The Mindful Musician

The inner game of building a career as a musician or creative person. The intersection of music, music business, and spirituality. Hosted by www.mattoestreicher.com

@SHUCT: w/ Guitarist John Scofield 11/13/2025

@SHUCT: w/ Guitarist John Scofield 🎙️ New Episode of ON THE MARQUEE This week on The SHU Community Theatre Podcast, we welcome legendary guitarist John Scofield. John Scofield’s guitar work has influenced jazz since the late 70’s and is going strong today. Possessor of a very distinctive sound and stylistic diversity, Scofield is a masterful jazz improviser whose music generally falls somewhere between post-bop, funk edged jazz, and R & B. Born in Ohio and raised in suburban Connecticut, Scofield took up the guitar at age 11, inspired by both rock and blues players. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. After a debut recording with Gerry Mulligan and Chet Baker, Scofield was a member of the Billy Cobham-George Duke band for two years. In 1977 he recorded with Charles Mingus, and joined the Gary Burton quartet. He began his international career as a bandleader and recording artist in 1978. From 1982–1985, Scofield toured and recorded with Miles Davis. His Davis stint placed him firmly in the foreground of jazz consciousness as a player and composer. Since that time he has prominently led his own groups in the international Jazz scene, recorded over 30 albums as a leader (many already classics) including collaborations with contemporary favorites like Pat Metheny, Charlie Haden, Eddie Harris, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Bill Frisell, Brad Mehldau, Mavis Staples, Government Mule, Jack DeJohnette, Joe Lovano and Phil Lesh. He’s played and recorded with Tony Williams, Jim Hall, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, Joe Henderson, Dave Holland, Terumasa Hino among many jazz legends. Throughout his career Scofield has punctuated his traditional jazz offerings with funk-oriented electric music. All along, the guitarist has kept an open musical mind. Touring the world approximately 200 days per year with his own groups, he is an Adjunct Professor of Music at New York University, a husband, and father of two. John Scofield Trio will be performing at SHU Community Theatre on 11/23/25 For Tickets and More Information go to: https://www.shucommunitytheatre.org/all-events/john-scofield-trio John Scofield’s Website: /episode/index/show/themindfulmusician/id/39029105

Ep. 38 SHUCT Podcast Featuring Coley O'Toole 05/26/2025

Ep. 38 SHUCT Podcast Featuring Coley O'Toole Matt shares his new episode of the SHU COMMUNITY THEATRE PODCAST with the Mindful Musician. VENUE WEBSITE: This week on The SHU Community Theatre Podcast, we welcome singer/songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Coley O’Toole. A proud Connecticut native, Coley shares the incredible story of his journey from playing local gigs to touring the world as a keyboardist and vocalist with Green Day. He opens up about his roots in CT, his early love of music, and the bands he helped build — including the platinum-selling pop-rock group We the Kings, who are hitting the road this summer with Avril Lavigne. Whether you're a musician, a music lover, or just curious about life on the road and inside the industry, this episode offers an honest, inspiring look at what it takes to make it in music — and stay there. Coley’s Website: Coley’s Instagram: WE THE KINGS band: https://www.wethekingsmusic.com/ Their most popular song: Book a songwriting session with him here: https://mastermindroad.thrivecart.com/songwriting-coley/ Music: Per Your Request (written and arranged for The Verve Jazz Ensemble by Matt Oestreicher) GENERAL PODCAST INFORMATION: The SHU Community Theatre On The Marquee podcast. Welcome to On The Marquee—the podcast that takes you beyond the spotlight and behind the scenes of the performing arts! Hosted by SHU Community Theatre’s Executive Director, Matt Oestreicher, this show shines a light on entertainment and education in concert by featuring exclusive conversations with upcoming performing artists. Each episode, Matt peels back the curtain to reveal the artist’s journey—demystifying the creative process, sharing untold stories, and uncovering what it's like to be a performing artist. Whether you're a lifelong arts lover or just curious about why you should come to a performance, On The Marquee is your all-access pass to the arts and entertainment world. /episode/index/show/themindfulmusician/id/36709895

Ep. 37 The SHU Community Theatre (Featuring Todd Barry) 02/24/2024

Ep. 36 An Exploration of Improvisation with Stephen Nachmanovitch(part 2) 10/26/2019

Ep.35 An Exploration of Improvisation with Stephen Nachmanovitch(Part 1) 10/15/2019

Ep.34 Mini Episode - Initiation into the mystical side of music/self-promotion 09/30/2019

