrealBook.  Although this app is more than just another camera.  Documents can be enhanced and sent as PDFs or JPEGs  and shared to apps that are already installed on your iPad such as Dropbox or an email account.  Genius Scan +. $2.99.  I find I have all I need with the free version. Go ahead and upgrade if you’d like to send documents to Evernote, Google Docs or Expensify.  

Apps for Teaching

PaperDesk. $3.99.  This is one of my favorite apps; I recommend buying it.   It’s a feature-rich notebook for the iPad.  Type, write and draw with a slew of fonts and colors and correct with a full set of editing option.  You can even rest your wrists on the pad without interfering with drawing.  Insert photos and PDFs.  Record audio that can be synced with your notes in text mode.  Everything can be shared with Dropbox in fact, notebooks can be set up to automatically sync to Dropbox.  I keep a notebook for each student where I jot down reminders, take a photo of their assignment chart, take photos of anything from correct hand positions to the right way to put on a shoulder rest.  During a lesson we can make a short recording of a specific practice technique and email it to their home for reference.  If you’re not ready to buy try PaperDesk Lite for free.

I played one of the best concerts of my career the other night.  It was amazing--a sold-out audience, inspiring conductor, top-notch orchestra, exciting music and thrilling soloists.  It was one of those experiences that come along once in a great while.  It capped off a pretty amazing month.

The end of the concert season brought an abundance of great musical moments.  First, there was Beethoven's Ninth with our Music Director Emeritus, Lawrence Leighton Smith.  The very next week brought our new Music Director, Josep Caballe'-Domenech to conduct Bruckner's 7th Symphony.  A week later I subbed with the Colorado Symphony and played Mahler's Ninth. 

The musicians reading this will appreciate what goes into preparing and performing these works.  Orchestral playing requires a very specific tool set.  We must learn our music, read our music, watch the conductor, watch the concertmaster, play with our stand partner, play with our section and listen to the rest of the orchestra in order to blend sound, volume and tuning.  Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 is performed more frequently than the other two symphonies but still has to be practiced every time.  All three works are more than an hour long.  They are technically and physically wrought with challenges.  Electrifying, while at the same time exhausting.  All this is done in a concert hall with an audience that is expected to sit quietly until all the movements are complete.  Then they may clap and/or leap to their feet.

Maybe it sounds like I'm complaining.  On the contrary, performing works like these keep me inspired.  They make me look forward to next season.  Masterworks are worth every bit of the effort it takes to play them.  These pieces remind me of the training and practice I invested in myself and are infinitely rewarding to study.

In spite of all that great, inspiring music, there are times when a girl just wants to have fun.  No Beethoven, Bruckner or Mahler were performed on my favorite concert of the season.  In fact, this show couldn't have been further from the Viennese masters.  When I told my friends, neighbors and children that I was playing Mahler some might have nodded with understanding.  It's quite a different reaction when you tell folks you're playing with Earth, Wind and Fire.  Honest to gosh.  The band came into town two weeks ago and hired a 31-piece string section for their concert at Red Rocks.  It was carefree and joyful and just about the most fun I've had with a viola in my hands.  We danced in our seats, we laughed, we cheered, we took pictures.  Never have I seen a bunch of orchestral musicians so happy.  I'm going to remember this one for a long time.  Yep, Shining Stars for one night, we danced our cares away in Boogie Wonderland.

Whether your student is taking private lessons or learning with a whole classroom of students, chances are they've played many times for a teacher.  The others who have heard them play might be fellow students, parents, siblings.   Most often students find themselves in their bedrooms playing for an audience of tongue-tied dolls while the family dog races for the nearest exit.  (This is based on personal experience--one of my dogs used to rub her ears and howl when I played!)

In the course of learning an instrument students will be presented with various opportunities for performance.  Last weekend a few of my private students participated in our school district's solo contest.  These violinists and violists prepared solo pieces to perform in front of a judge for oral and written critique.  Judge?  Critique?  Whoo boy--a silent teddy bear is starting to look a whole lot better!  At least you're guaranteed a hug.

Whether it's the familiar setting of a studio recital or the institutional feel of an adjudicated festival, students need additional preparation.  Once a student has spent time learning a piece we talk about the nuts and bolts of performance.  For my youngest students bowing politely is one of their first lessons.   We work on ignoring distractions by playing focus games.  Older students practice starting their piece with a few silent measures of introduction before the bow even touches a string.   This kind of preparation teaches performance etiquette, concentration and how to play your best from the very first note.

