MUSICIANS´ HEALTH
Laying the foundations for a long and happy career
Practical tools and treatments that help you thrive as a musician.
MY VISION
Knowledge gives power
Being a musician is a physical as well as mental and emotional endeavor. Enrich your relationship with your music and playing by getting the support and knowledge you need.
Timani
Learn the method embraced by top musicians like Leif Ove Andsnes!
Timani is a method and a movement system designed by musicians for musicians. It provides an analytical tool to recognize playing-related compensatory movement patterns in musicians, and uses science-based knowledge of anatomy, physiology and movement analysis to change these into more sustainable, efficient, healthy, and practical options for movement during playing and singing.
This is done using practical exercises which targets specific parts of the body.
Connective tissue massage for musicians
Myofacial Energetic Release (MER)
MER is a deep-tissue bodywork technique which targets the Fascia, a part of the connective tissue system of the body specifically important in relation to movement, pain and strain injuries.
I offer bodywork sessions specifically designed for musicians, both working with playing-related pain, strains or injuries or to help you access more of your musical potential during playing/singing.
"This was THE most amazing massage I have ever had! Miriam is so sensitive and really listened and sensed how my body would respond the best! My ribcage has never felt so flexible and open! Revelating!"
-Mikkel Fjeld, opera singer
Somatic coaching
Somatic coaching is a form of body-centered coaching which looks at the connections between mind and body, and, based on this knowledge, uses simple tools like breath work, movement, mental exercises, interoception and applied focus to help you navigate stressful challenges, like
- Stage fright or performance anxiety
- chronic pain.
- symptoms of long term physical and emotional stress.
- Stress from experiencing long term strain injuries.
- If you have tried out different mental approaches to solving issues in your life and want to go beyond talking and consptualizing in order to heal.
Performance preparation
Efficient mental and physical health hacks for musicians. Get accessible tools for performance, practise and rehearsals alongside knowledge of how your mind and your body interplays during stressful or challenging situations and how to work with this in an efficient way.
Tools for performance preparation can also be taught in a timani session depending on what issues you want to address and get help with.
Book a timani session where we work with mind, body and music
Mind - Body - Music
If you have decided on a life with music chances are playing and music means a lot to you. Sometimes the concept of doing what we love is presented as the thing which removes all obstacles from our life. If we do what we love we will not experience pain, discomfort, injury or encounter any other obstacle. If indeed we are experiencing any of this, it is a sign that we were not cut out for this business in the first place, or that we are not applying ourselves hard enough, or practicing for long enough hours.
But music is a physical occupation with its own set of physical, mental and social demands. Demands which needs to be met with knowledge and practical solutions, not ignorance, simplifications or shaming.
Traditional music education and the musical profession is a physical profession like sports, dance and theatre, and comes with a set of risk factors pertaining to both physical and mental health, - risk factors which are very real.
Today increased knowledge of the risk factors associated with a career in music combined with new research into the physical and mental health situation of musicians has resulted in more knowledge and useful resources and tools available. It is now recognized that musicians, like anyone studying a high-performing physical occupation, need to take the risk factors of their trade seriously.
A top athlete runner knows the demands of the trade. When training for a marathon the goal is approached through meticulous training and science-based strategies, not simply by running a lot. In the same way a music student working towards a career as a musician needs to develop both the muscular and the neurological coordination needed to master the instrument. He or she also need to develop mental and physical resilience and strategies to deal with the physical, mental, social and practical demands of the occupation, like long hours alone in rehearsal studios, sudden peaks of increased workloads, pain from excessive practice or strain injuries, late work hours, frequent and stressful travels, stress related to being frequently judged and compared and so on.
As a musician I have experienced first-hand how detrimental a playing-related strain injury can be, and how strenuous the search for help. The resources on this page are resources which I would have wanted for myself (For more on my experiences with navigating strain injuries through a traditional musical education read this interview)
My credentials include:
Certified Timani Teacher - 3-year certification. Musician´s Health and Movement Institute where I currently work as a teacher.
Myofascial Energetic Release (MER) Certified bodywork training (350 hours.)
Certified personal trainer, Restorative Exercise Specialist (200+ hours). The Nutritious Movement Center, Ventura, USA
Bachelor of Music Performance and Master of Music/ Applied Music Science from The Norwegian Academy of Music, Oslo
Moving Fascia Foundations - 6 weeks online course in fascial anatomy for movement trainers. Evolve Movement Education
Hands-on dissection course. 5 days intensive. The School of medicine, Katowice. Functional Fascia
Certified Mind Detox Practitioner. The Mind Detox Academy
20+ years of exploration, commitment and self-development through the interplay of music and mental and physical health.