Ep. 33 Jamey Aebersold 09/03/2019

Ep. 32 Mini Episode about Dealing With Rejection 06/14/2019

Ep. 31 David Friedman (Part 2) 04/09/2019

Ep. 31 David Friedman (Part 2) DAVID FRIEDMAN David Friedman, composer of the award-winning hit musical, Desperate Measures, (Drama Desk for Music and Lyrics/Outer Critics and Off Broadway Alliance Awards for Best Musical) is one of this country's most beloved songwriters, best known for writing songs that touch our hearts and speak to our souls. He has written songs for everyone from Disney to Diana Ross, produced all of the late/great Nancy LaMott’s CD’s and wrote many of her best known songs, (Listen To My Heart/We Can Be Kind/We Live on Borrowed Time/I’ll Be Here With You/Just in Time For Christmas), conducted and vocal arranged 6 musicals on Broadway and numerous Disney Animated Films (including Beauty & The Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame) wrote songs for The Lizzie McGuire Movie, Aladdin and the King of Thieves, Bambi II and Trick, scored 3 television series, performed his revue Listen To My Heart – The Songs of David Friedman to audiences Off Broadway, all over America and abroad, and is currently in his 10th year of co-writing (with Kathie Lee Gifford) and performing a song-a-month for the Today Show’s Everyone Has a Story Segment. (This month will be his hundredth song.) In addition to Desperate Measures, David has written 4 other musicals with Peter Kellogg: Chasing Nicolette played to rave reviews at The Westport Country Playhouse, the Prince theater in Philadelphia (where David was awarded the Barrymore Award for best score) and Village Theatre in Seattle, and recently had a backer’s presentation in New York with John Rando directing; Stunt Girl, about the life of Nellie Bly, the first woman investigative reporter in New York and the first woman to run a major corporation, was seen in a critically acclaimed production at the Village Theater in Seattle, which was followed by a staged reading at Manhattan Theatre Club in New York. (After seeing this reading, Gloria Steinem called it, “Altogether, the strongest female story I've ever seen on Broadway -- or pretty much anywhere”); Money Talks, a four-character musical that follows the path of a $100 bill as it passes from person to person, with Benjamin Franklin playing the $100 bill, was presented at the Davenport Theatre last year; and Lincoln in Love, a musical about Abe Lincoln’s early years, was presented at Goodspeed. David’s Christmas Oratorio, King Island Christmas, written with Deborah Brevoort, has had over 50 productions around the world. David is also a best-selling author with 5 books including We Can Be Kind - Healing Our World One Kindness at a Time, based on his song of the same name. (Currently in its Fifth printing.) His three books on his Metaphysical Method, The Thought Exchange, explore how to not only choose the thoughts we wish to hold, but how to stay with them and see them manifest in our lives. He is a sought after speaker, lecturer and teacher around the country. For more information, go to www.MIDDERMusic.com. LINKS Davids Website: We Can Be Kind - book and song Nancy LaMott singing We Can Be Kind: Koga (animated children’s series): The Mindful Musician Podcast: www.mattoestreicher.com /episode/index/show/themindfulmusician/id/9324170