In spite of all the preparation no one can predict the outcome.  We can plan and prepare but a live performance is…well, it's live.  And that means it's subject to any and every variable.  What happens when the piece is over?  How can we support young, tender feelings?  That's where emotional preparation comes into play.  That can start during lessons, in the classroom and at home.  In Suzuki training we were taught to always start with a positive compliment.  After that you can move on to suggestions and ideas for improvement.  Parents can also offer support with this method.  

It's never too early to start performing.  Practicing performance skills with your students and children will help them grow as musicians.  Encourage your students to perform often in familiar settings.  Beginning students can arrange weekly family concerts.  Students in group classes can play individually or in small groups for the rest of the class.  As a teacher, it's my job to make sure students are prepared before they take the stage.  As a mentor, I can assure them that performance isn't the goal; it is just one step on a journey.

We finished our Side by Side Concert last week.  It was such a great concert experience for everyone, musicians and audience alike.  And now it's time to start over from scratch.  As Director, I began the transition a month ago.  Yes, it was time to pick music for the May concert already.  So while the students were all getting more comfortable, more confident, more proficient with their Side by Side music; for me it was time to move on.  This is the most challenging transition for me.  Just when the concert plans are heating up; that's when I jump to the future.  Just when I have to work on the smallest details; that's also when I want to think about the big picture.  

In my professional musical life, learning a new piece is one of my least favorite things.  The page looks like a foreign language.  Ink splatters on paper.  I procrastinate until finally I play through to see where the problems lurk.  It's no fun at all.  In contrast, I love to perform.  Creative arts like music, plays, dance-- are so "in the moment."  And that moment is so thrilling that naturally we want to stay.  That's probably why I resist starting over.  Am I that different from my students?

Maybe I need a fresh point of view.  My private students dearly love to move on to the next song.  

Suzuki students seem so eager to get to the next piece and the next book.  Marching with the Two Grenadiers through the Suzuki literature.  Long ago I remember practicing my book of songs day after day so I could perform in the elementary string festival.  Each tune was a new triumph! What happened to my joy in discovery?

For a couple of years now I've tried to hand out new music just before the concert.  I thought students would look forward to the next concert and also have something to work on right away.  But I ran Monday's rehearsal--one week after the concert-- like my least favorite practice session.  Am I effectively killing their joy too?

This post began as an exercise for my growth as a teacher.  My intention was to figure out how to convey a more positive point of view to my students and try to avoid repeating my mistakes.  At the risk of sounding foolish, I think I accomplished my goal.  Yet I'm still surprised by the outcome.  

What next?  Clearly, my job is to help them hold on to the thrill of performance while  building skills for future concerts.  How?  Introduce the new teaching points as games or exercises before they even see a new folder?  Hold a listening session for the first rehearsal after a concert?  I don't know but I'll keep you posted.

Last Saturday my youth orchestra took the stage for our annual Side by Side Concert.  It's an inspiring concert for me because all of my students, from the 7-year-old beginner to the accomplished high school violinist have the opportunity to perform seated next to professional musicians.   And my colleagues feel privileged to mentor aspiring young musicians in a way that  transcends the traditional teacher/student format.  They perform together as equals joined by a common  objective--making music.  It is magical!

What is it about music that unites us?  A mother's lullaby, a hymn of worship, even a wail of pain--all of us connect to the shared vibrations.  We come into this world cooing and crying.  I wonder if it's better to think of language as an extension, rather than an alternative, to our primal tones?  It's no mystery that music has such soothing vibrations; it's a tonic for our souls.  Even though our differences seem vast we share a deep, wordless connection.   

I was honored to play a memorable concert with the Colorado Springs Symphony on September 11th, 2001. Despite the terrible attack, management decided to go ahead with the previously scheduled season-opening concert.  Our program was changed to offer a moving and reverent memorial to a people in need.  The great cellist, Yo Yo Ma was on hand to perform the Elgar Cello Concerto.  Reflecting on this concert he said, "The most extraordinary thing was having the community gather in the hall. The music never felt more powerful to me than it did then, drawing people together and giving them solace in a time of crisis."*

Yo Yo Ma began the concert as a soloist in front of the orchestra.  After he finished the concerto, the musicians on stage were startled to see the famous artist slip in the back to humbly share a stand with the last-chair cellist.   They performed the rest of the concert together as equals joined by a common objective--offering comfort.  Dissolving barriers;  connecting lives through music.  Side by Side with Yo Yo Ma.

My mission is to teach that life offers us limitless possibilities.  The first step is to eliminate the barriers that separate and confine us.   What better way to start than a youth orchestra side by side concert featuring beginners to well-seasoned pros playing Mozart and Jimi Hendrix?  Together, in concert, the waves of sound dissolve our barriers.