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Invitation:

Ki-Aikido help us to find ways of being relaxed in the most powerful way. In Ki-Aikido we start out with the relation to the violent opponent in the martial art,

but this can be transfered to everyday relations in life, and to music, creating positive relationships between performer, instrument, music and audience.

The choice of Ki-Aikido is not meant to omit other forms of external inspiration to your percussion playing.

The world has so many different ideas and philosophies that can become a background for your way of interpreting music. 

The method works for students and teaches alike and even suggests ideas to communicate some thoughts on music and technique.

The exercises develops both the mind and body while playing which is of great importance for the ability to create a free artistic expression.

I have chosen to apply the methods on 4-mallet Stevens/Musser grip in these videos, but the approach is equally effective on other grips and on other percussion instruments.

I have developed the exercises during my artistic research project ”Neu erhörte Klänge” (2016-2018) which included an intervention study based on students from Juilliard School of Music, Conservatorium van Amsterdam and Tampere Academy of Music. The study showed a significant improvement when taught with Ki-Aikido principles compared to a basic music approach. (See: Artistic Research)

Themes in the videos: Connection to the instrument, Wrist, Arms, "The Non-Moveable Hand", Centering, Warm Up and Taiso

Exercises where I am playing the instrument is marked with #

CONNECTION TO THE INSTRUMENT

Grip

Using Ki test and ”the good handshake”

Tactile reference (explored in Stevens/Musser grip)

 

Fulcrum points (points the stick can pivot around)

Exercises with Jo

Exercises with sword

Connections to creating a fulcrumpoint with mallets

Finger fulcrum in Musser/Stevens grip #

Wrist:

Exercise for augmentet inner mallet preparetion (Kotegashi)

Exercise for augmentet outer mallet preparetion (Nikio)

Trill exercise #

1-handed scale #

 

Jo turning movement – turning the wrist with a clear forward direction

Thirds and 1-hand scales #

One hand arpeggio #

Arms:

Applying up and down movement in a natural round arm movement

4 different movements for larger jumps #

Move between lines instead of points using sword technique

Moving between lines in marimba exercises developed from Buster Bailey’s Wrist Twisters # 

The Non-movable hand

A mental approach to connect to the instruments by pointing in a natural way.

”Point and shoot” #

CENTERING

One Point

Keep One Point when moving #

 

Breathing in percussion playing

Different ways of connecting breathing with the playing and phrases.

 

Peripheral vision applied to marimba playing

Ninja Training, a training method by optometrist Maria Beaddle

How to use your eyes at the marimba.

Sight Reading

Peripheral Paragliders (Exercise covering the whole marimba by using peripheral vision) #

 

Unification of Body and Mind

The body stops where the mind is

WARM-UP

Exercises for daily Ki-Aikido warm-up in my artistic research project Neu Erhörte Klänge

 

Ki-Breathing with moving arms and peripheral vision

My essential exercise for applying Ki-Aikido before my normal practise routine.

 

Taiso Exercise for general warmup of body and arms

Online lessons:

"electrified rhythms and magic with held back excitement"  Danish National Newspaper POLITIKEN 

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