Februar 2025

Say YES to your Creativity, it is your birthright.

Von admin|2025-04-30T14:42:14+00:00Februar 25, 2025|creativity, inspiration, learningmusic, Music, musiceducation|

Say YES to your Creativity!

We are all born creative—it is our natural state and a fundamental part of who we are. Below are all the scientific sources I have collected, which provide proof that all humans have the capacity to be creative.

Creativity is not only a gift but also a vital tool for personal growth and well-being. The way we nurture our creativity throughout life plays a key role in how much we enjoy and engage with the world around us.

As we grow older, life’s stresses and responsibilities can suppress our creativity, causing it to fade. The intensity and frequency of challenges, combined with how we process them, can create barriers to our creative expression. However, the good news is that we can always reconnect with our creativity! The key is making a conscious choice to do so.

No matter where you are or what you do, there are countless opportunities to infuse creativity into your daily routine. Small, intentional actions can help unlock your creative potential and keep your imagination alive.

Each person has their own path to rediscovering and strengthening their creative abilities. Here are some simple activities to help you reconnect with your creative side: is that we can always reconnect with our creativity! The key is making a conscious choice to do so.

Each person has their own path to rediscovering and strengthening their creative abilities. Here are some simple activities to help you reconnect with your creative side:

Take a different route to work, exploring new paths and perspectives.
Wake up an hour earlier to do something enjoyable just for you.
Organize a fun event with colleagues.
Reduce screen time and engage in conversations with loved ones.
Try knitting or another hands-on craft and create small gifts for friends’ children.

Creativity is always within you—you just need to say YES to it!

My sources that provide scientific evidence on creativity being an inherent part of the human brain:

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT):

Neuroscience of Creativity A comprehensive overview of neuroscientific research on creativity, examining genetics, brain structure, and function. Concludes that creativity involves multiple interacting brain networks, making it a universal human trait. mitpress.mit.edu

Creative Connections: Computational Semantic Distance Captures Individual Creativity and Resting-State Functional Connectivity

Used computational methods to analyze how the brain generates novel ideas. Found that creativity relies on interactions between different brain regions, reinforcing the idea that creative potential exists in everyone. direct.mit.edu

Harvard University:

Can Memory Be Related to Creative Cognition? Featured in Harvard Magazine, this article discusses research linking memory processes to creative thinking. The study suggests that the ability to generate new ideas by recombining information in novel ways is a fundamental aspect of human cognition, indicating an inherent capacity for creativity. harvardmagazine.com

Mai 2022

The challenges of music learning and how to productively overcome them

Von admin|2025-04-30T14:46:11+00:00Mai 9, 2022|Music, musiceducation|

Challenges are a natural part of the learning process

Learning a new skill without facing any challenges is impossible. If you do not feel challenged when learning something completely new, no real learning is happening.

Challenges appear only to remind you that you are getting better; they also show you the areas you need to improve. Why not approach them with a positive attitude and patience then? They are on your side. I challenge you!

At times you may feel stuck and emotionally charged in your progress, which is normal, and it means there is a certain threshold you need to break through to go to your next level of development. Sometimes, feeling stuck feels like `forever,` but you will be amazed by the results if you keep going. Just know that failing until you get it right is inevitable in every student’s process.

Take a break, prepare a tea and come back to practice :)

Remember that a new level of depth is unlocked for the performer when one overcomes a particular musical challenge, and this would make all your efforts worth it.

What I find extraordinary with Music and arts is that this deepening and level-unlocking never ends. There are always new things to be discovered, even for the most renowned players; Music is endless.

My piano challenge and what it taught me

-I practiced a piece for one hour, and it felt as if I made no progress.
-I gave it one more hour of effort. Finally, I was convinced that there was nothing more to do (I felt stuck entirely), and I would have rather played some other pieces instead (before I revisited this piece).

-A week passed, and I was more focused on practicing other pieces. I tried my piece again to see how it felt out of curiosity. To my great surprise, I played it perfectly, and everything was `in place.`
-I wondered, `what kind of superpower is that?` But this is no superpower, and it is just normal!

My piano students experience this as well, and we always discuss it and laugh about `before` and `after.`

Each level of Mastery has its unique challenges

The challenges of becoming a musician are many, but depending on how far you want to go, you can pick your challenges and go only as far as it is fun and comfortable.

If you envision yourself playing complex piano pieces, this is great!!! Usually, the farther you go, the bigger the challenges, and the bigger the fun!

But one does not have to play necessarily play more difficult pieces to have fun. Easier pieces can be tremendously fun too! The only difference is that more advanced pieces have a `bigger buffet` of sounds and moods.

The choice is yours to make! There is no wrong preference here.
I enjoy playing all kinds of pieces, the easy, the challenging, and the highly challenging ones. It is entertaining for me to see where the challenges are and to overcome them one by one. When I learn something new, I feel so happy!

Tips on mastering your challenges with more ease

Make sure you stay focused on tackling your challenges with a positive spirit. Attitude matters a lot, and it can skyrocket your development. It is essential to keep your practicing schedule with discipline, but have fun and enjoy each time you sit down to practice!
Make sure to use the advice of an expert. Your teacher/mentor will help you steer your efforts in the best direction for you to progress much faster.
Always keep yourself motivated on your goals, and reserve daily practice time. When you put your time and effort into this process, trust that your devotion will be rewarded and relax into enjoying the experience.
Last but not least, avoid focusing on unproductive comparisons with other musicians because we all have different paths and learning curves with special features unique to each person.

