Movement Snack: Welding the Breath

By Katie O'Rourke | 18 min tutorial

This movement tutorial will guide you through gentle movements of breathing while pressing into the floor. This not only improves awareness of your breath, but calms the nervous system and creates a more responsive torso.

What should the torso be responding to? Well, musicians make many, many micro adjustments as they play and each adjustment must proportionally connect through the spine, ribs, hips etc.

Or in other words, all body parts need to move together in harmony, even if those movements are teeny tiny.

Movement Snack: Seated Spirals

By Katie O'Rourke | 21 min tutorial

Let’s be real—“sit up straight” was never going to do the trick! When we try to hold ourselves in a “better” posture, staying stuck in a static position, we rob ourselves of all of the many micro movements that are necessary to coordinate playing our instrument.

All aspects of spinal movement from flexion (rounding), extension (arching) to rotation and the rest are relevant. This particular movement tutorial is all about practicing rotation while also working on body awareness, slowing down, and thinking creatively about movement.

Movement Snack: Flowing Forearms

Melt the tension from your hands and arms in this short 23 minute movement exploration!

I will never forget the first time I did this lesson. For context, there was a time I couldn’t lift my arms above my head and everything from my shoulders down were as stiff as a board. Despite the immense difficulty I faced, I never felt discouraged, and that is exactly why this approach was so effective for me. Comfort and curiosity = better learning!

A “movement snack” or “movement lesson” is a sort of tutorial on posture where you will be guided to try out new movements, learning to deeply sense their efficacy for yourself.