Accelerando

Musicians, actors and athletes, or anyone who performs knows about the struggle to overcome nerves. We can learn from athletes how to get focus and flow. Read more in the show notes at accelerandocast.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit accelerandopodcast.substack.com

Restricting use of music has been around probably since music was first invented or composed. A visit to the Music Archives in the Library of Congress inspired this episode. Read more in the show notes at accelerandocast.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit accelerandopodcast.substack.com

Savvy musicians can market themselves like tech start-ups: marketing with low costs while harnessing all the years of practice as an investment. In this episode we look at various ways classical musicians make a living, and some creative ways to make your mark. Read more in the show notes at accelerandocast.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or g...

Practice is what musicians learned to do at the beginning. It turns out practice works for anyone that wants to live a productive life. We’ll look at what other professionals say about practice, but mostly bask in the knowledge that we already know what needs to be done. Read more in the show notes at […] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get acc...

How does a symphony find a 9 foot concert grand piano befitting the worlds’ greatest piano concerto soloists? Peter Stumpf, piano technician and curator of the finest pianos in Pittsburgh, walks us through the process a major symphony orchestra like Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra goes through when its time to find a new concert grand. Read […] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss...

Ralph Farris is an American Violist who studied classical music and graduated from Julliard, but then decided to make his mark in the music world by creating an electric string quartet that follows the Kronos Quartet’s style. ETHEL takes the notion that a string quartet can do …anything. His artistic vision was shaped by his […] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with othe...

Ask a bunch of kindergarteners if they are artists and they will mostly say yes. But then people lose their belief in their creative abilities the older they get. What is it about creativity that makes humans doubt themselves? Lots of people in design, marketing and psychology have examined the creative nature of mankind. This […] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with ot...

Pittsburgh Saxophonist, Eric Defade has sheperded many jazz students on the road to learning improvisation. His performance and recording career and teaching seem to go hand-in-hand. Eric shares insight to the legacy of Pittsburgh Jazz, and tells us about the multi-generational milestone recording he and his family recently released. Read more in the show notes […] This is a public episode. If you...

Charles and Rachel Stegeman team teach violin and viola in their Boot Camp, but they also possess sightreading skills that make them extremely desireable players in some of the most competitive corners of the music industry. Read more in the show notes at accelerandocast.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ac...

The PBT Orchestra has had several conductors in its thirty years at the Benedum Theatre. Here you’ll meet them and get a backstage insight to life in the orchestra pit. Maestro Charles Barker takes the lead in a campaign to fund live music for the next 50 years. Read more in the show notes at […] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bo...

We look at University of Pittsburgh’s 2016 Diversity challenge, and into the Late 19th century when Czech composer Antonin Dvorak came to America and incorporated the music of the oppressed members of American culture into his own music, as he did in his homeland in Bohemia/Moravia. This podcast takes a dive into orchestra audition lists […] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss t...

The Benedum Theater in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was renovated by the Cultural Trust, but the restoration began under H.J. Heinz II. This magnificent hall became the home of Pittsburgh’s second orchestra that plays for the Pittsburgh Opera and the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. The orchestra has been in business for over 30 years. This episode gives historic […] This is a public episode. If you would...

The audition process has been looked at from many angles. But what if the people listening were to take a beat and think how we’ve changed over the pandemic and put some ideas to work to make the process much less painful – for everyone. Musicians are careful to study themselves in the practice room. […] This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get acce...