Munich VII will run for four full days, Wednesday November 19 to Saturday November 22, with a separate workshop at the Christian Graf private studio held on Sunday. We look forward to seeing you at this institute held in the beer capital of Europe. Register for our newsletter to receive logistical updates.
This Piano Somatics Institute takes place in the beautiful facilities of the Artetonal Schule für Musik. There are many comfortable practice rooms on site. The school's director, Antonio Estupiñán is a luthier as well as guitar teacher - a true Renaissance man.
Institute participants tend to fall into two main groups: gifted amateurs who want to upgrade their skills, and young students on professional track who, although they are already playing at a very high level, feel that there is more possible and are there to find out what that is. The two groups feed each other - everyone learns from the other lessons - we discover just how much we have in common!
INSTITUTE LESSON RECORDINGS
All lessons are recorded on video (unless the participant requests otherwise), and are stored in the Institute video library at pianotechniqe.org. There is a small subscription fee for this service, separate from the institute registration fee, but it is well worth it. Every lesson is packed full of information and experience, and it is in the review process that participants often report their greatest progress, their most impressive breakthroughs. Subscribers also have access to tutorial series curated especially for pianotechnique.org, and to their own personal libraries where all their lesson videos are gathered in one convenient place - making the review process even more rewarding. Participants receive instructions by email following the institute for video access to their lessons, ATMs and ATPMs.
Are you hesitant to attend? Feel you are not advanced enough? Not well-enough prepared? Don't worry; Alan welcomes all, no matter what your ability, no matter what the state of your program. The Institute really is open to all interested pianists:
Alan Fraser works extensively with string players, exploring the physical details of their posture while they play to transform their sound and their sense of ease. Though many string players have excellent posture, the quality of movement within the posture can often be improved.
String players are welcome at this institute, as are wind instrumentalists and vocalists. For more information visit our page on Alan's work with instrumentalists and vocalists. Your sonority, your agility, and your sense of ease and freedom from tension will improve dramatically with Alan's Performance Somatics approach. There is no limit to improvement!
The Christian Graf studio event on Sunday is especially structured for the young pianist, addressing how Piano Somatics quickly helps resolve long-standing technical impediments to advancement. On Christians's magnificent Steinway D, it quickly becomes obvious just how healthy hand structure and function can open the voice of the piano in a whole new way. Bring your child along to this event if you cannot attend our regular institute. Teaching on Christian Graf's Concert Steinway D
The institute is a mixture of piano lessons, Feldenkrais lessons and Awareness Through Piano Movement lessons bringing the Piano Somatics practices to the participants' hands. On Wednesday morning we come together over coffee to meet each other and discuss our goals for the week - coffee and donuts at 8:30, opening session at 9.
Although the full institute runs for 4 days, partial attendance is completely acceptable. Even if you attend the full four days, you are not obliged to take four lessons. You can tailor-make your participation to your own needs. See the registration procedure for details.
In the seminar-ATPM format, Alan begins by lecturing on a topic, then fields some questions about the material, and then creates an Awareness Through Piano Movement lesson that grows out of that lecture's focus.
You can attend the entire day but of course you are also free to take a break from watching the lessons, to rest, or to do a little bit of practicing.
This schedule may be subject to modification depending on the size and the needs of the group.
The question period in each seminar is a chance to take the discussion in a whole new direction. For instance, the conversation could veer towards one of the topics below that was covered in a past institute. Which of these topics is of special concern to you? Make note of it, and make sure you bring it up with Alan in a seminar.
The Music School is located at Linprunstraße 35 / Rgb D–80335 München Telephone: +41 89 / 12 00 12 02, due south of the Olympic Stadium and due west of the English Garden, Munich's central park. Take the Subway Line 1 one stop from the Main Train Station to Stigmaierplatz, then walk 5 minutes.
There are plenty of hotels in the area, and we also recommend airbnb.
No shortage of excellent restaurants in Munich. We generally eat at the incomparable Trattoria San Benno, only a two-minute walk from the school.
Click on your preferred option below to pay by credit card at our secure retail partner, Stripe.com.
COMBINING ACTIVE AND PASSIVE DAYS
To combine active and passive registrations, hit the back button on your browser to add another purchase item to the same payment procedure. For instance, if you want to attend for four days but only have two individual lessons, purchase two Active Participant days and two Passive Participant days for a total of four.
At completion of your registration, please return here to fill out the PARTICIPANT QUESTIONNAIRE, indicating which days you will be attending the Munich Institute.
Discounts
Artetonal Schule für Musik students and staff are welcome to audit the institute free of charge, and receive a 50% discount to take an active individual lesson. There are also discounts for senior citizens, students up to 25 years of age, and those in reduced financial circumstances.
To receive your discount, purchase your registration at the full price and then contact Ivona Despotovich, letting her know your status. You will receive the appropriate refund on your initial payment.
After registering, please return here to fill out the REGISTRATION QUESTIONNAIRE.
After you have completed your institute, please come back to fill out this FOLLOWUP QUESTIONNAIRE. This helps us evaluate your experience, tailor your ongoing regime to facilitate further progress, and fine-tune the structure of future institutes to better meet participants' needs.
ALAN FRASER Canadian pianist Alan Fraser gives master classes and recitals worldwide and conducts ongoing research and refinement on the ideas put forth in his books:
MARIO DE LA VEGA
This institute is organized by Mario de la Vega, a longtime student of Alan who has completed a Feldenkrais Practitioner professional training program as well as his Piano Somatics Practitioner Certification. hails from Madrid, but has lived in Germany for many years. He teaches piano at the Artetonal Schule für Musik, and has been attending the Alan Fraser Piano Institute since 2014.
For questions about the Institute, please email Mario
Cancellation Policy
If you must cancel your registration, reimbursement will be as follows: Cancellations more than two months before Institute opening date: 100% reimbursement. Cancellations more than one month before Institute opening date: 75% reimbursement. Cancellations more than two weeks before Institute opening date: 50% reimbursement. Cancellations more than one week before Institute opening date: 25% reimbursement. Cancellations less than one week before Institute opening date: no reimbursement except in cases of doctor-certified illness or acts of God. We reserve the right to cancel the institute due to insufficient enrolment; in this event, all registration fees are fully refundable.
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