Ep. 30 David Friedman (Part 1) 03/25/2019

Ep. 30 David Friedman (Part 1) DAVID FRIEDMAN David Friedman, composer of the award-winning hit musical, Desperate Measures, (Drama Desk for Music and Lyrics/Outer Critics and Off Broadway Alliance Awards for Best Musical) is one of this country's most beloved songwriters, best known for writing songs that touch our hearts and speak to our souls. He has written songs for everyone from Disney to Diana Ross, produced all of the late/great Nancy LaMott’s CD’s and wrote many of her best known songs, (Listen To My Heart/We Can Be Kind/We Live on Borrowed Time/I’ll Be Here With You/Just in Time For Christmas), conducted and vocal arranged 6 musicals on Broadway and numerous Disney Animated Films (including Beauty & The Beast, Aladdin, Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame) wrote songs for The Lizzie McGuire Movie, Aladdin and the King of Thieves, Bambi II and Trick, scored 3 television series, performed his revue Listen To My Heart – The Songs of David Friedman to audiences Off Broadway, all over America and abroad, and is currently in his 10th year of co-writing (with Kathie Lee Gifford) and performing a song-a-month for the Today Show’s Everyone Has a Story Segment. (This month will be his hundredth song.) In addition to Desperate Measures, David has written 4 other musicals with Peter Kellogg: Chasing Nicolette played to rave reviews at The Westport Country Playhouse, the Prince theater in Philadelphia (where David was awarded the Barrymore Award for best score) and Village Theatre in Seattle, and recently had a backer’s presentation in New York with John Rando directing; Stunt Girl, about the life of Nellie Bly, the first woman investigative reporter in New York and the first woman to run a major corporation, was seen in a critically acclaimed production at the Village Theater in Seattle, which was followed by a staged reading at Manhattan Theatre Club in New York. (After seeing this reading, Gloria Steinem called it, “Altogether, the strongest female story I've ever seen on Broadway -- or pretty much anywhere”); Money Talks, a four-character musical that follows the path of a $100 bill as it passes from person to person, with Benjamin Franklin playing the $100 bill, was presented at the Davenport Theatre last year; and Lincoln in Love, a musical about Abe Lincoln’s early years, was presented at Goodspeed. David’s Christmas Oratorio, King Island Christmas, written with Deborah Brevoort, has had over 50 productions around the world. David is also a best-selling author with 5 books including We Can Be Kind - Healing Our World One Kindness at a Time, based on his song of the same name. (Currently in its Fifth printing.) His three books on his Metaphysical Method, The Thought Exchange, explore how to not only choose the thoughts we wish to hold, but how to stay with them and see them manifest in our lives. He is a sought after speaker, lecturer and teacher around the country. For more information, go to www.MIDDERMusic.com. LINKS Davids Website: We Can Be Kind - book and song Nancy LaMott singing We Can Be Kind: Koga (animated children’s series): The Mindful Musician Podcast: www.mattoestreicher.com /episode/index/show/themindfulmusician/id/9131861

Ep. 29 Lipbone Redding (One-Man Orchestra) 01/06/2019

Ep. 29 Lipbone Redding (One-Man Orchestra) Lipbone Redding is an award-winning vocalist, guitar player, voice-strumentalist, storyteller, songwriter, author, teacher and traveler. He is best known for his one-man orchestra show; simultaneously playing, singing and making the instrument sounds with his mouth and without the use of a loop pedal. Lipbone incorporates a full spectrum of musical styles from American Roots and Jazz to throat singing and Indian Classical. Origins A free-range child, native to the swamps, farmlands and beach towns of coastal North Carolina, Lawrence “Lipbone” Redding cites his mama’s Soul, Boogie, Blues and Disco records as early stylistic origins. As a young man he became interested in Art, Opera, Books and Theater and often dreamt of travel to exotic places. At 21 years old, no longer able to be contained by a small town, Lipbone escaped to New York City and discovered Improvisation, Comedy, Jazz, Modern Art, Dance and Performance Art. Lipbone’s decade at the cultural crossroads sparked his curiosity and paved the way for future influences from around the globe. New York became a launching pad for what was to become a lifetime of travel and collaboration with artists and audiences alike. After a brief stint as an actor, carpenter, bartender and producer for the Museum of Sound Recording, Lawrence Redding accidentally became a NYC subway musician and adopted the name “Lipbone.” He made “funny” sounds while playing guitar. Curious folks would often ask, “what do you call that sound?” He would tell them, “It’s my Lip Trombone!…My Lipbone!” Hence the name. It was there in the underground caverns that Lipbone Redding experienced artistic redemption, and honed the skills that eventually allowed him to travel and make a living wherever life took him: India, Europe, South America, New Orleans, San Francisco, and points between. “Music is like pollen that drifts through the air and becomes a seed in the imagination. Music is a carrier wave for revolution. With music, I speak with friends who I have never met. We tell each other, ‘Everything is alright. You are not alone.’” - LB Traveling the world making friends and music, Lipbone spends most nights on the road in his small RV, “The Beautiful Flying Machine.” Outfitted with solar panels, a kitchen and comfortable living area, he boasts waking up to some of the most stunning views on planet Earth. From his mobile headquarters, Lipbone makes art, writes songs, records music, perfects his vegan recipes, interviews fascinating strangers for his podcast, and shares photos and video of nature’s beauty. Recently Lipbone’s live show was featured on PBS, On Tour with Lipbone Redding. The program has been seen by viewers nationwide. Most recently, Lipbone has released a digital album on his own label, Beautiful Flying Records entitled Return Of The Beautiful, co-produced by Mashti (Mads Nordheim). The two have collaborated on an earlier record entitled Runaway Snail, recorded in Goa, India. Both albums are available in digital format from www.LIPBONE.com, on Spotify and iTunes. With the decline of CDs and physical music merchandise, Lipbone has taken a new tact. Already making art and writing on a daily basis, he has been making small runs art booklets with full album Part of his DIY aesthetic, the physical objects that accompany the albums are a thought provoking collection of art, stories and lyrics. WHERE TO FIND LIPBONE REDDING Songs by Lipbone heard in this podcast: 1) Cowgirls Meet on Guadalupe Street 2) Dogs of Santiago 3) Refugees and Vagabonds THE MINDFUL MUSICIAN PODCAST Homepage: On iTunes: Twitter: /episode/index/show/themindfulmusician/id/8148932

