
- This course has passed.
The Zen Practice Room: How to practice mindfully
6 May 2021 @ 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm BST
£10.00
>> Follow this link to book all 6 sessions for £50 (saving £10).
Or book this single session for £10.00 using the booking form below.
Ruth Philips’ Zen Practice room sessions are a revelation, quite unlike ordinary cello lessons. Ruth encourages the players to feel the flow and rhythm of the music and allow it to influence the breath and movement of the whole person in order to express it’s message and mood. It has changed my perspective from one of principally trying to get the notes right, to being able to communicate what the music is suggesting in a more fundamental way. It has also made my own practice much more enjoyable, rewarding and liberated Ruth is full of practical ideas and understands the struggles of learners at all stages. – Wendy Bloor
Every week many of us attend a yoga, Qi Gong or Feldenkrais class. There we go over the same ‘postures’ or patterns. We give ourselves the same directions. We pay attention to our breath and our mind moment to moment, and we start to remap our movement. As our biases change and holding patterns release, we find ourselves present and in flow. This is the true nature of practice.
Beginning with a short mindfulness practice to ‘arrive’ in the present moment and in our bodies, these weekly sessions offer such an approach to our instrumental practice. Our aim is not to learn as many notes in as short a time as possible but to slow down, take a phrase, and approach it in a holistic way so that every moment of our practice has the capacity to serve every moment of our music making. By looking at a phrase with curiosity from all angles, incorporating the breath, the feet, the mind, the heart and the spine, we will find ways to make our musical intention clear in the most effortless way and, in so doing, find ourselves on the slow highway to liberating our musical voice.
Practical Information
Who is it for: All string players
Tutor: Ruth Phillips
Number of participants: up to 12
Length of session: 60 minutes
Number of sessions: 6 standalone or book all 6
Dates and times: 2-3pm Thursdays | 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 April | 6 May 2021
Cost: £10.00 per session or book all 6 sessions for £50 (saving £10)
What you need to bring:
Your instrument, a phrase to play, and an open mind! Or just come and listen.
List of forthcoming sessions in this series
>> Follow this link to book all 6 sessions for £50 (saving £10).
Or book this single session using the booking form below.