Byron Duckwall spent over 20 years mastering these extraordinary techniques and has taught them to adults and kids alike at places like Juilliard, Mannes, Bard College, The Dounis School NYC and privately.
Some of the principles include…
- How to re-awaken of your native instincts
- How to develop a natural bow hold
- How to achieve a ringing tone with leverage rather than brute strength
- Why feeling everything in the hands and fingers is key
- The difference between fast and slow technique
- Why the vibrato is the basis of the left hand technique
- The Dounis formula for “Anxiety-Free” playing
- Cultivating expressiveness through the “inner voice”
- How to get the most out of your practice time
- Why Bach is so difficult technically and how to overcome it
- Grouping theory and the secrets of fast playing
Reading is taught usually after the student has studied for a year or two, but not before 7 or 8 years old. Adults and older children can begin learning this skill simultaneously to learning the instrument. It is not a difficult skill to learn and just requires over familiarity over time.
The Dounis School emphasizes performing as the basis of playing, not practicing. Obviously both practicing and performing are necessary, but too often players only practice, which involves a lot of mental concentration on technique and phrasing. This is fine as a part of a regime to improve playing, but performing requires NO thoughts of technique but solely concentration on the “inner voice” or "musical mind” while not trying to fix anything.
This has to be developed otherwise when the student try to perform, it is a completely unfamiliar situation and can throw them off. The basis of their playing therefore needs to be just playing with full expression. Then the performing situation becomes familiar and "performance anxiety" is eliminated.