Ep. 28 Dwayne Cooper 12/04/2018

EP. 27 Author and Musician JEFFREY LEE CAMPBELL 09/18/2018

Ep. 26 Stas Mavrides (Part 2) 01/30/2018

Ep. 25 The Time I Toured With The "Enlightened" Guru (Feat. Stas Mavrides) 01/03/2018

Ep. 24 Dealing with Difficult People and Situations in the Music Biz feat. Travis LaMothe 10/03/2017

Ep. 23 Being a musician in NY vs. LA with (Part 2 with Dmitry Gorodetsky) 08/21/2017

Ep. 22 The Inner Game of Music Freelancing(Part 1) w Dmitry Gorodetsky 05/08/2017

Ep. 21 Year In Review(Part 2) with Adam Rafferty 03/13/2017

Ep 20 Year In Review with Adam Rafferty 02/24/2017

Ep. 19 How To Make It In The New Music Business w. Ari Herstand 02/07/2017

Ep. 18 The Entrepreneurial Musician w. Andrew Hitz 10/30/2016

Ep.17 David Nichtern 10/07/2016

Ep.17 David Nichtern EPISODE NOTES NOTES Featuring Buddhist Teacher, Author, and Award Winning Musician David Nichtern Davids New Book: Awakening From The Daydream http://davidnichtern.com/awakening-from-the-daydream/ David will be teaching a workshop at Kripalu Center For Yoga & Health from Oct 16 to Oct 21st https://kripalu.org/presenters-programs/awakening-daydream-meditating-wheel-life His course entitled "Creativity, Spirituality, and Making a Buck" is available on creativelive.com https://www.creativelive.com/courses/creativity-spirituality-making-buck-david-nichtern All music from the podcast is by David Nichtern Intro music: Thank Kevin from his album From Here to Nichternity Full song at the end of podcast: Moon of Tunis from his group The Beyman Brothers (with Christopher Guest) The young jazz piano prodigy that David mentions: http://joeyalexandermusic.com/ The young man that David and I pay tribute to at the end of the podcast: http://mrisaacallen.com/ David Nichtern Full Bio: David Nichtern is a senior teacher in the Shambhala Buddhist lineage of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. This tradition combines a contemporary, secular approach to meditation with the ancient practices and philosophies of Tibetan Buddhism. David was one of the initial American students of renowned meditation master Trungpa Rinpoche and studied closely with him soon after his arrival in the United States in 1970. David has been co-director of the LA Shambhala Center and Karme Choling Meditation Center in Vermont, as well as Director of Expansion for Shambhala Training International and Director of Buddhist Practice and Study for OM yoga. He has been a featured writer and regular contributor to The Huffington Post and leads meditation workshops around the world and online. David also works individually with meditation students in person and via Skype, and has created and taught meditation teacher trainer programs for OM yoga, Empowered Yoga, Kaia Yoga, Metrowest Yoga, True Nature Yoga (Tokyo), and Journey Meditation. He has also been a business consultant with companies creating a variety of offerings integrating meditation in a larger health and well-being context – including Balanced Athlete, Journey Meditation, The Center for Health & Healing, and Om Births, among others. His new book “Awakening From the Daydream: Re-imagining The Buddha’s Wheel of Life”, will be released by Wisdom Publications on October 4, 2016. He has several online meditation workshops available through CreativeLive.com and a DVD/CD package OM YOGA & MEDITATION WORKSHOP, created in conjunction with yoga teacher Cyndi Lee. David Nichtern is also a well known composer, producer and guitarist – a four-time Emmy winner and a two-time Grammy nominee. He is the founder of Dharma Moon and 5 Points Records. David has recorded and played with Stevie Wonder, Jerry Garcia, Lana Del Rey, Maria Muldaur, Paul Simon and many others. Among his many credits in records, film and TV, David wrote the classic song “Midnight at the Oasis” and composed the score for Christopher Guest’s film “The Big Picture”. As the Beyman Bros, he collaborated with Guest and CJ Vanston on an album “Memories of Summer as a Child”, and has produced multiple records for Grammy nominated kirtan performer Krishna Das as well as touring frequently as guitarist with KD over the last 10 years. /episode/index/show/themindfulmusician/id/5331200

