The Mindful Pianist: Focus, Practice, Perform, Engage (Piano Professionial)

This book is a must-have for all pianists who love their instrument and have a desire to reach beyond notes to a more thoughtful plane. As the title suggests, it offers a holistic approach and is full of wisdom and insight into the processes involved in not just playing the piano but thinking about music generally. It's peppered with characteristic witty remarks and practical suggestions in regard to memorising, improvising, getting the most out of a score and just enjoying the experience of sitting at a piano and 'noodling'. Alongside this is a positive, encouraging directive to help pianists avoid negative thoughts and bad habits, and to make the most of practice time. Also easy to read, which can't be said about all the piano books I've read.

Excellent book... insightful, thought-provoking, witty and of immense value... packed full of useful tips and interesting anecdotes written in a straightforward, no-nonsense but entertaining style. Well worth reading... and re-reading whenever you find yourself straying off the mindful path!

There is obvious value in applying mindfulness to music making (and listening). Thus the idea of this book makes perfect sense: a guide which would remove the need for pianists to start from first principles and work out for themselves how to do this. Sadly this book is not that guide. The author exhibits little knowledge of mindfulness (in the technical sense of the word), let alone how a pianist might apply it. It is a rag bag of tip and hints (some more valuable than others) which have little or nothing to do with mindfulness, interspersed with various musings and an awful lot of waffle.

Full of excellent ideas to make you think about your practice. My practice time is definitely limited so it's great to have good suggestions on how to use it to greatest effect.

Readable and entertaining essential addition to any pianist's bookshelf. Lots of amusing anecdotes alongside thought provoking tips that would interest pianists of all standards.

Tends to explain common sense approaches in jargon but otherwise fine

This is a great book-it's well laid out, with many useful sections on playing, practising and performing. It is written in a very accessible way and is enjoyable as well as helpful to read.

A thoughtfully constructed work aimed at anyone seriously interested in furthering their pianistic understanding and ability. Broken down into agreeably sized and logically connected bites allowing for quiet contemplation and reflection, the author gets his message across in an inspiring and encouraging manner. A very worthwhile addition to my book shelves, and one I will continue to dip into and enjoy. Thoroughly recommend it.