Souloist Podcast, with Zohara Rotem

We are back after more than 2 months away.  This has been time of walking in the valley of death with my beloved man.  I'm sharing here little snippets of the journey of loosing loved ones, the new relationships with grief and mourning, and how we could all help people who are in this place.  If you enjoy the podcast, please share it with your friends.  Leaving comments and rat...

“I’ve been reflecting on your lecture which I appreciated so much. Thank you. Especially the part about how families /society have changed. It was a relief for me as a young teacher to hear that what happens now is not all about me being a “bad “ teacher. So, I wanted to share with  you this story of a family. There's a mother  in my studio who's  doing such a fantastic job with her...

On Sunday we'll be celebrating Mother's Day here.  This is a perfect time  to reflect, celebrate, acknowledge and appreciate on the role of motherhood.  The ritual of saying "Mama, Thank you" by children of all ages and stages, is celebrated around the world ( in different dates). The job description of a mother is never ending. It's a role that has the biggest effect on the family,...

Today I'm in conversation with Veta and Barbara, two of my soul sisters. The three of us are passionate, curious and concerned about the topic of EDUCATION, which is very close to our hearts.  We are talking about: the meaning and purpose of education various ages and stages of education  the art and need of listening & presence  being comfortable  in the unknown the importance of pause radical se...

In these fast changing times we reflect on the role of educators and adults in the future of the world.  The enormity of the  changes that are going in our world now,  are calling to see a big picture.  Extreme measures call to extreme actions. We can't wait for the "big" people, the ones that "have power", to create the change for us.  Each and one of us has a role in thi...

Life comes in packages, or so it seems. Love comes with hate. Light with dark. Joy with sorrow. Gain with loss. Friendship with animosity. Connection with disconnection. Expansion with contraction. Success with failure. Advance with decline. Forward with retreat. Growth with Decay. Life with death. We have a tendency to see things in good or bad. It sort of helps us know where we  go. We were...

Today I’m in conversation with  my dearest friend  Ewa Henner. Ewa is an artist, medical doctor, psychotherapist, Qigong teacher, among many things she studied. She is a Wise Woman who embodies the traits of a shaman in her approach to life. We've been friends for nearly 30 years, weaving our lives from the depth of our souls. In this conversation we talked about : The drama of life and the artist...

We want our children to become self motivated. We wish for them to have the will and desire to acquire ability, talent and knowledge; things  we need in order to grow, survive and thrive. How can we pass on to them the ability to motivate themselves. The answer is tied with self discipline and Joy.  Regardless of culture, no child will enjoy  the learning process if being forced. Ch...

Life is experienced in beats. Each beat has its Taste...Essence...Story. And there’s a gap between the beats. We plan. We expect. We dream. We wish. We prepare. But things don’t always turn up the way we wanted. How can we live in the gap between what we thought should happen and what it turned out to be. What can we do when things go “wrong”? · We could blame the other / others · We could blame o...

Today we are doing something new. instead of a solo (or 'soulo')  conversation, where I have my conversations with you, we are having a conversation with a guest and with you. As the Souloist podcast is conversations about music, soul, education, life and many things in between, my guests will come from all these walks of life, and I hope that there will be something juicy and inspiring for everyo...

“Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it.” (Confucius) What makes us see beauty? · What is the driving force that makes one person see beauty while another cannot see it? Or · what makes us see it one day and not see it the next day? Let's have a conversation on beauty.  Experiments in beauty. · Can we learn, practice or train ourselves to see it? · Can we teach ourselves to be in...

By now we've established : 1. pleasant practice (episode 23). 2. Turning up (episode 25) and 3. Practice content (episode 27).  This week we  talk about  time - this rare commodity in today's world.  We want to help our children develop the skill of playing the instrument.  " The development of ability cannot be accomplished by mere thinking or theorising, but must be acco...

Today is St Valentine day. Did you know that the ancient story behind Valentine's Day is more brutal than romantic? It all goes back to a mysterious, third century saint who suffered a brutal fate. Listen here to some stories and legends about the day and Saint, the festival of Lupercalia as well as Love festivals of other cultures.  And then invite yourself to contemplate on the topic of lov...