Ep. 16 Rising Stars in the Modern Music Business 09/19/2016

Ep. 15 What is The Mindful Musician Podcast? 07/15/2016

Ep. 14 The Jazz Pianist and The DJ (Part 2) Feat. Michael Cain 06/04/2016

Ep. 13 The Jazz Pianist and The DJ - Feat. Michael Cain (Part 1) 05/29/2016

Ep. 13(Preview) Michael Cain talks about Jazz and identity 04/09/2016

Ep. 12 The Whole Ball Game feat. Danny Goldberg 03/30/2016

Ep. 12 The Whole Ball Game feat. Danny Goldberg Danny Goldberg, President of GoldVE Entertainment (http://goldve.com), has worked in the music business as a personal manager, record company President, public relations man and journalist since the late nineteen sixties. GoldVE Entertainment was formed in July 2007 and marks the return to artist management for Goldberg. A complete roster of artists can be found here. Goldberg is also a consultant to the forthcoming HBO series “Vinyl”. From 1983-1992, Goldberg was the founder and President of Gold Mountain Entertainment, an artist management firm whose clients included Nirvana, Hole, Sonic Youth, Beastie Boys, Bonnie Raitt, The Allman Brothers, Rickie Lee Jones and more. Directly prior to the creation of GoldVE Entertainment, Goldberg had been the CEO of Air America Radio from 2005 until mid-2006. Goldberg formed the independent label Artemis Records in 1999 and ran the company until January of 2005. Prior to forming Artemis and prior to the acquisition of Polygram by Universal in 1998, Goldberg was Chairman and CEO of the Mercury Records Group, which was the number one U.S. label group in terms of market share in 1998. The Mercury Records Group included music from virtually all major genres; pop, R&B, hip-hop, country, jazz and rock and roll via its labels Def Jam, Mercury, Mercury Nashville, Motown, Verve, and Deutsche Gramophone, all of which reported to and were supervised by Goldberg. Prior to coming to Mercury, Goldberg was Chairman and CEO of Warner Bros. Records in 1995, during which time Warner Bros. was the number one U.S. record label. In 1993-94, he was President of Atlantic Records, also a division of the Warner Music Group, which likewise attained the number one ranking among U.S. companies during Goldberg’s tenure. Earlier in his career, Goldberg formed and co-owned Modern Records, which released Stevie Nicks’ solo albums including her number one album “Bella Donna.” Prior to that, Goldberg was Vice-President of Led Zeppelin’s Swan Song Records and worked with the band from 1973 through 1975. In 1980, Goldberg co-produced and co-directed the rock documentary feature, “No Nukes,” starring Bruce Springsteen, Bonnie Raitt, and Jackson Browne, among others. In 2004 he was the Executive Producer of the documentary about Steve Earle, “Just An American Boy.” He was Executive Producer of the multi-platinum soundtrack of music from the television series “Miami Vice” and was Music Supervisor on numerous feature films including “Dirty Dancing.” Goldberg began his career as a music journalist having written for, among others, Rolling Stone, The Village Voice, and Billboard Magazine (for whom he reviewed the Woodstock Festival in 1969). He is author of the books “How The Left Lost Teen Spirit” and “Bumping Into Geniuses: My Life Inside The Rock and Roll Business.” Danny is also Executive Producer of the “The Gits Movie.” He was Chair of the American Symphony Orchestra from 2008-2013 and is on the Board of Directors of The Nation Institute, The ACLU Foundation of Southern California, Americans for Peace Now, Brave New Films, The Greyston Foundation and Public Citizen. Goldberg is also a consultant to the forthcoming HBO series “Vinyl.” -------- The Featured song is "Can You Feel The Bern" by Matt Oestreicher (inspired by Bernie Sanders) link to video is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lrmup2t3bdo&feature=youtu.be /episode/index/show/themindfulmusician/id/5331206

