Teacher
Teaching style | My Story | The Taubman Approach | The Golandsky Institute
Testimonials from Brenna Berman's private students
Healthy Movement Training for Computer Users and More
MY STORY ~ Piano Injury, Recovery and Discovery
I began playing the piano at the age of five, picking out the notes of pieces that my father and mother played. By the age of seven, I began formal lessons. Quickly I began performing, and soon after that, competing. During junior high and high school, I was competing regularly, winning many high honors from respected state-wide and regional competitions. However, I was hurting. I began feeling tired and experiencing dull aches in my forearms as early as age thirteen. Unfortunately, my teacher at the time was unable to solve my problems. I switched teachers at fifteen, and although my new teacher had healthier ideas regarding piano technique, she was also unable to cure my ever-increasing pain.
My mother, also a pianist, had been exposed to the Taubman Approach when she attended The Taubman Institute in the 1980s. This seemed like a worthwhile and promising approach, so I decided to attend Oberlin Conservatory and study with a teacher who was referred to as a Taubman Teacher. During my first few months with him, I did some retraining of my technique and, although I felt improvements, my problems did not go away.
Injury
By my junior year at Oberlin, I was experiencing regular pain, numbness and tingling in my forearm, both on top and underneath, up and down my 5th finger, and along the outside of the forearm (symptoms of tendonitis), as well as an excruciatingly painful carpal tunnel syndrome in my right hand. With severe pain every time I gripped something, anything from a door knob to a piece of paper, my right hand was completely out of comission. I could not play piano, I could not write, I could not brush or even touch my hair with my right hand. Soon after, I developed carpal tunnel syndrome in my left hand as well, probably due somewhat to overuse after losing the use of my right hand..
At first, I did what most pianists do when they get injured - I wore a brace, I saw doctors, I resisted playing, and I waited. I was afraid I wouldn't play again. After a few months, the pain had subsided to a level where I could begin to play. I still had pain, and I regularly would ice my arm after practice sessions. However, I was able to perform my senior recital and graduate. I then moved on to graduate school at the University of Houston Moores School of Music, but life at the Moores School of Music did not improve.
Taking Action and Finding New Hope
My pain was still present, and my hands had begun to feel slow and non-responsive. Seemingly simple music suddenly felt impossible, and I worried that I was getting close to the end of my playing career if I didn't make a drastic change soon. That is when I decided to reinvestigate the Taubman Approach.
Even though I had had only modest benefits from the Taubman Approach previously, I felt there was no other viable alternative. This time, however, I went right to the source. I went to see Edna Golandsky, currently the most prominent teacher of the Taubman Approach, and Bob Durso, a similarly qualified Taubman Instructor. I flew to the East Coast to take lessons from each of these highly esteemed teachers, and, after just a few lessons, I felt my life was given new hope.
It was immediately clear that what I had previously learned of this approach at Oberlin was limited and at times inaccurate, and that my former teacher did not have enough training or understanding of the Taubman Approach to relay the intricacies of its movements to me. After these few lessons with Ms. Golandsky and Mr. Durso, I was able to play a scale with ease, and I knew instantly that this was a body of information that I needed to learn. To save me from losing my ability to play piano, I dropped out of my program at Moores School of Music and moved across the country to Philadelphia to study with Bob Durso. It turned out to be the best decision of my life.
The Result
Now, years later, I am a changed pianist and teacher. I practice four hours a day and perform regularly, and have absolutely no pain. I am capable of expressing myself at the keyboard in ways I had previously only dreamed of, and I am able to solve technical passagework which previously would have seemed impossible. The Taubman technique itself is perpetually evolving, and I continue to study with Bob Durso, as it is a neverending learning process. It is exciting to be part of this quest for superior piano technique. It is even more exciting that I can now pass it on to others. After many years of teacher training involving workshops, seminars, and having my students observed by my mentors, I have become an Adjunct Faculty member of The Golandsky Institute, Certified in teaching the Taubman Approach at the Associate level. I also lead my own Technique Workshops bi-annually. It is my goal to provide my students with the information and tools to develop an excellent piano technique, and subsequently show them how to use those tools to enable musical expression. It is also my responsibility to provide my students with a pain-free, natural, safe way of playing so they can remain injury-free and concentrate on the enjoyment of making music.