Epilogue

I have great fun and joy in observing the different phases of musical evolution that my students and I go through. It is beautiful to watch us grow and develop and assist my piano students in their journey.

Music- valuable life lessons over the years

Von admin|2025-04-30T14:50:01+00:00Mai 9, 2022|inspiration, learningmusic, Music, musiceducation, musictips|

Appreciation for the Musical Journey

I have been playing the piano for more than 20 years. This incredible journey has taught me (and still is) uncountable life lessons. The joy of finally getting in the flow of Music and enjoying it during a performance or in my practice room, as well as all the moments that made me feel challenged and frustrated, led to shaping my personality in a way that life kept becoming more joyful for me.

Following my passion to get better and better each day as a musician has had a strong influence not only on my musical outcome but on my life in general. Learning Music has changed how I think, feel, and act, and I know it is the same for many people.

Playing Music is as old as human civilization is! There is a reason for that, and it is no wonder that Music has such a strong impact on us as performers and listeners.

Learning Music is guiding on how to live a more fulfilling life.

The Music:

keeps me constantly on my toes!
teaches me never to give-up
trains my patience and perseverance
reminds me to take nothing for granted
teaches me self-respect
alarms me to be always open to new ideas and always question my existing ideas
educates me on what beauty is
teaches me when to control and when to let go
reminds me that all is here and now
teaches me to know when to pat myself on the back
leads me to choose when to be analytical and when to go with the flow.
reminds me of the joyfulness of life
reminds me always to listen and that I always know deep inside me what to do.

Can adults and seniors learn to play piano?

Von admin|2025-04-30T14:51:15+00:00Mai 2, 2022|Music, musiceducation|

Of course, adults and seniors can learn to play the Piano. It is rather difficult for them to become a concert pianist (with exceptions), but becoming an amateur pianist is definitely feasible.

– Is every adult or senior able to become an amateur pianist?

My answer is `No` not every kid can become a pianist either. But what gives a kid a higher probability of reaching a good amateur pianist level and possibly, later on, developing into a concert pianist is not only the plasticity of their brain cells but, more importantly, their mindset.

-Is it worth it for adults and seniors to learn to play the Piano?

Absolutely yes. Music can be a healing aid, and if learning the Piano brings someone joy, then it is definitely worth learning it. Also, it helps the two hemispheres of the brain communicate with each other differently and improves memory and cognitive abilities.

Here are some interesting studies about piano playing, music, and the brain:

KIDS

Kids are naturally not afraid to make mistakes, and they do not lose time comparing themselves with others! They only care about having fun and discovering new things.

Unless the environment at home imposes fear and pushes kids to unhealthy competition (which would be unfortunate), children develop these with time as they grow into society.

Until then, they thrive in their creative pool! Of course, the brain’s plasticity at this young age helps, but I am convinced that this is not the only reason.

ADULTS

Adults who see piano learning as a difficult skill to conquer, full of tasks and checkpoints, will not move fast into deepening their skills.

Of course, hard work is necessary to become a pianist. But ultimately, the process of becoming a Musician should be enjoyable, and each challenge to be approached with a positive spirit. Embracing each person’s self-development process is essential.

There will always be someone better or worse than you concerning their skills. Skills can be improved with time, depending on the teacher and the student’s practicing hours, but your unique creative way of playing and your ideas make each person unique.

Practice practice, practice! But do this to become more of you, and this is the ultimate goal of an Artist.

Adults constantly evaluate their progress and are emotionally attached to the outcome, which creates a lot of unnecessary stress and anxiety, significantly hindering their learning pace.

TEACHING SENIOR PIANO STUDENTS

I have had the opportunity to work with senior students for a couple of years. When we started piano classes, they were learning extremely slowly and seemed very frightened when they made their first mistakes. Honestly, I felt close to giving up on them, but I finally decided to find out where the problem was and give this experience one more chance.

I discovered that from their environment, so many people already had told them that: `it would be entirely impossible for them to learn the Piano at this age, that this is a joke and a loss of time. It makes no sense for them to start learning so late in their lives.`

After our discussion and understanding of what was going on, I had to work with them differently to finally break through these extreme mental restrictions they had set up for themselves.

I had to create new thought patterns for them and embrace them each time in class:

Making mistakes is inevitable for all pianos students in the world, kids or adults.
Learning does not happen overnight, not even for the most talented students.
Negative self-talk has no place in this class! Perseverance does!
They would have to stop apologizing when they felt something was difficult, and there is nothing to apologize for because that is why they come to class! To face difficulties and overcome them!

I kept insisting on my views, and they started considering that they could maybe have some truth in them. Only then could we start learning together. As a next step, as I do with every student (kid or adult), I figured out their strengths and weaknesses to help them grow.

Hurray! Finally, we started moving on, and the class was enjoyable!

My senior piano students now smile when they play and have already reached their personal goals, and some even exceeded them!

I sincerely hope that this Article brought you closer to the realization that no one shall ever talk you out of the fantastic experience of learning the Piano.

Ioanna Moudanioti