Ep. 11 Bringing Classical Music To Life with Frederic Chiu 02/27/2016

Ep. 11 Bringing Classical Music To Life with Frederic Chiu Music in this podcast: Intro: Excerpt from Katyusha, Homage to D.Shostakivich - From the album Distant Voices by Frederich Chiu Interlude: Excerpt from Reflets dans l'eau (Reflections in the Water) - from the CD Distant Voices by Frederich Chiu Featured Piece: Sayyid Chant & Dance - Andante E Molto Cantabile Ed Espressivo - from the CD Hymns & Dervishes by Frederich Chiu Frederic Chiu's intriguing piano-playing and teaching springs from a diverse set of experiences and interests: his Asian/American/European background, his musical training, and an early and ongoing exploration of artificial intelligence and human psychology, especially the body-mind-heart connection. With over 20 CDs on the market, his repertoire includes the complete work of Prokofiev as well as popular classics of Chopin, Liszt and others, and lesser known masterpieces of Mendelssohn and Rossini, with a special place for the piano transcription. Many have been singled out, such as "Record of the Year" by Stereo Review, "Top 10 recordings" by the New Yorker, with raves from the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. His most recent recordings demonstrate his wide range: Beethoven/Liszt Symphony V, Carnival of the Animals with David Gonzalez, and Hymns and Dervishes, music by Gurdjieff/de Hartmann. (hymnsanddervishescd.com) A new recording on the Yamaha Entertainment Group label, released in 2015, is a long-awaited recording of the music of Debussy, along with world premieres of work by Chinese composer Gao Ping. This recording breaks new ground, introducing the first Classical recording to the YEG catalogue. The performance will be released in Audio CD, DVD and DisklavierTV formats. Frederic Chiu has toured in Europe and the US with the Orchestre de Bretagne and Stefan Sanderling. He has played with the Hartford Symphony, Dayton Philharmonic, Kansas City Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony, BBC Scottish Symphony, BBC Concert Orchestra, Estonia National Symphony, China National Symphony, the FOSJE Orquesta in Ecuador, among others. In recital he performs in the world's most prestigious halls including the Berlin Philharmonic, Kioi and Suntory Halls in Tokyo, Lincoln Center in New York and Kennedy Center in Washington DC. Mr. Chiu's musical partners include Joshua Bell, Pierre Amoyal, Elmar Oliveira, Gary Hoffman, David Krakauer, Matt Haimovitz and the St. Lawrence, Shanghai and Daedalus string quartets. Frederic Chiu recently premiered Edgar Meyer’s Concert Piece with Joshua Bell. He has worked with many composers, including George Crumb, Frederick Rzewsky, Bright Sheng, Gao Ping and David Benoit. He was the recipient of the Avery Fisher Career Grant, the Petscheck Award of the Juilliard School, and was a fellow of the American Pianist Association. He was also the "non-winner" of the 1993 Van Cliburn Competition, where his elimination from the finals caused an uproar in the press. Frederic Chiu is also committed to expanding the place of classical music. He has created unusual collaborations with personalities outside the world of Classical music, such as the Shakespearean actor Brian Bedford and psychologist/writer/clown Howard Buten. He worked with the hip-hop artist Socalled in the Messiaen Remix project. He does extensive work with children through concert/lectures for schools, and has brought classical music to places where it is rarely heard. Currently, he is performing with David Gonzalez in the classics Peter and the Wolf and Carnival of the Animals, transcribed for solo piano and narrator. He is also running a multi-year project called Classical Smackdown, in which audiences vote for their favorite composers (ClassicalSmackdown.com) Deeper Piano Studies, Frederic Chiu’s innovative workshop program, brings together pianists from around the world to study aspects of piano playing usually left uncovered. Articles in Piano Today and the New York Times have featured his original approach to learning and performing that draws on ancient traditions of philosophy and meditation combined with the most recent discoveries in psychology and acoustic sciences, using non-traditional techniques such as cooking and learning without using the instrument. Frederic Chiu has been invited to many prestigious music schools and conservatories to present his DPS program, including the Juilliard School, New England Conservatory, Mannes College, The Banff Centre, Cornell University, Indiana University’s Jacob Music School, and major conservatories in China: Beijing, Shanghai, Sichuan, Shenyand and Wuhan. He has been guest artist at many state and national Teachers’ Conferences. After 12 years spent in France, Frederic Chiu returned to the United States, where any free time he can find is divided between writing, painting and cooking. He also co-directs artistic activities at Beechwood Arts, an arts immersion non-profit in Connecticut. /episode/index/show/themindfulmusician/id/5331208

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