Week 3 of Back to the Groove - the series of establishing practice routine after the long holiday break. This week we plan the content of the practice. What to start with and what to keep for the end.  New piece, polishing piece, review piece or music reading . Make a decision according to where your child is at in any given day OR practice the same order every day. IF YOU LIKE THIS PODCAST a...

Language and environment are connected. Language is embedded in the world we live in. And the world we live in is embedded in the language we speak. Language welcomes the new born. And it starts before birth. The language is there, surrounding us. The child doesn't need to be taught. He just LEARNS it. The teaching IS in the environment. As I was preparing this episode I was sitting outside with t...

Week 2 of Back to the Groove-  the series of establishing practice routine after the long holiday break. This week we TURN UP . If you could get Pleasant environment ( see episode 23) and you turn up to practice every day, you are almost back to the groove.  IF YOU LIKE THIS PODCAST and WANT TO HELP,   please lick the PayPal link http://bit.ly/PayPal-Souloist . I will be gratef...

What if you like doing many things and you find it difficult to "manage your time" between them? Do you need to make a priority list? Reflecting on the topic: If life is a canvas, I could be the artist. If life is blank page with music clefs , I could be the composer.  If the score has already been written, I could be the pianist.  If life is a clay, I could be the potter.  If my po...

In the southern hemisphere academic year starts now. Students are going back to school after a long holiday of 6 -7 weeks. How do we go back to practice routine after such a long time? I'll be offering here a series of talks on this topic.  If you're starting a new school year. If you are back after a short break If you feel that you need a makeover or fresh start     &nbs...

?מאיפה הגיע הרעיון הזה ... הוא בא מאותו מקום שמגיעים ממנו תינוקות... ורעיונות מה זה אומר? זה אומר שמהיום תוכלו למצוא חלק מהפרקים - גם בעברית שאלתם.... ביקשתם...ושמחה לספק בחרתי להתחיל עם נושא שבוער היום כתמיד (וקצת יותר)... נושא הזיקנה... ובבקשה אל תגידו לי לא לקרוא לו בשמו .כי אני דוקא רוצה לקרוא לילד ( חחח )הזקן בשמו למטה תמצאו פרטים ולינקים לרשימת התפוצה אליה אתם מוזמנים להצטרף, כדי שאוכל...

Two themes appear in this episode.  One is a myth about a "witch"  and the other a reflection about Corona times.  They are bound by a name - the  crown.  "One day, when I was a child, stories began to circulate about a witch that lived in an old, dilapidated hut." At the beginning of this episode I'm sharing the myth,  the realness, the essence, the fear and  th...

One of the greatest ways to practice  "tricky" bits is to stop JUST BEFORE them.  When you learn /practice  a  piece , Instead of playing the  whole piece  s l o w l y , analyse (with the help of your teacher, if needed) where the "tricky" bits are.   (it's usually the place  where  you usually  get stuck or make mistakes). Draw a dotted line...

My Grandfather Leo was a very gracious man. In this podcast I'm sharing with you some of the thoughts that came up  today, on his birthday. How he affected my life, and how he lives in me long after he's died.  "So long as we are being remembered, we remain alive"  (Carlos Ruiz Zafon). How would you like to be remembered? It's not too late. You can create the way you want to be reme...

What a year this has been for the teachers among us ! We were called go much beyond the comfort zones of the teaching we had known. It held so MANY challenges to all of us: Suzuki Teachers,Instrumental teachers AND teachers in ALL subjects. We experienced losses AND gains. I'm inviting you to count them with me in this episode. In general we have become a smaller village and  got closer to ea...

In the last month of 2020 we gathered around in circles ( online) to send off 2020 . These were circles of women, elders, teachers and parents.  In this episode i'm sharing with you about the Soul of Elderhood.  You don't become an elder by being old. You become an elder by acquiring wisdom & depth. The dance of life goes on from birth to death. Sadly, in our culture many old people...

Parents and teachers often ask about the process of moving from childhood to adolescence in learning a musical instrument. The Suzuki program follows and accompanies the child from early childhood, through adolescence. It’s only natural that we need to change gears as we go along. At the beginning stages we encourage children, motivate them, create their appetite – for music and learning and dedic...